Education

  • Ph.D, German Literature, Washington University in St. Louis. Project: She passes judgment as would a man: political discourse in the novels of Caroline de la Motte Fouque
  • Certificate, Women's Studies, Washington University in St. Louis
  • M.A. , Department of German, University of Minnesota

Biography

Professor Baumgartner is a professor of German and Comparative Literature at the University of Utah. As a first-generation college graduate, Professor Baumgartner experienced the transformative power of education first-hand and believes that every student deserves passionate mentoring. An explorer-at-heart, Professor Baumgartner has far-reaching research interests in literature, cultural and area studies, women and gender studies and the digital humanities, and enjoys creating new, up-to-date, and sometimes quirky courses for her students. She believes that our lives are enriched when we stretch beyond our comfort zones and encourages her students to pursue projects and careers seemingly out of reach. Professor Baumgartner is highly organized and believes firmly that efficient organization makes creativity and exploration possible. She is committed to straight talk so that students and colleagues always know where they stand. As a professor, an immigrant, and a reader, Professor Baumgartner knows one thing for sure: literature from all parts of the world provides us with imaginative road maps to a more just, compassionate, and equitable future.

Professor Baumgartner is the author of Public Voices: Political Discourse in the Writings of Caroline de la Motte Fouqué (2009) and co-editor of the volumes From Multiculturalism to Cultural Hybridity: New Approaches to Teaching Modern Switzerland (2010) and Anxious Journeys: Contemporary German Travel Writing (2019). She has written numerous articles on the literature of the early 19th century, the Napoleonic Wars, German national identity, female education in the 19th century, family relations, flânerie, fashion, and travel literature. She frequently gives workshops on teaching Switzerland nationally and here in Utah. Currently Professor Baumgartner is completing her book Mapping the Nation: German Travel Guides, 1789 to 1871, a study that investigates how early German travel guides shaped the discourses of national identity in the German-speaking countries. Professor Baumgartner has won numerous awards and fellowships including a NEH summer fellowship, a year-long Fulbright fellowship, and a DAAD summer fellowship. She has received the best article award twice: once in 2006 and again in 2013. Professor Baumgartner has been honored with the Nelson Brooks Award for the Teaching of Culture (2017), the highest honor for teachers of foreign languages. Professor Baumgartner is a native of Switzerland and appreciates the Wasatch Mountains for hiking and for skiing.