Sonja R. Fritzsche

Biography

Ph.D., University of Minnesota – Germanic Studies (2001)
M.A., University of California, Los Angeles – Modern European History (1995)
B.A., Indiana University (1992)

Through my position of Associate Dean of Academic Personnel and Administration in the College of Arts and Letters at Michigan State University where I have served since 2017, I am able to pursue highly meaningful, values-driven work together with dedicated colleagues. In this role, I work closely with the the Dean to support Chairs and Program Directors as well as faculty and academic staff. A primary focus has been to share knowledge and expand opportunities via the Culture of Care initiative and Charting Pathways to Intellectual Leadership (CPIL) model, equitable and inclusive searches and faculty review procedures, College-wide faculty development and leadership initiatives that employ “transformative listening” (ADFL Bulletin 2022), creating habits of diversity, equity, and inclusion across the College, and a focus on non-tenure stream mentoring and career pathways.

A Professor of German Studies, my current medical humanities project is in the area of comparative German/US autism and disability studies entitled “Self-Help Storytelling: German and US Parental Narratives On and Off the Autism Spectrum.” A large part of my work focuses on German and Central/Eastern European literary history and film in the area of utopian/dystopian studies and comparative science fiction of the Cold War and related topics, and has appeared in six languages (See my website and c.v.) Resulting publications include: The Routledge Companion to Gender and Science Fiction (2023) with Lisa Yaszek, Keren Omry, and Wendy Gay Peterson, Science Fiction Circuits of the South and East (2018) with Anindita Banerjee, The Liverpool Companion to World Science Fiction Film (2014, 2021 pbk./e-book), and the open access Science Fiction Literature in East Germany (2006). I have also published a number of articles, book chapters, and public online scholarship.

A primary goal of my scholarly career has been to foster greater awareness of science fiction beyond Anglo-American contexts (global SF) and to support young scholars doing work on the SF in languages other than English. Consequently, I place great value on mentorship and stewardship. To this end, I served as President of the Association of Departments of Foreign Languages (ADFL) in 2015, as Vice President of the Science Fiction Research Association (2019-2021), and also now with the Coalition of Women in German. I am a Fulbright and German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) grant recipient. Consider submitting a proposal to publish in the book series that I co-edit with Gerry Canavan (Marquette) – World Science Fiction Studies with Peter Lang Oxford.

Currently, I serve as co-PI with the Big Ten Academic Alliance Less Commonly Taught and Indigenous Languages Partnership grant (PI: Christopher P. Long, 2019-2024) funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Among other aspects, this iteration of the grant focuses on supporting Anishnaabemowin institution in communities and institutions as well as creating cross-institutional partnerships to sustain and grow LCTL instruction as central to the DEI mission of MSU and higher education. 

Finally – remember: practice transformative change to establish the “everyday utopia” (Davina Cooper 2013) and go through life with the radical humility (2022), kindness, generosity (Fitzpatrick 2019, 2023), and grace (Kyodo Williams 2016) that one gets from a life spent tandem cycling many, many miles.