Dr. John Pilsner

Dr. John Pilsner received his doctorate in comparative literature and a certificate in Renaissance studies from the Graduate Center of the City of New York (CUNY). He taught courses in comparative literature, English literature, writing pedagogy, and philosophy at Queens College, New York, before joining the English Department at Franciscan University in 2013. He is currently the faculty sponsor for the English Honor Society and a vocational coach for the Center for Leadership at Franciscan University. Dr. Pilsner is a lifelong student and teacher of humanities and Catholic culture. His academic research is interdisciplinary, drawing on history, literature, philosophy, theology, languages, and art history. He has also studied and conducted research in several European countries, including Italy, France, England, and Spain. Dr. Pilsner has written on literary-philosophical works which use wit and humor to challenge contemporary paradigms of learning, such St. Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, Francis Petrarch’s On His Own Ignorance, and St. Thomas More’s Utopia. He has received various awards, including a University of Toronto Open Fellowship, a Capelloni Fellowship for dissertation research (CUNY Graduate Center), and a President’s Award for Excellence in teaching (Queens College).