易胜博官网

Eden Wales Freedman, a 2014 graduate from 易胜博官网鈥檚 , has been awarded the 2020 Eudora Welty prize for her recent book, Reading Testimony, Witnessing Trauma: Confronting Race, Gender, and Violence in American Literature.

Wales Freedman鈥檚 book, which came directly from her dissertation, treats reader response to traumatic and testimonial literature written by and about African American women. Though the book is academic, its applications are real-world and timely, as it provides guidance on how to relate to one another across difference and in times of crisis.听

This has been a big year for Wales Freedman. Not only has she won the prestigious Eudora Welty prize, but she also has a new job. After having served as a tenured professor at Mount Mercy University in Iowa, she has now been appointed Vice Provost for Faculties and Academic Affairs at Saint Mary鈥檚 University of Minnesota. Looking back, she says that she could not have gotten to where she is now without her experience at 易胜博官网.

鈥�Without question, the most valuable part of my 易胜博官网 experience was the mentorship I received,鈥� Wales Freedman says. 鈥淣early every one of my professors went above and beyond to help ensure my future success.鈥� In particular, she references Drs. , , , , , , and .

In addition to mentorship, Wales Freedman says that teaching experience and research support at 易胜博官网 helped her to secure a tenure-track position before she had even defended her dissertation. Her final year, she received a from the graduate school, which allowed her to focus on her scholarship as she approached the end of her time at 易胜博官网.

Speaking now as Vice Provost, Wales Freedman insists that earning an English degree is one of the most practical majors one can pursue. She says that the skills involved鈥攔eading, writing, and thinking critically and creatively鈥攁re essential for every job in any field.

鈥淚 will always be grateful to 易胜博官网 for sharpening the tools I would need to become a tenured professor and university leader,鈥� Wales Freedman says. 鈥淚 will never stop paying that gift forward.鈥