Beyond the Classroom

The AAPI Literature and Media Club aims to expose students to a rich tapestry of AAPI literature and media, inviting all who are curious about the intricacies and depth of the Asian/Asian American diaspora. Our goal is to dive into the vibrant, multifaceted heritage across Asia and the distinctive journey of Asian Americans.

Our primary emphasis will be on exploring novels, while also delving into short stories, poems and essays penned by a diverse array of Asian and Asian American authors representing various ethnicities. Additionally, we are keen on organizing movie nights featuring influential Asian films, offering a platform to celebrate and share Asian culture.

Join us as we explore captivating stories! Email umdaapilitandmedia@gmail.com and follow @umdaapi on Instagram for more information.

The African Diaspora Reading Group (ADRG) is not currently active. Opportunities for student leadership are available!

ADRG exists to explore and contribute to African diaspora writing, creative and critical, and to educate others about this important body of work. Typically, ADRG has weekly meetings where members discuss various poems, books and other topics related to the African diaspora, to English majors and to the campus at large.

For more information about group leadership opportunities email english@umd.edu.

The EUA works to enliven literature and make it more accessible to students of all departments fostering social relationships between English majors and other literature lovers through events and sub-clubs. 

Join the EUA listserv and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. 

The Graduate English Organization (GEO) is a graduate student run group that supports our department's graduate students through hosting events, advocating for graduate student rights, organizing an annual conference, and more. Learn more about GEO.

Latine Lit Club is not currently active. Opportunities for student leadership are available!

Latine Literature Club (LLC) neets bimonthly throughout the semester and read a variety of short stories, poems, essays, and novels written by Latine authors of various nationalities and discuss the complexity and diversity within Latine identity found in such texts. This past year, we read Bodega Dreams by Ernesto Quiñonez and Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo. The LLC is a collaborative group, therefore student leaders will rotate depending on interest. Please contact english@umd.edu for more information. 

Founded in 2010, the Paper Shell Review is UMD’s annual undergraduate journal of critical essays on literary and media topics. Each issue, published online and in print, comprises five essays by undergraduate students, selected from a pool of submissions from colleges and universities around the world. Membership on the editorial board of Paper Shell is open to all UMD students, though members must attend meetings and events regularly to participate.

Learn more about the journal and browse past issues.

If you are interested in being an editor for The Paper Shell Review, please send an email expressing your interest to papershellreview@gmail.com.

Reading Rainbow is not currently active. Opportunities for student leadership are available!

Reading Rainbow is a group for students interested in LGBTQ+ Literature, Film, and Media. From essays to book chapters to novels to plays to films and television shows, Reading Rainbow is an English student group devoted to building community around a shared love of LGBTQ+ literature, film, and media. Come and be a part of building something unique and wonderful! All are welcome!

For more information about group leadership opportunities email english@umd.edu.

The Shakespeare Reading Group is not currently active.

The group holds bi-weekly meetings to  read and discuss Shakespeare plays and poems selected by group members. Discussions will also include a range of scholarly articles and engagements with Shakespeare’s work, as well as film adaptations, novelizations, and stage performances of the original texts. Our group’s aim is to examine the 400 year legacy of Shakespeare’s corpus and interrogate its possible futures : we will consider the kinds of critical and creative encounters that Shakespeare’s plays and poems have occasioned in the past and the ways that they have been taken up by scholars, writers, artists, and actors around the world. Why are we still reading, thinking about, arguing over, and performing Shakespeare’s plays and poems? What kinds of discourse do these texts generate when read in different social, political, and philosophical contexts? How might they take on new meanings in our current historical moment?

Sigma Tau Delta is the international English Honor Society. It was established in 1924 at Dakota Wesleyan University to confer distinction for high achievement in English language and literature studies and to promote interest in literature and the English language on local campuses and in their surrounding communities. Our chapter has sponsored events with poetry readings, tutoring excursions, fundraisers and writing workshops.

Each semester, eligible students will be invited to apply.

The Zine Club is not currently active.

Do you like to collage, draw, paint, write, cut, fold and play with the book as a form? Is there something you want to say/express but you haven't found the right creative outlet? Try making a zine at ZineClub! A zine is a handmade magaZINE that can be about anything you want it to be.

ZineClub aims to provide a relaxed, creative atmosphere where undergraduate students, graduate students, staff, faculty and even those not directly linked to the UMD community are all welcome to experiment with the medium of the DIY zine. No experience necessary. ZineClub was hosted by UMD's BookLab.