Doctor of Philosophy in Rhetoric, Carnegie Mellon University, 2013
Master of Arts in Rhetoric, Carnegie Mellon University, 2006
Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Franciscan University of Steubenville, 2004
I joined the faculty of Oregon Tech in 2014, and since then I’ve been busy teaching a variety of classes in writing and rhetoric, including first-year composition, public speaking, technical writing, and professional writing. Since the beginning of the pandemic, I’ve been increasingly interested in the rhetoric of health and medicine, and my research now focuses on medical charting as technical communication as well as ableism in public health policies.
I view clear writing, speaking, and thinking as central to the success of both technical and communication professionals, and I have devoted my professional life to the teaching and practice of writing; after earning both my master’s and doctorate in rhetoric, I have spent the entirety of my teaching career teaching writing and public speaking to STEM students, first at Carnegie Mellon and then at Oregon Tech.
So, while my path to teaching writing may look a little different from the ‘typical’ English prof—the child and grandchild of engineers and science majors, I grew up preferring math to English, and in college, I majored in philosophy and never took a writing class—this seemingly unconventional background has been a great asset to me in my many years teaching rhetoric and writing to STEM students.