Research Interests

Non-motherhood, Childfreeness, and Reproductive Justice
Environmental Sentimentality in Climate Fiction
Ecological Antinatalism
Travel Writing and Cultural Mobility Studies
African American Literature and Culture

Current Research Projects

• Non-Motherhood in American Literature and Culture
• Associate member of the interdisciplinary research training group (GRK 2726)  “The Sentimental in Literature, Culture, and Politics”
• Associate member of the project “Semantiken des Verzichts” (funded by the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 2023-24)

Administrative Functions

Study advisor (American Studies) for studies abroad
Webmaster (American Studies/Prof. Paul)

Education

Dr. phil. in English and American Literature, Justus Liebig University Giessen (2020)
M.A. in International Cultural and Business Studies, University of Passau (2013)

Employment

Since 2023: Senior lecturer in American Studies at FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg
2021-2023: Scientific coordinator of the “Schelling-Forum,” Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities
2020-2021: Research Assistant at the Department of English and American Studies, LMU Munich
2015-2019: Research Assistant at the International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture, JLU Giessen

Fellowships, Grants, Awards

• 2025-26 William H. Helfand Fellowship for American Medicine, Science, and Society from the Library Company of Philadelphia
• 2025: Christoph Daniel Ebeling Fellowship sponsored by the German Association for American Studies and the American Antiquarian Society (virtual fellowship)
• 2024: Dartmouth Stipend from the Bavarian American Academy for the Summer Institute “Futures of American Studies” at Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire
• 2023: BAA Fellowship for the 12th International Summer Academy of the Bavarian American Academy in Lexington, Kentucky
• 10/2019–03/2020: Doctoral completion grant, FAZIT Foundation
• 2016–2019: Several travel grants from the International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture and the International PhD Programme Literary and Cultural Studies for conference presentations in Germany, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, and the US
• 2018: Dr.-Herbert-Stolzenberg Award for Excellence in Higher Education Teaching, JLU Giessen
• 2017: Participant of the annual summer school of the Hermes Consortium for Literary and Cultural Studies, Aarhus University
• 2015: Yale University Post-Graduate Research Fellowship of the Bavarian American Academy
• 2015: Travel grant for female early career researchers from the University of Passau
• 2014: Travel grant of the Graduate Center at the University of Passau

Service to the Profession

• Representative of the non-professorial teaching staff of English and American Studies (2024–)
• Elected Member of the Council for Academic Staff, Department of English, American, and Romance Studies (2023–)
• Elected representative of the research management team of the International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture in the Board of Directors (2017–2019)
• Member of the editorial team of On_Culture – The Open Journal for the Study of Culture (2016–2018)

Teaching

• Lektürekurs: American Civilization (FAU)
• Grundseminar Culture/Culture A (FAU)
• Politics & Culture: America in the 1950s (FAU)
• Eco-Apocalypse, Extinction, and Endings in American Literature and Culture (FAU)
• American Journeys: Travel in Literary and Cultural Texts (FAU)
• Introduction to Climate Change Fiction (University of Passau)
• American Travel Writing (University of Passau)
• Slavery and Resistance in African American Literature and Culture (University of Passau and JLU Giessen)
• Introduction to Transatlantic North American Studies (JLU Giessen)

Publications