“The joy of reading is the joy of transcending one’s own circumstances yet discovering the bond of humanity”
–Dr. Tom Fish

Dr. Tom Fish

Dr. Tom Fish joined the faculty of Cumberland College in 1984 and quickly took an active role in the English department, founding Pensworth in 1984 and chartering Sigma Tau Delta in 1985. Since then, he has served as an adviser for five Presidential Scholars projects, was a leader in developing the CAI Lab, taught in the Summer Scholars program for rising high school juniors for 6 years, and has taught in the INSIGHTS program for college freshman for 14 years.

In the classroom, his main interests lie in British literature and guiding his literary criticism students through the complex methods of critical theory. He particularly enjoys the literature of Joseph Conrad, Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare, and William Blake. Dr. Fish’s studies on Robert Browning, teaching with the new media, and various other topics have been published numerous times across the country, including presentations at several conferences. In addition, his work in implementing technology in the classroom has earned him a variety of awards and grants.

In his free time, Dr. Fish enjoys spending time with his family and keeping the clock at high school basketball games for 7 years, thanks to his two athletic daughters. He also enjoys watching movies in his spare time. After all, says Fish, “What is a movie but another kind of text?”

Dr. Fish’s regular teaching assignment includes:

ENGL 131 – Freshman Composition I

• ENGL 132 – Freshman Composition II
• ENGL 230 – Literary Criticism
• ENGL 231 – Writing With the New Media
• ENGL 331 – English Literature through 1660
• ENGL 333 – English Literature since 1830
• ENGL 431 – Romantic Literature
• ENGL 431 – Victorian Literature
• ENGL 437 – Shakespeare