Mitchell Crouse
PhD Candidate
Queen’s University
John Watson Hall (4th Floor)
49 Bader Lane
Kingston ON
K7L 3N6
6msc@queensu.ca
You can also download a PDF copy of my CV, which is generally the most up-to-date version, here.
About
My dissertation mainly concerns the fiction written by survivors of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Haitian earthquake in 2010. My other research interests include contemporary Caribbean literature, black American literature, postcolonial literature, as well as memory studies, ecocriticism, and Digital Humanities.
My teaching practice is informed by the skills I learned during my time as a professional secondary school teacher, with an emphasis on student-centred learning and modern pedagogical best practices. Incorporating this into my teaching involves interactive learning, student-driven workshops and activities, enthusiasm and energy, and the use of technology and new media.
Teaching Experience
Teaching Assistant / Queen’s University
2017-2018
ENGL 100
I lead a tutorial group of thirty undergraduate students once a week where I teach and practice close-reading and essay writing skills with students. I mark all of their assignments and exams, and meet with them when they require additional help with course material or crafting strong papers. I strive to make my lessons engaging and interactive, with my teaching practices guided by experiential learning.
Teaching Assistant / Queen’s University
2016-2017
ENGL 292 – Introduction to Literary Theory
Teaching Assistant / Queen’s University
2015-2016
ENGL 160 – Modern Prose Fiction
English and Drama Teacher / EIS (Escuela Internacional Sampedrana)
2013-2014, San Pedro Sula, Honduras
English and Drama Teacher / Boren Sino-Canadian School
2011-2013, Jiangmen, China
Education
PhD Candidate / Queen’s University
2016 – PRESENT, KINGSTON ON
Department of English Language and Literature
Comprehensive Field Examinations in Postcolonial Literature (Distinction)
Master of Arts / Queen’s University
2015 – 2016, KINGSTON ON
Department of English Language and Literature
Bachelor of Education / Queen’s University
Intermediate/Senior
English and Drama
Specialization in language acquisition
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) / Queen’s University
2006 – 2010, KINGSTON ON
Medial in English Language and Literature and Drama
Conference Presentations
Aid, Environment, and Hierarchies in the Aftermath of the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti / HSA
2019, Gainesville FL (Accepted)
Haitian Studies Association
“this country done left us for dead”: Hurricane Katrina, Cultural Memory, and the Power of Literary Resistance / ICSLAC
2019, Ottawa ON (Accepted)
Institute for Comparative Studies in Literature, Art, and Culture
“What kind of demon”: Intersections of Cultural Memories in Marlon James’s The Book of Night Women / ACCUTE
2018, REGINA SK
Association of Canadian College and University Teachers of English
“A patchwork of negro bones”: Specificity and Relationality in Marlon James’s The Book of Night Women / CCLA
2018, REGINA SK
Canadian Comparative Literature Association
Vultures, Pygmies, and Fleas: Emotional Performativity and Alterity in John Dryden’s All for Love / CSECS
2017, TORONTO ON
Canadian Society for Eighteenth Century Studies
Guest Lectures
“Une de nos îles me rendit”: Eco-Trends in the Traditional Literary Canons of Haiti and Louisiana / STP
2018, KINGSTON ON
Special Topics Presentation
Edward Said’s Orientalism / Queen’s University
MARCH 13, 2017
ENGL 292 – Introduction to Literary Theory
Roland Barthes’s “The Death of the Author” and “From Work to Text” / Queen’s University
NOVEMBER 28, 2016
ENGL 292 – Introduction to Literary Theory
Awards
Joseph-Armand Bombardier Doctoral Scholarship / SSHRC
2018 – 2021
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada
Graduate Student Travel Award / Queen’s University
2017
EG Bauman Fellowship / Queen’s University
2017 – 2018
Arthur B. McDonald Prize for Academic Excellence / Queen’s University
2016-2017, KINGSTON ON
Graduate Entrance Award / Queen’s University
2015-2016, KINGSTON ON
Other Academic Projects
Zeitgrad / Podcast
2019 – PRESENT
I create, host, and edit a podcast called Zeitgrad. In each episode I attempt to delve beneath the surface of contemporary cultural and political issues by uncovering historical or unconsidered connections between the current contemporary moment and academic research from a wide cross-section of fields. The majority of guests on Zeitgrad are graduate students and early-career scholars who share their expertise to elucidate a topic of interest from the day’s headlines. You can listen to a sample episode here.
MitchellCrouse.ca / Academic Blog
2018 – PRESENT
I maintain a personal, academic blog on this site where I explore issues and topics that are pertinent to my research and other areas of interest. I try to blend the formality and citations of academic research with the informal, conversational tone of blogging. Though I occasionally branch into political theory and contemporary political issues, the vast majority of posts relate to the intersections of music and race, and I am particularly interested in exploring and writing about the genres of jazz and hip-hop. Sample posts can be found here and here.
Academic Service
Mentor to Participants of the QUCL (Queen’s Undergratuate Conference in Literature)
2018
Mentees: Aliyaa Mohammed and Ishann Selby
Paper Titles: “The Composite Text as Narrative Imperialism: The History of Mary Prince” and “Race and the Construction of the Diasporic Subject in What We All Long For and Uhuru Street”
ENGL 100 Representative of the Graduate English Society (GES)
2017-2018
PhD Graduate Studies Committee Representative for the GES
2017-2018
GES Computer Liaison
2015- 2016
MA Graduate Studies Committee Representative for the GES
2015-2016
Professional Memberships
CCLA (Canadian Comparative Literatures Association)
2018 – PRESENT
ACCUTE (Association of Canadian College and University Teachers of English)
2017-PRESENT
MLA (Modern Language Association)
2017 – PRESENT
CSECS (Canadian Society for Eighteenth Century Studies)
2017-PRESENT