About Me

In my classes and research, I study the way texts (in the workplace, politics, art, and entertainment) shape our worldviews and values, often in the hope of finding common ground between otherwise opposed groups and of broadening the spectrum of participation in our democratic processes. I teach composition and rhetoric, including first-year seminar classes and upper-division courses in professional and civic writing, publishing, American identity, and environmentalism.

I am the Principal Investigator of an Andrew W Mellon Foundation grant to investigate the way culture works to build healthy democracies. This grant, Engaging Democratic Ethos: Innovative Rhetorical Education for a Participatory Society, will allow us to expand our Professional and Civic Writing minor to a major, add new courses such as Grant Writing and Community Partnerships, provide paid internships for students, and offer a certificate program to community members and alums. In addition, faculty members from a range of departments will meet in cohorts to design new courses studying democratic culture. I recently completed a grant project in the National Endowment for the Humanities Connections program, which seeks to expand the role of the humanities in undergraduate education at two- and four-year institutions by encouraging partnerships between humanities faculty and their counterparts in other areas of study. I was the Principal Investigator for Promoting Civil Discourse in a Polarizing World, working with Dr. Emma Fleck in Marketing and Dr. Nick Clark in Political Science. I have published recently on the power of storytelling in entrepreneurship and on the intersection between liberal arts education and preparation for life after college.

I serve as the writing coordinator, providing guidance for the teaching of writing in first-year seminars and in writing intensive courses. I love this work at SU because faculty across the university are invested in helping students learn to write in their fields, and because it’s a joy to see students gain confidence and channel their creativity in projects that speak to their passions. I’ve also been proud to serve in other leadership roles, including Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, Associate Dean for Arts, Humanities, Natural and Social Sciences, and Interim Dean for Arts and Humanities.

Courses Taught