Stephen Cicirelli, M.F.A.
Lecturer of English
About Professor Cicirelli
Stephen Cicirelli is a graduate of Columbia University and 鶹ýAVJoseph’s University, currently serving as a Lecturer of English at 鶹ýAVPeter’s University.
“In my classes, I use a combination of lecture and discussion. When class is at its best, I feel less like a professor and more like a moderator, allowing my students to engage directly with one another and with me. This approach empowers students. They become invested and emboldened and are up to the task when I ask them to clarify their positions or when I challenge their assumptions. Every good teacher I’ve ever had has been able to peel away the layers of complexity to let an idea show in its simplicity. This is my goal every time I step in front of my classes. For me, good writing and good thinking are not skills that develop independently of each other. They develop in tandem, and to nurture one and not the other is to do only half the job.”
“In my classes, I use a combination of lecture and discussion. When class is at its best, I feel less like a professor and more like a moderator, allowing my students to engage directly with one another and with me. This approach empowers students. They become invested and emboldened and are up to the task when I ask them to clarify their positions or when I challenge their assumptions. Every good teacher I’ve ever had has been able to peel away the layers of complexity to let an idea show in its simplicity. This is my goal every time I step in front of my classes. For me, good writing and good thinking are not skills that develop independently of each other. They develop in tandem, and to nurture one and not the other is to do only half the job.”
Research Interests
- Fiction writing
- American literature
- Søren Kierkegaard
- Mormonism
- Animal rights
Career & Accomplishments
Degrees
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•Columbia University, M.F.A.
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•鶹ýAVJoseph's University, B.A.
Appearances
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•The Lead with Jake Tapper & CNN News Central
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•Fox News
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•NewsNation
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•Axios
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•Inside Higher Ed
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•Anadolu Agency
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•Ipse Dixit podcast
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•Unorthodox Views podcast
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•College Knowledge podcast
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•Studio A, 89.9 FM WKCR (NYC)
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•KGB Reading Series in New York City
Selected Publications
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•“Life After Death” in The Florida Review, 2027 (forthcoming)
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•“Tiered Rejections" in Your Impossible Voice 33, 2025
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•“The Emergency” in Post Road 42, 2024
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•“Saints” in Baltimore Review, 2024
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•“Adversity is the Parent of Virtue (in Bed)” in Okay Donkey, 2023
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•"P.S." in Ponder Review 7.1, 2023
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•"Apostate" in Paragraph Planet, 2023
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•"The End of the End” in Nothing Short of (Outpost19 Books), 2018
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•"Hegelianism" in Flash 10.1, 2017
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•"Quitting" in Eunoia Review, 2016
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•"Noteworthy" in Cardinal Sins 35.1, 2015
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•"The Only Thing(s) to Fear" (book review) in The Brooklyn Rail, 2013
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•"Mindy ‘Baybee’ Byrne & Washington ‘The First Shall Be First’ Franey" in Quick Fiction (18), 2011