DARK ACADEMIA IS OPEN FOR ENROLLMENT
If you love reading and thinking about systems of power... and a college library is your idea of paradise... and you honestly just kind of want to roll around in a pile of damask and vellum and perfume and ink stands, welcome, friend.
Join Us!Hi, We're Sara and Brittany!
Myths, legends, and especially fairy tales are our passion. We both earned our PhDs from The Ohio State University in 2018 and we love sharing our knowledge and exploring their still-present magic with our students. In October 2019, our school won the Dorothy Howard Award from the American Folklore Society’s Education Section, recognizing our excellence and our commitment to sharing folklore with a global audience!
After teaching courses on folklore, fairy tales, British literature, speculative fiction, and more at OSU, we decided to expand our classroom. We set out to find the people whose hearts beat in time to old tales – people who believe in the power of story. Now, students from five continents gather in our virtual classroom to share stories and fellowship, to be seen and to learn.
Join Our Magical Community!
Step through the wardrobe, taste the pomegranate seeds, jump in the fairy ring?
WANT TO GET TO KNOW US? START HERE!
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Interested in a monthly book club focused on “mythic fiction” (i.e. fiction inspired by folklore)? Of course you are!
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Folklorists study all kinds of different things, and folklore helps shape the lives of every single person on this planet. It’s a massive topic, so buckle up and welcome to our crash course on our very favorite subject.
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Magic is all around us, and you don't have to get lost in a forest or dive into the deep oceans to find it!
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As Featured In
What Our Amazing Students Say
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The magic of folklore and fairy tales is as vital to our everyday lives as the food we take for sustenance. Brittany Warman and Sara Cleto feed our souls abundantly with their significant scholarship and personal passion for the tales we all think we know. With a forthright love of their subject, these two teachers illuminate the dark corners of stories with the luminescence of knowledge and inspiration. For anyone who seeks enchantment through learning, the Carterhaugh School provides a perfect compass."
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“I’ve but one disappointment in this course: that this amazing journey through the world of fairy isn’t never-ending! I confess I’ve grown addicted to the arrival of your well-crafted magics twice each week, not to mention the stimulating discourse it triggers in the private group. When I signed up I expected interesting content, but the conversations and friendships formed through the private group page were an unexpected delight – one I’m deeply grateful for."
From The Blog
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FREE Dark Academia Talk TONIGHT!!
December 5, 2023
If you’re wondering: “What on earth is Dark Academia anyway? And what does it have to do with folklore?” Or maybe: “Sara and Brittany, I know what it is, I’ve seen Instagram,…
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Dark Academia is Open for Enrollment!!
November 28, 2023
Okay, you knew it was coming eventually… and if you’re on our email list or following us on social media, you already know… but we have finally committed. WE’RE DOING…
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FREE Lecture on Unmarried Women in Fairy Tales!
November 21, 2023
We’ll cut to the chase. We have a brand new free talk up on YouTube right now, and you can watch it RIGHT HERE! Our super fabulous Patron, Stacy Shirk,…
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Sara’s Adventures in Japan
November 14, 2023
Well, hello there! This is Sara, reporting back in after three weeks in Japan and one week barely conscious with jet lag. Long time, no see. Before I left, I…