Ruhland CV

Curriculum Vitae
3 April 2021
Education
PhD, English Literature, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.
Anticipated graduation: 2023.
2017 MA, English, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND.
Thesis Title: “‘Heroism IS Life’: Ideology, Remediation, and the Digital Humanities
in Beowulf and its New Media Adaptations.”
Committee: Dr. Adam Goldwyn, Dr. Miriam Mara, Dr. David Westerman.
2012 BA, English, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, December.
Conference Presentations
“French Fabliaux as Courtly Romance?: Violence, Women, and the Peasant Knight.”
IMC Leeds: Leeds, UK, July 5-9 [Forthcoming].
2020 “‘A ce mot’: Agency and Wordplay in Three Old French Fabliaux.” ICMS Kalamazoo:
Kalamazoo, MI, May 7-10 [Canceled].
2018 “He ‘called it Heorot’: Sites of Heroism in Beowulf and its Adaptations.” ICMS
Kalamazoo: Kalamazoo, MI, May 10-13.
2018 “‘Potentially Dangerous Powers of Virtualism’: Spatially Extorting Virtue in Beowulf:
The Game.” Spring Symposium of the Medieval Studies Institute of Indiana University at
Bloomington: Bloomington, IN, April 6-7.
2016 “Heroic Mistakes: Presenting Medieval Ethos to a Modern Audience.” Northern Plains
Conference on Early British Literature: Brookings, SD, April 15-16.
2016 “‘Hrothgar, that wise and good man’: Reclaiming Ethos in Beowulf: The Game.” Red
River Graduate Student Conference: Fargo, ND, February 26-27.
2016 “Collaboration 2 : Student Responses and Revisions.” Spring Workshop Pedagogy Jam:
Fargo, ND: January 8.
2015 “Collaboration Between Classrooms: Presentation Peer Review.” Pedagogical Brown
Bag: Fargo, ND, November 10.
2015 “Men ‘Brought Up of Nought’: Comparing Class Structure in Le Morte Darthur and
BBC’s Merlin.” Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature: Mayville, ND,
April 10-11.
2015 “Deconstructing the Feminist Princess: Fairy-Tale and Reality in Rob Marshall’s Into the
Woods.” Red River Graduate Student Conference: Fargo, ND, March 27-28.
2015 “The British Dream and BBC’s Merlin.” Medieval Association of the Midwest: Madrid,
Spain, January 23-25.
Workshops
2019 “Collecting Histories: Introduction to Provenance Research,” led by Shirin Fozi.
Newberry Library, October 25.

Publications
2020 “Juggling Glass Balls: Three Tips for Working at Home.” MAA Graduate Student
Committee Newsletter 12, no. 3. Eds Christine Bachman and Logan Quigley.
2015 “Men ‘Brought Up of Nought’: Comparing Class Structure in Le Morte Darthur and
BBC’s Merlin.” Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature, Mayville ND:
April 10-11. Ed. Erin Lord Kunz. 99-110.
Courses Taught
2020 English 365, Imagining Social Justice: University of Pittsburgh
This course was taught in an intensive six-week, format and considered social (in)justice
through the lens of science fiction in film, musical, poetic, and prose format. In addition
to engaging in weekly discussions of key terms like intersectionality, privilege, and
structural oppression, students also created a final project that brought together the voices
of three different scholars in order to propose an innovative and original argument about
a primary text or texts. Students created unique projects taking various forms such as a
course proposal for a K-12 extracurricular course, a Prezi engaging in the concept of the
cyborg as neuro- and anatomically gendered and controlled, and an Instagram account
exploring Afrofuturism in Janelle Monáe’s albums.
Texts: Bitch Planet, vol. 1, co-created by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro
Black Panther, directed by Ryan Coogler
Butler, Octavia. Kindred
Le Guin, Ursula K. The Left Hand of Darkness
Monáe, Janelle. Dirty Computer, an emotion picture
Sensoy, Özlem, and Robin DiAngelo. Is Everyone Really Equal? An Introduction to Key
Concepts in Social Justice Education
2020 English 315, Reading Poetry: University of Pittsburgh
Instructor of record for 2 sections. A writing-intensive literature course designed to
introduce students to a large range of poetry, with the objective of understanding ways of
reading various poetic styles and content. One rendition of this course studied various
kinds of poetry through critical lenses such as race and gender, aiming to help students
break down the barriers between classic poems, contemporary poetry, and a more general
lyric impulse. Due to the unexpected nature of remote teaching, students did not complete
a final project and instead spent more time in asynchronous discussion of the overarching
themes of the course, referring back to poetry read throughout the semester. The current
rendition of this course, taught via Zoom and discussion boards, utilizes similar concepts
and texts but considers medieval poetry in addition to modern poetry and music.
Texts: Langland, William. Piers Plowman, edited by E. Talbot Donaldson
Dubin, Nathaniel E., trans. The Fabliaux: A New Verse Translation
Stark, Jessica Q. Savage Pageant
Zapruder, Matthew. Why Poetry

