Karah L. Smith www.karahlsmith.com | (517) 242-0900½karah.smith13@gmail.com EDUCATION Bachelor of Arts, English Bachelor of Arts, Psychology Michigan State University | East Lansing, MI • Minor in Digital Humanities • MSU Honors College • GPA 4.0, Dean's List • Study Abroad—Literature in London • College of Education: Secondary Teacher Certification Program
May 2017 May 2017
June—August 2015 August 2013–August 2016
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE Lab Manager June 2017––Present MSU English Department Digital Humanities & Literary Cognition Lab | East Lansing, MI • Managed multiple cutting-edge interdisciplinary research projects focused on novel reading, the neuroaesthetics of poetry, and narrative responses to music • Assisted lead faculty with grant writing and monitored grant account spending • Trained with Sponsored Programs Administration and the Contracts and Grants Office to earn a certification in Essentials of Research Administration (November 2017) • Designed and implemented new infrastructure to improve the lab’s efficiency, communication, organization, production, and visibility • Supervised undergraduate and graduate researchers and encouraged them to develop independent research projects to present and/or publish work both locally and nationally • Assisted with publications and presentations of interdisciplinary work • Proctored study participants in behavioral and neuro-scientific experiments Undergraduate Researcher, Lab Lead, & Intern March 2015—May 2017 MSU Digital Humanities & Literary Cognition Lab | East Lansing, MI • Played a lead role in creating a pilot study examining narrative structures perceived in orchestral music • Promoted to a paid Lab Lead position after six months of voluntary participation as a result of exemplary dedication, passion, and competence • Directed meetings, assigned tasks, trained new students, and facilitated group discussion • Collaborated in the development of a behavioral study that measured a reader’s aesthetic pleasure in literature and poetry with the goal to translate the study into an fMRI compatible experiment • Worked with a team on compiling and analyzing data from a previous fMRI study that examined the effects of Jane Austen’s “Mansfield Park” on the brain • Co-author of a journal article for publication with Routledge titled, “Attention and Memory in Jane Austen: Literary Neuroscience, History of Mind, and the Importance of Individual Difference" • Completed a digital humanities internship focusing on experiment development, conference presentation, grant writing, and leadership Freelance Editor August 2016—May 2017 Editana (Digital Start-Up Company) | Melbourne, Australia • Passed an editorial exam designed to measure my copywriting abilities and style knowledge • Received training on diverse citation styles, grammar rules, and punctuation best practice • Qualified to edit and provide feedback on academic and creative writing focusing on coherence, professionalism, formatting, style, punctuation, and grammar Student Clerical Assistant II June 2013—January 2017 MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources | East Lansing, MI • Designed publications for posters, banners, greeting cards, annual reports, and invitations using Microsoft Publisher and graphic design skills
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Organized fundraising events including four AutumnFest tailgates (approx. 1,000 people) and four golf outings (approx. 150 people) Facilitated live auctions, silent auctions, and raffles Managed communications by drafting, editing and distributing mailings to alumni, donors, sponsors, etc. Processed weekly acknowledgements thanking donors and informing departments of their donations Updated website for Michigan FFA Association Monitored social media presence on LinkedIn for MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Worked in the university’s AdvanceWeb database creating contact reports and conducting searches
Educational Programming Intern January 2016—April 2016 Ella Sharp Museum | Jackson, MI • Created teacher packets detailing how museum programs fulfill Common Core state standards • Edited existing program descriptions for clarity and style • Planned and directed museum field trips and exhibit tours for a variety of age-groups • Designed an electronic catalog for historic costumes to track inventory and the check in/out process.
PUBLICATIONS Smith, Karah L., “Cognitive Embodiment and Mind Reading in Jane Austen’s Persuasion.” Inquiries Journal, 31 Oct. 2017. Phillips, Natalie, et al. “Patterns of Attention and Memory in Jane Austen: Literary Neuroscience, Intellectual History, and the Importance of Individual Difference.” Jane Austen and Sciences of the Mind, edited by Beth Lau, Routledge, 2017.
