Cal State LA English professor receives Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award

Andrew Lyndon Knighton, professor of English at Cal State LA, has received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award to teach in the Literature and Theater Department at the American University in Bulgaria.

As a Fulbright scholar, Knighton will also aim to establish a Humanities Lab at the American University to train literature students in Bulgaria to use their academic knowledge in public humanities projects.

This effort represents an extension of his work in Cal State LA's Department of English in the College of Arts and Letters in recent years. He has launched an Engaged English Initiative at Cal State LA devoted to the idea that learning in the humanities is most impactful when experienced in active, socially-engaged, skills-based, and public contexts.

"My teaching has been transformed by reflecting more on why, and for whom, students conduct their studies," said Knighton, who currently resides in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. "When students have a tangible mission beyond the classroom space it reinforces their sense of belonging, exposes them to previously unnoticed aspects of their communities, and galvanizes collectivity."

"Both the students and I come away from these projects gratified to discover that the new audiences we reach have a profound, if often unarticulated, longing for literary experience-and I am excited to experiment with fostering this in a new academic and cultural environment," he added.

A Cal State LA faculty member since 2006, Knighton teaches literary and cultural theory, as well as a variety of courses in American literary history. His research papers focusing on distinguished authors and writers have been published in various academic and professional journals. His current projects explore the poetry of Los Angeles in the 1950s. He earned his Ph.D. in Comparative Studies in Discourse and Society from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

Knighton is among more than 800 individuals selected to teach or conduct research abroad through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Fulbright Scholars engage in cutting-edge research and expand their professional networks, often continuing research collaborations started abroad and laying the groundwork for forging future partnerships between institutions. Upon returning to their home countries, institutions, labs, and classrooms, they share their stories and often become active supporters of international exchange, inviting foreign scholars to campus and encouraging colleagues and students to go abroad.

Cal State LA is designated as a Fulbright HSI Leader by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Fulbright is a program of the U.S. Department of State, with funding provided by the U.S. Government. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the program, which operates in over 160 countries worldwide. Visit the Fulbright Program website for more information.

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California State University, Los Angeles is the premier comprehensive public university in the heart of Los Angeles. Cal State LA is ranked number one in the United States for the upward mobility of its students. Cal State LA is dedicated to engagement, service, and the public good, offering nationally recognized programs in science, the arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education, and the humanities. Founded in 1947, the University serves more than 26,000 students and has more than 250,000 distinguished alumni.

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