Today marks the beginning of a new academic year here in the DePaul English Graduate Programs. To start off this new year, we bring our readers a welcome message from Prof. John Shanahan, director of the M.A. in English, and Prof. Michele Morano, director if the M.A. in Writing and Publishing:

On behalf of the entire graduate faculty in the Department of English, we would like to welcome those of you who will begin your master’s studies this month. To the students who are returning to DePaul after a summer away from workshops and seminars, we extend to you a warm “Welcome back!” We send greetings as well from Ms. Jan Hickey, the assistant director of the English department’s two graduate programs.

From Prof. John Shanahan: This is an exciting time in the Master’s in English program. We are running innovative new seminars this year such as Prof. Marcy Dinius’ “What is/was the American Renaissance,” Prof. Rich Squibbs’ eighteenth century British course on “the Country and the City,” and Prof. June Chung’s “American Fiction in the Age of New Media.” We will continue offering more courses in literature from all periods and in teaching. I believe that a vibrant and rigorous Master’s degree is a vital resource in today’s economy, and a report on the Master’s degree in English issued recently by the Modern Language Association confirms the that our curriculum, for which training in pedagogy is stressed as well as original research, is ahead of the national curve. I intend in the coming years to do all that I can to enhance the program further and to continue to foster excellent scholars and teachers, for example rolling out this quarter the new e-portfolio system. We can look forward this year to visiting writers, student socials and readings, faculty lectures, and the Spring Conference. Please feel free to make an appointment to speak with me so we can discuss your academic plans.

From Prof. Michele Morano:  We in the MAWP are excited about the new academic year. We’re enjoying our great digs in Arts and Letters Hall (it’s hard to believe we’ve been here less than a year!). We’re delighted to welcome our newest faculty member, the multi-talented Barrie Jean Borich. We’re energized by the strong cohort of both returning and incoming MAWP students. And we’re eager for the inaugural year of DePaul Outreach Press which, with the help of students in three dedicated MAWP courses, will debut its first book in spring. In addition to a wide variety of courses scheduled this year, students can take advantage of many internship opportunities and many occasions to meet and learn from esteemed visiting writers. In addition, the English Graduate Student Association (EGSA) offers a forum for getting  to know other students and for planning events like the annual graduate student conference. And let’s not forget opportunities for informal socializing between faculty and students, when we can learn from and inspire one another. As always, events will be announced on Ex Libris. Please also feel free to stop by the second-floor graduate suite to say hello.

Throughout the year, students will be sent important and timely information about deadlines, scholarships, conferences, jobs, and internships via email. The only way you can ensure that you will receive these emails is to keep your preferred email address up to date on your Campus Connect account AND let Ms. Hickey know of any changes. Ms. Hickey relies on contact information supplied by you to send out important announcements, so please send any email address changes to Ms. Hickey at jhicke11@depaul.edu.

We hope you’ll avail yourself of the many activities that EGSA, the English Graduate Student Association, is planning for the coming year. For information about EGSA activities, check their page on Ex Libris at depaulenggrads.wordpress.com/egsa.

Best wishes for a successful fall quarter and for an exciting, rewarding academic year. Graduate study is hectic, challenging, draining, but also exhilarating, fulfilling, and all too short. Come June 2013 (or 2014, 2015, …), we will see you cross the stage at the commencement ceremony to receive your Master of Arts degree. And with this you will commence the next stage in your life as a thinker, scholar, reader, and writer.

Very best wishes,
John Shanahan and Michele Morano

And finally, a few words about Ex Libris from its editor, Maria Hlohowskyj.

Welcome to all new and returning readers. My name is Maria, and I am a second-year student and Graduate Assistant in the MAWP, and the editor of this blog, Ex Libris. Ex Libris serves as the online newsletter for both DePaul English Graduate Programs, where you can find important and interesting information about events at DePaul and around the city, calls for papers, job and internship opportunities, alumni news, profiles of new and visiting faculty, and much more.

Maintaining a regularly updated blog as opposed to a traditional weekly or monthly newsletter allows those of us in the English Department to share as much information with you as possible in a very timely manner, so please remember to check Ex Libris regularly for updates. You may find it beneficial to subscribe to updates through email, RSS, or your personal WordPress account (links to all these options can be found on the home page).

Of course, Ex Libris could not function without input from students and alumni. If you know of any events, organizations, or job postings that would interest students and faculty in the MAE and MAWP programs, please send them along. Ex Libris also publishes news about our students and alumni, so if you’ve had something published, presented at a conference, gotten a job, or have anything else you’d like to share with your fellow DePaul English Graduate Students, we would love to hear it. We also occasionally feature guest posts by students and alums; check out these previous guest posts in the archives to see what others have contributed, and email me with your ideas. All of these things, as well as any suggestions for how Ex Libris can serve you and the MAE and MAWP programs better, can be sent to me at mhlohows@depaul.edu.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts, news, and contributions– and I hope Ex Libris becomes a useful and trusted resource for you during this academic year!

-Maria Hlohowskyj