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS & ATTENDANCE Accessible Learning Conference, East Lansing DH 2017, Montreal National Conference for Undergraduate Research (NCUR) Poster Presentation, “Pop Culture’s Influence on the Stories We Hear in Music,” Memphis National Conference for Undergraduate Research (NCUR) Oral Presentation, “Culture and Training in Music Narrative Cognition” Athena Ignite Conference, Lansing Michigan State University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) Poster Presentation, “Quote Memorability and Differential Neural Networks,” East Lansing Creating Inclusive Excellence in Teacher Education Conference (CIETE), East Lansing
December 2017 August 2017 April 2017 August 2016 September 2016 April 2016 April 2015
INTERDISCIPLINARY GRANTS Funded Grants (MSU) National Science Foundation (NSF), J.D. McAuley, N. Phillips, & E. Margulis (Co-PIs), “The Role of Narrative in Music Perception,” $559,287, 2017-2020* Proposals Not Funded (MSU) ACLS Digital Extensions Grant, N. Phillips, E. Margulis, J.D. McAuley, & P. Wong, “The Stories We Tell About Music: New Interdisciplinary Research in Narrative Studies, Music Cognition, and Digital Humanities,” $149,992, 2018–2020*
Date Submitted November 2017 January 2017
*Grant was submitted by the Digital Humanities & Literary Cognition Lab. I assisted Dr. Phillips with researching, organizing, and writing the grants.
TALKS & SPEECHES Data Visualization Speaker Series, MSU Library CAL Interdisciplinary Research Speaker at the “Thanks for Giving Luncheon” Student Speaker at the MSU Honors College Fall Convocation Panelist at the College of Education Colloquium Student Presenter at the MSU Mid-Michigan Spartans Freshman Picnic Salutatorian Commencement Speaker, DeWitt High School Graduation
November 2017 October 2016 August 2016 August 2016 August 2014 June 2013
HONORS, SCHOLARSHIPS, & AWARDS MSU Board of Trustees Scholarship Award English Department Lawson Prize for the essay: Curiosity: The Immoral Vice Outstanding Senior Achievement Award in the College of Arts and Letters College of Arts and Letters Student Book Scholarship Honors College Jeffrey Cole Excellence Award English Department Dr. Ellen Brown II Prize for the essay: Money and Marriage in Jane Austen’s Emma English Department Nye Prize for the essay, The Significance of Death in Hemingway’s Fiction Sigma Tau Delta Regent Scholarship Marian A Dammon Scholarship in Education James Patterson Teacher Education Scholarship English Department Dr. Ellen Brown I Prize for the essay: Minor Characters as Agents of Satire in the Works of Henry James Nora Sager Stackhouse Endowed Scholarship in Arts and Letters Jeffrey and Kathryn Cole International Study Award English Department Marian Kurtz Croak Scholarship for the essay: The Impact of Contrastive Analysis and Grammatical Awareness on English Language Instruction in Urban Environments Patricia E. and Jerry C. Wagner Endowed Scholarship in Elementary Education Lake Trust Credit Union Community Scholarship Rotary Club Graduating Senior Scholarship Award Kiwanis Club Scholarship Wacousta Chapter Order of the Eastern Star Scholarship
2017 2017 2017 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 2015-16, 2016-17 2016-17 2016-17 2016-17 2015-16, 2016-17 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17 2015-16 2014-15, 2015-16 2015 2014-15 2014-15 2013-14 2013-14 2013-14 2013-14
VOLUNTEERING & COMMUNITY SERVICE College of Arts and Letters College Curriculum Committee Member Read to Succeed Lansing Literacy Coalition Tutor MSU Service Learning Teacher’s Assistant at Waverly Middle School MSU Service Learning Teacher’s Assistant at Averill Elementary School Day at State Visit Host Dorm Welcome Team Volunteer MSU Service Learning Tutor at Red Cedar Elementary School
August 2016–December 2016 October 2015–December 2015 September 2015–December 2015 January 2015–May 2015 September 2014– May 2015 August 2014 September 2013-December 2013
AFFILIATIONS The Association for Computers and the Humanities (ACH) Alliance of Digital Humanities Organizations (ADHO) Phi Beta Kappa Society Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society; Past Secretary, Past Vice President MSU Honors College Dean’s Ambassador MSU Dance Club Kappa Delta Pi Education Honor Society Urban Educators Cohort Program; completed IHELP Project (The Influence of Higher Education on Local Phonology); Undergraduate Research Assistant & Field Worker State of Art Winterguard
August 2017––Present August 2017––Present May 2016—Present March 2015—Present August 2016—May 2017 August 2014—May 2017 April 2015—May 2017 August 2013—May 2015 November 2013—February 2015 October 2013—May 2014
ADDITIONAL SKILLS Language Conversational Spanish Technical Microsoft Office Graphic Design AdvanceWeb ArcGIS & Digital Mapping
Grant Writing Adobe Creative Cloud Website Design (WordPress, Omeka, Concrete5) Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS)
PROJECTS English Honors Thesis Reading a Countenance: The Legibility of Minds, Faces, and Heads in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre and the Redistribution of Social Power Critical Comics “Eyre Head”: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Jane Eyre Monster Mapping
2016-2017 January 2017–May 2017 October 2016–December 2016 September 2016–December 2016