USC.edu

Trisha Tucker

Associate Professor (Teaching) of Writing
Trisha Tucker
Email ttucker@usc.edu Office AHF 410 Office Phone (213) 740-2955

Research & Practice Areas

Dr. Tucker’s scholarly and pedagogical interests include nineteenth-century British literature, women’s popular writing, Evangelicalism and Evangelical reading practices, secularization, children’s and YA literature censorship, book bans, supporting first-year student learning and the transition to college, trauma-informed teaching, and building communities of trust and engagement in the classroom.

Biography

Dr. Trisha Tucker is an Associate Professor (Teaching) of Writing in the Thematic Option Honors Program (TO) and Dornsife Dean’s Leadership Fellow for Undergraduate Education. As the Head of Writing Instruction in TO, she works to develop course objectives and pedagogical best practices for lower- and upper-division reading, writing, and critical reasoning courses; leads the training of new graduate student instructors and faculty; and assists instructors with the design and implementation of new courses and assignments. Dr. Tucker also serves as Faculty in Residence in the McCarthy Honors College. Past positions include At-Large Member of the Academic Senate Executive Board, President of the Dornsife Faculty Council, and Associate Director of the USC Writing Program. Dr. Tucker holds a Ph.D. in English. Her scholarly and pedagogical interests include nineteenth-century British literature, women’s popular writing, Evangelicalism and Evangelical reading practices, secularization, children’s and young adult literature censorship, book bans, supporting first-year student learning and the transition to college, trauma-informed teaching, and building communities of trust and engagement in the classroom.

Education

  • Ph.D. English, University of Southern California, 2014

  • Research, Teaching, Practice, and Clinical Appointments

    • Associate Professor (Teaching), University of Southern California, 2020-
    • Assistant Professor (Teaching), University of Southern California, 2017-2020
    • Lecturer, University of Southern California, 2014-2017

    Visiting and Temporary Appointments

    • Professor of English, South Central Scholars Summer Academy, 06/2016-08/2016

    Other Employment

    • Dean’s Leadership Fellow for Undergraduate Education, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, 2021
    • Head of Writing Instruction (WPA), Thematic Option Honors Program, 2016
    • Faculty in Residence, McCarthy Honors College, University of Southern California, 2017
    • Associate Director, USC Writing Program, 2012-2014

  • Summary Statement of Research Interests

    Dr. Tucker’s scholarly and pedagogical interests include nineteenth-century British literature, women’s popular writing, Evangelicalism and Evangelical reading practices, secularization, children’s and young adult literature censorship, book bans, supporting first-year student learning and the transition to college, trauma-informed teaching, and building communities of trust and engagement in the classroom.

  • Conference Presentations

    • “Gentle Stretching: Techniques for Re-building Student Focus and Resilience” , Pacific Ancient and Modern Language AssociationRoundtable/Panel, Invited, Fall 2022
    • “Unveiling the ‘Hidden Curriculum’ to Promote Student Success” , Conference on the First-Year ExperienceTalk/Oral Presentation, Invited, Spring 2022
    • “Action Research for Everyone: A Model for Entering Disciplinary Conversations” , College Composition and Communication Regional ConferenceTalk/Oral Presentation, Invited, Fall 2020

    Other Presentations

    • “Balancing Service and Scholarship: When to Say Yes (and No)”, USC Dornsife Ph.D. Academy Panel, , 2023-2024
    • “Getting Published: Sharing Your Fascinating Scholarship”, USC Dornsife Ph.D. Academy Panel, , 2022-2023
    • “The Hows and Whys of Conversational Grading”, Writing Across the Curriculum Pedagogy Workshop, , 2022-2023
    • “The ‘Hidden Curriculum’ and Other Things No One Told you About College”, USC Microseminar, , 2021-2022
    • “A Collaborative Approach to Information Literacy Assessment”, USC Libraries Forum, , 2019-2020

  • Book Review

    • Tucker, T. (2011). Rev. of Clio in the Classroom: A Guide for Teaching U.S. Women’s History. Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. pp. 100-103.
    • Tucker, T. (2009). Rev. of A Church of Her Own: What Happens When a Woman Takes the Pulpit. Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. pp. 238-241.

