Burger鈥檚 article, titled 鈥淰isualizing Poe: Graphic Novels, Extraordinary Tales and The Simpsons,鈥� notes that studying the work of Edgar Allan Poe is a literary staple, from high school English to the university Gothic classroom, with his themes of melancholy and madness continuing to move contemporary readers. However, the 21st century offers a variety of new, visually dynamic approaches in engaging students with Poe鈥檚 tales and poems.

The first of these approaches is the multiple graphic novel adaptations of Poe鈥檚 work, including Benjamin Harper and Dennis Calero鈥檚 take on 鈥淭he Tell-Tale Heart,鈥� Duncan Long鈥檚 version of 鈥淭he Raven鈥� and a collection of stories and poems adapted by Garth Hinds. Another opportunity for incorporating striking visual and audio representation in discussion of Poe is Raul Garcia鈥檚 animated anthology film, 鈥淓xtraordinary Tales鈥� (2013). Finally, multiple references to Poe are made in the animated television show 鈥淭he Simpsons,鈥� which has been on the Fox network for 32 seasons.

Burger鈥檚 article is included in a special issue on teaching horror in the American literature classroom.

鈥淭eaching American Literature: A Journal of Theory and Practice鈥� is a peer-reviewed journal published quarterly by Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, N.C. It is aimed toward instructors of American literature courses in universities and colleges. Four to six articles are published in each online issue.

Burger joined the faculty at Culver-Stockton in September 2016. She develops and teaches general education and English major courses. She is the chair of the English department, the director of writing across the curriculum and the director of retention. She provides research and student management to assist in the College’s retention efforts. Burger was the recipient of the President’s Award for Exemplary Service in May 2020.

Burger spoke with Sedef Ilgic, a reporter with Istanbulberlin.com, on May 28 through Zoom, an online video conferencing platform. Ilgic had interviewed Burger a couple of years ago for TRT World, a Turkish international news channel聽broadcast in English. They talked about the importance of home and its role in 鈥淭he Wonderful Wizard of Oz,鈥� an American children鈥檚 novel written by L. Frank Baum in the early 1900s that was later turned into a musical and a movie.

鈥淥ur conversation focused on changing representations of home, both historically (from the Wizard of Oz to now) and specifically within the context of our current pandemic, when home has taken on some new meanings, both positive and negative,鈥� Burger said. 鈥淕iven my work in horror, we also talked a bit about the meaning of home within the context of haunted houses and the interconnection of past and present, home and family in those hauntings.鈥�

According to its website, Istanbulberlin.com is 鈥渁 space for encounters that takes inspiration from two multicultural cities 鈥� Istanbul, Turkey, and Berlin, Germany 鈥� that foster culture and arts.鈥� Instanbulberlin.com started publishing in May 2020.

Burger recently completed her fourth year at Culver-Stockton. She is an expert on her dissertation topic, 鈥淭rajectory of the American Myth: Race, Gender, Home and Magic from The Wizard of Oz to Wicked,鈥� and she wrote a book, 鈥淭he Wizard of Oz as American Myth: A Critical Study of Six Versions of the Story, 1900-2007,鈥� which was published in 2012. Burger also is a well-known expert on the聽work聽of author Stephen King, and her book, 鈥淭eaching Stephen King: Horror, the Supernatural and New Approaches in Literature,鈥� was published in 2016.

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Faculty co-sponsors Dr. Scott Giltner, professor of history and chair of the Applied Liberal Arts and Sciences Division, and Dr. Alissa Burger, assistant professor of English and director of retention, welcomed the new members into the society. Giltner delivered this year鈥檚 charge to the inductees, family and friends.

The students inducted into Alpha Chi were:

• Cheyenne Bequette, a junior English major from Fenton, Mo.
• Jakob Happel, a junior health science and physical therapy major from Salem, Mo.
• Abigail Huber, a junior accountancy and finance major from Quincy, Ill.
• Mabry Lewis, a senior elementary education major from Granite City, Ill.
• Madeline Moody, a junior criminal justice major from Cornland, Ill.
• Sydney Neuner, a junior elementary education major from Loose Creek, Mo.
• Keelie O鈥橞rien, a junior art education major from Kahoka, Mo.
• Mackenzie Patrick, a junior elementary education and early childhood major from Carthage, Ill.
• Jillian Scholes, a junior psychology and criminal justice major from Wentzville, Mo.
• Mathew Scoggin, a junior nursing major from LaBelle, Mo.
• Dannicka Wiseman, a junior psychology and occupational therapy major from Monticello, Mo.

