FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 1, 2009
Contact: Debra Williams
(662) 329-7119
ddw2@muw.edu

Whitehead named 2009 Humanities Teacher of the Year

COLUMBUS, Miss. – Dr. Kim Whitehead, professor of English and religious studies at Mississippi University for Women, has been named the 2009 Humanities Teacher of the Year by the Mississippi Humanities Council.

The award is given each year to a faculty member from each Mississippi institution of higher learning.

As part of the award, Whitehead will present her lecture, “Navigating the Unknown Place: A Reading of Short Fiction,” on Monday, Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. in Painter Hall, Room 113. A reception will be held immediately following the presentation. Both lecture and reception are free and open to the public.

Whitehead is the developer of two new courses that are cross-listed between English and religious studies: The Bible as Literature and Native American Religions and Literature.

“In religion courses, I encourage students to engage in experiential learning as much as possible,” she said.

She also is a publishing fiction writer, with stories appearing in storySouth, Freight Stories and terrain.org.

Whitehead is the author of “The Feminist Poetry Movement” and has a story coming out in The Apalachee Review in spring 2010. Whitehead’s story "The Split" was chosen for Dzanc Books' 2008 Best of the Web.

For more information, contact Dr. Rita Hinton, MUW chair of the department of languages, literature and philosophy, at (662) 329-7166 or visit rhinton@as.muw.edu.