Kristin Denise Rowe

Biography

Kristin Denise Rowe ("Kris") is doctoral candidate in African American and African Studies (AAAS), with an interdisciplinary graduate specialization in Women's and Gender Studies. Kris is from Newark, Delaware; she earned a B.A. from the University of Delaware dual majoring in English and Black American Studies. Her research interests include: Black feminism(s), body politics, beauty culture, Black hair politics, popular culture, and social media/new media. Her dissertation examines contemporary narratives within popular culture of Black women’s experiences with natural hair, arguing these representations are sites where concepts of beauty are articulated, revealed, and (re)negotiated.

Kris has taught undergraduate courses across three departments at Michigan State: Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures (WRAC); Women's and Gender Studies; and African American and African Studies. In Spring 2019, she will teach in her fourth department, where she will teach African American and African Literature in the English department. As an RCAH Graduate Fellow, Kris hopes to explore the utility of Black feminist thought/pedagogy within the residential college, as well highlight the experiences of women of color students in the college. Kris is also drawn to the college's emphasis on civic engagement and individual expression, ideals that she hopes to implement in her work.