Dr. Susan Field Named Asst. Prof. of English

by George Zamora

SOCORRO, N.M.October 5, 2000 -- Susan L. Field, who has been a visiting professor for the past two years at New Mexico Tech, recently was appointed to the full-time, tenure-track position of assistant professor of English at the state-funded research university.

Field first came to New Mexico Tech in August 1998, after previously working as an instructor of English at the University of Phoenix and also at the University of New Mexico's (UNM) Valencia campus.

As a visiting professor at Tech, Field also directed the university's Writing Center and served as coordinator for the school's Freshman English Program.

Field earned her bachelor of arts magna cum laude, master of arts, and doctoral degrees in English at UNM. She also earned a master of library science degree from George Peabody College in Nashville, Tenn.

This fall semester at New Mexico Tech, Field is teaching two sections of English 111, "College English," as well as an undergraduate course on professional ethics. She also currently is serving as a member of the university's Retention Committee.

"At New Mexico Tech, I'm always challenged to teach in ways that are both conducive to learning and relevant to my students' particular educational interests, pursuits, and experiences,"
Field says. "It helps that my educational background includes a chemistry minor, but that was about a million years ago!"

Field's current academic research interests focus on American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and the American Romanticism Movement, 19th Century American Literature, philosophy and literature, and women studies, particularly contemporary feminist theory and literature.

In the course of her research, Field has written a book on Emerson, titled The Romance of Desire: Emerson's Commitment to Incompletion, which was published by Farleigh Dickinson University Press in 1997.

"I was hired to teach writing and philosophy at Tech, and because of the considerable amount of interest that's been expressed by my students concerning various topics related to Eastern religions, I'd eventually like to put a course together which explores Eastern religions and philosophies," she says."

Field says she enjoys traveling, when she can find the time to do so, and would one day like to retrace Emerson's visit to Europe, a sojourn which will take her from Malta to Milan.

"As a Tech visiting professor, I soon became aware that Tech students are very focused and very intense, as are the professors who teach them," she says.

"This became even more apparent to me on a cold, early morning in December, when a few Tech professors in our van pool from Albuquerque got into a spirited discussion about the constraints of the universe," Field relates. "The conversation eventually progressed to the topic of the constant value of pi and how a black hole might affect the value of pi. Needless to say, I was very impressed."

Field also has added insights into what makes Tech students tick since her son, Sam, is majoring in electrical engineering at New Mexico Tech.

"He actually came here a full year before Mom arrived," she concedes.