Dr. Jared N. Champion

Assistant Professor of Writing and Interdisciplinary Studies
Department of Liberal Studies

Education

  • B.A., English, Carson-Newman College
  • M.A., Literature, Florida State University
  • Ph.D., American Studies, Boston University
  • Certificate in Teaching College Writing (BU)

Dr. Jared Champion studies the two seemingly disparate fields of American humor and the environment, specifically focusing on the late 20th century. His work centers on questions of gender and sexuality, namely masculinity. As a teacher, he takes a writing-intensive approach to all topics to help students develop a strong awareness of and confidence in written skills. Dr. Champion is currently finishing a number of research projects, and his primary project is a manuscript interrogating hegemonic masculinity in standup comedy. He also collaborated with Eckerd College’s Peter Kunze to edit an anthology of essays addressing the role of standup comics as public intellectuals titled, Standup Intellectuals (forthcoming from the University of Mississippi Press). Finally, his archival project–editing and publishing a memoir by the second woman to climb Yosemite’s half dome cliffs —Cliffs and Challenges: A Young Woman Explores Yosemite, 1915-1917—was published by the University of Kansas Press during the summer of 2019.

Courses taught

  • LBST175
  • LBST 180
  • LBST 280
  • LBST 302
  • ENGL 277
  • ENGL 370

Areas of specialization

  • Writing
  • English
  • Literature
  • Popular Culture
  • American Culture
  • Gender Studies

Leadership positions in the profession or discipline

Critoph Prize coordinator for the Southeastern American Studies Association

Research and professional interests

  • Humor Studies
  • Masculinity Studies
  • Environmental Humanities

Research with students or opportunities

Working with students to gain acceptance in the Popular Culture Association’s annual conference

Recent publications

  • Cliffs and Challenges: A Young Woman Explores Yosemite, 1915-1917
  • “‘Big Naturals’: Nikki Glaser and the Politics of Disgust” (forthcoming from the University of Mississippi Press)
  • “The Method: A New Approach to Teaching Comedy Studies” (Forthcoming from MLA)

Awards or recognition

Georgia Governor’s Teaching Fellow (2018)

Contact Dr. Champion

678.547.6540
champion_jn@mercer.edu