WILSON, N.C. — October 2, 2024 — Barton College is pleased to announce the selection of associate professor of English Michael K. Brantley as the College’s third faculty member to hold the distinguished Elizabeth H. Jordan Endowed Chair of Southern Literature. Brantley’s new appointment was effective at the beginning of the fall 2024 semester.
In addition to his current teaching responsibilities in the English program, Brantley’s new role includes oversight of the Barton College Homegrown Writers Series he has established to showcase the written works of Barton faculty and students. He also oversees the various endowed literature speaker series each year and collaborates with faculty on campus to elevate the use of the K.D. Kennedy, Jr. Rare Book Room and its valued resources.
“I am truly honored to be named the Elizabeth H. Jordan Chair of Southern Literature and to accelerate the pursuit of my passions of creative writing and the K.D. Kennedy, Jr. Rare Book Room,” shared Brantley. “This position is especially meaningful to me because the previous recipients, Dr. Jim Clark and Dr. Rebecca Godwin, each had a tremendous impact on my teaching career. I can’t think of two better examples to follow.”
Recognized as a celebrated writer of creative non-fiction, fiction, and poetry, as well as a master photographer, Brantley is a respected faculty member in the School of Arts and Humanities at Barton College. He was honored with the distinctive Lincoln Financial Faculty Member of the Year award in spring 2023 for teaching excellence in the classroom and faculty commitment to student success.
Brantley’s book, “Galvanized: The Odyssey of a Reluctant Carolina Confederate,” received critical acclaim, as it captured the essence of a turbulent time in this nation’s history through the story of his great-great-grandfather’s experience during and after the Civil War. The historical, non-fiction narrative included war, intrigue, peace, politics, and murder. “Galvanized” was named #1 in New Releases: US Civil War Gettysburg History and #1 New Releases: US Civil War Confederate History on Amazon soon after its release in spring 2020, nominated in October 2020 for the Ragan Old North State Award for Nonfiction, given by the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association, and nominated in February 2021 for the Wiley-Silver Prize for the best Civil War book published in 2020.
“It’s a Time in the Land: Best of The Soapbox,” published in 2021, offered a popular compilation of 25 years of Brantley’s award-winning weekly humor columns published in “The Nashville Graphic,” and “Memory Cards: Portraits From A Rural Journey,” published in 2015, landed #1 on Amazon in nonfiction and memoir in 2016.
This acclaimed Southern author shared soul stirring and often humorous moments from his own experience growing up “in the country” in his fourth and most recent book “A Southern Season: Rural Stories,” published in 2023.
In 2019, Brantley was awarded an Archie K. Davis Fellowship from the North Caroliniana Society for research on another upcoming book project.
Brantley has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Queens University of Charlotte), a Master of Arts degree in English from East Carolina University, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Barton College.
His research and writing interests include North Carolina history, baseball, bluegrass and roots music, American history, Southern culture, and folklore.
He also has worked as a freelancer for state, national, and regional magazines covering music, agriculture, sports, collectibles, and business. His column, “The Soapbox,” won Best Humor Column for Weekly Papers in 2000 from the North Carolina Press Association.
An acclaimed photographer, Brantley earned his Master of Photography and his Craftsman degree from the Professional Photographers of America, and his Fellow of Photography from the Professional Photographers of North Carolina. Over the course of his 18-year career, his photographs have won state, regional, and international honors, including three Fuji Masterpiece Awards, three Southeastern Professional Photographers Association (SEPPA) Distinguished Awards, and a PPA International Loan Print. His North Carolina awards include several first-place honors, and a Best of Show in 2003.
Brantley and his wife Kristi, a historian, and their children make their home in rural Nash County in eastern North Carolina.
About the Elizabeth H. Jordan Chair of Southern Literature —
The Elizabeth H. Jordan Chair of Southern Literature was established in honor of Elizabeth Hereford “Bep” Jordan in June 1996, through a gift made by her late son and daughter-in-law Bill and Jeanne Jordan. Mrs. Jordan passed away only months later in December 1996. The named gift represented her devotion and passion for teaching and learning. Her son described her as “an unpretentious intellectual and careful scholar with a wonderful sense of humor.” He further noted that she had a passion for exploring new ideas and visiting far off places, but being home with family and friends was always most important. “Her love of life was evidenced by her living of it, just as her constant acquisition of knowledge stood testimony to her intellectual appetite. She loved Barton College and delighted in teaching English literature at this institution.”
Jordan taught at Barton College (then Atlantic Christian College) from 1960-1964, and later returned to teach from 1968-1969. At the time of the endowment gift, it was noted that the earnings from this generous gift would supplement the College’s salary schedule to bring to Barton’s campus a scholar of distinguished note. Dr. James A. Clark was the first recipient of the Jordan Endowed Chair, and Dr. Rebecca L. Godwin followed Dr. Clark in this distinguished academic role. Michael K. Brantley is the third recipient to be named the Elizabeth H. Jordan Chair of Southern Literature at Barton College.
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