Our Team
CES Director
Laura Shackelford
Professor, English
www.rit.edu, rit.academia.edu
Interests: Narrative theory, Digital literary practices, Literary Media Studies, Feminist Science Studies, Science Fiction, Contemporary Novel, Systems theory and Bioinformatic Sciences.
Interests: Narrative theory, Digital literary practices, Literary Media Studies, Feminist Science Studies, Science Fiction, Contemporary Novel, Systems theory and Bioinformatic Sciences.
Steering Committee
Sharon Morgan Beckford Foster
Associate Professor and Chair, English
www.rit.edu
Interests: African American Literature, Postcolonial Literatures, Canadian Literature, Literary and Cultural Theory, African Diaspora Studies, Digital Humanities,Transnational Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies
Interests: African American Literature, Postcolonial Literatures, Canadian Literature, Literary and Cultural Theory, African Diaspora Studies, Digital Humanities,Transnational Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies
Silvia Benso
Professor, Philosophy Director, Women’s & Gender Studies
Interests: Contemporary European Philosophy, Italian Philosophy, Feminist Philosophy, History of Philosophy as Narrative on Reality
Interests: Contemporary European Philosophy, Italian Philosophy, Feminist Philosophy, History of Philosophy as Narrative on Reality
Elizabeth Goins
Associate Professor, Performing Arts & Visual Culture
explorelostworlds.blogspot.com
Interactive and Spatial Storytelling, Video Game Design, Virtual and Augmented Reality
Interactive and Spatial Storytelling, Video Game Design, Virtual and Augmented Reality
Joshua Meltzer
Photojournalism School of Photographic Arts & Sciences
www.joshmeltzer.com, migration.joshmeltzer.com
Interests: Photojournalism, multimedia storytelling. He is an award-winning photojournalist and recipient of recipient of the National Press Photographers Association’s Humanitarian Award in 2012 and a 2014 recipient of the Carnegie Hero Award.
Interests: Photojournalism, multimedia storytelling. He is an award-winning photojournalist and recipient of recipient of the National Press Photographers Association’s Humanitarian Award in 2012 and a 2014 recipient of the Carnegie Hero Award.
Karen (Ren) VanMeenen
Senior Lecturer, English
www.rit.edu
Interests: Cultural Studies, Media Studies, Media Literacy, Visual Literature, Graphic novels, documentary photography, socially aware fine art photography, video installation, Photojournalism and the aesthetics of atrocity
Interests: Cultural Studies, Media Studies, Media Literacy, Visual Literature, Graphic novels, documentary photography, socially aware fine art photography, video installation, Photojournalism and the aesthetics of atrocity
Ammina Kothari
Associate Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies: Journalism School of Communication
Interests: Global communication; health, gender, technology and religion; journalism, media studies, women’s and gender studies, computer-assisted journalism.
Interests: Global communication; health, gender, technology and religion; journalism, media studies, women’s and gender studies, computer-assisted journalism.
Susan Lakin
Professor, College of Art and Design
www.susanlakin.com
Before arriving to RIT, Susan worked commercially in Los Angeles and Australia; some of her clients included Adidas, Avon, Harper's Bazaar, LA Times Magazine, Nordstrom, OCA Architects, Sebastian, Shape Magazine, Southern California Edison, and Syncor International Corp.
Before arriving to RIT, Susan worked commercially in Los Angeles and Australia; some of her clients included Adidas, Avon, Harper's Bazaar, LA Times Magazine, Nordstrom, OCA Architects, Sebastian, Shape Magazine, Southern California Edison, and Syncor International Corp.
Joan Naturale
NTID Education Liason/Librarian
Deaf History; Deaf Education, Culture, and Arts; English as a Second Language.
Deaf History; Deaf Education, Culture, and Arts; English as a Second Language.
Research Advocate
Robert Glick
Associate Professor, English
www.rit.edu
Interests: Creative Writing, Digital Literature, Contemporary Fiction, Experimental Narrative,Language Games, Text/Image Mashups
Interests: Creative Writing, Digital Literature, Contemporary Fiction, Experimental Narrative,Language Games, Text/Image Mashups
Luane Davis Haggerty
National Technical Institute for the Deaf – Liberal Arts
Co-founder and former Artistic Director of Interborough Repertory Theater (IRT). IRT is a non-profit company dedicated to inclusion and outreach to: women, the disabled, and other minority. She is also an actor, teacher, writer, director, and choreographer.
Co-founder and former Artistic Director of Interborough Repertory Theater (IRT). IRT is a non-profit company dedicated to inclusion and outreach to: women, the disabled, and other minority. She is also an actor, teacher, writer, director, and choreographer.
Julie M Johannes
Associate Chair and Senior Lecturer, English
www.rit.edu
Interests: Game Studies, Video Games and/as Literature, Digital Humanities, Autopathobiography, Neuroatypicals in Popular Culture, Don DeLillo, Paul Auster, Postmodernism.
Interests: Game Studies, Video Games and/as Literature, Digital Humanities, Autopathobiography, Neuroatypicals in Popular Culture, Don DeLillo, Paul Auster, Postmodernism.
Pamela J. Kincheloe PhD
Associate Professor NTID English
Deaf Studies, American Sign Language Storytelling (ASL), and currently at work on a book about cochlear implants and how the identity of those with implants is currently represented in American culture.
Deaf Studies, American Sign Language Storytelling (ASL), and currently at work on a book about cochlear implants and how the identity of those with implants is currently represented in American culture.
