Photo by Isabella Ferrie | The Independent Florida Alligator
Source: The Independent Florida Alligator
by Vivienne Serret
Malini Johar Schueller grew up in Chandigarh, India, a city north of New Delhi, the country’s capital. She came from a well-educated family who encouraged her to make a career out of literature.
“I was always fond of literature,” she said. “Pursuing it was an obvious choice.”
Before teaching at UF, she received her master’s degree in English from Panjab University, India, in 1979. Her research interests include U.S. empire studies, Asian American studies, postcolonial theory, critical race theory and postcolonial women of color.
Now at UF, she is a UF professor and the faculty adviser for Students for Justice in Palestine and Sparks Magazine, an Asian American student-run magazine.
Throughout her life, Schueller found different motivations that inspired her to learn, write and teach the importance of Asian American studies and other topics. Her motivations changed as she grew professionally, she said.
As the only professor who teaches Asian American studies at UF, she became the coordinator of the minor given her passion and more than 20 years of experience.