Dr. Fern Kory, Assistant Director

3365 Coleman Hall
217-581-6291
fkory@eiu.edu

Well, I was born in Newport, Rhode Island but raised in southern California. I got married after my junior year in college to a fella I met in marching band when we were both still in high school. My Ph.D is from the University of California at Santa Barbara, a lovely campus on the Pacific Ocean and a great place to live in subsidized student housing. From Santa Barbara, we moved to East Central Illinois so I could teach at EIU. (My California-born sweetheart—who misses the mountains and the ocean—insists that he gets to choose our next locale.) When we arrived in Charleston, in July 1990, my kids—Paul and Rose—were 4 and 2; now they are college students. My two main research interests are Hemingway and children's literature. This intellectual schizophrenia is probably the most interesting thing about me. I have no hobbies, unless you count reading Jane Austen's novels and early twentieth century detective fiction. I've been Assistant Director of the Writing Center for a number of years now, under three different directors. I really enjoy working with the graduate assistant tutors: they bring fresh energy and insight to the Writing Center each year. I also appreciate the opportunities I have to work with student writers who don't yet know their own strengths.

As a farmer's daughter, I've spent the last 6 years trying to figure out this incredible thing called academia, first at Lake Land, then at the University of Illinois, and now at EIU. While I am the first generation in my family to attend college, let alone progressing to master's degree status, I find it more interesting to tell people that I am the first generation to have always had indoor plumbing; no kidding. I have a love for rocks, not as in music, but as in geology. For listening, I prefer audio books, which makes my hour and a half commute from Mahomet more enjoyable.

My listening favorites include: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers, Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, and anything by David Sedaris. When I do have time to read, or when I'm not gardening, working on the house I own with my husband, or cooking, I prefer to read memoirs, food writing, and especially cookbooks. Also, I LOVE "Frontier House" and "Texas Ranch House" on PBS and attending any demolition derby!

As a pretend-double-major here at EIU I focus both on composition and rhetoric, and the professional writing options for master's students. I plan on teaching composition and professional writing, and also working as a grant writer upon completion of my master's degree.

If you're an undergraduate reading this, remember these sage words: There's no such thing as free time, there's no such thing as extra money, and most everything is better deep-fried, including sage.

Hey! My name is Andy Eichel. I recently returned to EIU after a 2-year spurt teaching English in Turkey, where I managed to travel through Europe and the surrounding countries while picking up Turkish. I figured that, at only 23, I’d seen enough of the world for now and it was time to pick a stable career… so I chose… err… English. After my MA I hope to get a PhD, specializing in Old English and Beowulf studies. Towards that end I’m teaching a Freshman Composition class while living intermittently between my apartment and the library and drinking an astonishing amount of coffee. Of course, like all true English majors, I love a good shin-dig now and again… so bring your papers and problems by and I’ll do my best to send you away smiling!

Amanda Groves

Hey! My name is Amanda and I'm a first-year grad student. After skipping around through three different colleges (and just as many majors) I finally finished my undergrad here at EIU. The goal now is to chug through the next two years and see where my M.A., focusing on Composition/Rhetoric, takes me.

Right now I live in Mattoon with my wonderful husband and precious baby boy. I listen to the tunes of Brie Stoner, Mae, Cool Hand Luke and various other artists. I'm really not too picky though...I'm somewhat of an eclectic listener. And if I were stranded on a desert island I'd take the equipment necessary to watch Hot Fuzz, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Animal House, and the like. They wouldn't make me live longer, but at least I could enjoy the time I had left. As far as favorite quotes go, my favorite is by Mr. Ralph Waldo Emerson: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."

Carissa Hayden

Hi, my name is Carissa Hayden. I am a "1.5-year" English/Creative Writing grad student at EIU. I graduated EIU in December of 2006 with a B.A. in English/Creative Writing. I am from rural Illinois and I am getting married next year. Some of my hobbies include: cooking, baking, crocheting, and needlework. I like music from the '60s and '70s mostly—including the Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles. I also like a little bit of pretty much any flavor of music. I have been somewhat obsessed with Fur Elise for about a month as well. As far as literary things go, I love to write personal essays and memoir and my favorite author is William Faulkner.

Megan Holt

"On what?" -Chris Eubank [when asked if he had ever thought of writing an autobiography]

I detest all things technical, but have spent the morning tutoring APA format. I am earning my MA degree in Creative Writing because I like a sense of freedom. Yet, I'm writing this. The only tolerable country song is Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy. I want to live on chocolate, but abhor the thought of fat rolls and cellulite. I aspire to be a great writer, but reject the concept of deadlines. I go to class for discipline and rowdy bars for great stories.

If there is anything missing in this autobiographical paragraph, you will have to find me in the Writing Center. I'll be the one draining the coffee pot.

Drea Johnston

Never one to shy from literature,
On Wharton, Tennyson and Hemingway,
She might have become quite a connoisseur,
She dreamt of herself cloaked in Oxford grey.
So she packed up her bags and went abroad
Her return back to the states was tardy--
She found that the Brits were charming yet flawed,
And learnt of Austen, Shakespeare and Hardy.
She came home with a looming addiction,
While undecided to this very day,
She felt always a certain conviction
Her dearest, nearest St. Vincent Millay.
Sweet sonnets with which she could never part
Many of which she can recite by heart.

Hey all! My name is Rachel and this is my second semester as a tutor in the Writing Center. I did already have a bio on this page, but my mention of the Borat movie dated it a bit. So, this time around I’ll leave off mentioning any “Now Playing”s (though I guess that still leaves me room to push “Now-On-DVD”s – see Children of Men! And read the book while you’re at it – hey, as an English major I’ve got to push these things).

Other Rachel notes: I’m a born-and-bred Charlestonian who skipped town for my undergraduate years (U of I, Chambana) and have returned to pursue an English masters degree at Eastern; I’m an enormous fan of Radiohead; I play the piano when I’m stressed out; I have two ferrets named Punky and Guido; I listen to NPR; I wear a helmet when I ride my bike, though that doesn’t keep me from hitting the occasional curb; I have tan lines from my flip-flops, though as long as I wear my flip-flops my secret is safe (har har); I have a deep and abiding respect for investigative journalists; and I am convinced that our current US President is an android in which they neglected to install vital software (I’m also pretty wildly imaginative and a teensy bit ornery).

If you’re hungry for more tantalizing insights, come on down to the Writing Center and say hey! And maybe even bring along your paper-in-progress of the moment…