What’s New With Professor Geng?
By Laurence Jacobian ’28
After taking a year-long leave of absence, Professor Geng has returned to Macalester College bristling with talk experiences, a new family member, and recent theatrical research under her sleeve. In her interview, The Words inquired about what she has in store for the rest of the semester and what she accomplished while on her leave.
An Academically Shakespearean Experience
In early September 2025 the Guthrie Theatre invited Professor Geng to work on formulating an educational curriculum for a new project named “Theater In Focus.” The project consisted of four Shakespearean play recordings done in extremely high quality and available for free to anyone in the world with an internet connection. Professor Geng worked collaboratively alongside high school teachers, actors, and other college professors with the objective of integrating these play recordings into high school and college theater classes. “That was a really fun project,” Professor Geng states, “I would love to do more of that kind of work… collaboratively, on a big project that could have a big impact on the public.”
Parenthood and Community
After the Theater In Focus Project, Professor Geng found herself welcoming a new member of her family, named Freddy! She was delighted to see how much warmth and appreciation both her and Freddy received from Macalester colleagues. “And what I will always remember is the warmth and the love that I got from my friends and colleagues at Macalester,” Professor Geng states, continuing to add commentary about a doorstep meal plan the English and Creative Department department formulated for her. She notes, delightedly, “members of this department signed up for a meal train and they delivered delicious hot meals to my doorstep,” further expressing her appreciation for the Macalester community.
In Switzerland– As A Guest Speaker!
In early March 2026, Professor Geng had been invited by a graduate student to give a speech, as well as the opportunity to lead a writing workshop at the University of Zurich in Switzerland! During the workshop, she enlightened others with her ability to acquire primary sources, especially in the realm of law and literature, and aided them by teaching efficient primary source research techniques. She notes, “I ran an hour and a half long workshop, looking at how we can use primary sources, specifically legal sources, such as cases or commentaries on cases, to aid our analysis of literary texts.” But, despite her willingness to help the graduate students, and how beautiful Switzerland was, she desired to get back home to the baby, stating “it was a wonderful kind of vacation…but I was also very desperate to get back to the baby!”
The Words would like to thank Professor Geng for allowing us to interview her about her recent adventures! The English and Creative Writing department happily welcomes her return.