March 2020 - maenglish@lists.qc.cuny.edu

[MAEnglish] English MA program update
by Caroline K. Hong 27 Mar '20

27 Mar '20

Dear MA students, My sincere apologies for the radio silence for the last couple weeks. So much has changed so quickly, and I think we're all just doing the best we can. (I'm now in kindergarten for like 6 hours a day with my daughter, so it's been a real struggle to get any work done over here...) I'm so sorry if you're waiting on an email response from me--I'll try to tackle my inbox this weekend. Going forward, if you have any questions or need advising, I suggest always *emailing BOTH me and Bill*, so that whichever one of us is able to can reply first. Please read on for some important announcements and updates. CHANGES TO SEMESTER SCHEDULE Most of you know by now about the confusing changes CUNY has made to the semester schedule <https://www.cuny.edu/coronavirus/>. There is now a "*recalibration period*" from today, *Friday, March 27, through Wednesday, April 1*, during which there is supposed to be no instruction (that means your professors can be in touch with you but *no class meetings, coursework, or assignments can be required during this time*). The other major schedule change is that *spring recess has been condensed*, from *Wednesday, April 8 to Friday, April 10*. (For anyone whose religious observation continues into the following week, you always have the right to request religious exemptions.) In practice, each instructor and class will decide for themselves what they're going to do. I've heard that many are opting to stick to what they'd already planned/scheduled. If you haven't yet heard from your professors about how they're going to proceed, I would kindly check in with them via email. If you're currently enrolled in *ENGL 791* and writing your thesis essay, you should also check in with your faculty advisors, if you haven't already, and make plans to meet/discuss your essay virtually, whether by email, text chat, video chat, phone, etc. All oral conferences/exams can also be done virtually. As for *graduation*, we haven't gotten an official announcement yet, but it seems likely that ceremonies will be canceled, postponed, or held virtually. Once I hear, I'll let you know. We don't yet know what will happen with *summer courses*, but it's certainly possible that some may run as online courses and others could be canceled. Again, as soon as I hear anything, I'll update you. WITHDRAWALS + PASS/NO CREDIT OPTION If you need to withdraw from a course, the deadline for *withdrawals (W)* has been extended to *May 14*. W's do not impact your GPA. Also, pending approval by the CUNY Board of Trustees, there will likely be a *new Pass/No Credit (P/NC) policy* for this semester <https://www.cuny.edu/cuny-continuity/cuny-continuity-for-students/#grade-po…>. This means that, up to 20 business days after your Spring 2020 course grades are posted on CUNYfirst, you can choose to convert any letter grades to P/NC. Any P's will count toward your MA degree requirements. I will update you if/when this policy has been approved. (Note that taking too many classes P/NC may impact your financial aid or certain professional licensing requirements. Please talk to your academic advisors and the Financial Aid office before making any changes.) OTHER RESOURCES If you're struggling financially, you can apply for a *Petrie Emergency Grant* or an interest-free emergency loan through QC. For more info, email petriegrant(a)qc.cuny.edu and read more here <https://www.qc.cuny.edu/StudentLife/services/Pages/Emergency-Grant.aspx>. If you don’t have *internet access* at home, Charter/Spectrum is offering free broadband and wifi for 60 days to households with students <https://corporate.charter.com/newsroom/charter-to-offer-free-access-to-spec…>. To sign up, call 844-488-8395. If you don't have *computer access* at home, please let us know and we'll help you borrow a laptop from campus. ----- We're here to support you as best we can, so please email both me and Bill anytime. We ask that you please be patient with us, your professors, and yourselves during these unprecedented and difficult times. And of course, most importantly, please take care and stay safe and healthy. Best, Caroline -- Caroline Kyungah Hong, PhD Associate Professor of English Director of Graduate Studies (English MA) Queens College, CUNY Klapper Hall 604 caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu* *she/her/hers* ** Please note that I am off email on weekends and will respond to your email during business hours, Monday–Friday 8am–5pm.*

1 0

[MAEnglish] Preregistration for Fall 2020 (March 16-18)
by Caroline K. Hong 16 Mar '20

