Suzanne Bunkers' Professional Credentials:

Suzanne Bunkers is a Professor of English and a Distinguished Faculty Scholar at Minnesota State University, Mankato, where she has just completed her 28th year of full-time teaching.  She earned her B.S. in English Education and her M.A. in English literature at Iowa State University and her doctorate in English literature at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  

Her teaching specialties include courses such as "Survivors' Stories: Cross-cultural Narratives" and "Coming of Age: Gendered and Culturally Diverse Perspectives."   Click on Teaching Specialties for details.

Her research on diaries as life writing, survivors' stories, and literary theory is interwoven with her teaching praxis.  Forms of life writing (e.g., diaries, memoirs, letters) are the focus of her published books, scholarly essays, and popular articles.  To learn more, click on curriculum vitae.

The recipient of fellowships from the Fulbright Commission, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and other organizations, Suzanne recently completed a year's sabbatical, during which she studied survivors' stories in several countries and was a visiting professor at the University of East London's Centre for Narrative Research.  Click on Sabbatical Accomplishments for more information.

Along with her colleague, Dr. Sheryl Dowlin, Suzanne served as co-director for the 2003-2004 "Moving Towards Respect" project, working with K-12 and university teachers throughout southern Minnesota.  In April 2005, she and Dr. Dowlin presented their research at the International Association for Intercultural Education Conference in Verona, Italy. 

Suzanne's research has taken her to London, Luxembourg City, Amsterdam, Rome, Prague, Budapest, Warsaw, Krakow, Berlin, Beijing, Hong Kong, Vancouver, and Puerto Vallarta.   Along with her colleague, Dr. Joe Kunkel, she regularly leads groups of students on travel and study trips to Italy.   For information, click on Study and Travel in Italy  She is particularly interested in immigration to the United States from Luxembourg and Germany.  For a list of recommended sources, click on German and Luxembourg Immigration Resources.