As a professor in the Department of English, Carla Verderame earned her undergraduate degree at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, where she studied English literature.
Verderame continued her education at Brown University, earning a Master of Arts in teaching. She then went on to earn a doctorate degree at the University of Michigan. Here she studied English with a focus in American literature.
When asked why she chose these areas of study, Verderame said, “I loved the English classes at Smith. We read and discussed literature and I saw its application to other areas of my life.”
Verderame said that one of her favorite memories of college was simply having fun with friends.
When asked why she wanted to become a teacher, Verderame said, “I had wonderful teachers in my life and I loved going to school. I wanted to spend my time learning and giving back.”
Verderame has been teaching at WCU for 14 years and teaches English courses in American literature and teacher education.
She has also taught middle and high school and was a Teaching Assistant while earning her degrees at Brown University and the University of Michigan.
Two of her favorite courses to teach at WCU are “Southern Women Writers” and “Native American literature.”
Verderame has published several articles on literature pedagogy and American Literature, including “Traditional Mothers and Contemporary Daughters in Linda Hogan’s Solar Storms,” “Teaching Thomas King’s Medicine River,” and “Visible Teachers, Invisible Students: Education as Imposition in Flannery O’Connor’s Fiction.”
When asked to describe her current academic goal, Verderame said, “I have plans for a manuscript on contemporary Native American authors.” Her best academic achievement was earning her doctorate degree.
When Verderame is not at work, she likes traveling, playing piano, weaving, hiking, swimming, and, of course, reading.
She has traveled to all of Western Europe, Japan, Hong Kong, a few parts of Eastern Europe, and she hopes to one day visit Australia and New Zealand.
Verderame’s advice to students is “try to find balance between working and having fun while staying focused on your goals.”
Hannah Burner is a fourth-year student majoring in English, with a minor in journalism. She can be reached at HB674784@wcupa.edu.