Anthony Carlisle, PhD

Dr. Anthony Carlisle is an associate professor of journalism/English in the Department of English, Philosophy, and Modern Languages at PennWest California. He served as chair of the former English Department from 2016 to 2020. He earned a bachelor's in English from Cal U, a master's degree in liberal arts from Duquesne University, and a doctorate in literature from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He has taught at Cal U since 2002.  He teaches journalism, literature, and composition courses. Prior to teaching, Dr. Carlisle was a reporter for 11 years, working at the New Pittsburgh Courier, the Daily News, The Pittsburgh Business Times, Beaver County Times, and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He is a contributing writer for U.S. News & World Report. His literature research interests are protest, African American, and Appalachian. He has presented at several conferences to include the English Association of Pennsylvania State Universities, Midwest Modern Language Association, the Association for the Study of African American Life & History, and the Appalachian Writers Association Conference.  Dr. Carlisle is the winner of several awards. In journalism, he’s the winner of The Robert L. Vann Award for Investigative Reporting, The Robert L. Vann Award for Feature Writing, and the Keystone Spotlight Award for Business Writing. In higher education, he's the winner of the CB Wilson Distinguished Faculty Award, the Frederick Douglass Institute Award for Excellence in Teaching, and the Sigma Tau Delta Luise van Keuren Award for Teaching. His award-winning novel, Souls of Clayhatchee: A Southern Tale, was published May 2021. Dr. Carlisle was part of the 2019 class of the New Pittsburgh Courier Men of Excellence awardees. Dr. Carlisle is an Army veteran, serving 14 years in the Reserves and deploying to the Middle East in 2004 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He also does volunteer work as a member of his fraternity Phi Beta Sigma and as a member of the Pittsburgh Black Media Federation.