Dr. Parkander’s tenure spanned unbelievable changes in the world and on campus. She began teaching when there were “four lonely members of the English department, in what had been a closet for band instruments”, soldiers returning from WWII were using the GI Bill to enroll in college and the mimeograph machine was the department’s top technology. Fast forward to her retirement in 1996 when the college had grown to 2,500 students – all with computer and internet access. Somehow, they were still eager to sit in Old Main and hear Dr. Parkander use great literature to explain the complexities of the human condition.
Dr. Parkander maintained connections with many of her students, viewing them as members of “her family”. As a professor, she taught rhetoric, world literature, modern drama, the English novel, and courses on Milton and Chaucer. She taught the first world literature course at Augustana. She was fond of 19th century English novels, especially works by Jane Austen, and considered teaching the 19th-century novel her favorite class.
And she had this to say about her students in a 2009 interview, “I also taught the Chaucer class, and of course that is just a ball. But it was really harder to teach than the Milton because the kids had to learn Middle English. And so it was wonderful to watch the struggle up through “The Knight’s Tale” in the Canterbury Tales and after they got through that, they were doing [laughing briefly] very well in Middle English.”
Your gift in memory of Dr. Parkander will be added to the endowed chair already established in her honor and will ensure her legacy extends far into the future. If you prefer to send a check, our mailing address is: Office of Advancement, Augustana College, 639 38th St., Rock Island, IL 61201. If you would like to speak with someone for more information, please contact Sue Rector, Assistant Vice President of Development (309-794-7477, suerector@augustana.edu).
Read more about Dr. Dorothy Parkander here.
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