Dr. Hope L. Russell

Biography

Dr. Hope L. Russell teaches for the Women’s Studies Program at Niagara University. She has a Ph.D. in Global Gender Studies from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Her dissertation, “A ‘Telling’ Uproar: Young Women, Feminism, and the Making of the Third Wave,” examined the interconnected histories of coming of age and coming to feminism in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Her teaching and research interests include coming of age literature and film; feminist and social justice issues in the United States; the intersections between feminist theory and feminist personal narrative; local history and local history makers in Niagara Falls, New York; representations of girlhood in apocalyptic and dystopian texts; and third and fourth “wave” U.S. feminisms.

Dr. Russell is also the Director of Education and Interpretive Planning, Historian for the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area (NFNHA). She brings her passion for art and museums, feminism, social justice, teaching, heritage tourism, and local history to all of her work. Her research interests and expertise include but are not limited to: America at 250 commemorative histories (specifically the National Park System’s four focus areas on Equality and Justice, Indigenous Peoples, People of African Descent, and Contributions of Women); local feminist and social justice issues; local history; local histories of National Heritage Areas within the Alliance of National Heritage Areas (ANHA); and local neighborhood studies.

She is the author of the forthcoming novel The Freight.

Focus of Teaching

Regular course offerings include:

• Intro to Women’s Studies (WMS 200)
• Feminist Political Theory (POL 306)
• Feminism and Social Justice (VSJ 100)
• Women and Film (CMS 375, WMS 375)
• Fairytale and Fantasy (WMS 350: Special Topics)
• Black Women Writers (WMS 350: Special Topics)
• Pop Culture in America (WMS 350: Special Topics)

Research Interests and Expertise:

• America at 250 Commemorative Histories (specifically the NPS’s four focus areas on Equality and Justice, Indigenous Peoples, People of African Descent, and Contributions of Women)
• Feminist and Social Justice Issues
• Local History (Niagara and Western New York Region)
• Local Histories of National Heritage Areas within the Alliance of National Heritage Areas
• Local Neighborhood Studies (Niagara Falls, NY)

Current Research

• “A Zambian Fairytale: Shula and the Magic of Rungano Nyoni’s I Am Not a Witch,” in Supernatural Youth in Media, eds. Ilana Nash and Rebecca Hains, Peter Lang Publishing, forthcoming 2024.
• Cambria Hotel: Niagara Falls History Exhibit, collaboration between Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, Cambria Hotel, and other entities, December 2023-Present.
• “Application for Network to Freedom Nomination for Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center,” co-authored with Dr. James Ponzo, Ally Spongr DeGon, Christine Bacon, National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program, August 2023-Present.
• “Building a Black Heritage Trail: Connecting Histories, Cultures, and Communities in the Historic District of Suspension Bridge Village,” grant application prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, submitted to National Park Service’s (NPS) African American Civil Rights Grant Program (AACR), August 2023-October 2023.
• “Onguiaahra (“Thunder of Waters”): Indigenous Histories, Cultures, Landscapes, and Place Names Throughout the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area,” grant application prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, submitted to National Park Service (NPS) and the National Park Foundation’s (NPF)-Mellon Humanities Fellowship, July 2023.
• “Inclusive Storytelling Project: 250 Stories for America’s 250th,” historical vignettes prepared for the National Park Foundation, Alliance of National Heritage Areas, and the Autio app, May 2023-present.
• “The Polly King Project: ‘I Will Sing with Color,’” prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, December 2022-present.
• “Stories of the Niagara and Western New York Region,” historical vignettes prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area and the Autio app, June 2022-present.
• “The Highland Avenue Neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York: The Development of a Historically Black Neighborhood, Community Leaders, and Activists against Racial Injustice in the Twentieth Century,” 125 pages, prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, August 2022-January 2023.
• “Cascada di Niagara! Histories of the Pine Avenue Neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York for the Heritage Table Discover Niagara Shuttle Tour,” 267 pages, prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, May 2019-August 2019.
• “Local Histories for Walking Tours of Historic Niagara Falls, New York: Bellevue, Suspension Bridge Village, and the Highland Avenue Community,” 118 pages, prepared for Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, January-May 2019.

Current Involvement

• Board Member, Niagara History Center, Lockport, New York, December 2023-Present.
• Member, Inclusive Excellence Initiative, Niagara University, 2021-present.
• Member, Take Back the Night Committee, Niagara University, 2015-present.
• Member, Women’s Studies Committee, Niagara University, 2004-present.
• Committee Chair; Committee Member, Thesis and Dissertation Supervision, Niagara University, 2012-present.
• Faculty Advisor, SASS (Students Aligned to Stop Sexism), Niagara University, 2015-present.
• Member, Social Justice Workgroup, Niagara University, 2019-2022.
• Faculty Advisor, NU Alliance, Student Club, Niagara University, 2015-2021.
• Faculty Advisor, Criminology and Criminal Justice Department, Niagara University, 2018-2019.
• Diversity Consultant, Niagara University Beginnings (NUB) Program, Niagara University, 2015-2018.
• Bridging Local Classrooms and the Heritage Center, collaboration between Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, Roberta Faery-Educational Consultant, local school districts, and other entities, July 2023-present.
• Cambria Hotel: Niagara Falls History Exhibit, collaboration between Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, Cambria Hotel, and other entities, December 2023-Present.
• “Colors Sing to Me: The Life and Work of Polly King,” collaboration between Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, Polly King Art Gallery, Castellani Art Museum, and other entities, September 2023-present.
• Inclusive Storytelling Grant Project – 250 Stories for America’s 250th, collaboration between National Park Foundation, Great Basin Heritage Area Partnership, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, Alliance of National Heritage Areas and the Autio app, May 2023-present.
• NFNHA Internship Program, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area initiative in collaboration with Castellani Art Museum, Departments of History and Art History with Museums Studies at Niagara University, and other entities, July 2023-present.
• Polly King Project, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area and Polly King Art Gallery initiative in collaboration with other entities, December 2022-present.
• Portrait Ladies Project, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area and Polly King Art Gallery initiative in collaboration with Sandy Rutkowski-Author and Researcher and other entities, December 2022-present.
• Prophet Isaiah House, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area initiative in collaboration with Kohler Foundation and other entities, August 2023-present.
• Stories of the Niagara and Western New York Region, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area initiative in collaboration with the Autio app and NFNHA website, June 2022-present.

Educational Background

• Ph.D. in Global Gender Studies
• Ed.M. in English Education (7-12)
• B.A. in English