English

Eulalia Books Literary Translation Press

"Interning for Eulalia Books has provided an incredible venue for learning the often overwhelming facets of publishing as a student. Working with familiar faces from Saint Vincent, I am able to learn the ropes of media, marketing and communications in a safe, educational environment. 

- Mallory Truckenmiller, '19

"Interning for Eulalia Books as an undergraduate student has been a dream come true.  For those who want to become involved in small press publishing, Eulalia is conveniently on campus and offers so many opportunities to use editing, writing, marketing and design skills alongside talented and passionate  professionals in the field." 

- Bridget Fertal, '19

About Eulalia 

Students who work with Eulalia Books will learn about manuscript acquisitions, editing and literary marketing by working closely with Saint Vincent’s new literary translation press, developed in coordination with the literary translation minor. Eulalia Books publishes two full length books of modern and contemporary international poetry in translation every year, in addition to letterpress chapbooks and broadsides. Students begin by taking the new Small Press Publishing course, and then may continue to intern with the press for academic credit.  

Click here to visit the Eulalia Books website.
  

Eulalia's first book was a translation of Eco Del Parque by Argentine poet, Romina Freschi, translated by Jeannine Pitas.

Exceptional Alumni

The following Saint Vincent College English Alumni have gone on to exciting, interesting, and diverse careers after they graduated. Whether you wish to pursue teaching, law, publishing, or writing, the English Department will prepare you for any career path that you might choose and work with you to make your dreams a reality. 

I recently was accepted to The College of William and Mary's Computer Science doctorate program! I'll be teaching and studying the insides, outsides, and communication networks of computers for the next 3 to 5 years! 

I am lucky enough to have received some very substantial scholarships and a teaching aide position so I'm not going to have to pay much (or really anything) for school. It's a sweet deal and I can't express how excited and honored I am to be accepted to such a prestigious school. This summer I'll be attending concerts, reading as many books as I can get my hand on, and working as a full-time software engineer for Iron Bridge Integration!

On the English side of my two majors, I was recently published in Pittsburgh Craft magazine and have continued to write for Sunken Treasures Music Blog. I hope to continue writing about beer, music, and movies because, really, can I have a bigger dream job? And now that people are actually paying me, there's no reason to stop!

I absolutely believe that my English major helped me get where I am going. SVC gave me the best possible nerd to "normal person" translating skills; I know that my ability to explain complex computer science concepts in simple terms is a major advantage. Additionally, my training in English has given me some great opportunities in non-computer science areas. My time writing for The Review gave me the journalistic experience I use everyday for Sunken Treasures and my other music writings. I know that my articles, which have been spotlighted by The Flaming Lips, Gotham Publishing, and Grave Mistake Records, are chosen because of the eloquence, creativity, and technical skills stressed by the English program. My journalistic experience opened the door to my publications with Pittsburgh Craft magazine, writing as the London AIFS Student Blogger ( http://blog.aifsabroad.com/author/gruntbladegmail-com/ ) when I studied overseas (as well as my publication for the AIFS official blog ( http://blog.aifsabroad.com/2013/05/23/a-very-rock-and-roll-tour-of-london/ ). It's amazing how much I've had published in the few years I've been here and I cannot express how thankful I am for everything I learned and was given by the department. Not many students, no matter what the school, can say their copy was published as a cover story for a magazine that has a distribution in one of the major cities of the US!

I'd love to pass along Sunken Treasures Music Blog where I write as Marco Esquandolas ( http://sunkentreasuresmusic.com/ ) and mention all the achievements of the Coverlet Concert Series to bring major Pittsburgh bands to SVC for free. It's the perfect cross of my organizing, music love, and time as a writer for Sunken! And, in my opinion, is the coolest thing that has happened on this campus. 

After I graduate this May, I will jet off to France for the next year. I was accepted as a scholarship student at the International College in Cannes, which is on the beach in the South of France. At the college, I will work for about twenty hours a week in the library in order to compensate for daily French language courses, meals, and lodging for three months. I was also accepted into the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF), which is sponsored by the French Ministry of Education. At the end of September, I will start a job teaching English at the secondary level in the Academy of Créteil, a region in the suburbs of Paris. Also during the fall, I plan to start my applications for graduate school. I would like to pursue a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, and my long-term goal is to become a college professor.

Pursuing an English major has definitely helped me achieve my immediate plans for after graduation. The Teaching Assistantship Program in France is very competitive and I know that my major in English greatly enhanced my application. Obviously, learning proper grammar rules is fundamental to teaching English as a foreign language; however, the English major encompasses much more. During my time at St. Vincent, the English Professors aided me in becoming a more confident public speaker, a more inquisitive reader, and a more skillful writer. My English major has also allowed me to cross cultural barriers and explore the world. As an undergrad, I was fortunate enough to study abroad in both France and Russia and to study each county’s respective national literature. Ultimately, my major in English has effectively prepared me to reach all of my life goals and has opened up the world to me for exploration.