16 Mar '20

Dear Graduate Students, As mentioned in my previous email, we'll be doing preregistration for Fall 2020 English graduate courses next week, *Monday, March 16 through Wednesday, March 18*. Matriculated graduate and accelerated students in good academic standing (i.e., minimum 3.0 GPA and no INCs) should take advantage of this opportunity to sign up early for classes. (Non-matriculated/non-degree students are not eligible for preregistration.) Please see attached (and below) for preregistration instructions and FAQs, including a breakdown of requirements for MA, MS Ed, and MAT students, as well as the attached Fall 2020 course descriptions. You should already be able to register yourself for summer courses on CUNYfirst, and I've also attached the revised Summer 2020 course descriptions. The hope of course is that it'll be safe for the summer sessions to proceed as planned, but we'll know more in the coming month or two. I'll keep you updated if anything changes. As always, if you need help or advising before preregistration, please email me or Bill. Best, Caroline -- Caroline Kyungah Hong, PhD Associate Professor of English Director of Graduate Studies (English MA) Queens College, CUNY Klapper Hall 604 caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu* *she/her/hers* * Please note that I am off email on weekends and will respond to your email during business hours, Monday–Friday 8am–5pm. -- Preregistration for English MA Courses 2020 FALL Preregistration for Fall 2020 English MA courses will take place *Monday, March 16 through Wednesday, March 18, 2020*. Matriculated graduate and accelerated students in good academic standing (i.e., minimum 3.0 GPA and no outstanding INCs) are strongly encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to sign up early for classes. Below are preregistration instructions and FAQs, including a breakdown of program requirements for MA, MS Ed, and MAT students. Fall 2020 course offerings and descriptions are attached separately. If you have any questions or need advising, please email the current Directors of Graduate Studies in English—Prof. Caroline Hong (caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu) and Prof. Bill Orchard (worchard(a)qc.cuny.edu) *Instructions for Preregistration via Email* During the preregistration period of March 16–18, please email Prof. Bill Orchard (worchard(a)qc.cuny.edu) with the following info: 1. Your full name 2. Your program (MA, MS Ed, MAT, or accelerated) 3. Your 8-digit CUNY ID# 4. The courses you’d like to register for, with their 4- or 5-digit class codes (e.g., ENGL 636, class code 34517) Students can preregister for up to *3* classes. Email preregistration requests will be processed within 24 hours and in the order they are received. You will receive a confirmation notice once you’ve been registered, asking you to log onto CUNYfirst and double-check your schedule. *Preregistration FAQs* *Who is eligible to preregister for Fall 2020 classes?* All matriculated MA, MS Ed, and MAT students, as well as accelerated students, who have an active CUNYfirst account and are in good academic standing are eligible to preregister for courses. If your GPA has fallen below 3.0 or if you’re carrying incompletes on your record from a previous semester, you will need to seek advising with one of the Directors of Graduate Studies in English, Prof. Caroline Hong or Prof. Bill Orchard, before being permitted to preregister. If you have any holds on your CUNYfirst account for any reason, however unwarranted, CUNYfirst will not allow you to be preregistered for classes. Please check your account before the start of the preregistration period and make sure that all holds have been resolved. Non-matriculated/non-degree students are *not* eligible to preregister. *Can I take a course with the same number twice for credit?* Courses titled “Studies in…” may be repeated for credit as long as the specific course topics and course materials are substantially different (see course titles at http://english.qc.cuny.edu/graduate-programs/) For example, ENGL 719, 722, and 727 may all be repeated for credit. ENGL 681 (Special Studies) and 781 (Special Seminars) may also be repeated for credit, as long as the specific course topics and course materials are substantially different. ENGL 636, 638, 701, 702, and 703 *cannot* be repeated for credit. *What are my English course requirements?* For MA students: § ENGL 701 § ENGL 636 § 7 open electives (any English graduate class offered at the 600 or 700 level, *excluding the creative writing workshops and craft classes, ENGL 751–763, which are reserved for MFA students*) § ENGL 791 (thesis essay) For MS Ed students (admitted Fall 2012 or after): § ENGL 702 or 703 § 2 pre-1900 electives § 1 open elective (any English graduate class offered at the 600 or 700 level, *excluding the creative writing workshops and craft classes, ENGL 751–763, which are reserved for MFA students*) § ENGL 781 For MAT students: § 1 pre-1900 elective § 1 open elective (any English graduate class offered at the 600 or 700 level, *excluding the creative writing workshops and craft classes, ENGL 751–763, which are reserved for MFA students*) § ENGL 781 *What courses fulfill the pre-1900 requirement for MS Ed and MAT students?* In Fall 2020, the following three courses fulfill the pre-1900 requirement: ENGL 719 with Prof. Edward Currie (code 34524), ENGL 722 with Prof. Ala Alryyes (code 34525), and ENGL 727 with Prof. Karen Weingarten (code 34526). *Can I preregister for ENGL 791, the thesis course, or ENGL 795, the independent study course?* English 791 and English 795 require additional advising and paperwork, so these are not courses for which you can preregister. Please email with one of the Directors of Graduate Studies in English, Prof. Caroline Hong ( caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu) or Prof. Bill Orchard (worchard(a)qc.cuny.edu) if you’re planning to take one of these courses in Fall 2020.

