Faculty Spotlight: Five Questions With English Instructor Shannon Wolf

For English Instructor Shannon Wolf, it’s the “aha” moments that are worth savoring. She is all in when her students find their own voice through poetry or creative writing. She also shares how her own work, including Green Card Girl, which follows her journey from South-West England to Washington, Louisiana, and Colorado, has been influenced by the literature they are reading in class.

What do you love about teaching?

“I love my students. I have the best time with them. I think our students here at SUNY Schenectady are wonderful. They all have these huge commitments with family and jobs and they come to class every day, ready to get at it. The ‘aha moments’ are really special. When you are working with a student, whether they’re learning MLA format or something as simple as difficulties with commas and they finally figure it out, it’s the best thing ever.”

How did "Green Card Girl," your collection of poems, take shape?

“I was in my master’s program for poetry. We were all working on longer pieces of work, almost book length. Much of it came during that time. It is themed around my own immigration story from South-West England to the U.S. It’s kind of a love story about meeting my husband in Seattle and finding a place in a foreign land. We met each other, I wrote poems about that. We moved from place to place, and my poems reflected that. It came out in 2023 and is being re-issued by a new publisher for 2027 which is exciting.”

How does your work as a published author impact your work in the classroom?

“In English Literature class we talk about being a practicing writer. That’s the beauty in sharing what you know. I had always loved English, but it wasn’t until I was in my third year of undergrad that I met a visiting speaker who was a practicing writer. Then, I knew that it was possible for ‘normal people’ to have success in writing. 10 years from now if one of my students thinks they can write a book and they think of me like I think of that first writer I met, that’s pretty cool.”

Who are some of your influences?

“Frank O’Hara – he was big on free verse and pop culture infused poems, Ann Patchett – author of The Dutch House, and Nora Ephron – there is something very special and quintessential New York about her writing. It’s been my dream to live in proximity to New York City, so living in the Hudson Valley is a good spot to find myself in.”

What are you excited about this semester?

“I am teaching ENG 124: Literature and Writing. We are coming to the end of our poetry module, moving into fiction and drama. Already I am seeing amazing students who have a world view that they can bring to analyzing poems. I have students reading Elizabeth Barrett Browning alongside Gwendolyn Brooks and Amanda Gorman and we're learning how all of these works are in conversation with each other. I am excited about multimodal learning, so it’s not just about writing. I look forward to seeing some students who might not have begun with a great love of poetry take on something new and by the end of the semester, they produce great projects.”

Bonus: “Over the summer, I finally read War and Peace. It was incredibly funny, with some great history. I read it in three days and had a great time – my big summer achievement!

Instructor Shannon Wolf has been teaching in higher education for seven years. She holds the following:
Master's in Creative Writing, Lancaster University (UK)
Master's in English Literature, Master of Fine Arts in Poetry, McNeese State University (US)
Bachelor with Honors in English and Creative Writing, University of Chichester (UK)