James Ashbrook Perkins is Professor Emeritus of English and Public Relations at Westminster College,

New Wilmington, Pennsylvania New Wilmington is a borough in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, United States, first platted in 1824 and established as a borough on April 9, 1863. The population was 2,097 at the 2020 census. It is home to Westminster College and serves the Old O ...

, where he became a faculty member in 1973 and was department chair from 2000 to 2005.

Education

Perkins earned his BA from

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

, Danville, Kentucky, in 1963, an MA from

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

, Oxford, Ohio, in 1965, and a PhD from the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

, Knoxville in 1972.

Career

After receiving his doctorate, he was appointed assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 1971. He moved to Westminster in 1973 and is now retired as an emeritus professor. He was a Visiting Fulbright professor in Korea, 1998, and was a

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

fellow four times, in 1978, 1981, 1987, and 1989. Perkins was appointed Special Program Chair for the Centenary of the birth of

Robert Penn Warren Robert Penn Warren (April 24, 1905 – September 15, 1989) was an American poet, novelist, and literary critic and was one of the founders of New Criticism. He was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers. He founded the liter ...

and was instrumental in securing the release of a stamp honoring him by the

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

; the governor of Kentucky named him a

Kentucky Colonel Kentucky Colonel is the highest title of honor bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and is the most well-known of a number of honorary colonelcies conferred by United States governors. A Kentucky Colonel Commission (the certificate) is ...

in recognition.

Academic works

Perkins has published books on Warren and on David Madden. *(coedited with Randy Hendricks) ''David Madden: A Writer for All Genres'', Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2006 *(editor) ''The Cass Mastern Material: The Core of Robert Penn Warren's "All the King's Men"'', Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2005 *(coedited with James A Grimshaw) ''Robert Penn Warren's All the King's Men: Three Stage Versions'', Athens, Georgia: University of Georgia Press, 2000 *(coedited with Randy Hendricks) ''For the Record: A Robert Drake Reader'', Macon: Mercer University Press, 2001 *(coedited with William Bedford Clark and Randy Hendricks) ''Selected Letters of

'' vol. 3: ''Triumph and Transition 1943–1952''; vol. 4: ''New Beginnings and New Directions, 1953–1968''; vol. 5: ''Backward Glances and New Visions, 1969–1979; vol. 6, ''Toward Sunset, at a Great Height, 1980–1989'', Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. *(coedited with Jeffrey J. Folks) ''Southern Writers at Century's End'', Lexington, Kentucky: University Press of Kentucky, 1997 *(coedited with Carol Morrow) ''Interviews with David Madden'', Newfound Press, 2014 *(editor) ''The Last Bizarre Tale: Stories by David Madden'', Knoxville: University of Pennessee Press, 2014

Creative works

Poetry

*The Woodcarver, 1978. *The Amish 2, Perceptions 2, 1981. *''Brother enemy: Poems of the Korean War'' edited and translated by Suh Ji-Moon; in collaboration with James A. Perkins. Buffalo, N.Y.: White Pine Press, 2002. *''Decembers: Poems'', Macon: Mercer University Press, 2013

Fiction

*''Snakes, Butterbeans and the Discovery of Electricity'', Macon: Mercer University Press, 2003

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perkins, James Ashbrook Living people Westminster College (Pennsylvania) faculty American male poets Year of birth missing (living people)