Daria Plumb:
Teacher and Y.A. Lit Scholar
 I graduated from Eastern Michigan University with my master’s degree in children’s literature in 2004. I attribute my active involvement in the professional arena today almost totally to this program and to the constant support of my professors. One professor encouraged me to submit an abstract for my first professional conference, the 2004 Children’s Literature Association; the proposal was accepted and the university even helped fund part of the trip. Another professor selected me to present a paper at EMU’s Graduate Research Fair. And, I was honored by the department faculty with the 2003-2004 Outstanding Graduate Student in Children’s Literature award. These experiences gave me the confidence to seek out and pursue other professional activities.
Since my graduation in 2004 I have: published an article in English Leadership Quarterly (which was named as a honorable mention for Best Article of the Year, 2007); been elected to the Board of Directors of Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of the National Council of Teachers of English (ALAN); served on the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Formation Committee and I am currently serving on the first ever Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Committee; presented breakout sessions at the annual ALAN Workshop three times; given numerous presentations locally about children’s and young adult literature; and taught undergraduate survey courses in children’s literature at both EMU and Washtenaw Community College. Though I am no longer a student, the faculty remain willing to answer my questions, support my professional ambitions, and encourage my continued involvement in EMU’s children’s literature program. I have returned to EMU to take classes in order to maintain my professional teaching credentials and I still attend the biannual departmental retreat meetings. I have also participated on panels with professors and students at EMU’s Extending Conversations conferences.
|
