The Department of English provides students a stimulating undergraduate major or minor developed in consultation with faculty advisors. Students may select a major emphasis in literature or in writing, as well as courses leading to secondary education licensure (SELA). Minors in literature, creative writing, journalism, professional and multimedia writing, rhetoric and theory, and open, are complementary options for other fields of study.

Mission

The Department of English aims to enhance the literacy of Elmhurst University students by maximizing their opportunities for creative and critical inquiry and interpretation through reading, writing, and literary analysis. There are two fundamental aspects to the implementation of this mission: 1. Participation in the University’s Integrated Curriculum program 2. Offering an English major and minor, with opportunities for emphasis in literature or writing and for licensure in secondary education

Student Learning Objectives

• Understanding of the nature and uses of language in light of audience and purpose

• Development of evidence-based arguments

• Creative and critical response to literature in light of cultural values and literary history

• Critical reflection on the relationship between theory, research, and practice

Student Learning Outcomes

• Students will be able to identify literary techniques and creative uses of language in literary texts.

• Students will be able to adapt their texts to particular audiences and purposes.

• Students will be able to articulate a thesis and present evidence to support it.

• Students will be able to find, evaluate, and use appropriate bibliographic materials in their texts.

• Students will be able to explain the relevance of themes found in literary texts to contemporary, personal, and cultural values.

• Students will be able to identify genres, conventions, and period-specific discourses and their relevance to broader historical forces.

• Students will be able to describe their own writing practices and how they have evolved.

• Students will be able to apply relevant theoretical concepts to literary or other texts and practices.

Chair: Nicholas Behm

Faculty: Chair; Bridget O’Rourke, Writing Program Director, Dianne Chambers, Ann Frank Wake, Janice Tuck Lively, Erika McCombs, Mary Kay Mulvaney, Samuel Rush, Natasha Strother-Potvin, Ron Wiginton