Dennis Campbell grew up amongst the compact urban pastoral charms of the Charlestown neighborhood of the City of Boston. He thought it would be a good idea to attend college in an environment a bit more pastoral than urban, an area with more than ten trees. However, the University of New Hampshire, in its undoubted wisdom, placed him on its waiting list. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Harvard University, in a splendid display of its foolishness, invited him to their undergraduate dance. Harvard Yard also had more than ten trees; this provided Campbell the illusion of attending a small school in a rural setting as long as he did not enter the wonderful urban insanity of Harvard Square. Mr. Campbell actually received a B.A. in English and American Literatures and Languages from Harvard. Still, after all these years, he is disappointed by UNH’s reluctance to welcome him with opened arms, and every April he is still slightly jealous of all those young people who get thick envelopes from that school in Durham.

He was working towards a doctorate in American Studies at Syracuse University when he realized that people who were much smarter and much more dedicated than he would ever be were unable to find full-time teaching positions at colleges and universities because, back in the late 70s, American academia was creating employment and employee benefit practices later perfected by Walmart. He left the doctoral program after receiving his M.A. in English and American Literatures; he also taught writing at Syracuse, an opportunity for which he is still very grateful.

Mr. Campbell has spent most of what passes for his working life in the publishing business. For more or less the past fifteen years, Mr. Campbell has operated a small specialty book publishing company. However, in the fall of 2005 he had the wonderful opportunity to serve as a Long Term Sub in St. Thomas Aquinas’ English Department. He had such a great time working with the students and actually having co-workers that when STA invited him to return for a longer period of time, he wisely accepted the opportunity.

Mr. Campbell’s major intellectual influences are Henry David Thoreau, Ernest Hemingway, Groucho Marx, and Kevin Collins. (Yes…STA’s Mr. Collins.)