From the College of Charleston |  For Kameelah L. Martin, director of African American Studies at the College of Charleston, it was the Lowcountry’s rich ties to the African-American community and heritage that drew her to join the faculty in fall 2017. Martin, who holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Georgia Southern University, a master’s in Afro-American Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a doctorate in English from Florida State University, came to the College after serving on the faculty of Savannah State University where she taught in the Department of English, Language, and Cultures.

As a literary scholar, Martin, who teaches both English and African American Studies at CofC, is interested in African-American culture, feminism and spirituality – interests which are reflected in her two books, Conjuring Moments in African American Literature: Women, Spirit Work, and Other Such Hoodoo and Envisioning Black Feminist Voodoo Aesthetics: African Spirituality in American Cinema.

“I was most drawn to the history of Charleston and its importance to African-American culture,” says Martin. “My secondary area of study is folklore and the Gullah Geechee culture is a huge part of my interest. I teach about and research the region, so it was very attractive as a place to put down roots – or replant them!”