The JSU English Department is proud to announce the addition of Susan Dean and Rashad Ahmed to the department’s Diversity and Inclusion committee.   

Dean began teaching at Jacksonville State University in the Fall 2007 semester as an adjunct; she became a full-time instructor in the Fall 2008 semester. Since then, she has enjoyed teaching a variety of classes and has piloted classes, such as American Gothic Literature and Major Authors: J. R. R. Tolkien. In the Spring 2020 semester, Mrs. Dean became the Coordinator of the Common Read program that creates a shared experience for all incoming freshmen. 

Ahmed is a linguist with a multidisciplinary background in TESOL and Composition Studies. He has been granted several awards, fellowships, and scholarships, which included his Fulbright scholarship 2013 to 2017, the Applied Linguistics Concentration Award, and a Summer Fellowship from the University of Memphis. He has a wide range of research interests that involve Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL), Language Assessment, Digital Literacy, TESOL Methods, Sociolinguistics, and First-Year Composition. 

With the addition of Dean and Ahmed, the English Department’s Diversity and Inclusion committee will begin to explore the various avenues through which underrepresented English Majors can be served while, at the same time, further educating the JSU community about diversity and inclusion. The department offers courses on a variety of literatures and is currently hosting a Scholar in Residence specializing in African American literature and film.