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Tonya Howe
Professor of Literature Chair, Department of Literature & Languages at Marymount University
Professional Background
Tonya Howe is an esteemed professor of literature and languages at Marymount University, well-regarded for her commitment to integrating technologically informed critical pedagogy into her teaching philosophy. In a dynamic academic career, she has held several key positions at Marymount University, including Chair of the Department of Literature and Languages, Associate Professor, and Assistant Professor. Her extensive expertise encompasses a range of subjects, including 18th-century British literature, cultural studies, performance history, and composition. By encouraging her students to take themselves seriously as contributors to societal discourse, Tonya nurtures critical thinking and analytical skills that extend beyond the classroom.
Before her tenure at Marymount University, Tonya made significant contributions to the field of literature education as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Washington and Lee University. During her time at the University of Michigan, where she engaged deeply with her studies as a Graduate Student Instructor, she cultivated her foundational knowledge in English Literature and pedagogy, further shaping her teaching methods and research pursuits.
Education and Achievements
Tonya Howe holds a Doctor of Philosophy in English from the University of Michigan, underscoring her strong academic background and expertise in literature. She also earned her Bachelor of Arts in Literature and English Language from James Madison University, setting the stage for her career in academia. Moreover, she studied Political Science at the Maryland Institute College of Art, which informs her interdisciplinary approach to critical pedagogy and cultural studies.
Tonya's scholarly work has garnered recognition within the academic community, notably her contributions to data visualization in relation to early 18th-century literature and her research on British farce. With a continued focus on performance studies, she has explored the lives of significant historical figures, such as Mary Toft, and examined the intersection of literature and film. Her interests in genre films and their cultural implications have led to innovative projects, including a forthcoming popular guide to horror films that engage with themes of visceral consciousness.
Additionally, Tonya is actively involved in creating an open-access, web-based primary source casebook tailored for teaching the English novel of the 18th century, aiming to enhance resource accessibility for educators and students alike. She is also engaged in an Omeka archive project, which invites student participation in curating and digitizing primary texts from special collections, exemplifying her dedication to student-centered learning in the digital age.
Notable Contributions
Tonya Howe’s notable contributions to the field of literature and education reflect her deep commitment to fostering a rich learning environment where students are encouraged to become critical thinkers and engaged participants within their communities. Her interdisciplinary research spans several key areas:
- 18th-century British literature: Investigating the cultural significance and historical context of literary works from this period, Tonya examines how texts influence and derive meaning from their cultural backdrops.
- Cultural studies: Through her teaching and scholarship, she merges literature with societal issues, considering how cultural production shapes and reflects the human experience.
- Film studies: Drawing from her exploration of early modern performance history, Tonya applies a critical lens to genre films, emphasizing horror and their impact on audience perception and societal discourse.
- Digital pedagogy: Tonya’s innovative approaches in the digital realm, including archiving and data visualization, contribute to broader discussions on access to knowledge and the evolution of research methodologies.
Tonya Howe continues to inspire students and colleagues alike, equipping them with the skills to engage thoughtfully with literature and culture. Her pedagogical commitment, combined with her scholarly contributions, cements her as a vital figure in the field of contemporary literary studies and cultural criticism.
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Clay is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Clay centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
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Unlike traditional CRMs that focus primarily on sales pipelines and business relationships, Clay is a "home for your people," attempting to carve out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. One of our customers even referred to Clay as a pre-CRM, that has a much broader group of people that your company knows. Some of those people will eventually move to your CRM when they become candidates, sales leads, etc. Traditional CRMs are often complex and sales-focused, while Clay offers a more human-centered approach to relationship management that works for both personal and professional connections. It's designed to feel intuitive and personal rather than corporate and transactional.
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Clay makes it much easier to stay in touch with the people you care about. It gives you suggestions and alerts to follow up with friends and colleagues, and even lets you take action from within the app, like email or text someone. Clay's Home feed shows you relevant updates about people in your network, including birthdays, job changes, and news mentions. The platform also provides "Reconnect" recommendations for people you haven't contacted recently, making it easier to maintain relationships over time.
Clay is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Clay stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Clay excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
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Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
Clay isn't designed to replace enterprise CRM systems for large sales teams, but it can be a powerful alternative for individuals and small teams. Many people use Clay instead of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. Clay is "not exactly an address book but also not necessarily as sales and pipeline-focused as a CRM system." The founders refer to their app as a "home for your people," carving out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. For solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams focused on relationship quality rather than sales pipelines, Clay can absolutely serve as your primary relationship management tool.
Clay is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Clay's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Clay as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Clay eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.
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