Candidates: MSA Board Elections 2026

Standing for: 1. Second Vice President

    • Michaela Bronstein
    • Name: Michaela Bronstein
    • Candidate Statement:
      Associate Professor, English Department, Johns Hopkins University MSA is my intellectual home: I’ve been to almost every meeting since 2009. As a scholar of modernism who also works on literatures from times and places far afield from the early 20th century, I am firmly invested in an expansively open MSA, and in maintaining the conference’s status as a space that values the presence of those for whom “modernist studies” isn’t the primary descriptor of their work. I’ve both participated in and organized numerous panels and roundtables, including meta-disciplinary events that address broad questions about the field’s capacities and limits today. As an administrator, I like to figure out how to make valued institutions work a little better for everyone. MSA already exemplifies the results of many people doing this kind of labor, such as the recent expansions in support and mentorship for graduate, contingent, and non-faculty scholars. These initiatives both ensure broader access at our in-person conference and build forms of ongoing dialogue between conferences that benefit everyone. On the Board, I would work to ensure that MSA’s institutions provide for our community’s many needs, whether via logistical creativity, material support, or new scholarly conversations. Department Website
    • Peter Kalliney
    • Name: Peter Kalliney
    • Candidate Statement:
      Tuggle Chair in English, University of Kentucky I have been an MSA member and regular conference attendee for more than twenty years. The organization has been instrumental in my professional development. Preserving the sustainability of the MSA, ensuring the accessibility of its activities, and maintaining the high standards of its publications would be among my chief priorities as an officer. Are there ways to make the conference more affordable without losing what attendees find valuable about the event? Are there ways to increase member engagement beyond the annual conference, such as the Special Interest Groups? Are there ways to continue to improve the journal, which has benefitted from very capable editors over the past decade? I would like the board to create a better mechanism for collecting member feedback that includes but goes beyond the annual post-conference survey. Gathering better information from members can help the board be more responsive. Members can learn more about my scholarship on my profile: https://www.as.uky.edu/users/pjkall2. I have published in Modernism/modernity and I have served on the editorial board for many years. I chaired the MSA First Book Prize committee in 2021 and I won the Book Prize in 2023 for my most recent monograph, The Aesthetic Cold War: Decolonization and Global Literature.
    • Daniel Morse
    • Name: Daniel Morse
    • Candidate Statement:
      Associate Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of English; Affiliate Faculty, Department of Gender, Race, and Identity Studies, University of Nevada, Reno As Second Vice President of MSA, I would collaborate with the Board to support valuable recent work making MSA more inclusive of contingent faculty members, graduate students, and scholars outside of English departments. I would also work to boost our national and international recognition while honoring the inviting community I’ve enjoyed at MSA conferences since 2008 in Nashville. Drawing on eighteen years as a member of MSA (including on a local organizing committee to host the conference in Reno) as well as organizing and appearing in seminars, roundtables, and panels, I would add experience publishing in (and reviewing manuscripts for) Modernism/modernity, Modernist Cultures, the Journal of Modern Literature, The Global South, and other venues. My first book, Radio Empire: The BBC’s Eastern Service and the Emergence of the Global Anglophone Novel was published in the Modernist Latitudes series by Columbia University Press in 2020. I’ve taught modernism at the undergraduate and graduate levels at three state universities as well as at the Rosenbach Museum & Library, where I gained experience engaging a wider public. I would also draw on extensive service to the profession (including as an NEH reviewer) and to my institution (including as Director of the interdisciplinary humanities program). For more on my publications and experience, please see my website: danielryanmorse.com

Standing for: 2. Program Vice Chair

    • Joyce Cheng
    • Name: Joyce Cheng
    • Candidate Statement:
      Associate Professor, Department of History of Art & Architecture, University of Oregon I am associate professor of art history at the University of Oregon where I teach courses in modern art, art theory and criticism, and visual culture. I am the author of The Persistence of Masks: Surrealism and the Ethnography of the Subject (University of Minnesota Press, 2025), which considers the figure of the mask in surrealist visual arts and poetics in terms of a covert theory of the subject as non-hegemonic, non-anthropocentric, and feminine-identified. My essays on symbolism, dada, surrealism and primitivism have appeared in journals such as Modernism/modernity, Res, Gradhiva, and Comparative Literature. Informed indirectly by the ethnographic dimension of surrealism, my current project is a study of the Japanese cultural icon Hello Kitty as an object for anthropological aesthetics, and an example of a heuristic framework I call critical folklore. With art history as my primary discipline, I became a regular attendee of the Modernism Studies Association conferences fairly late in my career. As a Taiwanese-American scholar of modernism and the avant-garde who works primarily on francophone materials, I am interested in contributing to the MSA’s ongoing reach beyond Anglophone literary studies. I would love to help recruit colleagues in art history, theatre studies, and musicology, and in non-Anglophone areas (especially East Asia and Latin America) as regular MSA members and participants.
