Dr. Susan Larkin is Batten Associate Professor of English at VWC.  After graduating from North Providence High School in Rhode Island, she received her B.A. in English from Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, where she was a four year starter for the Wheaton softball team.  Larkin played on teams that won conference and ECAC titles and played in the 1997 DIII College World Series, ending up third in the nation.  She was a two time NFCA Scholar Athlete and was a three time Academic All-Conference honoree while graduating summa cum laude. 

Dr. Larkin did her graduate work at Illinois State University, earning an M.A. in English, a graduate certificate in Women’s Studies, and a PhD in English Studies.  Her areas of specialization are Children’s and Adolescent Literature and Women’s Studies and she has published on Laura Ingalls Wilder, Walt Disney, and Harry Potter, and is currently working on a study of contemporary women’s memoir.  At VWC, she teaches courses on Children’s Literature, Adolescent Literature, Women’s Studies, Women’s Literature, and Composition. 

Selected Courses Taught:

ENG 105: College Writing

ENG 250: The Harry Potter Phenomenon

ENG 261: Women Writers

ENG 286: Banned Books

ENG 317: Children’s Literature

ENG 318: Adolescent Literature

WGS 219: Women in Culture and Society

WGS 430: Seminar: The Female Athlete

Selected Publications and Presentations:

“Fantasy as Free Space: Mr. Rogers’s Neighborhood.”  In Revisiting Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: Teaching and Learning about Self and Community. 

“Rags over Riches: Disney and Redemption in Pollyanna and Summer Magic.”  In Walt Disney and His Narratives: From Reader to Storyteller

 “Mixing gender and crossing disciplines: Team Teaching in Women’s Studies Classes.”  With Harold E. Dorton, Jr.  Academic Exchange Quarterly.

 “Laura’s Story: Gender, Autobiography, and the Little House Books.”  a/b: Auto/Biography Studies