Month: August 2026

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Weekly Round-Up

Follow the department on social media

Important Dates

Deadline to add a POT A (first 8 weeks) course: Friday, Aug. 28
New Student English Department Orientation: Monday, Aug. 31
Deadline to Nominate an Instructor: Tuesday, August 1
Advising Office Open House: Wednesday, Sept. 2
Deadline to add a full-semester course: Friday, Sept.4
English Teaching Social: Thursday, Sept. 24

Share Your News!

As a reminder, if you have an award, a publication, or some other form of success (as defined by you!) to report please send news to engl-news@illinois.edu so the social media interns can celebrate you and your accomplishment. Also, if you are a member of a student group affiliated with the English department and you would like an upcoming event posted on our undergraduate calendar (now available at the bottom of the advising page) please send that info to the same address. Thanks!

Resource of the Week: Self-Care Stations

Need some supplies? McKinley Self-Care Stations provide over-the-counter self-care supplies. Funded by your health service fee, these are provided at no extra cost to you. You will need to present your student i-card before you can receive any items.

Items available include supplies for cold care (nasal spray, lozenges, pain relievers, saline), wound care (band-aids, gauze, ointment), allergy care, and much more!

Book Recommendation of the Week:
The Wolf Border by Sarah Hall

Recommended by Anna Ivy

“For almost a decade Rachel Caine has turned her back on home and worked in Idaho at a reservation for wolves. As one of the few experts in her field she is summoned back to England by the eccentric Earl of Annerdale to help with his plan for re-wilding wolves on his estate in the Lake District.

As Rachel attempts a gradual reconciliation with her estranged family, her work with the Earl begins to generate public outrage and the threat of sabotage. Set against a backdrop of Scottish independence and tumultuous power struggles both locally and nationally, The Wolf Border is a novel steeped in wilderness and wildness, both animal and human.” (https://www.sarahhallauthor.com/the-wolf-border)

Do you have any books that you would like to recommend? Share your book recommendations here and we will try to get your recommendation in the Round-Up!

A Note on I-Promise

If you are an I-Promise scholar (i.e. a recipient of the Illinois Promise scholarship), check out this page for information about resources available to you through Scholar Support Programs. Note that there is a consent form that you will need to sign if you want to receive regular communications from SSP notifying you of upcoming opportunities and resources.

Skeuomorph Press

Skeuomorph Press and Undead Media Lab offers hands-on experiences with historical book and information technologies from the 18th to the 20th centuries—including letterpress, book binding, typewriters, risography, and vintage computing—and sponsors creative activities such as poster or zine making. 

Check out their photo gallery to see more!


New Student English Department Orientation

The English department will be hosting the mandatory New Student Orientation for new creative writing and English majors on Monday, August 31 at 5:30pm in Room 160 of the English Building. At the orientation the Director of Undergraduate Studies, Andrea Stevens, will be sharing crucial information about the English department that you do not want to miss! Afterwards, the department will be providing free pizza and department T-shirts for new students in the Mary Kay Peer Lounge (located in the lower level of the English building).

Upcoming Lectures

Submit Your Work

ESA Welcomes You!

Advising Office Open House

Nomination Deadline Approaching

If you found one of your past English department instructors to be especially skilled, inspiring, or responsive to your needs as a student, we’d like to know about it!

You can nominate any professor, lecturer, or instructor (that includes graduate TAs), who has taught any English department course (BTW, CW, ENGL, RHET) on any topic in the last year, and you are welcome to nominate more than one person. It only takes a few minutes to fill out the Teaching Award Nomination Form. 

The deadline for nominations for the next awards cycle is September 1, 2026.  Thanks in advance for your help! 

English Teaching Social Event

Are you an English Teaching student or interested in studying to become a high school English teacher? In an effort to create a stronger sense of community amongst English Teaching students, some of our upperclassmen are hosting a casual, social event on Thursday, September 24th in Room 200 of the English Building from 5-6pm. Feel free to come and go anytime within the hour. This is a great opportunity for you to meet other students interested in teaching and get to know upperclassmen who can give you some insight to the program! All English Teaching and pre-English Teaching students are invited to join!

Join the English Teaching Network GroupMe to join stay connected with other English Teaching students: https://groupme.com/join_group/116647686/cLgZET4F

Carr Visiting Author Series: Mary Helen Specht

Sep 24, 2026   4:30 pm  Location TBD

Mary Helen Specht is the author of the forthcoming novel Mudlark (July 2026) and the novel Migratory Animals, a New York Times Editors’ Choice and winner of the Texas Institute of Letters Best First Fiction Award and the Writers’ League of Texas Fiction Prize. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Prairie Schooner, and numerous other publications. A Fulbright Scholar to Nigeria and Dobie-Paisano Writing Fellow, Specht currently teaches creative writing at St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, where she lives with her family. She was recently inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters.

