Dr. Angela Elliott to Present at Western Literature Association Conference

Hackettstown, N.J., September 29, 2010 – Centenary College Professor of English and Poet-In-Residence Dr. Angela Elliott will present a paper at the Western Literature Association Conference, which is scheduled from October 20 through October 23, 2010, in Prescott, Arizona. 

Her talk is entitled “Mixed-blood Identity in Helen Hunt Jackson’s Ramona, Sherman Alexie’s Flight and Essays by Louis Owens and Thomas King.”  Dr. Elliott views these novels as studies of the cultural contexts of the lives of their mixed-blood teenaged protagonists who seek to assert their identity as Native Americans.

“I am pleased that Dr. Elliott will be representing Centenary College at the Western Literature Association Conference,” says Dr. Christopher Adamo, Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the English and Foreign Languages Department.  “She has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to literary analysis and will serve us well in representing Centenary at this opportunity.”

Dr. Elliott is a resident of Morristown, N.J., and joined Centenary College in 1986 as an Assistant Professor of English.  In 1999, she was promoted to full Professor of English.
In 2005, she was named Poet-In-Residence.

She has been writing, sharing, and publishing poetry since her college days.  Her scholarly work has focused on poets William Carlos Williams, Dante, Ezra Pound and May Sarton.  Her articles on Pound’s Cantos are recognized internationally and she has delivered papers on the subject in England, Italy and the United States.

Over the past 50 years, Dr. Elliott has been a frequent reader of her poetry in her community and a participant in workshops and an arranger of live readings by distinguished poets, including Stanley Kunitz, John Ciardi, X.J. Kennedy and James Wright.

Dr. Elliott holds a B.A. from SUNY-Buffalo and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Drew University.

ABOUT THE WESTERN LITERATURE ASSOCIATION

Founded in 1965, the Western Literature Association (WLA) is a nonprofit, scholarly association that promotes the study of the diverse literature and cultures of the North American West, past and present.

Since its founding, the WLA has served to publish scholarship and promote work in the field; it has gathered together scholars, artists, environmentalists, and community leaders who value the West’s literary and cultural contributions to American and world cultures.  It has recognized those who have made major contribution to western literature and western studies and it has fostered student learning and career advancement in education.

ABOUT CENTENARY COLLEGE

Founded in 1867 by the Newark Conference of the United Methodist Church, Centenary College is an independent, coeducational liberal arts and career studies
college distinguished by an accomplished faculty, small class size and diverse student body.  Centenary is the only baccalaureate and master degree granting institution in northwest New Jersey.

Centenary College’s main campus is located in Hackettstown, N.J., with its equestrian
facility in Washington Township (Morris County).  The Centenary Adult and Professional Studies (CAPS) program offers accelerated degree completion programs in Parsippany, with an additional facility in Iselin, and at corporate sites throughout New Jersey.
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