Hardy Merrill Cook III is a well-known figure within academic circles in the state of Maryland. Besides serving as a professor for over 40 years, Dr. Cook also serves as the editor, owner and moderator of SHAKSPER: The Global Electronic Shakespeare Conference, “an edited and moderated, international, e-mail distribution list for discussion among Shakespearean scholars, researchers, instructors, students, and anyone sharing their academic interests and concerns.” To prepare for a career in education, Dr. Cook attended the University of Maryland, College Park, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1969 and a Master of Arts in 1972. Later, he earned a Doctor of Philosophy in English, theater, radio, TV & film in 1988.

Dr. Cook dedicated the majority of his career to Bowie State University, where from 1977 to 2009 he served as a laboratory instructor, an assistant professor of English, associate professor of English, special assistant to the provost, presidential intern, chair of the curriculum committee, chair of department of English and modern languages, and professor of English. He was named emeritus professor of English in June 2009. Dr. Cook is a member of the English Renaissance Text Society, the Malone Society, the International Shakespeare Association, and the Shakespeare Association of America. Furthermore, he is a member on the advisory board of Digital Renaissance Editions, the editorial board of Multicultural Shakespeare: Translation, Appropriation and Performance, and the editorial board of Internet Shakespeare Editions.

For his professional triumphs and other scholarly activities, Dr. Cook has earned praise from the University System of Maryland. In 1999, he received a Certificate of Achievement and the Board of Regents’ Faculty Excellence Award. Notably, he has been featured in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in the World.

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