2018 English 200, Seminar in Composition: University of Pittsburgh
This course invites students to think critically about how cultures, societies, organizations,
and more play with history to craft identities. We read authors who question the
assumptions and interpretations everyday narratives are based in, and practice
questioning our own narratives. The course’s focus on historical context allows students
to not only challenge the interpretations that shape the world around us, but also to gain a
greater appreciation for the way that we create our own narratives.
Texts: Bartholomae, David, and Anthony Petrosky, eds. Ways of Reading
Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. They Say I Say
2014-17 English 120, College Composition II: NDSU
Instructor of record for 12 sections. A composition and literature course emphasizing
genre-based writing, including formal academic writing and other forms such as literature
reviews and multimedia memoirs. A more recent theme of this course allows students to
consider texts as the cultural commentaries that they are, using a variety of texts to
discuss social injustice. The semester concludes with a final project drawing from a
chosen text to both raise awareness of a social injustice and connect it to themes within
their chosen book.
Texts: Johnson-Sheehan, Richard and Charles Paine. Writing Today
Rossenwasser, David. Writing Analytically
Teaching Assistant for
2019 English 597, Bible as Literature: University of Pittsburgh
This introductory course acquaints students with what is in the Bible and provides
background information drawn from various disciplines about the elements and issues that
give it its distinctive character. Attention is necessarily given to its religious perspectives,
since they govern the nature and point of view of the biblical narratives, but no specific
religious view is urged. My role as teaching assistant included leading weekly review
sessions and designing and implementing assessment in the form of essays, quizzes, and
exams.
Texts: Harold W. Attridge, ed. The HarperCollins Study Bible
Alter, Robert. The Five Books of Moses
Alter, Robert. Ancient Israel: The Former Prophets
Hart, David Bentley. The New Testament: A Translation
Awards, Honors, & Research Grants
2019 University of Pittsburgh Jewish Studies Travel Grant to visit “The Colmar Legacy” exhibit at the
Met Cloisters, NY.
2018 University of Pittsburgh English Department R&D Grant for York Wagon Plays in York, UK.
2016 The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi.
NDSU Richard L. Johnson Endowed Scholarship.
Clinton Global Initiative University Grant to attend CGI U 2016 in Berkeley, CA.
2015 Innovation Challenge finalist for “AuSome Environments” project.
Medieval Studies Certificate at Cambridge University Summer Schools.

NDSU English Department Graduate Student Travel Grant for S.H. O’Grady’s Collection at the
Cambridge University Archives.
NDSU Richard L. Johnson Endowed Scholarship.
NDSU English Graduate Student Travel Grant for Medieval Association of the Midwest
Conference, NDSU English.
Service
University of Pittsburgh
English Graduate Student Organization
Secretary, 2020-Present
Seminar in Composition Assessment Committee
February 2020
North Dakota State University
Department Graduate Committee
MA student representative, 2014-2017
English Graduate Organization
Member, 2014-2017
Vice President, 2015
President, 2016-2017
Red River Graduate Student Conference Organizing Committee
Member, 2014-2017
Professional Experience
2021 Communications Graduate Student Assistant. European Studies Center, University of
Pittsburgh.
2019-Present Social Media Committee Member. Graduate Student Organizing Committee, Pittsburgh,
PA.
2015-2016 Co-Founder. AuSomeEnvironments.com, Fargo, ND.
Copyeditor for:
Goldwyn, Adam J. and James Nikopoulos, eds. Brill’s Companion to Classical Receptions:
International Modernism and the Avant-Garde. Brill: 2016.
Goldwyn, Adam J. The Trojan Wars and the Making of the Modern World. Uppsala: 2015.
Goldwyn, Adam J. and Renée M. Silverman. Mediterranean Modernism: Intercultural Exchange
and Aesthetic Development. Palgrave-MacMillan: 2016.
Mara, Miriam O’Kane. “Counterpart’s Clashing Cultures: Navigating Among Print, Printing, and Oral
Narratives in Turn of the Century Dublin.” Rethinking Joyce’s Dubliners. Eds Claire Culleton
and Ellen Scheible. Palgrave: 2017, pp. 145-60.
Veikou, Myrto and Ingela Nilsson, eds. From the Human Body to the Universe: Spatialities of Byzantine
Culture. [forthcoming].
2014 Educational Assistant. Riverview School District, Duvall, WA.
Tutor. Cherry Valley Elementary, Duvall, WA.
2013 Reporter, Snoqualmie Valley Record, Snoqualmie, WA.
2012-2013 Assistant Managing Editor Intern, New Rivers Press, Moorhead, MN.
2012 Staff Writer, The Spectrum, Fargo, ND.

Research Interests
Late medieval drama and performance
Medievalism
Gothic Architecture and Literature
Technology and composition pedagogy
Language Ability
English: Native speaker.
Spanish: Conversational speaking and reading proficiency.
French: Basic speaking and reading proficiency.
References
Dr. Adam Goldwyn, North Dakota State University. Department of English, Dept. 2320. PO Box 6050.
Fargo, ND 58108. Phone: 701.231.7143. Email: Adam.Goldwyn@ndsu.edu.
Dr. Ryan McDermott, University of Pittsburgh. Department of English 526 Cathedral of Learning, 4200
Fifth Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15260. Email: rjm95@pitt.edu.