    • Chris Coffman
    • Name: Chris Coffman
    • Candidate Statement:
      Professor of English and Affiliated Faculty with the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program, University of Alaska Fairbanks I am running for the position of Vice Program Chair to support the Modernist Studies Association’s goal of fostering interdisciplinary approaches to late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century literature, art, music, and performance. My own research and teaching situate twentieth- and twenty-first century literature and the visual arts at the intersection of feminist theory, queer theory, trans theory, and the psychological disciplines. I served as Chair of my department from 2020-2024 and especially enjoyed tasks such as planning the class schedule, which involved reviewing faculty members’ requests with an eye to offering a diverse range of topics at varied times to support our curricula in composition, literature, and creative writing. Moreover, I have organized sessions on Modernism, Queer Studies, and Trans Studies for the MSA, the MLA, and the American Comparative Literature Association (on whose Gender Studies Committee I served from 2012-2019). As Vice Program Chair for the MSA, I would employ this skill set with an eye to furthering the conference’s transnational, intersectional, and interdisciplinary programming in gender, sexuality, race, ability, postcoloniality, and decoloniality; and in areas such as environmental, health, and medical humanities that foster dialogue with the social and natural sciences. Four recent publications demonstrating an interest in Modernist Studies: -"H.D.'s Nonbinary Poetics," forthcoming in the Winter 2026 issue of the Journal of Modern Literature -"Psychoanalysis and Queer Sexualities: Djuna Barnes' Nightwood" in The Bloomsbury Handbook to Literature and Psychoanalysis (Bloomsbury Academic, 2023) -"Queer Theory" in The Oxford Handbook of Virginia Woolf (Oxford UP, 2021) -Gertrude Stein's Transmasculinity (Edinburgh UP, 2018 and 2019)
    • Matthew Kilbane
    • Name: Matthew Kilbane
    • Candidate Statement:
      Assistant Professor of English, University of Notre Dame I’m a scholar of modern poetry, media history, and digital culture. My first book, The Lyre Book: Modern Poetic Media (JHUP, 2024), a title in the Hopkins Studies in Modernism series, unfolds a disciplinary meeting place for literary and media studies by opening the modernist archive to such things as pop songs, radio poems, closet operas, and speech-music. In more recent essays on poetry's social life, I have written about Octavio Paz, Muriel Rukeyser, Langston Hughes, Hope Mirrlees, Gwendolyn Brooks, and George Oppen, among others. My next book project, “The Ends of Poetry,” begins its revisionary history of twentieth-century literary institutions with under-studied modernist hangouts like the Dil Pickle Club and Raven Poetry Circle. I’m also editing a volume on the interdisciplinary wunderkind Mark Turbyfill, a poet, ballet dancer, and painter who spent his life on modernist art—relentlessly, and with an elated trust in its promise to remake the world. As Vice Program Chair of MSA, I’d look forward especially to helping 1) realize the organization’s interdisciplinary promise, 2) augment its utility for graduate students and precarious scholars, and 3) reaffirm modernist studies—in the face of hiring trends—as a critical project indispensable to the contemporary humanities. Four Recent Publications: -The Lyre Book: Modern Poetic Media (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024). -“Plastic Paris,” Modernism/modernity Print+, in “Hope Mirrlees’s Paris: A Poem @100,”, eds. Nell Wasserstrom and Rio Matchett, 10 July 2025. -Langston Hughes, “Street Scenes: Langston Hughes, Lyric Pop, and Walter Benjamin’s Baudelaire,” American Literature96, no. 3 (2024): 443-72. -“Muriel Rukeyser’s Idea of Poetry: A History of Abstraction,” Modernist Cultures 19, no. 2-3 (2024): 312-333.

