Dr. Jane Beal

Jane Beal (Ph.D., University of California, Davis) is Professor of English Literature and recent past Chair of the English Department at the University of La Verne in southern California. She received her BA, MA, and PhD in English. She also received a Certificate in Midwifery from Mercy in Action College of Midwifery. She has taught at Wheaton College, Colorado Christian University, and the University of La Verne, as well as UC Davis, and served as a midwife in the U.S., Uganda, and the Philippines. During the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, she completed a graduate Certificate in Narrative Medicine and an MFA in Creative Writing at Bay Path University. She regularly publishes poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction as well as literary and cultural criticism. She is the author or editor of eight academic books and over forty peer-reviewed articles and chapters, primarily on the Polychronicon, the Pearl-poet, and the mythology of J.R.R. Tolkien. Her poetry collections include Sanctuary, Rising, and Song of the Selkie; seven haiku micro-chaps, and three audio recording projects combining poetry and music. At all times, she loves helping her students to learn, grow, and succeed.