Toni McNaron, also known as Toni A. H. McNaron, (born April 3, 1937) is an American literary scholar. She is a professor emerita of English at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

, and the author of several books, including ''Poisoned Ivy'', about lesbophobic and homophobic workplace bullying in academia.

Early life

McNaron was born on April 3, 1937, in Alabama. She graduated from the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

, and she earned a master's degree from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

followed by a PhD from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

Career

McNaron spent her entire career in the Department of English at the

. She was assistant professor from 1964 to 1967, associate professor from 1967 to 1983, and a full professor from 1983 to 2001, when she became a professor emeritus. McNaron is the author and/or co-editor of several academic books about incest, feminism and LGBT topics as well as her own memoirs. In ''Poisoned Ivy'', she writes about closeted academics and what she describes as the homophobic

workplace bullying Workplace bullying is a persistent pattern of mistreatment from others in the workplace that causes either physical or emotional harm. It can include such tactics as verbal, nonverbal, psychological, and physical abuse, as well as humiliation. ...

that those who come out are subjected to.

Personal life

McNaron stopped drinking and came out as a lesbian in 1973. She also became a feminist and an anti-Vietnam War activist.

Selected works

* * * * *

References

External links

Official website
1937 births Living people Writers from Alabama University of Alabama alumni Vanderbilt University alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni University of Minnesota faculty Lesbian academics American memoirists LGBT memoirists American feminists American anti–Vietnam War activists American women memoirists LGBT people from Alabama American women academics {{US-English-academic-bio-stub