John Achorn, PhD

John earned his doctorate at the University of Toronto in 1998, specializing in medieval and Renaissance studies while doing a minor in rhetoric and composition. Since receiving his PhD, he has worked at various colleges and universities in Maine and New Hampshire, as well as at the University of Toronto, teaching English literature and College Composition. In addition, he coordinated the Freshman Writing Program at the University of New England in 2001-2002 and has taught ESL courses to foreign students taking summer classes at Southern New Hampshire University. John has published two articles on pedagogy, has presented two papers at medieval and Renaissance conferences, and for two year worked as managing editor of Pedagogy Journal, a publication sponsored by the Community College System of New Hampshire. Currently a full-time associate professor at New England College, John loves his job, finding the rural New England setting amidst the college’s intellectual vibrancy perfectly suited to his temperament. Aside from his curricular duties, John is an active alpine skier and outdoor enthusiast who enjoys writing poetry.

PUBLICATIONS:

“Student Retention: At What Cost?” Pedagogy Journal 13 (2006): 1-15.

“Beating Plagiarism in ENGL110: College Composition” Pedagogy Journal 14 (2007): 57-69

CONFERENCE PAPERS:

“Pericles and the Subversive Subtext.” The Elizabethan and English Renaissance Area of Popular Culture Association. 32nd Annual National Conference. Toronto, Ontario, March 13-17, 2002.

“Appolinus’s Alchemic Transformation.” Medieval Forum. 24th Annual Conference. Plymouth, New Hampshire. April 11-12, 2003

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES:

Managing Editor of Pedagogy Journal (2006-2008)

Consultant for McGraw-Hill: 75 Readings Plus, Canadian ed, ed. Santi Buscemi and Charlotte Smith (Toronto, ON: McGraw-Hill, 2002).

Consultant for Prentice Hall: Landmarks: A Process Reader, ed. Roberta Birks, Tomi Eng, and Julie Walchi (Scarborough, ON: Prentice Hall, 1998).

Consultant for Addison Wesley: The Little Brown Handbook, 2nd Canadian ed., by H. Ramsay Fowler, Jane E. Aaron, Murray McArthur, et al. (Don Mills, ON: Addison Wesley, 1998).

 Education:

University of Toronto, PhD. 1998
        Dissertation: “A Study of Apollonius of Tyre: Three English Adaptations of an Ancient Greek Romance”

University of New Hampshire, M.A. 1990
       Thesis: “‘Struggle for Libertee’: A Study of the Griselda Story Comparing Versions by Boccaccio, Petrarch, and Chaucer”

Dartmouth College, A.B. 1983
       English/French Double Major