Message from Maricel Santos
Professor, Department Chair
Department of English Language & Literature
Maricel and Priya, getting good counsel, including dim sum advice, from TESOL faculty emerita May Shih, October 2025
Dear faculty, students, faculty emeriti, and friends of the SF State English Department,
I’m delighted to be able to share the 2025-2026 newsletter with all of you. This newsletter provides abundant evidence that, despite the many challenges in the world today testing our mettle, we have not lost sight of our purpose as a community of learners, thinkers, and change agents.
We have experienced many changes this year. Among department staff, graduate program coordinator Cynthia Losinksy (over 20 years in our department!) now splits her work time across English and Philosophy. We are so grateful that, in this new role, Cynthia is still part of our team.
Our department is still reeling from the loss of our dear colleague, David Olsher, last summer. We continue to feel his absence in the department and across campus. I especially miss David’s wry political humor and quirky analyses of ‘Seinfield’ banter, two qualities that always brought warmth and laughter to our lives. Links to David’s memorial page can be found in our faculty section.
We congratulate several longtime colleagues who are moving into retirement after many years of service and dedication to our department.
Retired in Summer/Fall 2025
Esther Chan (Writing Program/Composition for Multilingual Speakers), Karen Coopman (Writing Program), Doreen Deicke (Writing Program), Sara Felder (Writing Program), Wai-Leung Kwok (Literature), Loretta Stec (Literature), Jennifer Summit (Literature), Lisa Vicar (Writing Program), Joan Wong (Writing Program)
Retiring in Spring/Summer 2026
Angela Jones (Literature), Paul Morris (English Education), Mark Roberge (Composition), Meg Schoerke (Literature), Brian Strang (Writing Program)
Such a large and swift exodus of pedagogical excellence, leadership, and wisdom in less than a year! While we wish everyone a happy, well-deserved retirement, I must admit that we are not done seeking their counsel just yet. Their legacy will no doubt continue to shape our mission for some time to come. And this is not good-bye. We look forward to reconnecting with our retired colleagues and hearing how things are going in the post-SFSU world, what new projects and passions they are pursuing. It won’t come as a surprise that our faculty and staff are meeting this moment of change with resolve and creativity. We held an “all hands on deck’ meeting at the end of May to think strategically about curricular priorities in light of a changing faculty profile and on-going budgetary squeezes. This summer, we’ve organized several curricular slams, intense work sessions focused on revising curricula and identifying areas of growth. I thank the entire department for the time and energy they are investing to keep our programs strong and relevant. Some more good news: this fall, two new gifts honoring former American Language Institute (ALI) directors, Allis Rice Bens and Kathy Sherak will create additional funding opportunities for our English majors and graduate students. These include the Allis Rice Bens Excellence Initiative Endowed Initiative, and the Kathy Sherak Endowed Fund for Mentorship in TESOL, established by Gabriel Au-Chan in honor of his mother Kathy (MA TESOL 1986 Alum). Along with a general donation from Allison Gant (MA TESOL 2001 Alum) and the Gant Family Foundation to the TESOL Program, we will be able to expand mentorship and practical training opportunities for our students. In addition, Professor Stephen Arkin’s family is now working to expand the Stephen Arkin Scholarship Fund to make it possible to award an additional scholarship and provide support for students presenting their work at academic conferences (a new resource for our students). You can learn more about the campaign in Professor Arkin’s honor on our faculty page of the newsletter. To close, I’d like to thank the staff – Perry Udomwadhanaphorn, Cynthia Losinsky, Chris Conroy, and Heather Sawyer – for keeping the boat steady as we navigate this period of change. Much thanks to our student assistants, Jada Staley, Tadeo Macon, Jason Sanchez, and Louis Miller, for helping to organize and host our department events. And a hearty thank you to Heather Sawyer for designing this newsletter, and to Chris Conroy for tracking down content and making sure all the links work. Have a safe and restful summer, everyone. Maricel G. Santos Chair, Department of English Language & Literature
