Fun Facts

One passion people quickly learn about me is that I love helping others find and build upon their strengths. I see learning as one of the best life experiences and find joy in serving as witness to others' adventures of growth.

About Me

Passionate professor with over twenty-five years of teaching experience who believes students keep her young and smiling. My credentials include a Ph.D. in English with a specialization in rhetoric, communication, and composition. I enjoy mentoring students to find their own voice in writing, to build the strengths of analytical and critical thinking, and to find a career that will bring them joy. Another strength of mine is advising teens and young adults toward their major and career choices.

Experience

25 years of experience teaching college courses in the following subjects: writing; American literature; rhetorical theory; advanced grammar, style and editing; technical writing, applied rhetoric; scholarly writing in the healthcare professions (for graduate-level nurse anesthesia students); women's studies; history of rhetoric; cultural studies; honors English; academic success seminar (freshman seminar class); digital communication/web culture; speech; business writing; writing for careers

Approach

I believe in healthy boundaries that challenge students to work hard and surprise even themselves with how far they can go using a growth mindset--one that battles the tendency to label oneself as good or bad at a subject. I teach writing as a lesson in revision, literature as a lesson reflecting life, and communication as a tool for clarity in the human condition of potential misunderstanding. Teaching has brought me so much joy in serving as a witness for students who overcome and thrive.