Contact the English Program Coordinator to learn more
English faculty at an open mic event sponsored by the campus literary arts magazine.
Why Major in English?
Employers in all industries love to hire English majors. Why? Because they appreciate the fact that English majors know how to communicate effectively and think critically. Penn State Altoona English majors master these skills through courses in literature, writing, and rhetoric. By studying American, British, non-Anglo-American, and world literatures, you’ll learn how to synthesize and analyze information; formulate reasoned arguments and judgments; and develop perspectives on human nature, culture, and diversity. These skills prepare English majors for careers and postgraduate study in:
- business
- marketing
- education (K-12 and college-level teaching)
- law
- medicine
- creative writing
- social media management
- government
- nonprofit management
- publishing
- advertising
- professional and technical writing
- journalism
- various liberal arts disciplines
You’ll also have the opportunity to participate in career internships and in Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honor society, and to learn from published faculty who have won University-wide teaching awards.
Minors and Concentrations Within the Major
The English major offers two minors—the minor in English and the minor in Professional Writing—and two concentrations, Creative Writing and Global Narratives. The English minor will allow you to take any combination of literature and writing courses to hone your critical reading and analytical skills. The Professional Writing minor will prepare you to write effectively in the workplace and in academic settings. The Creative Writing concentration will hone your skills in both practical and creative forms by providing you with instruction and intensive practice in writing. The Global Narratives concentration is designed for students who wish to expand their literary studies in English by exploring literatures and other narrative forms from a wide geographic and temporal scope.
Fall 2022 English Senior Seminar Presentations
English Senior Seminar participants presented their projects on Monday, Dec. 5, in the Mountain View Room of Port-Sky Café. Their presentations were based on the work they did in ENGL 487W taught by Professor Laura Rotunno. This year's theme was “Widening the Stories, Widening our Worlds."
English faculty are shown with senior seminar participants.
Attendees listen to student Pat Wolford present his project on August Wilson.
Pat Wolford presents “An Elegy for the Hill District: The Pittsburgh Roots of August Wilson’s Seven Guitars.”
Jordan Morral presents “’We might be the only living creatures in the whole world’: The Rock and British Imperialism on Joan Lindsay’s Picnic at Hanging Rock."
Danni West-Habjanetz presents "'Identity in the Substance Abuse Epidemic: Origin and Recovery': A Poetry Collection Conception inspired by Natalie Diaz’s When My Brother Was an Aztec."
Jim Miller presents “John Kane: Marginalization and Identity in Working Class Society.”
Katerina Poulos (right) is inducted into the Sigma Tau Delta English national honor society by Jeannette Lang, assistant teaching professor of English.
Hard Freight Café Fall 2022
More than 100 people attended the fall 2022 Hard Freight Café open mic event on Tuesday, November 29, in the Titelman Study of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts. Students and faculty performed music and shared poems, stories, and essays. Kicking off the evening was a reading by Yaw Agawu-Kakraba, professor of Spanish and African Studies, who read from his debut novel, The Restless Crucible. The event was sponsored by Hard Freight, Penn State Altoona's student literary arts magazine.
The audience listens to Professor Patricia Jabbeh Wesley introduce featured readerr Yaw Agawu-Kakraba.
Patricia Jabbeh Wesley, professor of English, introduces featured reader Yaw Agawu-Kakraba, professor of Spanish and African Studies
Yaw Agawu-Kakraba, professor of Spanish and African Studies, reads from his debut novel, The Restless Crucible
Yaw Agawu-Kakraba, professor of Spanish and African Studies, signs copies of his debut novel
Jeannette Lang, assistant teaching professor of English, performs a song
Maya Connell performs an original song
Student Aidan Pellegrino, editor-in-chief of Hard Freight, reads an original poem
Student Danielle West-Habjanetz reads an original essay
Student Ember Brown reads an original story
Student Evan Smith reads an original poem
Student Hannah Gabrielle reads a poem
Student Hollie Keller reads from her memoir about her mother
Student Kaylie Smith reads a poem
Student Maddy Colello performs an original song
Student Makaylah Bangura reads a poem
Student Marissa Ebersole reads a poem
Student Nia Hubbard raps an original spoken word poem
Student Rivka Wolin reads a poem
Student Rose Ried reads an original essay
Student Ryan Gladwin reads a poem
Student Shannette Wahor reads a poem
Student Taylor Greco reads a poem
Student Yeyya Wane reads a poem
The audience listens to a student reading
The audience listens to student Emma Moniz read her original short story
Tom Liszka, emeritus professor of English, reads a poem by Emily Dickinson
Several attendees perform freestyle rap after the event
Writing and Publishing Opportunities
Interested in creative writing? Penn State Altoona students can take workshops in fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and playwriting, as well as pursue a more focused study through the creative writing concentration. Want hands-on experience and practice of your professional skills? Consider writing for the Collegiate Review, the student newspaper, or Hard Freight, the college literary magazine. Outside of the classroom, engage with visiting writers and with the current Emerging Writer-in-Residence. Creative writing faculty have won national and international awards, have published dozens of books, and are excited to help you reach your potential.
