Author Archives: Jessica Yood

About Jessica Yood

I am an Associate Professor of English at Lehman College, The City University of New York (CUNY). Composition and Rhetoric is my primary field and research into the history and emerging role of writing in our contemporary culture continues to broaden my definition of this discipline. Work for my book project takes me into the history of literary criticism in America, complexity theories, the culture wars and the intellectual crises of the 1990s, and the enduring complexity of first-year writing and writers.

Congratulations Award Winners: Now Here’s Your Writing Assignment

Posted on November 20, 2015 by Jessica Yood

On November 10, 2015, I was the guest speaker for the Induction Ceremony of the Golden Key Honors Society at Lehman College, CUNY.  Here’s what I said: Congratulations! Thank you so much or having me here and for giving me … Continue reading →

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Teaching is Embarrassing: Manifesto on Higher Education for the Start of 2015

Posted on September 18, 2015 by Jessica Yood

On September 16, for Convocation at Lehman College, I was honored to be awarded Teacher of the Year.  I gave a one minute acceptance speech.  I hope this serves as a welcome back to the blog and to the new … Continue reading →

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September: Already Gone, Always to Return

Posted on October 6, 2014 by Jessica Yood

Welcome (back?) after a long hiatus. My first post for the 2014 academic year was published on another site–the AEPL blog: The Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning–thanks for the opportunity. Perpetual September: On Being a Beginner in an Age … Continue reading →

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May

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Jessica Yood

from On Beauty, by Zadie Smith “Mom? Mom–you’re breaking up, I can’t hear you. It’s like a tornado out here. I’ll call you back when I’m out of the city,” said Jerome, which was childish, but for the moment he … Continue reading →

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Inventing Critical University Studies

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Jessica Yood

Every time a student sits down to write for us, he has to invent the university for the occasion–invent the university, that is, or a branch of it, like history or anthropology or economics or English. The student has to … Continue reading →

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Can Outcomes Matter in Humanities Courses? Two Drafts of a Paper

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Jessica Yood

Assignment: Compose an analytical essay about your experiences in this first semester of college.  What might these courses help you do in your future? Draft One-Nov 8, 2013 I am not taking any class this semester other than this English … Continue reading →

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After Sabbatical: Beginning Again and Bob Dylan

Posted on November 29, 2013 by Jessica Yood

Ten months of almost weekly chronicling what was my sabbatical felt like the right thing to do.  It had purpose: writing was to keep me on track. Since I had no place to be—no classroom, no archives in Europe or … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | 2 Comments

Teaching and a Trip to the Gramsci Monument: August in The Bronx

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Jessica Yood

When August 1st arrives, it’s always a shock.  But this August 1st bring something more than shock. It brings recognition: back to reality. Today marks the first day of my last month before sabbatical ends and I return, after a … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | 4 Comments

Leaning In and Moving On: A Seat at the Writing Table

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Jessica Yood

Like everyone other woman in a certain place in life, I am reading Lean In by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.  This is Sandberg’s manifesto on why feminism has stalled.  She argues that women don’t assert themselves enough, don’t demand “a … Continue reading →

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Writing This, Not That: Conference Prep

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Jessica Yood

Academic conferences were more exciting back in the 1990s. There you have it.  Months of research and contemplation on the state of the humanities over the last thirty years, reading this about the “science wars” and this about the fate of writing … Continue reading →

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