Standing for: 3. Graduate Student Representative

    • Pooja Bachani
    • Name: Pooja Bachani
    • Candidate Statement:
      PhD Student, University of Tulsa I am a second year PhD student at the University of Tulsa and serve as the Editorial Assistant at the James Joyce Quarterly. My research interests beyond modernism include object and thing theory, affect theory, phenomenology, and non-humanism. In 2025, I participated in the Trieste Joyce Summer Program, presented at MSA and a boutique conference on fragments at the University of Naples L’Orientale, and conducted a research visit at the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco. I also currently serve on the Board of Directors for the National Steinbeck Center. I returned to my studies in English Literature after spending a few years working in public policy without and within academia. My role at Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy allowed me to develop my professional skills in conference organization and hosting, serving on academic committees, and organization boards. I have also worked in marketing, communications, and public affairs. I understand what a role on the board entails and the work required in order to honor the integrity of this commitment. I would love the opportunity to apply my experience and skills to furthering the study of modernism—a field I firmly believe to be my calling.
    • Lizzie Belnap
    • Name: Lizzie Belnap
    • Candidate Statement:
      PhD Candidate, Stony Brook University I have earned a BA in English Literature, Master’s Degrees in English and in Irish Studies, and I am currently a fourth year PhD Candidate in English Literature. My work focuses on Modernism and other 20th Century literary movements, particularly in Ireland. Having written theses on James Joyce and Modernist social movements, my current research makes innovative connections between classical Modernism and gender. I am currently working on a dissertation which re-reads 20th century literature through the lens of girlhood studies, a broad but relatively small field. In addition to my research and teaching responsibilities, I served as the secretary of the James Joyce Society for three years, before assuming the position of Vice President of the JJS, a role which I currently hold. In this position, I aid the JJS in promoting the research of emerging scholars and underrepresented voices in the world of Modernism and Joyce studies.
    • Debakanya Haldar
    • Name: Debakanya Haldar
    • Candidate Statement:
      PhD Candidate, University of Florida I am a PhD Candidate (English) at the University of Florida. My research is in post-1900 American and South Asian comparative literature and culture, with a focus on gender studies, urban studies, critical theory, and digital humanities. I received the MLA Public Humanities Incubator Award in 2023 for the digital component of my interdisciplinary dissertation. My recent publication includes an essay on hauntology and music in My Impossible Soul: The Metamodern Music of Sufjan Stevens, the first academic collection on the musician. My pedagogy has also focused on twentieth-century and contemporary global literature and culture. I received the Graduate Student Teaching Excellence Award (English Dept.) for the special-topic course I designed and taught on American Modernism. I have benefited from the global professional networks that I have built as a member of the Modernist Studies Association since 2023. Contributing to the 2023 roundtable discussion, “Electrifying the Streets,” was instrumental for my current research. I expanded my roundtable paper for my dissertation’s first chapter. I had the privilege of organizing and chairing the 2024 panel on “Gendered Migration in Transnational Modernism.” I continue to collaborate with several MSA scholars at conferences and virtual team-teaching opportunities. I am running for the position of the Graduate Student Representative at MSA. I participated in the inaugural cycle of the MSA Graduate Mentorship Program and benefited immensely from it. As the MSA Graduate Student Representative, I will continue to endorse this Program. One of my main goals will be to consolidate support for early-career scholars. I will facilitate professional development workshops on publishing, grant writing, pedagogy training, and academic and alt-ac job markets. I served as the 2022-2023 President of the English Graduate Organization. The experience has equipped me with the skills I believe will be invaluable in my work with the MSA Board and members. Website: https://www.debakanyahaldar.com/