Alpha Chi was founded in 1922 and honors juniors and seniors in the top 10 percent of their class. It 聽has more than 300 chapters nationally and works toward the goal of 鈥淢aking Scholarship Effective for Good.鈥�

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How has 乱伦社区 faculty adapted to educating students during the COVID-19 pandemic? To discover that answer, one should start with the college鈥檚 mission statement.

鈥淭he mission of 乱伦社区 is to prepare students of promise for a dynamic world through our distinctive experiential curriculum within a supportive learning community founded upon the best values of faith and the human spirit.鈥�

Has there ever been a more dynamic time than what has happened in our world since March?

Culver-Stockton educators had to create online courses and discover course materials in the middle of the semester with little advance warning 鈥� all the while, staying true to the mission statement to incorporate experiential learning.

Dr. Lauren Schellenberger, vice president of academic affairs and the dean of the college, said the faculty was better poised to make the transition to online learning than many others across the country.

鈥淎 lot of the training we鈥檝e done in the past was done with regard to instructional technology, and our faculty is just known for innovation in general,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he online transition has gone as well as it possibly could have, which is a testament to our faculty’s creativity and their flexibility and their willingness to try new things.鈥�

Two professors had to adjust to particularly challenging circumstances.

Dealing with Childhood Trauma

The聽Interventions for Childhood Trauma course, held each spring during the 3-week portion of the semester and taught by Dr. Angel Knoverek ’93, calls for students to learn how to do hands-on therapeutic activities as they understand the impact that trauma can have on children and adolescents.

鈥淲e work with a child鈥檚 ability to manage their emotional and behavioral state,鈥� Knoverek said. 鈥淔or instance, most kids know when they walk into a church or a library that they should lower their voice, but if you’re on the playground or outside, you can scream and yell and holler. Most kids who’ve had extreme trauma, or even moderate to severe, are not able to regulate that.鈥�

Knoverek鈥檚 students typically end the class by working with groups of children at the Early Childhood and Family Center in Quincy, Ill. The pandemic eliminated trips to the ECFC, so Knoverek had to devise an alternative method for her students to learn the activities.

She conducted class using Zoom, an online video conferencing app, and also created a Facebook page for the students. She also called on volunteers from the C-SC faculty and staff to help. The volunteers took video of themselves trying to direct their children in a variety of activities, and the students made observations of the directions given by the volunteers and assessed how the children responded.

Knoverek also did some role playing, taking videos while showing examples of how to blow bubbles, spit Tic-Tacs, shoot air through a straw to direct a cotton ball across a table or simply dance. Finally, Knoverek鈥檚 students had to create their own activities with children 鈥� or, if children weren鈥檛 available, an activity one could demonstrate by themselves.

鈥淐hildren who are normally developed, (these activities are) probably just going to be fun for them,鈥� Knoverek said. 鈥淚t teaches pro social behaviors like following instructions, asking permission, waiting patiently, relationships, trusting others, sharing, things like that. We know that kids have always learned better through these types of fun games and activities.

鈥淗owever, with kids who have these traumatic experiences, we often see issues with mood instability, depression, a lot of anxiousness if not a full anxiety disorder, irritability, huge anger outbursts. You might have a 16-year-old kid flipping their desk over and cursing at you when they go out the door. We have to help this kid understand and try to get to the root of it. There鈥檚 always a reason, always a trigger, but it takes a child a while to find that.鈥�

Madison Galloway, a senior psychology major from Mount Sterling, Ill., said she was skeptical before the class began as to how the students would practice interventions, but she was confident Knoverek would figure it out.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been pretty effective,鈥� said Galloway, who is applying for graduate school and wants to pursue a career working with children. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a little different, and we don鈥檛 have to deal with the nerves like we would when we go into a regular classroom setting for the first time, but we鈥檙e making it work. We鈥檙e getting something out of it.鈥�

Knoverek admits she won鈥檛 know how effective the online version of the class was until her students try to use the skills they learned in a job setting, but she was satisfied with how it turned out.

