Ken Cooper received his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University and has been a member of the Geneseo faculty since 1993. His research is interested in the meeting point of 1970s culture and ecology. He frequently teaches the courses Filming the Seventies, Renewable Futures, Contemporary American Literature, and Bioregional Literature. He teaches a digital course through the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges called Storied Landscapes: 21st-Century Nature Writing. In collaboration with Geneseo Milne library archivist Liz Argentieri, Cooper and Argentieri have introduced the Open Valley course, a digital humanities project interested in ecology. In the course, students examine local history and culture through a bioregional lens, often pairing with local societies like nearby Genesee Country Village. The Open Valley course responds to growing student anxieties concerning the application of the English major, suggesting that writing skills can be useful in partnering with various organizations. He has also collaborated with Professors Garrity and Hannam for an interdepartmental course on Geographic Information System (GIS).
Cooper is currently a member of the Geneseo Sustainability Commission and was co-director of the Geneseo Food Project which inspired his courses on bioregional literature
Classes
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AMST 201: Topic: Building Stories
This course will be an interdisciplinary investigation of major influences on and developments in American culture. Each semester there will be a focus on one chronological period, but a variety of topics will be covered. Such topics could include gender, religion, race, social movements and conditions, and artistic and literary developments. The course will emphasize student use and study of period writings and cultural materials. Integrative learning will enhance the interdisciplinary nature of the course.
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ENGL 114: Sust & Lit: Ecomedia
The course focuses on literary studies and sustainability. Literature and other cultural productions (e.g., films, novels, poetry, nature writing) provide an opportunity for students to engage with and reflect on the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of sustainability, how these dimensions relate to each other, and how they shape our changing planet.
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ENGL 439: Lit: Ecocinema
Advanced critical study of a theme, movement, or special subject in the U.S. cultural tradition. For example, Women Writers and 19th-Century Social Reform, Filming the 70s, and The Harlem Renaissance.