Phillip Lobo serves as Assistant Teaching Professor of English at The Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities, where he brings deep scholarly expertise, intellectual curiosity, and a profound passion for teaching into the classroom. Since joining the Academy faculty in fall 2019, he has embraced teaching not merely as a profession, but as a vocation.

A Calling to Teach

For Dr. Lobo, the path to education emerged during a challenging period in graduate school. What sustained him was not coursework or research alone, but the classroom itself.

“Even when I did not want to get up and do much of anything, I always wanted to go to my discussion sections and discuss literature and culture with the students.”

Teaching became a source of meaning, one that clarified his calling.

“Teaching, even just as a TA, gave my life meaning and savor… If that isn’t the sign of a calling, I don’t know what is!”

Why the Indiana Academy

Dr. Lobo applied to the Indiana Academy immediately after completing his Ph.D. on the advice of his dissertation advisor, who recognized his ability to impact students at the secondary level. What ultimately drew him in was the Academy’s distinctive academic environment.

He was especially inspired by the richness of the curriculum and the freedom instructors have to teach their areas of expertise and enthusiasm, making the Academy a uniquely rewarding place for a scholar-teacher.

Teaching at an Exceptional Level

Asked what he finds most rewarding about working at University Schools, Dr. Lobo points directly to the students.

“The opportunity to work with students of rare intellect and excellence is what makes teaching at the Academy second to none.”

Academy students arrive, he explains, already brimming with curiosity, enthusiasm, and intellectual courage, qualities that elevate classroom discussions and make pedagogy deeply fulfilling.

“The pedagogical experiences are what make working at a University School a stand-out for an academic who considers teaching their vocation.”

Favorite Lessons: Big Theory, Bold Students

One of Dr. Lobo’s favorite course components is a seminar section within Critical Approaches to Literature, where students tackle Roland Barthes’ S/Z, a dense, ambitious work of French literary theory.

While the text is often reserved for graduate-level study, Academy students rise to the challenge with surprising energy.

“Secondary school students approach it with a verve and appreciation for its outrageousness which makes for a uniquely lively long-form discussion.”

The result, he says, is a level of discourse that rivals his own graduate school experiences.

Advice for Future Educators

Dr. Lobo’s advice to those considering a career in education is grounded in honesty and passion:

“Do it because you love it; teach the topics that excite you; teach the lessons that regenerate you.”

He emphasizes that education demands emotional and intellectual investment and sustaining that work requires teaching what genuinely inspires you.

Beyond the Classroom

Outside of school, Dr. Lobo finds joy and restoration through storytelling of a different kind, tabletop roleplaying games.

He plays weekly with a long-standing group, blending collaborative fiction, wit, and humor into a creative outlet that mirrors his love of narrative and shared meaning-making.

Defining Impact

When asked what he is most proud of, Dr. Lobo recounts hearing from a former student whose life trajectory was shaped by a novel he assigned.

The student shared that the text influenced her daily thinking and motivated her to pursue “a life devoted to ethical responsibility and environmental stewardship.”

For any literature professor, he notes, this is the ultimate affirmation: knowing that a text shared in class helped shape how someone moves through and contributes to the world.

Scholarship, Recognition, and Innovation

Dr. Lobo’s academic interests span a wide range of interdisciplinary fields, including English literature, literary theory and philosophy, game studies, feminist studies, intermedia studies, and new media.

He has published in journals such as Postmodern Culture, Game Studies, and Chiasma, with research topics ranging from ecocriticism to Japanese film.

In recognition of his impact, Dr. Lobo received the Teachers College Outstanding University Schools Teaching Award in 2025. He has also been awarded multiple Robert P. Bell Classroom Enhancement Grants, supporting innovative projects including collaborative poetry, global film literacy, speculative fiction, ecological education, and game-based worldbuilding.