Committed to the living spirit of literature and to the enabling possibilities of the language...
The English Department at SUNY Old Westbury is dedicated to offering courses and activities that challenge our students to become better readers, writers, thinkers, and educators. Majors in the department study great works of literature, learn how to analyze literary texts and their contexts, improve their writing and thinking skills, and explore the nature and beauty of language.
The English Department offers co-curricular, community-building activities and systems of support for our majors through individual academic advising sessions; student publications, round tables and conferences; and workshops, poetry readings, and career networking sessions. The Department publishes Harmonia, a creative writing journal, and Discordia, a literary scholarship journal open to all Old Westbury students. Majors have opportunities to earn course credit as peer mentors and as peer tutors. Internships place students in legal, cultural and publishing venues under the supervision of professionals.
The English Department is equally dedicated to developing the language arts skills of Old Westbury students (including writing, revising, reading, researching, information management, public speaking, and critical thinking) through our offerings of English Composition I and II. Faculty value involvement in campus life and reflect our University's mission to promote “intercultural understanding” and to “build a more just world” in our approaches to teaching, service work, and professional development projects.
Undergraduate Offerings
Major
Bachelor of Arts in English
The B.A. Degree in English program prepares majors for entrance into graduate school as well as for employment in fields that require strong proficiency in communication, writing, critical analysis, and intercultural understanding. Our graduates work in fields such as publishing, banking, education, business, library sciences, teaching, and law. Our graduates have continued their education, pursing graduate degrees in English, Education (including Old Wesbury's Master of Arts in Teaching English Language Arts 7-12), Library Science, Business Law, and other fields of study.
Minors
African American Studies
Global Studies
Multicultural US/British Literature
Women & Gender Studies
Sigma Tau Delta
The Sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society has over 750 active chapters located in Europe, the Caribbean, and the United States, and every year there are approximately 8,500 new members inducted. The annual induction into Sigma Tau Delta is a recognition of hard work and academic excellence. Old Westbury is proud to offer honored faculty and eligible students membership into this prestigious organization. Sigma provides and promotes interest in literature, language and writing. Joining Sigma Tau Delta is a great way to get to know fellow English majors, to foster friendships among members, and to provide opportunities to work closely with the outstanding English professors who teach at our school. The Old Westbury chapter, Alpha Kappa Beta, was founded in 2001. To earn membership, undergraduate students must possess a minimum of a 3.3 general GPA, an equivalent average in the English major, and have completed at least 60 credits of college work. Graduate students must maintain a 3.7 average and have completed at least five English courses for the program.
Poetry Club
The Poetry Club is a group of students—residents and commuters—who believe in freedom of expression through any means necessary. Meeting times and programs for the current semester coming soon.
Harmonia/Discordia
Harmonia is the English Department’s creative writing journal. It was created by Professor Jessica Williams when she was a student in the English Department in 2004. Harmonia accepts poetry, lyrics, short stories, and artwork on a rolling basis.
Discordia is the English Department’s scholarly journal. It was launched in Fall 2014. Discordia accepts book reviews, analysis papers, and research papers.