Don’t Forget These!

Paid Communication Internship

Apply by August 31!

LAS Career Services seeks to hire a Communication Intern for the Fall 2026 semester, with the potential for continued employment into Spring 2027 based on mutual interest.

This is a great opportunity for students who would like to explore their interests and skills in writing, creativity, communication, social media, and customer service in a professional setting. Communication Interns create student-friendly messaging for digital displays, weekly e-newsletters, blogs, flyers, photography, and Instagram posts. Opportunities also exist to draft messaging for campus and external audiences (e.g., faculty, university administrators, employers, and alumni). 

For more information, such as how to apply, visit the posting on Handshake.

MUSE Scholars Program for the Grad School-Bound

The Departments of English and Romance and Classical Studies at Michigan State University are delighted to announce the 6th Annual MUSE Scholars Program, which will be held this fall in East Lansing, from October 14-17th.

 The MUSE Scholars Program is intended for any prospective graduate students interested in issues of access and equal opportunity in academia, and concerned about the challenges of first-generation students and low-income students in higher education. It aims to introduce students to a robust culture of mentoring essential for a rewarding graduate school experience, and a thriving life in academia. All prospective graduate students in English, Spanish, or related fields who are interested in these questions are welcome to apply! You can read more about our recent cohorts of MUSE scholars here.

The all-expenses paid workshop will allow students to learn more about the departments of English and Romance and Classical Studies in the College of Arts and Letters. Students will visit graduate classes, meet faculty and graduate students, receive feedback on their application materials for graduate school, and present their research to faculty. 

Submit your application here by September 12. 

Open Houses for the Fall 2026 Semester – Mark Your Calendar!

Fall 2026 Proud to Be A First-Gen Series & Study Abroad Opportunity

How to Connect with LAS Career Services

  • Mondays- 1-3 pm 105 Greg Hall (short chats)
  • Tuesdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Wednesdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Thursdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Thursdays- 1-3 pm 105 Greg Hall (short chats)
  • Handshake Appointments (in-person or virtual) are 30 minutes during available staff times. We have an energetic team to help you. Reach out to connect. Having trouble? Reach out to us at las-careerservices@illinois.edu. 

Free Little Library

Check out the ESA Free Little Library outside EB 200. We have a rotating stock of donated books (thanks to all our anonymous donors) and you’re always welcome to stop by and pick something up. If you want to leave a book as well of course you can, but it’s not expected. If you feel like it, you can sign the sheet on the top shelf and tell us what you picked and why!

Sharing News

As a reminder, if you have an award, a publication, or some other triumph to report please send news to engl-news@illinois.edu so the social media interns can celebrate you and your accomplishment. Also, if you are a member of a student group affiliated with the English department and you would like an upcoming event posted on our undergraduate calendar (now available at the bottom of the advising page) please send that info to the same address. Thanks.

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Back-to-School Round-Up

Follow the department on social media

Important Dates

LAS Lift-Off: Friday, Aug. 21
Quad Day: Sunday, Aug. 23
First day of fall instruction: Monday, Aug. 24
ESA’s “Pizza on the Quad” Welcome Event: Wednesday, Aug. 26
Advising Office Open House: Thursday, Aug. 27
Deadline to add a POT A (first 8 weeks) course: Friday, Aug. 28
New Student English Department Orientation: Monday, Aug. 31
Advising Office Open House: Wednesday, Sept. 2
Deadline to add a full-semester course: Friday, Sept.4
English Teaching Social: Thursday, Sept. 24

Welcome Back!

We are so excited to have you all back on campus! The advising office spent the summer welcoming new students and updating our space. Come visit the advising office to take advantage of our new charging stations, comfy reading nook, and plethora of snacks! As always, we will have an ongoing jigsaw puzzle you can help solve – next up is a King Arthur themed puzzle! And if you haven’t already, come meet our new Office Manager, Melanie, who has been transforming the advising space into a welcoming and cozy place for you all to visit!

Resource of the Week: Book Lookup & the Library

Looking for resources on how to buy your books and course materials for the semester? Check out the following resources to get your hands on the books and materials you need:

Shop Books/Course Materials at the Illini Union Bookstore
Look up the exact books and materials you need for each course as specified by your instructors. You can buy them from the Illini Union Bookstore or elsewhere, but just make sure you buy the specified edition/ISBN!