1 1

[MAEnglish] QC English MA program update
by Caroline K. Hong 13 Mar '20

13 Mar '20

Hi all, Following up with some English MA program updates. You've likely seen the announcements from QC <http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1103033957415&ca=fc619c51-…> and CUNY <https://www.cuny.edu/coronavirus/> re: the move to online/distance learning for the rest of the spring semester. As of now, campus remains open, so students who need internet and computer access can still use the library and computer labs. There is an *instructional recess* in effect through Wednesday, March 18. That means, while your professors can and may reach out to you during this time, you cannot be required to complete assignments or do other coursework before March 19. We will also be holding *preregistration for Fall 2020* via email next week. In a separate email later today, I will send out course descriptions and instructions on how to preregister for your fall courses beginning on Monday. All our spring departmental events have been canceled, including the *MA conference*. Thank you to everyone who submitted a proposal. We hope to use the same theme and CFP for next year's conference, and we'll gladly invite all of you back to participate, even if you've already graduated by then. Next week I'll also send out the announcement and submission guidelines for the annual *Nancy Comley Prize* for best graduate essay. Social distancing won't stop us from celebrating your wonderful work! And again, while our office hours for the semester have been canceled, and we've been instructed not to meet with students in person, Bill and I are always available via email if you have any questions or concerns. Please continue to take care of yourselves and stay safe and healthy. Best, Caroline -- Caroline Kyungah Hong, PhD Associate Professor of English Director of Graduate Studies (English MA) Queens College, CUNY Klapper Hall 604 caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu* *she/her/hers* ** Please note that I am off email on weekends and will respond to your email during business hours, Monday–Friday 8am–5pm.*

1 0

[MAEnglish] CUNY moving to distance learning
by Caroline K. Hong 11 Mar '20

11 Mar '20

Dear MA students, As you may have already heard, Gov. Cuomo just announced that CUNY will be moving to distance learning by next Thursday, March 19 <https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/nyregion/coronavirus-new-york-update.html>. We haven't yet heard from the QC administration, but hopefully there will be more info coming shortly. Once Bill and I know more, we'll be sure to update you. Your professors should be in touch individually re: how they'll be proceeding with their classes online, and we ask that you please be patient as they/we prepare for this transition. This won't be easy or ideal and will require us all to be more flexible, but please know that Bill and I are here to advise and advocate for you. We are canceling our regular office hours for the remainder of the semester, but please email us with any questions or concerns. We'll be in touch again soon. In the meantime, please stay safe and healthy out there. Best, Caroline -- Caroline Kyungah Hong, PhD Associate Professor of English Director of Graduate Studies (English MA) Queens College, CUNY Klapper Hall 604 caroline.hong(a)qc.cuny.edu* *she/her/hers* ** Please note that I am off email on weekends and will respond to your email during business hours, Monday–Friday 8am–5pm.*

1 0

[MAEnglish] Reminder: Deadline for Conference Proposals is March 10, 2020
by William Orchard 09 Mar '20

09 Mar '20

Hello all, I'm writing to remind you that the deadline for conference proposals is Tuesday, March 10 (thanks to those you who have already submitted abstracts). I've pasted the call before, which is really open to all kinds of submissions, even if they only tangentially touch on the conference theme. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Best, Bill CALL FOR PAPERS Seventh Annual Queens College English Graduate Conference MOVE! Conversations in Motion Conference Date: April 29, 2020 Keynote Speaker: Cristina Pérez Jiménez (Manhattan College) Submission Deadline: March 10, 2020 Are you moving? Moving on? Moving up? Moving forward? Are you pushing? Pushing boundaries? Pushing limits? Pushing buttons? Or are you pulling? Pulling things apart? Pulling them together? Pulling away? At the seventh annual Queens College English Graduate Conference, we want to know what you think it means to move. We invite papers that consider the different ways that people move and are moved. How is literature responding to migration, displacement, and other mass movements of people? How is literature implicated in mobilizations and movements for social change? How do scholars move the boundaries of their field as they try to answer urgent questions for the present? How do we interpret the body's movements, whether in dance, performance, or everyday gestures? How is physical and social mobility affected by the types of bodies we possess? How do emotions move us toward what it is important when reason fails us? We want you to tell us what moves you, how it moves you, and why it moves you. Let's engage in the critical conversation about movement, a concept crucial to the struggles of the current moment. Movement is being actively impeded, and is no longer a right, but a luxury. The definition of movement is being rewritten to include those who don't move in traditional ways. We are learning a new language of movement, finding new ways to define how and why we're moved. We're being moved by the world around us. Sometimes by circumstances outside of our control. At the Queens College English Graduate Conference this year, we want to be moved by you. Possible submission topics include but are not limited to: Migrations · Literature of Migration · Refugees and Mass Displacement · Migrations within Nations Gesture · Performance Studies · Body and Expression · Bodily Movement and Power Mobility/ Mobilizations · Literature and Social Movements · Disability Studies · Popular Literature and Mass Culture ? Emotions · Affect Theory · Sentimentalism · Emotions and Social Change To Submit a Proposal Please send proposals of 250 words max to QCEnglishMAconference(a)gmail.com<mailto:QCEnglishMAconference@gmail.com> by Monday, March 10, 2020. Proposals should be pasted in the body of the email. Please include your full name and the name of your program and school. All Queens College MA, MFA and MS Ed students are welcome to submit, as well as master's students from other CUNY schools and New York-area universities.

1 0