VINCENT CHENG portrait
  • Shirley Sutton Thomas Professor of English, English
  • Professor, English
  • Distinguished Professor
801-581-7438

Professional Service

  • International James Joyce Foundation. In Fall 2018, I was elected to another six-year term as a member of the IJJF Board of Trustees, which meets annually to plan and administer the Foundation's programs, conferences, finances, etc., including selecting fellowship recipients to the annual conferences. 01/01/2008 - present
  • Joyce Studies Annual. Role: Review and select articles submitted to the journal. Advisory Board member of *Joyce Studies Annual*, an important scholarly publication in James Joyce Studies. 01/01/2008 - present
  • Modern Language Association. Role: Reviewing and choosing submissions for this important annual publication. Editorial Board of *Profession*, the journal about the modern language profession published by the Modern Language Association. I served on this board for three years (2005-2008). 01/01/2008 - present
  • Concentric. Role: Review and select articles submitted to the journal. Editorial Board of *Concentric*, a scholarly journal of literature. 01/01/2008 - present
  • Western Humanities Review. Role: Advise on editorial matters and essay selections. Advisory Board member. 01/01/2008 - present
  • Cambridge Univ. Press, Oxford Univ. Press, etc. Role: I regularly review book manuscripts for a number of university presses. During 2013 I reviewed manuscripts for Oxford UP, for Palgrave Macmillan, and for University of Florida Press. Manuscript reviewer. 01/01/2008 - present
  • PMLA, James Joyce Quarterly, Cultural Critique, Journal of Modern Literature, Modern Fiction Studies, etc. Role: I regularly review article submissions for a number of scholarly journals. Regular reviewer. 01/01/2008 - present
  • Other universities. Role: I regularly do a number of tenure and full-professor promotion reviews each year for other universities. External reviewer. 01/01/2008 - present

