Acadia students feel the Anne-tasy in transformative public humanities engagements
Acadia got its fill of raspberry cordial at a series of public humanities engagements celebrating the 150th birthday of Lucy Maud Montgomery, the beloved author of Anne of Green Gables.
Though she lived a century ago, Montgomery鈥檚 work continues to make an impact, from shows like Anne with an E to the recent addition of the Anne of Green Gables manuscript to the .
Students in Dr. Laura Robinson鈥檚 (English) 鈥淎dapting Anne of Green Gables鈥� course landed themselves a world-class guide to all things Anne. Dr. Robinson is a renowned, and , Montgomery scholar. In addition to being cited in the press release about the Anne manuscript鈥檚 new home with UNESCO, she was recently (not once, !) about the enduring legacy of Canada鈥檚 favourite Maritime author. She says she鈥檚 happy to see Montgomery 鈥渇inally getting the accolades and the attention that she well deserves.鈥�
Making humanities public
To mark Montgomery鈥檚 birthday, or #Maud150 on socials, the 鈥淎dapting Anne鈥� students dove headfirst into the world of public humanities. They put on a two-day conference where they publicly shared their research, and even guest starred on , the official podcast of L.M. Montgomery Institute.
Dr. Robinson鈥檚 approach to teaching allows her students to bring the work of an English major outside of an essay, and into the public eye. 鈥淭his is active, engaged work we鈥檙e doing,鈥� explains Dr. Robinson.
For Sophie Ashton (fourth year, English), taking literature from page to podcast made it feel more relevant. 鈥淓ngaging with the public discourse around the book reminded me of how literature can be kept alive and present,鈥� she explained. 鈥淚n English, we spend a lot of time studying texts that are a lot older, so it was interesting to see how this novel has continued to influence the world.鈥�
鈥淎bject terror brings people together鈥�
But stepping outside of an academic comfort zone can be scary, and boy, did the students feel it! 鈥淭here was some trepidation going in,鈥� explained Dr. Robinson, to a chorus of laughter from her students.
Emily Martell (master鈥檚 student, Education) says that because they had no idea what they were going to be asked on the podcast, she had to get to know the work on a much deeper level. 鈥淚 found I was so engaged with the text in advance because of the low-level terror,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 thought about that story so much more than I would have if I鈥檇 just had to read it, come to class, and listened to a lecture.鈥�
Through the initial discomfort, Dr. Robinson had her students鈥� backs. 鈥淭here鈥檚 something about going into something with abject terror, then doing really well at it,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t was amazing seeing the students suddenly realize they can totally do something like this and it鈥檚 not such a big deal.鈥�
Small, supportive classes like Dr. Robinson鈥檚 have given Angel Percentie (third year, English) the push she needed to come into her own as an academic. 鈥淚鈥檓 finally learning how to vocalize what I鈥檓 thinking and I feel like my opinions are getting stronger,鈥� she says. 鈥淚鈥檝e benefited a lot from it.鈥�
鈥淚 think getting to present at a conference like this made me realize 鈥極h, I do deserve to be here. And I鈥檓 doing really well!鈥欌�� says Genna Beed (fourth year, English). 鈥淚t was a huge confidence boost.鈥�
Feeling the Anne-tasy
At its heart, Anne is a story about friendship and the beauty of imagination. And that鈥檚 exactly what Dr. Robinson鈥檚 students got out of her class, too.
After they finished recording their episode of the Maudcast, Dr. Robinson recalls looking out into the hallway at her gathered, giddy students. 鈥淭here was an ebullience, like some sort of happiness factor. I couldn鈥檛 hear what they were saying, but there was laughter.鈥�
鈥淚t was super active and community building for us as a group,鈥� says Emily, reflecting on her experience working on the podcast. 鈥淚t really brought us together.鈥�
鈥淥ne of the nice things about having a class that鈥檚 community-based like this is that it keeps you talking about the subject matter after class is over,鈥� explained Sophie. 鈥淪o, for Angel and me that manifested in us coming up with our own adaptation about Gregory, the boy that would have gone to Green Gables.鈥�
If you run into Angel and Sophie in the halls of the BAC, be sure to ask them about Gregory of the asylum (don鈥檛 worry, orphanage, not hospital), and they鈥檒l tell you all about the character they invented together.
鈥淚 feel like in a bigger class Gregory might have been an idea that we came up with and then never thought about again,鈥� Sophie explained. 鈥淚 never imagined that I would have brought it into class to share with everyone else and then proceed to share it on a podcast!鈥�
On the road from Avonlea
Though the class is over, Dr. Robinson鈥檚 students are leaving with new friends, new confidence, new stories, and improved job prospects.
For Nick Lundrigan (third year, English and Gender Studies), the class was transformative for their understanding of the work of an English degree can do for them. 鈥淪ometimes,鈥� they explained, 鈥渋t feels kind of like you鈥檙e producing this work for no purpose and that it鈥檚 stuck in an academic bubble. So, to be given the opportunity to show that our work has an impact in the world was really special. It showed me doing this work is important today and will continue to be important.鈥�
鈥淒oing the podcast and conference opened more doors for me, seeing the possibilities of an English degree,鈥� says Genna. 鈥淚t showed me that there鈥檚 a professional world of English beyond undergrad and that makes me really excited for my future.鈥�
Get the Acadia Experience with Dr. Laura Robinson
In Fall 2025, Dr. Robinson will be teaching English 3983 Children鈥檚 Literature 2, which is an introduction to folk and fairy tales. In Winter 2026, she will be teaching Women鈥檚 and Gender Studies 3123 Feminism and Popular Culture (spoiler alert: there may be some Taylor Swift analysis!)