Editor’s Note: This is part of a series of stories introducing various members of the campus community to Eastern for a better understanding of those who maintain the operations of the university. 

In the second part of this series Angela Vietto, Chair of the English Department will be featured.

Where did you receive your degrees from? 

I’m a little unusual this way — I received all my degrees (BA, MA, PhD) from Penn State.

If we saw your music playlist, what would the top five songs be? 

Such a hard question! I’ll give you the top of 5 different playlists: 

“So What,” Miles Davis

“You Speak My Language,” Morphine

“Give Up the Funk,” Parliament

“Gloria,” Patti Smith

“Ode to Joy” from Beethoven’s 9th

Where is your favorite place on campus? 

Doudna Fine Arts Center

What is a place in Charleston you think everyone should know about?

It’s a bit out of town, but Fox Ridge State Park.

Who is someone you admire in your field and why? 

Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Even though he’s a celebrity now, Dr. Gates started in the same obscure corner of literary studies I did, and he was a leading figure in that field when I was a graduate student. Now he brings many of the same kinds of insights to the public and reaches many more people than we can in our classrooms, and that’s pretty amazing.

Why did you go into the field you’re in?

Words aren’t perfect — they can’t fix all problems. But they’re pretty close to magic, and they’re the best tool we have for solving conflicts without physically hurting each other. Plus, people make art out of them, too! Language, both written and spoken, is so central to what it means to be human, that I find it endlessly fascinating to study.

What positions have you held during your career in higher education? 

While I was still in graduate school, I worked in the Penn State Alumni Association briefly, then as a grant writer at a research center, then as an editor and assistant to the Dean in the Penn State Graduate School Dean’s office, and finally as an admissions counselor and marketing writer in the Penn State Admissions Office. After completing my PhD, I came to EIU, where I have been a faculty member for a long time. In 2017-2018, I served part-time as the Assistant Dean in the Pine Honors College, and since 2018 I have been the chair of the English Department.

What are the most rewarding aspects of your current position?

Helping our scholarship committee give money to deserving students and helping students and faculty to accomplish their goals.

What are the most challenging aspects of your position? 

Missing so many great students (and faculty members) who’ve moved on to wonderful places.

What advice would you give to students in your department for their college careers? 

Be here now. On one hand, it’s great to see students who are so connected to friends from high school and family members in ways that it wasn’t easy to be 20 or even 10 years ago. And I know that many students have to work long hours to support themselves. But as much as you can, I hope you’ll look up from social media or text messages and look around you right now.  Make as many new friends as you can while you’re here; try out different activities and student organizations; ask those questions you’d really like to ask in class (or after class), whether they’re for your instructors or someone else in the room. Your time in college will go quickly. Be here now!

What is your number one goal for your students? 

I want students to leave EIU more empowered than they were when they came, ready to advocate for themselves and others, ready to try things they didn’t know they were capable of, and most of all, ready to speak up when their conscience tells them they should.