THE ROAD TO ACADEMIA: THE JOURNEY OF
KARIN HOOKS
Karin Hooks received her PhD in English with an emphasis on American Literature and an interdisciplinary specialization in Literacy Studies. Born in Kansas and raised in Oklahoma, she holds a BA in English from Middle Tennessee State University, where she was a McNair Scholar; and an MA in English from the University of Delaware, where she trained as a generalist. After receiving her doctorate, she worked as an Ohio State lecturer before her arrival at LCCC. In her short time at LCCC, she has been awarded LCCC’s Center for Teaching Excellence’s Quality Course Design Award (2014) and the Outstanding Faculty Award (2015).
Ohio State English Professor, Dr. Elizabeth Renker, interviews her former doctoral advisee, Dr. Karin Hooks, graduate of The Ohio State University English Department doctoral program and currently an assistant professor of English at Lorain County Community College (LCCC) in Elyria, Ohio.
I’m sure our readers would like to learn a little bit about your background and your own path through the educational system. I attended a small liberal arts college for only one year after graduating from high school, taking what turned out to be a lengthy hiatus during which I married and raised a family. In 2002, I was working as a public school education assistant when I learned that newly enacted legislation required that I either pass a proficiency test or have two years of college credit. As the county had yet to design the test, I decided to attend college, taking a single history course during that first summer. My success led me to reenroll that fall and to continue well beyond the credits I needed to keep my job. For the next two years, I took night and weekend courses while continuing to work full time. Eventually, my work schedule interfered with the classes I needed to complete my degree, and I quit my job and became a full-time student. I am eternally grateful to my family for supporting me in that decision. Were you always a motivated student who felt able to thrive in the world of schooling? Were there particular factors or experiences that helped you to realize that advanced education could create a professional path for you? Midway through earning my bachelor’s at MTSU, one of my instructors encouraged me to explore the McNair Scholars Program. Part of the U.S. Department of Education’s initiative of promoting educational excellence for all Americans, the
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