When I graduated from Saint Vincent College in 2014, I wrote a short blurb—similar to the this one—extolling the virtues of the English Department. Therein, I (perhaps arrogantly) proclaimed: “I am exceedingly confident that my English major was instrumental in my success up to this point and will be invaluable to all of my future achievements.” My confidence was not misplaced.

Since the culmination of my studies at Saint Vincent, I graduated second in my class at the Penn State Dickinson School of Law, served as the Managing Editor of the Penn State Law Review, completed a federal judicial clerkship with the Honorable Kim R. Gibson of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and began a position as a litigation associate at Meyer, Unkovic & Scott LLP in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In all of these capacities, I have found success in large part due to my ability to conduct thorough research, communicate effectively, and produce work that withstood close scrutiny. The English Department faculty at Saint Vincent provide students with the unique opportunity to develop those skills.

Throughout law school and the early stages of my career, I have encountered many intelligent and hardworking people. However, few of my colleagues had the unique opportunity of consistently receiving meaningful feedback and being held personally accountable for producing high quality work on a regular basis. The English Department does just that.

The personal attention that the English Department offers is no small or common thing. It requires a remarkable faculty that sacrifices their time and dedicates their talents to challenging their students on a personal and intellectual level. None of my colleagues had Dr. Snyder empty the contents of a red pen on their essays, Dr. McDaniel challenge some of their fundamental preconceptions about the nature of language and creative expression, Ms. Gil-Montero challenge them to express themselves in new ways, Dr. Lindey lead a class discussion that somehow inspires every student to meaningfully contribute, or Father Wulfstan give his guttural Gollum impression. 

My experience as an English major broadened my horizons through exposure to fascinating new varieties of prose, poetry, and music while simultaneously honing my skills as a writer, researcher, and thinker. These foundational skills certainly helped me to attain academic and (at least initial) career success after leaving Saint Vincent. Yet, more importantly, being an English major at Saint Vincent enabled me to relax at the end of the day by reading a good (or bad) book with perspective that I otherwise would have lacked, to meaningfully munch on popcorn through a movie, to appreciate music outside of my usual genre and artist preferences, and to engage in thoughtful open-minded conversations with colleagues. In short, my English major has enriched my life in countless little ways that amount to something big.

Super Students

Morgan Stout

I find that both the English and Education departments here at SVC are second to none. Both of the departments provide students with ample opportunities for success not only academically but in their future endeavors. In particular, SVC affords their education students with the opportunity to pre-student teach as a preparation for their required student teaching. I love working with the middle-school students during my pre-student teaching experience so far. I find that it is important to instill a love of reading and to create a firm foundation for literacy at a young age. I wish to teach my students that literacy is a necessary skill that will affect their performance in both school and in life. The middle-school education curriculum incorporates such reading and literacy skills as text-based citations, word roots construction, and how to properly execute grammatical devices. I find that my Literary Criticism II class helped me to understand a multitude of critical concepts that adds a new level contemplation during reading. I wish to incorporate more of these literary critical theories into the middle-school curriculum so that my students can be better prepared for high school and college English classes.

Connor Chywski

I have had the exciting experience of being a part of the English and Secondary Education departments for nearly three years.  During this time, I have encountered magnificent professors who show such genuine care and concern.  The small class size combined with these highly qualified and experienced individuals makes for a superb education experience through which essential skills are learned.  The education department has been instrumental in placing students in the field and making our faces familiar sights within many districts.  Additionally, my advisors have been an invaluable resource in getting through the many challenges of meeting mandated state standards and qualifications.  The English department has broadened my mind and sharpened my skills in my chosen content area.  The rigor of the writing courses and multiplicity of literature at my disposal has advanced my understanding and offered a wide range of skills.  Furthermore, the English department curriculum allows for many concentrations and flexibility in scheduling classes. Within the English and Education departments, students have the opportunities to take part in academic conferences as well as join honors societies, which are helpful in opening doors in the future.  Both departments have been instrumental in creating an atmosphere wherein students may learn and access the essential skills needed for their chosen fields. 

