Curriculum Vitae Highlights

Education

Ph.D. in Education (Children’s Literature), University of Cambridge (2024)

M.A. Children’s Literature, University of British Columbia (2020)

B.A. English Literature (hons.) & Creative Writing (major), University of British Columbia (2017)

Academic Articles

Collinson, Craig, Jessica Eccles-Padwick, Elizabeth Leach-Leung, & Julien Villeneuve. “‘Through a glass darkly’: Dyslexic Identity and Hermeneutic Injustice,” British Journal of Special Education, vol. 52, no. 2, 2025, pp. 244-250. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8578.70025.

Leach-Leung, Elizabeth. “A Successful Partnership: Gender Roles, the Ballroom, and the Rise of the Postmodern Princess in Disney’s Animated and Live-Action Beauty and the Beast.” Jeunesse, vol. 16, no. 2, 2024, pp. 144–161. https://doi.org/10.3138/jeunesse-2023-0051

Leung, Elizabeth. “A School Story, Not a Student Story: The Dyslexic Diagnosis Paradigm in Children’s and Young Adult Literature.” Children’s Literature in Education, vol. 55, no. 4, 2024, pp. 645–668. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10583-023-09529-9

Academic Book Chapters

Leach-Leung, Elizabeth. “Resisting Eugenic Legacies: Child Agency in Protecting Disabled Citizenship in Children’s and Young Adult Literature.” Child as Citizen: Agency and Activism in Children’s Literature and Culture, edited by Giuliana Fenech, University Press of Mississippi, 2025, pp. 90-107. (forthcoming). https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.25465131.9

Academic Book Reviews

Leung, Elizabeth. “From Wallflowers to Bulletproof Families: The Power of Disability in Young Adult Narratives by Abbye E. Meyer.” International Research in Children’s Literature, vol. 16, no. 3, 2023, pp. 359–361. https://doi.org/10.3366/ircl.2023.0533

University Teaching Experience

Academic Assistant, Department of English and Creative Writing, Queen’s University (2025-Present)

Courses taught:

Fundamentals in Academic Essay Writing
Editing in Professional and Academic Contexts

Supervisor (Teaching Assistant), Tripos (Undergraduate) Program, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge (2021-2024)

Papers taught:

Literature and Culture
Poetics, Aesthetics and Criticism
Children’s Literature
Shakespeare
Education, Creativity and Culture
Education, English, Drama and the Arts Dissertation

Graduate Teaching Assistant, School of Creative Writing, University of British Columbia (2017-2020)

Courses taught:

Introduction to Creative Writing
Introduction to Writing for Children and Young Adults
Introduction to Writing Graphic Forms
Intermediate Writing for Graphic Forms
Writing for New Media

Selection of Awards and Scholarships

Toby Jackman Prize for Academic Excellence, St. Edmund’s College (2025)

Faculty of Education Doctoral Student Excellence Award, University of Cambridge (2024)

SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (2021)

Judith Saltman Prize, University of British Columbia (2020)

Ronald Jobe Children’s Literature Scholarship, University of British Columbia (2018)

Joseph Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship-Master’s, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (2018)

Selection of Notable Service Roles

International Research Society in Children’s Literature | Accessibility Committee Member (2025-present)

International Journal of Young Adult Literature | Associate Editor (2024-present)

Centre for Research in Children’s Literature at Cambridge | Steering Committee (2023-2024)

Children’s Literature Association | Accessibility Committee Member (2022-2025), Chair (2024-2025)

Faculty of Education Research Students’ Association, University of Cambridge | Secretary (2020-2021), President (2021-2022), Interim Vice-President of Officer Affairs (2022)

International Research Society in Children’s Literature | Social Media Officer (2020-2023)

Children’s Literature Student Association, University of British Columbia | Founder (2018), President (2018-2020)

Conference Planning Committees

Shortcuts and Tesseracts: Time/Space in Children’s Literature and Culture a Children’s Literature Association Conference (online) | Virtual Conference Committee Member (June 2025)

Crip Kid Lit: Critical Approaches to Disability in Children’s and Young Adult Literature and Media at the Centre for Research in Children’s Literature at Cambridge (hybrid) | Conference Convener (April 2024)

Fresh from the Fight: Heroes, Tricksters, and Villains in Children’s and Young Adult Literature and Culture the University of British Columbia Biennial Graduate Children’s Literature Conference (online) | Co-Chair (July 2021)

In the Shadows: Illuminating Monstrosity in Children’s and Young Adult Literature and Culture the University of British Columbia Biennial Graduate Children’s Literature Conference (in-person) | Co-Chair (May 2018)

Professional Memberships

International Research Society in Children’s Literature (IRSCL)

Children’s Literature Association (ChLA)

Young Adult Studies Association (YASA)