    • Hyunsoo Kim
    • Name: Hyunsoo Kim
    • Candidate Statement:
      PhD Candidate, University of Notre Dame I have engaged with the Modernist Studies Association for the past four years, which has given me strong familiarity with the conference's intellectual culture, organizational structure, and priorities. As Graduate Student Representative, I would be eager to support these initiatives and contribute to discussions on how they can best serve students at different stages and from diverse institutional contexts. As an international graduate student, I am aware that conferences can be difficult to navigate, and I am committed to supporting structures that enable broader participation from within and beyond the U.S. academic system. This commitment is reflected in my work in academic program development and coordination. I organize -- and this year co-chair -- the Queer Studies Symposium at the University of Notre Dame, coordinating speakers, collaborating with local institutions, and developing programs, including an art exhibition, to cultivate inclusive, pedagogically grounded scholarly spaces. Having taught courses in Gender Studies, English literature, and writing, I bring the perspective of both student and instructor, which is essential to effective communication between the graduate student caucus and the MSA board. I look forward to contributing to MSA's efforts to foster an inclusive and supportive environment, facilitating meaningful connections and advocating for graduate students' needs.
    • Lily Nilipour
    • Name: Lily Nilipour
    • Candidate Statement:
      PhD Candidate (English), Harvard University I am a PhD student in English at Harvard University. My research explores the syntax of experimentalism in the modernist novel, using digital methods to examine granular elements of style like punctuation and sentence structure. I am interested in bridging the fields of modernist studies and digital humanities, particularly in bringing those conversations more explicitly to feminist and queer modernist studies. As grad rep, I hope to host sessions with digital researchers for graduate students to build digital literacy and skills that can aid in research and teaching. Much of my research experience has involved collaboration across career stages, institutions, and disciplines, and last year I served as my department’s social chair, organizing events to create community with graduate students and faculty. I would be excited to continue developing MSA’s facilitation of opportunities for students, researchers, and faculty to connect and collaborate on work. I am also passionate about editing and publishing; I am the fiction and nonfiction book review editor for the Harvard Review and previously worked in the indie and academic publishing world. I would like to conduct workshops on public writing—pitching, reviewing, editing—and academic book publishing for graduate students and early-career academics.

Standing for: 4. Membership & Elections Chair

    • Jarica Watts
    • Name: Jarica Watts
    • Candidate Statement:
      Associate Professor of English, Brigham Young University I’m well qualified for the Membership & Elections Chair position, as I’m already doing this kind of work in my current academic and editorial leadership roles. I served a three-year term as chair of my English department’s Communications Committee, where I managed outward-facing communication across multiple audiences and handled the practical realities of social media planning and messaging. In addition, as General Editor of Conradiana, I oversee complex administrative workflows—tracking deadlines, coordinating with contributors and editors, and ensuring that projects move from planning to completion smoothly. This experience translates directly to soliciting nominations, running elections, and communicating with MSA membership through the listserv and social channels. I am also experienced in student support and institutional best practices around inclusion, which prepares me to respond promptly and respectfully to disability accommodation requests at conferences. Finally, I am comfortable serving as a liaison across groups with different needs and priorities. I will enjoy the connective work of ensuring that Special Interest Groups feel supported and meaningfully integrated into the MSA’s larger mission. Department website.