Christina Morgal
For the past three years, I have had the exhilarating experience to be a part of the English Department here at Saint Vincent. My professors have encouraged and inspired me to become a better writer and literary scholar through their course lessons and essay prompts as well as their attention to fostering our skills as English majors. The Department utilizes the small class sizes to host in-depth discussions of the novels and authors that we study in class and to provide personal insight to students work and research. I recently added a double major in Communication and the transition has been seamless due to the overlapping of topics and techniques explored by both departments. These departments allow me to develop writing skills for literary analyses, journal articles, and press and public relations releases. The English Department also offers students work-study positions that allow them to apply their skills to a multitude of jobs relating to the literary field. My current work-study positions in the department include being the Webmaster and Social Media Co-Director and a staff reporter for the school newspaper, The Review. My Webmaster and Social Media position requires for me to learn how to work on and design a website as well as communicate the image of the department that is as accurate and enticing as possible. I utilize my writing, editorial, and communication skills in this position as the information must be presented in the correct grammatical fashion and the most attractive design. As a staff reporter on the newspaper, I have learned a different writing style than the analytical style that the college environment fosters. This position allows me to be both writer and editor of my articles in order to produce the most newsworthy story that presents the information accurately. Overall, my experience with the English and Communication department thus far has allowed me to grow as a writer and to cultivate skills that will allow me to find a job in the literary field. And, I got to present a paper on Harry Potter at this year’s Sigma Tau Delta national conference! 

Double Majors

Bridget Synan

Double-majoring in English and politics has given me the unique opportunity to fully engage myself in two interesting fields of study. I find that more often than not my areas of study overlap and lead to new and insightful discussions that I may have otherwise missed. For example, being aware of the socio-political climate and historical time period (I'm also a history minor) in which a novel takes place allows me to better understand character motivation. 

For my senior English thesis, I am working on comparing The Great Gatsby and The Sun Also Rises with a view to how World War I led to a change in social and cultural dynamics depicted in the works. As for politics, I was able to engage myself in a Shakespeare as a Political Thinker course and plan to do my politics thesis on the way in which the political regime at work in the play affects plot and character motivation. I believe that without the multi-discipline background double-majoring has allowed me my theses would not have been possible. 

Traveling to conferences and attending lectures in both areas has been another major benefit of double majoring. I am able to discuss ideas in both areas outside of the classroom and feel that my background gives me an ability to sort through a broader range of new ideas. 

Overall, I believe that having a major in English has greatly benefitted my academic career, as I have honed the ability to write and communicate ideas verbally. Ultimately, my writing and critical thinking skills will benefit my career, whether in law school or other academic ventures.  

My classroom experiences as an English major have taught me to approach traditional marketing concepts in a new light, and have thus broadened my understanding of marketing as a whole. Additionally, the flexibility of the new concentration curriculum allowed me the opportunity to tailor my educational requirements to perfectly complement and enhance my marketing focus.  

I’ve also found that my English major has greatly complemented my business internship experiences; this summer I was a marketing intern for a company that entrusted me with writing their mission and vision statements, rewriting important Sales Proposal documents, and drafting other mass-propagated marketing materials, all because of the skills I’ve acquired in my duel-degree. In particular, I found the techniques taught in my Intermediate Writing course to be particularly valuable as I could apply the skills I learned in class to any field of study.  

My ultimate career goal is to obtain a PhD in Marketing. I know that my time spent in the English department here at Saint Vincent has more than adequately prepared me to write and publish an outstanding dissertation and other consumer-related research.  

Gina McKlveen

Doubling majoring in English and Studio Arts has been one of the most beneficial and equally satisfying decisions I have made since coming to Saint Vincent College. When I first graduated from high school, I had no idea what I wanted to major in, let alone where I wanted to go to college. So I spent my first year at Westmoreland County Community College trying to figure out what I really wanted to do with my life. It wasn’t until I sat down with Dr. McDaniel, the chairperson of the English department at Saint Vincent, that I was fully convinced that the pursuing an English major was the right path for me.

Not only was the English department welcoming of a transfer student like myself, but it also offered a flexible curriculum that allowed me to pursue both of my passions—literature and the visual arts. Through my studies so far, I’ve learned how to evaluate a body of work with a more critical eye, artistically and theoretically. The connections between literature and art have allowed me to trace the antiquities of these two fields of study and their influences to current literary and art critics. Particularly, Dr. Snyder’s Literary Criticism I: Ancient to Modern course has introduced me to literary critics from Classicism to those of the Renaissance as well as the Romanticism and Modernism movements. Coming from an art background, it is interesting to see how writers reflect the artworks from these same movements and vice versa. Together, these “Sister Arts” go hand in hand and studying each one in greater depth has helped me fully understand and appreciate the work these visionaries created.

In the future, I plan to apply these critical precepts when studying law. Both writers and artists have been the key advocacies for changing the law through their social commentary, so by understanding the concepts and theories of both Studio Art and English I will be able to analyze legislative principles from new perspectives. Ultimately, whether I become a lawyer, author, or artist, I know my dual major will continue to benefit my academic pursuits.