Rebecca Jaroff

Associate Professor of English

Rebecca Jaroff graduated from Ursinus College in 1981 with a major in English and minor in Communication Arts. She worked for ten years as a news editor and news producer at 6ABC in Philadelphia, before returning to graduate school.

As co-director of the U-Imagine! Center for Integrative and Entrepreneurial Studies at Ursinus, Jaroff helps to develop an interdisciplinary curricular and co-curricular learning experience for any student in any major, as part of the “Liberal Arts Plus” mission of the college.

Jaroff has published several articles on 19th-Century American women authors and co-edited a series of monologue and scene anthologies drawn from 21st-century American plays.

In 2013, Jaroff received the Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching, which reflects her passion for helping students learn how to lead creative, satisfying, and useful lives.

Department

English

Degrees

  • B.A., Ursinus College
  • M.A., Ph.D., University of Delaware

Teaching

Literary Theory
American Literature
The Environment and Literature
Women’s Literature
Drama

Research Interests

Nineteenth-century American Women Writers
Eco-criticism
Experiential learning
Entrepreneurial studies

Recent Work

Dr. Jaroff’s current research project involves identifying the key players in an anti-slavery/women’s rights debate conducted through letters to a local newspaper during the 1850s. She is being assisted by an undergraduate student in history and working in the archives at the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Years of Service to Ursinus

1997-2022

Related News

Celebrating Ursinus College’s ’21-’22 Retiring Faculty
This spring, Ursinus is recognizing six faculty members who are retiring in 2022 and those who have retired in 2021. The faculty, Rebecca Jaroff ’81, Heather Munro O’Neill, Cindy Harris, Richard Wallace, John French, and Roger Florka have each established remarkable individual legacies in the classroom, in the office, and on campus.

In this short video, current faculty commemorate four of these retirees, and give thanks for their years of kindness, hard work, and service to Ursinus College.
Students who participated in the Digital Spark program held a poster session at the U-Imagine Center's 10-year anniversary celebration.
U-Imagine Center Has Much to Celebrate for Its 10th Anniversary

Since 2013, the U-Imagine Center for Integrative and Entrepreneurial Studies has worked to develop and sustain a campuswide entrepreneurial spirit via a year-round series of programs, events, competitions, and—as of this semester—a new minor as well as a concentration in the new business economics major.

conserve and protect 3
To Conserve and Protect

In 2022, Ursinus College became the first liberal arts institution in the world to sign the international Okanagan Charter, signifying a holistic commitment to the well-being of people, places, and planet. Partnerships such as the one that has developed between the environmental studies department and the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy is just one example of this commitment in action. (Pictured: Jessie Kemper ’12 and Beth Myers ’17 with Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy Executive Director Ryan Beltz)