Internal Service

  • RPT Chair. Chair, 08/2023 - present. Department service.
  • Member of the Teaching Committee. 08/2022 - present. Department service.
  • Member of Tenured Faculty Review Committee. 08/2022 - present. Department service.
  • Member of Executive Committee. 01/2022 - 08/2022. Department service.
  • Ad Hoc Committee for David Roh's promotion. member, 01/2021 - 12/2021. Department service.
  • I continue to chair the Department’s Outreach Committee, coordinating outreach activities with the community, including collaborations with local high school English teachers and classes. Chair, 01/2021 - 12/2021. Department service.
  • I continue to lead the Faculty Research Interest Group on “British Studies,” which resumed meeting regularly in the Fall and involves about 15 faculty members from English, History, Philosophy, and Honors. Chair, 01/2021 - 12/2021. University service.
  • Graduate Studies Committee (through Spring 2021). member, 01/2021 - 05/2021. Department service.
  • Delivered a presentation as part of this year's U Remembers program--a panel on “Antisemitism Today and the Dynamics of Othering”--on February 5, 2020. Gave a talk/presentation., 02/2020 - 02/2020. University service.
  • Chair of Ad Hoc Committee on proposed MA in Teaching English graduate program. Chair, 09/2019 - present. Department service.
  • President Watkins appointed me to the University Research Committee starting Fall 2018. The URC is an important and time-consuming service assignment, selecting recipients for Faculty Fellowships, Scholarly and Creative Faculty Grants, and so on. URC member, 09/2018 - 09/2019. University service.
  • Chair of the English Department's Black Atlantic Postdoctoral Fellowship Search Committee. Chair, 09/2018 - 09/2019. Department service.
  • Department of History Review of Tenured Faculty: Eric Hinderaker. Ad Hoc Committee, outside member, 09/01/2017 - 03/30/2018. College service.
  • Graduate Council Review of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Member (one of three) of Internal Review Committee, 09/01/2017 - 03/30/2018. University service.
  • Department of History Review of Tenured Faculty: Nadja Durbach. Ad Hoc Committee, outside member, 09/01/2017 - 03/30/2018. College service.
  • Graduate Studies Committee. Member, 08/15/2017 - 08/2020. Department service.
  • At the request of Dean Dianne Harris, AVP Kathryn Stockton, and SVP Ruth Watkins, I led an experimental pilot program in Fall 2016: a semester-long mentoring workshop for newly hired tenure-track faculty in the College of Humanities. There were 11 new faculty members involved, and we met every Monday afternoon (for 3 hours) for the whole semester. It involved a lot of work (and we invented the program as we went along), but it was very successful and very satisfying. The University is now considering whether to adopt this pilot program in other units of the University. Workshop leader, 08/2016 - 12/2016. University service.
  • RPT Committee for David Roh's tenure review. I chaired the committee and wrote the report on scholarship. 04/2016 - 11/2016. Department service.
  • Member of African American Studies Search Interviewing Committee (at MLA). 01/2016 - 04/2016. Department service.
  • RPT Committee for Lourdes Alberto's tenure review. I wrote the report on scholarship. 04/2015 - 11/2015. Department service.
  • Search Committee for new Dean of College of Humanities. This is an important but time-consuming committee assignment. Search committee member, 09/2014 - 06/2015. College service.
  • "British Studies" Research Interest Group, sponsored by the Tanner Humanities Center. Chair and Organizer, 09/2013 - present. College service.
  • Outreach Committee: this committee is charged with community outreach. Chair, 08/2013 - present. Department service.
  • M.A. Examination Committee. Member, 08/2012 - present. Department service.
  • Campaign for Our Community. English Department representative, 08/2012 - present. Department service.
  • Department Curriculum Committee. Member, 08/2012 - 08/2017. Department service.
  • RPT Committee for Matt Potolsky's promotion review (to Full Professor). I chaired the committee, and wrote the service review., 03/2012 - 01/2013. Department service.
  • Ad hoc committee to review Jinna Kim's candidacy as potential hire. Chair, 03/2012 - 06/2012. Department service.
  • Search Committee for faculty position in Post-1945 American Literature. committee member, 09/2011 - 04/2012. Department service.
  • RPT committee for Lourdes Alberto's fourth-year review. I chaired the committee and wrote the scholarship report., 03/2011 - 10/2011. Department service.
  • I gave a presentation as a discussant at the Political Science Department's PIE (Political Inquiry Encounter) session on April 9, 2010. Presenter and discussant, 04/09/2010 - 04/09/2010. University service.
  • RPT Committee for Anne Jamison's promotion to Associate Professor with Tenure. I chaired the committee and wrote the scholarship report., 04/2010 - 06/2011. Department service.
  • Tanner Humanities Center Research Interest Group in Postcolonial Studies. Member and participant. In March 2010, I also delivered an invited lecture., 08/01/2009 - present. University service.
  • RPT Committee for Wilfred Samuels's promotion case for Full Professor. I wrote the scholarship report., 03/01/2009 - 11/01/2009. Department service.
  • Member of Academic Senate. College of Humanities representative on Academic Senate, starting August 2008., 08/01/2008 - 08/01/2011. University service.
  • Gender Studies/Film/Asian American Search Committee. Reading candidate submissions. Search aborted December 2008., 05/01/2008 - 12/15/2008. Department service.
  • Chair, RPT Committee for Craig Dworkin's promotion case for Full Professor. I chaired this committee and wrote the scholarship report, 03/01/2008 - 11/01/2008. Department service.
  • Chair, Ad Hoc committee re Tina Chen's candidacy. I chaired a special ad hoc committee formed to evaluate this candidate., 02/01/2008 - 05/01/2008. Department service.
  • Graduate Studies Committee. Continuing member of important committee charged with graduate studies matters and admissions, 01/01/2008 - 09/2011. Department service.
  • Chair, College RPT Committee: I was a member in 2007-2008, and then was the chair in 2008-2009, of this important College committee. Reviewing RPT files of Humanities faculty candidates for promotion., 08/01/2007 - 06/01/2009. College service.
  • Member of College Diversity Committee. Frequent meetings planning diversity affairs in the College, including a big fundraising event., 08/01/2007 - 06/01/2008. College service.
  • Chicano/s Studies Search Committee 2007-2008. Member of search committee (resulted in hiring of Lourdes Alberto), 06/01/2007 - 05/01/2008. Department service.

Community Partnership

  • 2020 In collaboration with the Hibernian Society of Utah and KCPW's Roger McDonough, I helped organize and participated in a live (via Zoom) "Bloomsday" online reading of passages from James Joyce's Ulysses on June 16, 2020 (subsequently published on YouTube). 06/2020 - 06/2020
  • Guest-lecture for the Venture Program at Horizonte Adult School (Jeff Metcalf's program). I taught a class at Jeff Metcalf's invitation for this community-based adult education class. 11/03/2009 - 11/03/2009
  • Discussion Group on James Joyce: I organized and ran a volunteer discussion group on *A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man* for parents and teachers at The McGills School (four sessions). 02/01/2008 - 06/2008
  • Hibernian Society of Utah. I continue to be actively involved with the Hibernian Society, the local Irish American interest group, especially with their literary activities. 01/01/2008 - present

