Arts and Sciences | Lion VoicesJanuary 08, 2024

The Cultural Embrace of Dr. Ann-Gee Lee

Written By: Ian Silvester

Joking that her stop at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith was meant to merely be a pit stop, professor and assistant chair of English Rhetoric and Writing and Media Communications, Dr. Ann-Gee Lee has woven herself into the fabric of UAFS for the last 13 years.

Knowledge surrounds Lee inside her office. Books and life experiences burst from the shelves in the confines of the Vines Building, ready to be bestowed.

“I share what I know,” Lee smiled. “I like to share everything I can.”

 Language is the Key to Confidence

Although Lee likes to share with others, it wasn’t always easy for her.

“My second-grade teacher—we had some issues,” she joked. “I was a problem kid.”

Lee was born and raised in Modesto, California, to Taiwanese parents. She was always a talker, but not knowing English stifled her communication. Lee remembered not learning English thoroughly until the second grade, but once she knew, “I would not shut up,” she laughed.

When she was growing up, Lee’s parents shared traditions, customs, and food with her. She fondly recalled eating Chinese food every night and practicing cultural rituals, like ancestor worship at home. But in school, those memories weren’t always as pleasant.

She remembered others asking, “How do you write ‘apple’ in Chinese?” and not feeling comfortable answering. Learning your native language is difficult enough; learning a second language is even harder, but it was a necessary challenge Lee kept working toward.

“When I was growing up, I was trying to build my identity being either American or Taiwanese, the American side versus the Asian side,” she shared. “Later on, when I learned more Chinese, I felt more Taiwanese. When I learned more about the language, I was prouder. Now I can tell you how (to say) and write ‘apple.’”

As Lee gained confidence in both languages, she became more comfortable with herself and sharing her culture with others.

“Empathy,” she said, was the biggest lesson she had learned from her life, and it’s her ability to connect with others that made teaching come naturally to Lee.

Pupil to Professor

Growing up with parents from another country, Lee found herself learning English and helping teach her parents the language.

“I feel like I’ve been an ESL (English as Second Language) teacher all my life,” Lee explained. “I helped my mom with her English and writing. She worked at a bank and in life insurance, and I would write her correspondences, and she would check, or I would check things for her. I still do that, so I am a lifelong ESL teacher.”

Lee recognized her teaching ability and got her bachelor’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from California State University, Stanislaus. With her degree, she earned her teaching licensure and taught high school for a year before returning to her alma mater to earn her master’s degree in TESOL and rhetoric/composition.

From California, Lee landed in Ohio. She continued her education at Bowling Green University, where she received her Ph.D. in rhetoric and writing. Lee left Ohio with more than her doctorate. She left with a friendship that blossomed into marrying the UAFS International Studies Director, Noah Schmidt.

“We met in grad school in 2007, in the ESL office where we did our assistantships,” Lee said. “We were friends first, and we would just talk for hours and hours.”

While at UAFS, Lee has taught Asian-American Literature, Intro to Film, English, Rhetoric, and Composition I and II. And that merely scratches the surface of all she has done here. Lee teaches Mandarin classes outside work, writes grants, conducts research, and is highly involved in the UAFS and Fort Smith communities.

Outside the classroom, Lee can be found working with students and colleagues as the chair of the Campus Climate and Traditions Committee and co-chair of the Read This! Program, co-chair of the Gender and Intersectional Feminism Group, the lead grant writer for a $107,000 transportation in Arkansas grant, which is looking into how to help people without a vehicle get to medical appointments, and is a member of the Fort Smith Transit Advisory Commission, Literacy Council, Valor y Esperanza, Fort Smith Health Council, and PEO International.

A Culture All Its Own

Lee joked that after 13 years at UAFS and the scope of her involvement, there isn’t much she hasn’t done or a group she has been a member of. Yet, as she pondered the subject, one thing stood out most.

“I love our department,” she smiled. “We all get along, we present at conferences together, we publish together, we go to each other’s weddings or are in each other’s weddings, we support each other. … We’re really good friends, you know, not just on campus, but outside of campus.”

It’s the camaraderie where Lee finds solace. Among her peers of bibliophiles and media buffs, Lee is right at home. The department’s shared interests led to Lee teaming up with another professor, who has since moved to Vienna, as the pair dove into the rhetoric of the post-apocalyptic world that is “The Walking Dead.”

“We looked at structuration theory, which talks about the different hierarchies and societies. As society grows, there are different hierarchies. I looked at all the leadership styles in ‘The Walking Dead’ and the sustainability of the leadership with their resources,” Lee explained.

The idea came from a conference presentation that the two decided could be published. They began working on the publication in 2011, and after revisions, tweaks, and multiple attempts at publication, their hard work was rewarded.

“The article is coming out in January,” Lee said excitedly. It will be published in a British journal called “The Revenant Journal.”

But reviewing leadership in a world of zombies isn’t all Lee has studied and been recognized for.

She has written about the television shows, “Pushing Daisies,” “Community,” “Big Bang Theory,” and Korean dramas. Lee has also peer-reviewed essays by other scholars in her academic publications. In early 2024, Lee will be awarded the Felicia Campbell Innovative Contributions to Popular Culture Studies award for some of her work.

Lee shared that the recognition came as a complete surprise.

“I thought it was a scam,” Lee laughed. “I looked into it, and it’s a memorial award for (Felicia Campbell) who founded a journal about popular culture. … Their editorial staff chooses a recipient, and they want to give it to me for 2024.”

As Lee reflected on her time at UAFS and envisioned her future, she shared how happy she was that her pit stop was longer than intended. She plans to keep it that way.

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