Newsletter Editor Jane Weiss
Invitation to Join the English Department on the CUNY Academic Commons
A message from Elizabeth Dill:
An invitation to join the Kingsborough English CUNY Academic Commons group should have arrived in the inbox of your KCC email account. Please accept this invitation so that you can continue to receive our excellent weekly department newsletter! Soon, the department newsletter will be sent as a blog post from this group rather than as a department email; eventually, you will stop getting department newsletters as separate emails (unless you subscribe to the Academic Commons group). So please join! If you don’t receive an invitation at all, please let Elizabeth know!
Elizabeth is currently trying to work with the helpdesk so that the blog posts are not quarantined by the Barracuda system. For the time being, you may need to check your Barracuda spam quarantine summaries to see if Academic Commons posts appear there, and manually “whitelist” them, but she hopes that the IT department will be able to resolve the issue for the whole group.
Student Publication Opportunity: Transit(ion), A CUNY Undergraduate Journal Call For Papers Deadline 1 June 2023
CUNY undergraduates are invited to contribute to Transit(ion): A CUNY Undergraduate Journal! Born out of the CUNY Graduate Center’s English Department, by students DeVaughn (Dev) Harris and Rani Srinivasan, this journal seeks to unite students across the CUNYVerse and facilitate the exchange of knowledge amongst burgeoning critical thinkers. In addition to accepting and publishing work from undergraduate students, Transit (ion)‘s priority is to mentor students throughout the publication process and help them grow as students, scholars, and writers. Transit(ion) welcomes work from students who, in addition to those pursuing careers in academia, may want to work in spaces outside of the academy that also deal with writing writ-large. Above all, publishing work of any kind in an academic journal is an impressive accomplishment. Additionally, as part of its mission, Transit(ion) aims to upend and disrupt (through its editing and mentoring processes) colonial notions of correctness, academic vernacular, technologies of grammar and prioritize the value of critical thinking and the nuanced development of ideas. They hope students can see a home for their writing in this journal as they aim to facilitate the responsible production and exchange of knowledge as well as shine a spotlight on the work of emergent writers.
Here is the CFP, at the Manifold website: https://cuny.manifoldapp.org/journals/cuny-transition! The CFP and the submission form can be found on the Transit(ions) webpage. The editors are looking forward to viewing works that align with the range of topics listed on the CFP and encourage students to use the space of the final stretch of the semester (e.g., seminar/research papers, etc.) to develop their submissions. The editors ask that students submit their work for consideration by June 1st, 2023.
English Department End of Term Brunch
A message from Enid and Elroy:
We’re delighted to announce the return of an English Department tradition: the End-of-Semester gathering on Wednesday, 14 June. We’ve arranged for a festive breakfast buffet, with vegetarian and gluten-free offerings, from 10:30 to 1:30 in C333. The cost is $20 for full-time faculty and $12 for part-time faculty. You can leave your payment in either of our mailboxes or with Christine Marchese in C309. Join us for a celebratory meal and the chance to spend some time together at the end of a long semester.
At the brunch, Annie would like to recognize departmental good news from this year, so please help jog her memory by reminding her via this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfGu_xkB0NzogKXxc8714ydBSxrGOXbkdSfnoSfdRe8-1aoaA/viewform
KCC Commencement 21 June 2023
The Kingsborough Community College Commencement Committee is pleased to announce that the 58th Commencement Exercises will be held in person on Wednesday, June 21, 2023. Please come; the ceremony is extremely meaningful to KCC students and their families. Academic regalia, although festive, is not required to participate. (There usually are some extra hoods and gowns on hand if you’d like to wear it.) Although the exact times for this year’s Commencement events have not been announced, if past years are any guide the faculty “Line of March” will form at 10:45 a.m. along the eastern seawall, immediately south of the small parking lot between the Arts and Sciences building and the Marine Academic Center. We will follow the graduates through the lobby of the Arts & Sciences building, exit the building and continue into the tent. The Commencement ceremony will begin at 11:00 a.m. A reception in honor of the graduates will take place in the U-Building Cafeteria immediately following the ceremonies. In the event of rain, we will assemble in the concourse (the corridor between the Library and the Clusters), beginning the processional at the Library ramp and the line continuing toward the Cafeteria. In case of severe weather, call (718) 368-6553 on the morning of June 21 for information.