Rebecca DeRoo
Department of Performing Arts and Visual Culture, Museum Studies Program
Interests: Museum studies and curatorial practice; contemporary art and visual culture; photography, film, and new media; gender studies; and post-colonial studies.
Interests: Museum studies and curatorial practice; contemporary art and visual culture; photography, film, and new media; gender studies; and post-colonial studies.
Tamar Carroll
Associate Professor, History
www.tamarcarroll.com
Interests: Modern U.S. history, women’s and gender history, public history, and digital humanities. At RIT, I teach courses in U.S. History Since 1945; U.S. Women's and Gender History; The History of the Family in the U.S.; Oral History; Ethics in the Digital Age; and Research Methods.
Interests: Modern U.S. history, women’s and gender history, public history, and digital humanities. At RIT, I teach courses in U.S. History Since 1945; U.S. Women's and Gender History; The History of the Family in the U.S.; Oral History; Ethics in the Digital Age; and Research Methods.
Juilee Decker
Associate Professor, Museum Studies
Memory studies, public art (especially monuments and memorials), digital cultural heritage, critical curation, multimodal literacies
Memory studies, public art (especially monuments and memorials), digital cultural heritage, critical curation, multimodal literacies
Owen Gottlieb
Associate Professor Interactive Games and Media
owengottlieb.org
Interests: Games, religion, education, media studies, communications, anthropology, dramatic writing for film and television, dance, and software development.
Interests: Games, religion, education, media studies, communications, anthropology, dramatic writing for film and television, dance, and software development.
Hinda Mandell
Associate Professor,School of Communication
omghinda.com
Interests: Her essays ranging from politics to parentings have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Boston Herald, Palm Beach Post, Politico, and in academic journals, including Women’s Studies in Communication, Visual Communication Quarterly, and Explorations in Media Ecology.
Interests: Her essays ranging from politics to parentings have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Boston Herald, Palm Beach Post, Politico, and in academic journals, including Women’s Studies in Communication, Visual Communication Quarterly, and Explorations in Media Ecology.
Anne Royston
Associate Professor, English
www.rit.edu
Interests: Artist’s books, material and textual practices, digital humanities.
Interests: Artist’s books, material and textual practices, digital humanities.
Whitney Sperrazza
Assistant Professor, English
Interests: women’s poetry, early modern literature, history of science, anatomy and graphic medicine, history of touch and haptic technology, digital/physical intersections
Interests: women’s poetry, early modern literature, history of science, anatomy and graphic medicine, history of touch and haptic technology, digital/physical intersections
Thomas Dooley
Lecturer, School of Communication
www.dooleyphotography.com
Multiplatform producer with expertise in digital content strategy, video production, photojournalism and long-form documentary. He is currently exploring immersive storytelling in journalism.
Multiplatform producer with expertise in digital content strategy, video production, photojournalism and long-form documentary. He is currently exploring immersive storytelling in journalism.
Student Facilitators
Guest Storytellers
Helen Atawube Yitah
Professor, Dept of English and Dean, School of Languages, University of Ghana, Accra
Interests: African literature, Women's oral and written literature, children's literature
Interests: African literature, Women's oral and written literature, children's literature
Christine Green
Freelance Writer/Teaching Artist
christinejgreen.com
Interests: The primary focus of Christine’s freelance work is to highlight the outstanding literary scene in the Rochester area. Other areas of interest include Latinx and Chicanx arts and culture, teen writing classes, and lyrical and speculative creative nonfiction. Outside of work Christine like to garden, watch lots of TV, and nap whenever humanly possible.
Interests: The primary focus of Christine’s freelance work is to highlight the outstanding literary scene in the Rochester area. Other areas of interest include Latinx and Chicanx arts and culture, teen writing classes, and lyrical and speculative creative nonfiction. Outside of work Christine like to garden, watch lots of TV, and nap whenever humanly possible.
Sonja Livingston
Author; Associate Professor, Creative Writing, Virginia Commonwealth University
sonjalivingston.com, english.vcu.edu, www.instagram.com
Interests: Memoir, Personal Essays, Personal Geographies, Lyric Essays, Brief Nonfiction, Unsung Voices, Writing about Class, Gender, Roots, Race & Religion. Hobbies: nature walks, eating potato-based foods, hanging out with cats.
Interests: Memoir, Personal Essays, Personal Geographies, Lyric Essays, Brief Nonfiction, Unsung Voices, Writing about Class, Gender, Roots, Race & Religion. Hobbies: nature walks, eating potato-based foods, hanging out with cats.
DeAnn De Leon
Producer / Director at Rochester Community TV
Interests: Filmmaking, Storytelling Editing, Documentary Film, Journalism, Screenwriting
Interests: Filmmaking, Storytelling Editing, Documentary Film, Journalism, Screenwriting
Faculty Leader
Rashida Burch-Washington
Manager, Operations & Producer & Educator at Rochester Community TV
1009wxir.com, ctvmediacenter.org
Interests: Rashida manages radio station WXIR, but teaching youth is her favorite responsibility at RCTV. While she loves the work she does with the community through RCTV, Rashida’s favorite job is being a wife and mother of two.
Interests: Rashida manages radio station WXIR, but teaching youth is her favorite responsibility at RCTV. While she loves the work she does with the community through RCTV, Rashida’s favorite job is being a wife and mother of two.
