Degrees
2016, M.A.T. Secondary English Education, Duke University
2013, M.A. Slavic Languages and Literatures, UNC-Chapel Hill
2011, B.A. Slavic Languages and Literatures, UNC-Chapel Hill
Bio
Jessica’s scholarship focuses on Russian and East European fiction. Her dissertation, “Intersecting Worlds: Animal Consciousness, Reality, and Imagination in Eastern European Fiction,” analyzes and historicizes the use of animal perspective in narrative fiction from the late 19th century to the contemporary period. Her fields of interest include animal studies, environmental humanities, cognitive narratology, and language pedagogy. She is proficient in Russian, Ukrainian, and German, having studied in Russia, Ukraine, and Latvia. She has taught Russian language, Russian and German culture, and ENGL 105.
Teaching Awards
- Diane R. Leonard Award from the Department of English and Comparative Literature (for outstanding foreign language teaching by a Comparative Literature graduate student), 2022, 2024
Awards
- Stephen F. Cohen–Robert C. Tucker Dissertation Completion Fellowship from the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies, 2024-25
- Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship (Russian) from UNC Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies, 2023.
- Summer Research & Language Study Award from UNC Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies, 2021
- Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship (Russian) from UNC Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies, 2012