Cheryl A. Stephenson
Visiting Lecturer in Russian
About
Cheryl Stephenson received her PhD in Slavic Languages and Literatures from the University of Chicago in 2018. Her work focuses on the ways ideas about belonging, identity, and nation circulate and transform through popular and amateur cultural forms including community-based art and theater, popular and DIY periodicals, clubs and organizations in Central and Eastern Europe.
At Bates, she teaches Russian language courses from the beginning through the advanced levels and European Studies courses (taught in English) focused on exploring the diverse range of cultures, experiences, ideas, and voices in 20th and 21st century Central and Eastern Europe.
Expertise
Current Courses
Fall Semester 2026
Pioneers, Punks, and Protestors: East European Youth Culture
What did life look like for young people in communist Eastern Europe? How did their lives change when communist regimes collapsed? What kinds of hopes and fears were young people expressing through all of these changes? This course explores youth culture in Eastern Europe from the early twentieth ce…
Elementary Russian I
This course, offered in the fall semester as part of a yearlong sequence, introduces students to Russian language and culture with an emphasis on listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Students also engage with contemporary Russian culture and everyday life through a variety of authentic texts i…
Winter Semester 2027
Intermediate Russian II
This course, offered in the winter semester, is a continuation of RUSS 201 and completes students' introduction to the structure of the Russian language. Emphasis is placed on students' written and verbal communication skills with a focus on expressing opinions and perspectives. This course culminat…
Advanced Russian II
This course, normally offered in the winter semester, is a continuation of RUSS 301, in which students read and discuss texts in a variety of styles from literature to journalism. Students explore ways of interpreting and adapting a text, including making their own film adaptation of a work of liter…