English professor named director of Marquette University Press 

Dr. Sarah Wadsworth, professor of English, has been named the new director for Marquette University Press. She took up the role on July 1, 2021. 

“Marquette University Press has a long and distinguished history of bringing new research and foundational texts in the humanities to light,” Wadsworth said. “At the heart of the Jesuit tradition, the humanities are crucial to an integrated approach to the pursuit of knowledge. I am thrilled to take up the directorship of Marquette University Press at a time when interdisciplinary research in the humanities has never been more vital or more urgently needed.” 

Wadsworth joined the faculty in 2003 and has served as director of undergraduate studies, as well as department chair for the Department of English. She is the author of “In the Company of Books: Literature and Its ‘Classes‘ in Nineteenth-Century America” and co-wrote “Right Here I See My Own Books: The Woman’s Building Library at the World’s Columbian Exposition.” Among her research interests are history of the book; 18th- and 19th-century U.S. literature and print culture; critical childhood studies; gender, reading and authorship; and life writing. Wadsworth previously served as a visiting assistant professor at Carleton College after earning her Ph.D. in English from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Before beginning her academic career, Wadsworth worked in trade publishing, gaining experience with the publishing process and rising to the position of developmental editor and product manager. She currently coedits the interdisciplinary humanities journal Nineteenth Century Studies. 

“I’m delighted that Dr. Wadsworth is our new Director of Marquette University Press,” said Dr. Heidi Bostic, dean of the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences. “Given her outstanding scholarly profile, professional network and previous experience in the publishing industry, she is an ideal leader for this important role. The Press is an important part of Marquette’s distinguished reputation in the humanities.” 

Founded in 1916, Marquette University Press publishes scholarly works in philosophy, theology, history and other selected branches of the humanities, in addition to regional studies relating to the city of Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin. With over 450 titles in print, Marquette University Press publishes between five and ten new titles and one journal annually in keeping with its longstanding mission of advancing and communicating knowledge through books, journals and more recently, electronic media.