Editorial Remarks

As I have transitioned into my editorship of College Literature, I have come to appreciate anew the ways in which the journal has contributed vibrantly to the study of literature and literary theory for decades. It is, as per our editorial policy, “dedicated to publishing original and innovative scholarly research across the various periods, intellectual fields, and geographical locations that comprise the changing discipline of Anglophone and comparative literary studies.” Its generalist approach is one of its greatest strengths, especially as the profession continues to challenge the national, historical, and methodological borders we have at times imposed upon our inquiry. “College Literature therefore welcomes submissions from across the range of scholarship in literary studies.” We seek essays that call upon us to “rethink existing critical assumptions, conceptual terms, and historical frameworks” and that ask how we “orientate critical inquiry once those assumptions are brought into question, and in examining the resources for historical understanding and rational critique that may yet be available.” The journal will continue to publish essays reflective of our editorial policy; in particular, in the upcoming year, we will foster critique regarding the role of the author and encourage scholarship that emphasizes how new resources, especially archival, challenge our critical paradigms. College Literature aspires to demonstrate the necessity of literature and literary studies and to showcase scholarship that unsettles and inspires those who teach literature and literary theory.

Much of an editor’s role, of course, involves the practical matters of running a journal, a task made all the more challenging given the realities of a rapidly evolving scholarly publishing culture. I am grateful for the journal’s exceptional legacy of leadership. My immediate predecessor, Graham MacPhee, made several significant changes, including those to the editorial team and the journal’s cover, title, and focus. He initiated and oversaw the journal’s move to its new home with Johns Hopkins University Press. He now joins the journal as a member of the Editorial Board, and I want to thank him for his continued service and acknowledge, as well, his gracious guidance during the editorial transition.

I also wish to express my gratitude for the ongoing support of West Chester University of Pennsylvania. As the home academic unit of the journal changed from the College of Arts and Sciences to the newly established College of Arts and Humanities, Vice Provost Jeff Osgood, Dean Lori Vermeulen, and Dean Timothy Blair demonstrated their commitment to supporting the journal. Associate Dean Hyoejin Yoon has provided her consistent support and advocacy in both academic colleges.

This issue also marks the retirement of our editorial assistant Elizabeth Lukens. The authors, peer reviewers, graduate students, editorial board members and editors who have interacted with Elizabeth know firsthand her talent for, and dedication to, fostering the vital relationships and communications that support a journal. Among her many roles, she identified and cultivated essential relationships with our peer reviewers. I am grateful for her assistance to me during the transition, and she will be missed.

In the years ahead, I look forward to working with the many people who sustain the journal—the editorial assistant; editorial board; associate editors; review and associate review editors; consulting editors; authors; peer reviewers; graduate assistants; and, starting this year, the undergraduate intern. With this team in place, we are well poised to continue to assess, respond to, and help shape the scholarship of literary critical studies.