 She earned a BA in English Literature from Vassar College and an MA and PhD in English and American Literature from Princeton University.Churchwell lectured at the University of East Anglia from 1999 until 2015, when she became Professor of American Literature and Public Understanding of the Humanities and director of the Being Human festival at the School of Advanced Study at London University.She has written for "The New York Times Book Review", "The Times Literary Supplement", "The Spectator", the "New Statesman", "The Guardian" and "The Observer".