Awards Night Ceremony 20 June 2023 at 6:30 PM in PAC
Kingsborough Community College will hold its Awards Night on Tuesday June 20, 2023 at 6:30pm in the PAC, followed by a reception. Dean Gordon Alley-Young will host the ceremony. Awards include the English Prize, the Creative Writing Award, and the David B. Silver Poetry Award, so the presence of English Department faculty is much appreciated to celebrate our students’ accomplishments.
KCC Lavender Commencement 13 June 2023, 3:00 PM in U219
A message from Jenn Oliveri:
Lavender Graduation is an annual graduation ceremony conducted at universities to honor LGBTQIA+ students and acknowledge their accomplishments and contributions. LGBTQIA+ is an acronym used to signify Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual people collectively. As part of KCC’s 2023 Commencement festivities, we will be hosting our 3rd annual Lavender Graduation Ceremony for our students who identify as LGBTQIA+, on Tuesday, June 13th, 2023 at 3:00 pm in U219 (check-in is at 2:30 pm). If you would like to attend our Lavender Graduation Ceremony, please fill out this form: https://rebrand.ly/KCCLavenderGUEST You can find more information here: https://www.kbcc.cuny.edu/commencement/58commencement/lavendergraduation.html
Mid-Atlantic Popular and American Culture Association Working-Class Studies Call for Papers: Deadline 30 June 2023
A message from Greg Bruno:
The Mid-Atlantic Popular and American Culture Association will hold its annual conference in Philadelphia, PA on November 9 – 11, 2023. The Working-Class Studies Area welcomes papers/presentations that examine representations of the working-class or labor in all areas of culture, including but not limited to art, literature, film, and media. Research, critical, theoretical, or interdisciplinary approaches are equally encouraged. The Proposal Deadline is June 30, 2023. Faculty are encouraged to submit a 300 word abstract themselves or pass this Call for Papers on to their students; the Working-Class Culture area of MAPACA is open to undergraduates. Questions can be forwarded to area chair: Dr. Greg Bruno, Working Class Studies: Gregory.bruno@kbcc.cuny.edu. Or, you can submit a proposal here.
Faculty Mentor and Support Hours in E219
Hope Parisi is in E219 this semester, available for informal chats with new and experienced part-time faculty, and all faculty, on Wednesdays, from 1pm – 3pm, with more availability by phone or Zoom, along with Tuesdays as another on-campus day. Please come by this welcoming environment, on Wednesdays, if you’re on campus, or get in touch for a time convenient for you.
Composition Coordinators Spring 2023 Office Hours
Gregory Bruno:
Tuesdays in C309B: 12:30 pm – 1:15 pm
Wednesdays via Zoom: 10:30 am – 12 :30 pm
Thursdays in C309B: 12:30 – 1:45 pm (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6372657798?pwd=L28zMVBxenZzR05vbU1GRis5ajRUZz09)
Rachel Ihara:
Tuesdays and Thursdays in C309B: 9:00 am – 10:00 am.
Fridays via Zoom: 9:00 am – 11:00 am (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5834566892)
KCC Information Technology Services Office
You can call KCC’s ITS Help Desk at (718) 368-6679 or email helpdesk@kbcc.cuny.edu 9:00 – 5:00 on weekdays. For Blackboard support during hours when KCC’s Help Desk is not available, call 1-646-664-2024
A Note about the Newsletter
The next issue of the Newsletter will come out on Monday 5 June 2023. Please send newsletter items by Friday, 2 June 2023 to Jane Weiss at Jane.Weiss@kbcc.cuny.edu. Please keep items brief (preferably 100 or fewer words). Longer items will be abridged. Items about publications and achievements are very welcome.
