This year’s Medieval and Renaissance Forum will be the last for one of its devoted enthusiasts. At the end of this year, professor Matt Rolph will be saying a fond farewell to Plymouth, where he has spent the most part of eighteen years.
He earned his undergraduate degree, a BA in English Literature at PSU in intervals between 1988 and 2000, “I was active in several student organizations but not in the Medieval Society… I haunted Rounds for a decade or so, finished a bachelor’s degree, read the great books and made friends with a small handful of the faculty.”
After completing his degree, he went on to complete graduate work in English Education at Plymouth as well. During this time, he was hired by PSU as adjunct faculty. In apprenticeship to Dr. Meg Petersen, he began teaching Composition, and moved on to Introduction to Literature, Technical Writing and First Year Seminar.
At the request of department chair, Dr. Jeanne Dubino, Rolph became associate director to the Medieval and Renaissance Forum from 2002 to 2007. At this time, the forum was losing popularity at Plymouth, “I joined the Forum because it was an underdog cause at the time, to save it and make it great for the students of the Medieval Society and the participants who return year after year.”
“I am not a proper medievalist like the good Drs. Kline and Kinane, the director and associate director of the Medieval and Renaissance Forum thisyear,” Rolph added.
Rolph worked with Naomi Kline on the Forum from 2003 to 2007, “We have shared some very proud moments,” said Rolph, “We also shared the faculty advisor’s role with the student Medieval Society, aka MedSoc. MedSoc has been an important part of my life as well.”
Rolph has been a much-beloved part of MedSoc. The “Matt Rolph is Awsome! Fan Club” group on Facebook, filled with present and past MedSoc participants, attests to that. Rolph was the first faculty member to enter the Facebook universe, “Note that there were plenty of staff who’d already figured out how useful it can be,” said Rolph, of the valuable distinction, “Viral dissemination of information, social networks, and MMORPG are research areas for me.”
Yet social networking, the medieval and renaissance ages, and teaching are not Rolph’s only interests. When his contract ends this year, he is headed to Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute of Troy, N.Y. to work on his Ph.D, “My research combines cognitive science, human-computer-interaction (HCI), and language study and assessment,” Rolph said, “RPI is the oldest polytechnic in the US, literally the place where the word nerd was invented.”A testament to the value of a PSU education, Rolph says that he has been granted a tuition waiver, stipend and support for his research at Renssalaer. This great opportunity will allow Rolph the full power of Renssalaer’s multi-million dollar research facilities. “As painful as it is to leave Plymouth State, it is an honor to accept such an offer,” said Rolph.
“Plymouth State has been a truly monumental part of my life for a very long time, and leaving is very hard in many ways.”