Meghann Meeusen

Dr. Meghann Meeusen is the Director of Graduate Studies and a Master Faculty Specialist in the Department of English at Western Michigan University.

Meeusen’s work teaching children’s and adolescent literature centers around a desire to continually develop innovative pedagogy approaches that focus on the contextual nature of literature, as well as how individuals can become stronger critical thinkers through reading and research. In great part, this means studying the ways that those who write for children and teens infuse ideology into their texts and tracking trends to identify patterns across a range of historical and contemporary works for children and teens.  She published Children’s Books on the Big Screen in 2020 from University Press of Mississippi, and her current research project focuses on student-centered pedagogical approaches and representation in contemporary children’s streaming television and film.  She has also published on cultural-historical activity theory-based pedagogy, young adult dystopia, children’s adapted comics, and critical approaches to adolescent fantasy. Additionally, Meeusen acts as a liaison to develop children’s literature coursework for education students.