ENG-LIGHTENED CSU Department of English — Spring 2025 Newsletter

IN THIS ISSUE:

Faculty Send-Offs
Awards Season
Alumni Highlights
English-led Exhibitions at Morgan Library
Journal Publications
CSU English in the News
Commencement

Faculty Send-Offs

Retirements

Professor Leif Sorensen is retiring after 16 years in the English department. A specialist in twentieth and twenty-first century multi-ethnic American literatures, Leif received his Ph.D. with distinction from New York University and also has an M.A. in literature from San Francisco State University and a B.A. in English from U.C. Berkeley. At CSU, he taught a range of courses in ethnic American literatures, popular genres, and transnational writing and was known and loved by his students for his care and humor.

Interim Chair Dan Beachy-Quick shared this about Sorensen's commitment to the department: "I’ve admired Leif since he arrived at CSU, not only for his abundant care for his students, but also how that care so often translated to innovative ideas for larger curricular efforts. He always had a remarkable capacity for centering student cares, and his ideas, and his example, proved among the key influences to the new shape of the English major forthcoming in Fall 2025. Though I’ll be sad to miss our hallway chats, I trust his next step will benefit from the very generosity he always demonstrated here."

Congrats, Leif!

_____________________

Associate Professor Paul Trembath is retiring after 30 years in the English department. After earning a Ph.D. in English and Critical Theory from the University of Virginia, Paul joined CSU where he taught literary and critical theory, English and comparative literature, and interdisciplinary humanities. His specialty was contemporary critical theory and its historical backgrounds. A contributing editor of Postmodern Culture, Paul was particularly interested in critical discussions that address ways of rethinking aesthetics, textuality, and sense.

“So many of my own MFA advisees would gush to me about Paul’s mind, intelligence, and kindness to their own work, that I began to feel a little bit as if I myself was one of his students," shared Beachy-Quick. "One of the sincere pleasures my year as Interim Chair has brought were regular conversations with Paul about his work, large projects long underway, and coming to fruition. He shared drafts with me throughout the year, pointing out the pages I should read, and though I’m far from the expert he is, we share common interests, and talk through the work of thinkers and writers for whom we both care. I’ll miss the immediate gratification of our chats, but am happy knowing more time is opening for him to be at work on the pages he’s labored lovingly at all these many years.”

Congrats, Paul!

A Fond Farewell

Congratulations to Associate Professor Tim Amidon, who has accepted a new position at the University of Rhode Island as Chair of the Harrington School of Communication and Media’s Professional and Public Writing program!

While at CSU, Tim taught courses designed to explore interconnections between rhetoric, writing, and technologies. Throughout his 11 years in the English department, Tim wore several leadership hats, including Director of both the Writing, Rhetoric, and Social Change M.A. Program and the Writing, Rhetoric, and Literacy B.A. concentration, as well as Director of the University Writing Center. In addition, Tim held an appointment in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health in the Colorado School of Public Health and was a Faculty Affiliate in the Data Science Research Institute and Information Science and Technology Center.

We'll miss you, Tim! Congrats on your next chapter.

Awards Season

Student Scholarships & Awards

Held on Monday, April 21, the 34th Annual English Department Awards reception provided students the opportunity to be personally recognized by faculty members while accepting competitive scholarships and awards for creative artistry, literary excellence, and professional writing.

Discover our digital celebration of student success

Faculty, Staff, and Graduate Student Award Nominations

Each year, the University and College recognizes faculty and staff for contributions to their units, the college, the university, and to their colleagues and their profession/discipline. In 2024-2025, the English department nominated the following fantastic individuals:

Ramona Ausubel: CLA Excellence in Graduate Mentoring
Ashleigh Foster: CLA State Classified Award
Ricki Ginsberg: CSU Faculty Excellence Award
Tobi Jacobi: CLA Stern Distinguished Professor
Naitnaphit Limlamai: CSU Faculty Excellence Award
SLP: Alumni Teaching Award
Danny Saldana: CLA Excellence in Teaching, GTA
Liz Steinway: CLA Excellence in Teaching, CCA

Staff Recognition

As the Department of English has done for many years, we want to recognize the outstanding work of our staff members. In past years we’ve given specific award for varying duties, but this year, far more simply, we want to recognize the daily competence, care, and vision that our staff offer the department, faculty, and students within it. Daily feats of innovation, creativity, and collaborative problem-solving happen most often outside the notice of the larger community. These recognitions offer us all a chance to slow down and see what otherwise we too easily miss.

Thank you to our staff!

Kim Daggett
Em Dailey
Sheila Dargon
Joanna Doxey
Sean Flowerday
Ashleigh Foster
Stephanie G’Schwind
Emily Harnden
Zenaida Herrera
Sarah Jean
Mary Ellen Sanger

Alumni Highlights

When veteran and English alum Justin Frigault (B.A., ’23) learned he had secured a prestigious Rangel Fellowship, he felt one step closer to making his dream of working in international affairs a reality.⁠

“All this hard work is beyond worth it,” said Frigault. “Every day, I’m working toward becoming a U.S. Foreign Service Officer. I’d love to become an officer in the consular section, primarily working on visas and American citizen services. Helping people achieve their dreams would be deeply fulfilling.”⁠

Learn more about Frigault’s path, including how a degree in English and support from CSU helped open doors to his future, below.