Access Books Affordably Through the Library
Before you buy, check the library catalog to see if they have the book you need! If you cannot find your book in the library catalog, search the I-Share catalog and request the book to be sent to you from another library in the state of Illinois!

New Student English Department Orientation

The English department will be hosting the mandatory New Student Orientation for new creative writing and English majors on Monday, August 31 at 5:30pm in Room 160 of the English Building. At the orientation the Director of Undergraduate Studies, Andrea Stevens, will be sharing crucial information about the English department that you do not want to miss! Afterwards, the department will be providing free pizza and department T-shirts for new students in the Mary Kay Peer Lounge (located in the lower level of the English building).

Book Recommendation of the Week:
Babel by R.F. Kuang

Recommended by Maggie Weimer

“Babel follows Robin Swift, a boy from China who is brought to England to study at Oxford’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation, also known as Babel. At Babel, Robin studies languages and learns about a magic system that is activated by the power of translation. But as Robin uncovers the truth about how that system is used to aid colonialism, he begins to contemplate his own role in it and becomes intrigued by the resistance. Babel is a great pick if you are craving some dark academia or speculative fiction!”

Do you have any books that you would like to recommend? Share your book recommendations here and we will try to get your recommendation in the Round-Up!

ESA’s “Pizza on the Quad” Welcome Event

Advising Office Open House

Nominate an English Department Instructor for a Teaching Award

If you found one of your past English department instructors to be especially skilled, inspiring, or responsive to your needs as a student, we’d like to know about it!

You can nominate any professor, lecturer, or instructor (that includes graduate TAs), who has taught any English department course (BTW, CW, ENGL, RHET) on any topic in the last year, and you are welcome to nominate more than one person. It only takes a few minutes to fill out the Teaching Award Nomination Form. 

The deadline for nominations for the next awards cycle is September 1, 2026.  Thanks in advance for your help! 

What You Will’s Upcoming Auditions: Antigone & Julius Caesar

English Teaching Social Event

Are you an English Teaching student or interested in studying to become a high school English teacher? In an effort to create a stronger sense of community amongst English Teaching students, some of our upperclassmen are hosting a casual, social event on Thursday, September 24th in Room 200 of the English Building from 5-6pm. Feel free to come and go anytime within the hour. This is a great opportunity for you to meet other students interested in teaching and get to know upperclassmen who can give you some insight to the program! All English Teaching and pre-English Teaching students are invited to join!

Join the English Teaching Network GroupMe to join stay connected with other English Teaching students: https://groupme.com/join_group/116647686/cLgZET4F

Fall 2026 Verdell Frazier Young Scholarship

The Women’s Resources Center is now accepting applications for the Fall 2026 Verdell Frazier Young (VFY) Scholarship on a rolling basis. The VFY Scholarship provides scholarships to assist women and gender minorities who have had an interruption in pursuing a college degree. To learn more or apply, visit:

https://go.illinois.edu/VFY

Paid Communication Internship

LAS Career Services seeks to hire a Communication Intern for the Fall 2026 semester, with the potential for continued employment into Spring 2027 based on mutual interest.

This is a great opportunity for students who would like to explore their interests and skills in writing, creativity, communication, social media, and customer service in a professional setting. Communication Interns create student-friendly messaging for digital displays, weekly e-newsletters, blogs, flyers, photography, and Instagram posts. Opportunities also exist to draft messaging for campus and external audiences (e.g., faculty, university administrators, employers, and alumni). 

For more information, such as how to apply, visit the posting on Handshake.

MUSE Scholars Program for the Grad School-Bound

The Departments of English and Romance and Classical Studies at Michigan State University are delighted to announce the 6th Annual MUSE Scholars Program, which will be held this fall in East Lansing, from October 14-17th.

 The MUSE Scholars Program is intended for any prospective graduate students interested in issues of access and equal opportunity in academia, and concerned about the challenges of first-generation students and low-income students in higher education. It aims to introduce students to a robust culture of mentoring essential for a rewarding graduate school experience, and a thriving life in academia. All prospective graduate students in English, Spanish, or related fields who are interested in these questions are welcome to apply! You can read more about our recent cohorts of MUSE scholars here.

The all-expenses paid workshop will allow students to learn more about the departments of English and Romance and Classical Studies in the College of Arts and Letters. Students will visit graduate classes, meet faculty and graduate students, receive feedback on their application materials for graduate school, and present their research to faculty. 

Submit your application here by September 12. 

Open Houses for the Fall 2026 Semester – Mark Your Calendar!