鈥淭here’s no way I can create and have the same experiences my class did last year,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut my class this year is learning and doing things differently than my other classes haven’t been able to. I’ve had to learn to do some things differently. I think we’re comparing apples to oranges.鈥�

From London to board games

Most of the students in Alissa Burger鈥檚 Arts Abroad class had been preparing and planning, at least a year in most cases, for a trip to London during which they would participate in music, theatre, literary tours, museum trips and a Harry Potter experience.

When the decision to cancel the trip was made, Burger hoped that the students would remain on campus for the 3-week portion of the semester. She designed a class on literary gaming, applying literary elements (plot, characterization, setting, etc.) to a range of different gaming mediums, with a focus on board games. She looked forward to playing the games and discussing them with the students.

鈥淚 was sitting at home trying to figure out what the heck I was gonna do, and in our living room, 聽we had stacks and stacks of board games that we had out playing,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was just a matter of working with what’s at hand.鈥�

When all classes were moved online for the rest of the semester in March, Burger had to adapt again.

鈥淭he first change was a complete scrap. The second change was more of a pivot,鈥� she said.

She added 鈥淪herlock Holmes鈥� mystery puzzles, online games (such as a 鈥淪cooby Doo鈥� game and an 鈥淥regon Trail鈥� game) and 鈥淐hoose Your Own Adventure鈥� narratives, to the mix with board games. Interactive gaming elements, including virtual board game sessions, were implemented for each of the games.

She made videos for each of the major games that presented the information like it would have been done in class discussion. Students engaged with Burger and their peers and dug into the material in detail on discussion boards, and then the class had live virtual game sessions.

鈥淭here’s really just no way to replicate that being together and playing a board game,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat we鈥檙e doing works, but it’s not nearly as fun as being in the same room, interacting with one another and strategizing. However, it’s still working really well because we have lots of discussion boards that sort of mimic those that we would have had in class conversations.鈥�

Students completed creative projects like writing their own 鈥淐hoose Your Own Adventure鈥� narratives or creating their own board game characters to go along with the class discussion of 鈥淢ixtape Massacre,鈥� a mash-up board game inspired by slasher films of the 1980s and 1990s. Their final project was to either host their own virtual game session, design their own game or write a critical analysis of a game that the class had not played.

In spite of all the changes to what the class could have been, what surprised Burger the most was the attitude of the students.

鈥淭hese students had every right to be disappointed. They could have been saying to themselves, 鈥業 was supposed to be going to London right now, and I didn’t get to go,鈥欌�� Burger said. 鈥淚nstead, they’re not really dwelling on it. They’re just embracing that this is a different opportunity, and several of them have gone out of their way to say, 鈥業 know it’s not London, but I’m having a really good time鈥� or 鈥楾his class is really interesting.鈥�

鈥淚 have a class full of 19-and-20-year-olds who just missed out on an amazing trip they’ve been looking forward to for two years, and they’re just so positive. They’re amazing. That’s phenomenal.鈥�

Burger is in her fourth year at the college, and she has served as the director of writing across the curriculum and the chair of the English department. She also has chaired the general education committee for the past two years. Burger will continue to be the chair of the English department and teach in her discipline.

Burger earned her undergraduate and master鈥檚 degrees in English language and literature from the University of Northern Iowa, and she earned her doctorate in American cultural studies with an emphasis in literature and popular culture from Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio.

She is an expert on her dissertation topic, 鈥淭rajectory of the American Myth: Race, Gender, Home and Magic from The Wizard of Oz to Wicked,鈥� and she wrote a book, 鈥淭he Wizard of Oz as American Myth: A Critical Study of Six Versions of the Story, 1900-2007,鈥� which was published in 2012. Burger also is a well-known expert on the work of author Stephen King, and her book, 鈥淭eaching Stephen King: Horror, the Supernatural and New Approaches in Literature,鈥� was published in 2016.

Burger previously taught at Kaplan University in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and the State University of New York at Delhi. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Bowling Green State with a focus on online course development and teaching.

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