    Essay

    • Tucker, T. (2022). “Book bans reflect outdated beliefs about how children read”. The Conversation. Link
    • Tucker, T. (2017). “What do protests about Harry Potter books teach us?”. The Conversation. Link

    Encyclopedia Article

    • Tucker, T. (2019). “Evangelicalism”. (Ed. Lesa Scholl., Ed.). The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Victorian Women’s Writing/Palgrave Macmillan. Link

    Journal Article

    • Tucker, T. (2023). “Dangerous Reading: How Socially Constructed Narratives of Childhood Shape Perspectives on Book Banning”. Public Library Quarterly. The purpose of this article is to connect the dots between contemporary efforts to ban “dangerous” reading material and Western narratives about childhood innocence that rose to prominence in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Understanding these narratives is important, because they underlie common misapprehensions about how children consume and process literature.. Article Link
    • Tucker, T. (2012). “Gendering the Evangelical Novel”. Rocky Mountain Review. Vol. 66 (1), pp. 83-89.

    Broadcast Media

    • Tucker, T. (2023, June, 3).Interview on KCBS San Francisco. “Utah school district officially bans the Holy Bible.” Live radio show. Provided commentary on historical attitudes about the dangers of children reading the Bible. Interview on KCBS San Francisco. “Utah school district officially bans the Holy Bible.” Live radio show. Provided commentary on historical attitudes about the dangers of children reading the Bible.. Link
    • Tucker, T. (2023, June, 2).”Leading Literacy” Podcast hosted by the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Provided extensive historical context and commentary on attitudes toward childhood reading and book bans. “Leading Literacy” Podcast hosted by the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Provided extensive historical context and commentary on attitudes toward childhood reading and book bans.. Episode 39. Link
    • Tucker, T. (2023, May, 9).”How both political wings foster censorship through book bans.” KCBS San Francisco. Live radio interview. Provided commentary on beliefs about children and reading that are used to justify books bans and new Illinois legislation to ban book bans. “How both political wings foster censorship through book bans.” KCBS San Francisco. Live radio interview. Provided commentary on beliefs about children and reading that are used to justify books bans and new Illinois legislation to ban book bans..
    • Tucker, T. (2023, February, 23).Interview on “A Little More Conversation” with Ben O’Hara-Byrne. Interview on “A Little More Conversation” with Ben O’Hara-Byrne. . Link
    • Tucker, T. (2018, December).Magicland. Magicland. . Link

  • Administrative Appointments

    • Faculty in Residence, McCarthy Honors College, 07/2017
    • Dean’s Leadership Fellow for Undergraduate Education, 08/16/2022-08/15/2025
    • Dean’s Leadership Fellow for Undergraduate Education, 08/16/2021-08/15/2022

    Committees

    • Advisory Board, USC Center for Excellence in Teaching, 2019-CONT
    • Chair, Thematic Option Honors Program Merit Review Committee, 2016-CONT
    • Academic Senate Faculty Leadership Fellows Advisory Committee, 2022-2023
    • Academic Senate Faculty Environment and Employment Committee, 2021-2022
    • Teaching and Academic Programs Joint Senate/Provost Committee, 2020-2021
    • At-Large Member, Academic Senate Executive Board, 2017-2020
    • Member, Academic Senate Faculty Environment & Employment Committee, 2016-2020
    • Member, USC Dornsife Undergraduate Academic Planning Committee, 2016-2019
    • Senator, Academic Senate, 2015-2018
    • President, Dornsife Faculty Council, 2017-2018
    • Member, Faculty in Residence Recruitment Committee, 2017-2018
    • Vice President, Dornsife Faculty Council, 2016-2017
    • Co-Chair, Dornsife Faculty Council Curriculum Caucus, 2015-2016

  • Reviewer for Publications

    • Literature and History, Manuscript Review, 2015 – 2016