    • Tamlyn Avery
    • Name: Tamlyn Avery
    • Candidate Statement:
      Senior Lecturer in English Literature, Adelaide University I’m an active member of the MSA, including as a participant in its conferences and as a volunteer on the joint MSA/BAMS Program Committee, 2026. I have demonstrated leadership in the field through my work as Treasurer of the Australasian Modernist Studies Network and co-editor of its journal, Affirmations: of the Modern. I’m also currently Chair of the Conference Steering Committee for the AMSN and Modernist Studies in Asia Network joint conference to be held in Adelaide, November 2026. These experiences have provided valuable practical experience in contributing to the successful running of professional modernist studies organisations and events—experience which includes managing budgets, liaising with colleagues and members, attending and chairing meetings, and circulating information through these organisations’ promotional channels. These organisational skills are highly applicable to this role. In my research and service alike, I use my platform to champion social inclusivity and equity, highly relevant principles to this role. Coming from one of the association’s underrepresented global regions, my vision for this role is to help strengthen the association’s inclusivity mission by finding ways to reduce barriers to participation for marginalised members, including by promoting and building connections across the association’s socially and geographically diverse membership. Researcher Website and Select Publications: For further information about my research and service profile, including its relevance to the field of modernist studies, please consult the following webpage: https://researchers.adelaide.edu.au/profile/tamlyn.avery.
    • Elysia Balavage
    • Name: Elysia Balavage
    • Candidate Statement:
      Visiting Assistant Professor, Slippery Rock University The Membership and Elections Chair wears many hats: a pork pie as they facilitate the nomination and election processes; a beret for managing the social media presence for our vibrant community; a flat cap while linking special interest groups with the broader association. In short, the M&E Chair connects the different, unique parts of MSA together and ensures an inclusive, informed culture. I am well-suited for this role because I have an impressive collection of hats. The service roles I take on require dexterity and a commitment to collective action. For instance, as a member of my union chapter’s Adjunct Committee, it is my job to be an advocate, manage our listserv, disseminate information about professional development opportunities, and act as a liaison between contingent faculty, the university, and our union’s Executive Committee. Further, I am committed to the growth and longevity of MSA and modernist studies in general. For our conferences, I have organized two panels and one peer seminar over the past few years and have proposed a panel for the BAMS/MSA joint conference in July. And in January, I took over as the Book Reviews Editor for The Space Between: Literature and Culture, 1914-1945 and am proud to help guide the journal in new, exciting directions. I am indebted to the MSA, and I’d be grateful to give back to our organization by serving as M&E Chair. Modernist Studies Publications: -“Too Progressive Not to Be Precarious: Chicago’s Dil Pickle Club,” The Space Between: Literature and Culture 1914–1945 special issue on “Contingency, Precarity, and Jeopardy: Labor in the Space Between.” Forthcoming Nov. 2026. -“‘Nothingness in All Directions’: Modernism, Sci-Fi, and Radiant Space.” Modernism/Modernity Print Plus, Volume 6, Cycle 3 (16 May 2022). “Divinity and Nihilism in W. B. Yeats’s A Vision.” The Review of English Studies, 73.310 (June 2022), 568-581. -“Illumination, Transformation, and Nihilism: T. S. Eliot’s Empty Spaces.” Journal of Modern Literature, 44.3 (Spring 2021), 35-48.
    • Jess Shollenberger
    • Name: Jess Shollenberger
    • Candidate Statement:
      Visiting Assistant Professor of Literatures in English, Bryn Mawr College In 2021, I joined the Department of Literatures in English at Bryn Mawr College as a VAP. I teach and write about queer theory, twentieth-century American poetry, and the queerness of the ordinary in literary modernism. My first book, Ordinary Queerness in American Modernism, was published by Ohio State University Press in 2025 in their Abnormativities series. My writing has also appeared in Modernism/modernity Print Plus, College Literature, South Atlantic Review, Jacket2, University of Toronto Quarterly, and elsewhere. With Mary Wilson, I am coeditor of a forthcoming volume of essays, Domesticity and Queer Theory. At MSA conventions past, I’ve presented on Gertrude Stein’s portraiture and Marianne Moore’s hard-boiled eggs (and her friendship with Elizabeth Bishop). With Laura Tscherry, I’ve co-led a seminar, Intimate Methods, where we asked how intimate practices of research, reading, and writing have been useful to Black, queer, trans, and disability studies approaches to the study of modernism. In January, at MLA, I spoke about mentorship in modernist studies at Generous Modernisms, a roundtable convened by Kate Schnur and Jess Masters. I’m always excited to talk about poems, why we write, how to read Stein, being a contingent academic worker, and the ordinary—what sustains you?