Faculty Profile

Sarah Kersh

(she/her/hers)Assistant Professor of English (2014)

Contact Information

kershs@dickinson.edu

East College Room 413
717-254-8952
http://sarahkersh.com

Bio

Professor Kersh teaches courses on Victorian literature and culture, queer studies, and digital humanities. Her current research focuses on nineteenth-century sonnet sequences and queer temporalities.

Education

  • B.A., Muhlenberg College, 2003
  • M.A., Vanderbilt University, 2006
  • Ph.D., 2010

2024-2025 Academic Year

Fall 2024

FYSM 100 First-Year Seminar
The First-Year Seminar (FYS) introduces students to Dickinson as a "community of inquiry" by developing habits of mind essential to liberal learning. Through the study of a compelling issue or broad topic chosen by their faculty member, students will: - Critically analyze information and ideas - Examine issues from multiple perspectives - Discuss, debate and defend ideas, including one's own views, with clarity and reason - Develop discernment, facility and ethical responsibility in using information, and - Create clear academic writing The small group seminar format of this course promotes discussion and interaction among students and their professor. In addition, the professor serves as students' initial academic advisor. This course does not duplicate in content any other course in the curriculum and may not be used to fulfill any other graduation requirement.

ENGL 403 Questions/Methods of Lit Schol
Permission of Instructor Required. This class will prepare students for writing a senior thesis by exploring some central questions of literary scholarship. Our class will begin with various analyses of a single novel, using this focus to exemplify possibilities in framing and investigating a scholarly question. Meanwhile, students will pursue a series of independent projects that test different parts of the research process for other primary texts of their own choosing.