Outreach

  • Taught two sessions to IB English classes at West High School on James Joyce's Dubliners . 12/2019 - 12/2019
  • Taught two classes on "Heart of Darkness" at SLCSE (local high school) in their English classes- 01/2018. 11/2019 - 12/2019
  • Taught a week-long summer workshop on "Literary Classics IV" for 35 Utah high school English teachers (as part of the Tanner Humanities Center's Gateway to Learning Summer Workshops). This was another wholly new course, a follow-up to the first three such courses in summers 2015, 2016, and 2017. 08/2019 - 08/2019
  • Taught two sessions to IB English classes at West High School on James Joyce's Dubliners . 12/2018 - 12/2018
  • Taught two classes on "Sonnets" at SLCSE (local high school) in their English classes. 01/2018 - 01/2018
  • Taught a week-long summer workshop on "Literary Classics III" for 35 Utah high school English teachers (as part of the Tanner Humanities Center's Gateway to Learning Summer Workshops). This was another wholly new course, a follow-up to the first two such courses in summer 2015 and summer 2016. 07/2017 - 07/2017
  • “The Memory of the Boyne: King Billy, National Memory, and James Joyce.” Invited lecture at the Hibernian Society 2017 Bloomsday Celebration, June 16, 2017, Salt Lake City, UT. 06/2017 - 06/2017
  • Taught two classes on "Sonnets" at SLCSE (local high school) in their English classes . 01/2017 - 01/2017
  • Taught two sessions to AP English classes at West High School on James Joyce's Dubliners . 01/2017 - 01/2017
  • Taught two classes on "Dramatic Monologues" at SLCSE (local high school) in their English classes . 12/2016 - 12/2016
  • Taught a week-long summer workshop on "Literary Classics II" for 30 Utah high school English teachers (as part of the Tanner Humanities Center's Gateway to Learning Summer Workshops). This was a wholly new course, a follow-up to the first such course in summer 2015. 07/2016 - 07/2016
  • Taught two sessions to AP English classes at West High School on James Joyce's Dubliners. 01/2016 - 01/2016
  • “Bloomsday, Joyce, and Irish Identity.” Invited lecture at the Utah Hibernian Society 2015 Bloomsday Celebration, June 16, 2015, Salt Lake City, UT. 06/2015 - 06/2015
  • Taught two sessions to AP English classes at West High School on James Joyce's Dubliners. 01/2015 - present
  • Taught two classes on "Sonnets" at SLCSE (local high school) in their English classes. 12/2014 - 12/2014
  • Lecture on "Sonnets" at Venture/Horizonte Adult Education Program. 10/2014 - 10/2014
  • Lecture at Highland High School A.P. English class on James Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. 04/2014 - 04/2014
  • Seminar to local high school English teachers on teaching "Heart of Darkness". 03/2014 - 03/2014
  • I gave a talk on "What Is Race?" at the Mestizo Gallery, as part of Black History Month activities. 02/2014 - 02/2014
  • Taught a session on "Sonnets" at the Venture/Horizonte Adult Education Program. 10/2013 - 10/2013
  • Chair of English Department Community Outreach Committee. 08/2013 - present

Honors & Awards

  • Hatch Prize in Teaching. University of Utah, 12/2023
  • Distinguished Professor. University of Utah, 05/2019
  • The 2017 Distinguished Scholar in the Humanities Award, Univ. of Utah. University of Utah College of Humanities, 09/2017
  • I was selected by the University of Utah as its nominee for the 2015 U.S. Professors of the Year Awards. University of Utah, 10/2015
  • Fulbright Scholar Award (for 2015-2016). US Fulbright Foundation, 01/2015
  • Distinguished Teaching Award. University of Utah, 05/2014
  • Carole & Gordon Segal Visiting Chair in Irish Studies (for Spring 2014). Northwestern University, 01/2014
  • Carole and Gordon Segal Distinguished Visiting Chair in Irish Literature for 2014. Northwestern University, 05/2013
  • Faculty Fellow Award. I will be a Fellow during Spring semester 2012. University of Utah, 01/2011

In the Media

  • Interviewed by The Guardian (UK) newspaper for a special feature on Irish identity and authenticity. 12/2012.
  • While I was in Dublin, Ireland during June 2012 (for the International James Joyce Symposium), I was interviewed (via telephone and internet) for--and cited extensively in--an article in the *Los Angeles Times* concerning Bloomsday celebrations around the world, especially in Dublin. 06/2012.
  • Interviewed by Congressional Quarterly for a special report to Congress on international adoption. 09/2011.
  • Interviewed by UEN Educational Television Network concerning the 1937 film version of *King Solomon's Mines*, showing on UEN Science Fridays. Interview also broadcast online. 03/2011.