Read about Justin's story in the 2025 CLA Magazine

Writer, editor and violinist Alex Keenan (B.A., ’18) loves to tell a good story. Whether through words, music or roleplaying, crafting narratives allows her to connect with others daily at her job and in her personal life.

Alumni Spotlight: Alex Keenan

While teaching English as a Second Language in South Korea, Cairn Carr (B.A., ’24) shared how her undergraduate experience at CSU prepared her for living and working abroad.

Alumni Spotlight: Cairn Carr

Selected as the 2024 winner of the Academy of American Poets First Book Award, Little Mercy by CSU professor and MFA alum Robin Walter has been connecting with audiences across Colorado.

Learn more about "Little Mercy" in SOURCE

The University Honors Program hosted Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and CSU English alumnus John Barnhardt for the Annual Eddy Lecture on April 23. In his talk, “Road Scholar: 27 Years of a Filmmaker’s Road Trip,” Barnhardt reflected on nearly three decades of adventure, storytelling, and creative risk-taking in the world of cinema.

His recent documentary, “An Open Door,” explores the influence and life of University Distinguished Professor Temple Grandin. In addition to his cinematic achievements, Barnhardt has spent over a decade mentoring future filmmakers as a professor, making him a true advocate for the next generation of storytellers.

Learn more about "An Open Door"

English-led Exhibitions at Morgan Library

Knowing Her: Women's Leadership at CSU, 1925-2025

Knowing Her: Women’s Work and Leadership at CSU, 1925-2025 is now on view at the Morgan Grind Gallery through August 15, 2025.⁠ A community-engaged project that amplifies the narratives of women faculty and staff at CSU, “Knowing Her” explores themes of leadership, mentorship, and workplace experience.⁠

Designed and created by Professor Suzanne Faris (Art/Art History) and Professor Tobi Jacobi (English), this multimodal exhibition represents the culmination of 18 months of dialogue and creative collaboration that included archival and institutional research, a faculty survey, dialogue/making sessions, and student-led interviews.⁠

⁠By reflecting on CSU’s historical gaps and invisibilities, Faris and Jacobi hope to inspire contemporary conversations about gender equity and the future of workplace well-being.⁠

Learn more about "Knowing Her"

The Act of Creation: Writing as Transformative Practice

Organized by Associate Professor of English Ramona Ausubel and curated by CSU Libraries Exhibition Coordinator Silvia Minguzzi, The Act of Creation: Writing as Transformative Practice will be displayed in the Archives and Special Collections area on the second floor of the Morgan Library until spring 2026. The exhibition revolves around several themes, including fear, wonder, and perseverance.

“Leading a creative life is about being inspired by the strange, complicated and marvelous world,” Ausubel said. “It is also about habits, routines and good, hard work. Making art requires facing fear and doubt, staying awake to wonder, and persevering through drafts, failures and discoveries with effort and faith. The work is joyful, difficult, freeing, scary, magical and mundane. The creation process changes us, and so is the world.”

Learn more about "The Act of Creation"

Feminism as Ancestry: Poetry Broadside to the Friedman Feminist Collection

The CSU Libraries are proud to announce the opening of Feminism as Ancestry: Poetry Broadside to the Friedman Feminist Collection, a new exhibition by writer-in-residence Bianca Glinskas, instructor and outreach archivist Clarissa Trapp, and exhibition coordinator Silvia Minguzzi. Now open and running through spring 2026 in the Archives and Special Collections area of the Morgan Library, the exhibition features a striking bouquet of original poems in conversation with voices from the Friedman Feminist Press Collection. Glinskas’s poems navigate a rich constellation of ideas rooted in feminist theory, personal grief, and contemporary political urgency.

"Bianca’s work embodies a living literary lineage,” said Minguzzi. “It speaks directly to the bodies, voices, and feminist legacies housed in the Friedman Collection, while simultaneously forging new paths of reflection and resistance.”

Learn more about "Feminism as Ancestry"

Journal Publications

Greyrock Review

The newest issue of Greyrock Review has arrived! Featuring work by Emma Dubas, Will Engle, Celia Feiszli, Mae Ferry, Julia Grace, Jules Heatley, Riley Hilbert, Kelly Hobbick, Ella Lawrence, Addison Mitchell, Rinoa Nichols, Katya Opitz, Gabby Reiland, Micah Sample, Emma Souza, Lindsey Zamboni-Cutter, and cover art by Catherine Stengel.

Get your copy of Greyrock Review

Colorado Review

The Spring 2025 issue of Colorado Review is out now! Explore the issue, featuring work by Rebecca Turkewitz, Amit Majmudar, John Allen Taylor, Kristin George Bagdanov, Sarah Carvill, and more!

Spring 2025 Issue of Colorado Review

SpeakOut!

The 2024-2025 issue of SpeakOut! is here! CSU’s SpeakOut! program works through the Community Literacy Center of the College of Liberal Arts and the English Department to bring writing workshops to men and women at crisis centers in the community. Each week, teams of CSU student interns and community volunteers sit for 60-minute sessions to guide writers whose only creative outlet might be their time with SpeakOut!

Learn more about the SpeakOut! program