The faculty at the School of Letters are more than Teachers...
...they are advisors and mentors to our students. That means that first and foremost, we listen to our students. Faculty advisors consult with students to select courses that foster their current interests and also challenge them to uncover new passions and to embrace new opportunities. Because we are dedicated to this focus on the individual student, we are able to offer a unique experience to each person in our program from the first day they begin classes with us, through to graduation and beyond. This might mean working closely with students on a thesis project, revising a piece for publication, or offering career advice and mentoring.
Our faculty are also committed to helping students take advantage of the many opportunities that are available to them while they are here with us. A summer in Sewanee means a summer living within a vibrant literary community that has a long and rich history. From focuses on Southern studies, African American literature, and environmental literature, to our long tradition of Shakespeare studies and our history with the Tennessee Williams Estate, Sewanee's academic offerings provide students with a range of subjects and approaches that faculty are engaged with helping students explore.
In addition, as home to The Sewanee Review, the nation's oldest continuous literary magazine, and premier gatherings like the Sewanee Writers' Conference and the Young Writers' Conference, the culture of the domain is one steeped in the study of literature and letters. Over the course of a summer, students might take advantage of our Wednesday lecture series, attend workshops in creative writing, visit with performers from the American Shakespeare Center, get advice from prize-winning authors about publication and literary careers, collaborate with their peers, and build life-long mentoring relationships with our faculty and visiting speakers.
Because academic advising is such a strong focus of our program, students leave us prepared to enter into a variety of careers and academic pursuits; they become writers, editors, teachers, academics, educational administrators, publishers, and more––all based on the foundation they received at Sewanee. We are proud to celebrate their accomplishments and are honored to welcome and guide new students into our thriving community of writers and literary citizens.