Fall 2026 Proud to Be A First-Gen Series & Study Abroad Opportunity

Interesting Courses for Fall 2026

ENGL 237: Nineteenth-Century British Fiction
Satisfies 19thC period requirement
With their vicious tea parties, romantic moors, melodramatic slums, and sardonic aristocrats, the novels of 19th-century Britain continue to delight the imagination. These stories were balanced between a drive to realism (detailed descriptions of everyday life, recognizable characters, skepticism about the supernatural) and a fascination with the sensational (sudden violence, wicked villains, and dark mysteries from the past). This class will focus on novels that combine romance, the novel of education, the detective story, and uncanny Gothic historicism. We will also learn about some aspects of 19th century British culture including class structures in Regency England, the social effects of the industrial revolution, the laws controlling women’s rights in marriage, the origins of the British Raj in India, the rise of aestheticism, and basic British geography. Our readings will include Jane Austen’s “Emma,” Charles Dickens’s “Bleak House,” Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights,” Wilkie Collins’s “The Moonstone,” and Oscar Wilde’s “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” 

CW 208: Creative Nonfiction Workshop
This course introduces students to the fundamental techniques of creative nonfiction, known as creative nonfiction “craft.” We explore these techniques through diverse readings as well as through the writing and workshopping of our own creative nonfiction essays. Each day is dedicated to a specific craft technique, pairing exemplary CNF essays with “craft essays” meant to illuminate, for instance, nonfiction structure or point-of-view or voice. Additionally, we focus on two modes of CNF: the personal essay and the public essay.

BTW 263: Writing in the Disciplines – Game Writing and Design
This course teaches students to apply principles of procedural and expository writing to game design and game development. Similar to structure-based storytelling in screenplays, game creation requires a balance between creativity and practical application. Students will learn how to write proposals for games and/or interactive experiences with the goal of designing, developing, and building a working prototype along with a final draft of a game manual and strategy guide. No prior experience with coding is necessary to take this class.

CPSC 140: Foundations of Quantitative Problem Solving
Quantitative Reasoning I Gen Ed
Discover foundational applied mathematical skills and build a toolbox of quantitative techniques to address challenges in environmental conservation, agricultural management, and ecological research. In this course, you will learn to deconstruct and solve mathematical problems through a series of case studies. This course is designed for students who wish to learn essential quantitative skills in an applied context, with mathematical content at a similar level to MATH 112.

CWL 114: Global Consciousness and Lit
Non-Western Cultures Gen Ed
Exploration of the cultural and historical roots of globalization and the development of global consciousness from ancient Greece to the present, as reflected primarily in literature, but also with reference to historiography, cartography, religion, art, politics, economics, and popular culture. Course materials including literary texts, articles, historical accounts, political tracts, films, and paintings focus on the mutual perception of, and historical relationships among Europe, the Arab world, Africa, Asia, and the Americas.

SOC 496: Advanced Topics in Sociology – Crimes of the Powerful
This course examines crimes committed by powerful individuals, corporations, states, and global institutions, shifting the criminological focus to the forms of harm that often produce the greatest social and economic consequences. Through the study of organized crime, white-collar crime, state and corporate crime, corruption and financial crime, and digital and environmental harms, students will critically analyze how power-dynamics shapes the definition and enforcement of law. Emphasizing contemporary case studies, the course explores why many of the most harmful acts remain normalized, under-regulated, or beyond the reach of justice. This course counts for elective credit towards the Criminology, Law, and Society Minor.

How to Connect with LAS Career Services

  • Mondays- 1-3 pm 105 Greg Hall (short chats)
  • Tuesdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Wednesdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Thursdays- 10-3 pm LAS Hub (Lincoln Hall) with peer mentors
  • Thursdays- 1-3 pm 105 Greg Hall (short chats)
  • Handshake Appointments (in-person or virtual) are 30 minutes during available staff times. We have an energetic team to help you. Reach out to connect. Having trouble? Reach out to us at las-careerservices@illinois.edu. 

Free Little Library

Check out the ESA Free Little Library outside EB 200. We have a rotating stock of donated books (thanks to all our anonymous donors) and you’re always welcome to stop by and pick something up. If you want to leave a book as well of course you can, but it’s not expected. If you feel like it, you can sign the sheet on the top shelf and tell us what you picked and why!

Sharing News

As a reminder, if you have an award, a publication, or some other triumph to report please send news to engl-news@illinois.edu so the social media interns can celebrate you and your accomplishment. Also, if you are a member of a student group affiliated with the English department and you would like an upcoming event posted on our undergraduate calendar (now available at the bottom of the advising page) please send that info to the same address. Thanks!