Instructor of English

• MA in English, Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, La.
• BA in Journalism, Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, La.

Personal Statement:

I became a writer because of the influence and encouragement of one special teacher, Dr. Paralee Norman, at NSU's Fort Polk campus. I hope to be able to offer that same encouragement to the students in my classes. I sincerely care about my students and enjoy helping them succeed through classroom instruction, detailed comments on coursework, and personal attention. I believe in incorporating real world examples into my courses to help students see how assignments are relevant to their lives and how writing can help them succeed. I have a special interest in current events and business writing fueled by my many years as a news editor at a small newspaper. I am currently researching intellectual property rights in the online classroom and ways to enhance the effectiveness of online instruction.

Research and teaching interests:

Teaching interests include freshman English, technical writing, literature, editing, design, and writing for media.
Research interests include language and gender, communication issues, and real world writing in the English classroom.

Courses:

• English 1010, in the classroom and online
• English 1020
• English 3230, in the classroom and online
• English 3230 Internet

Selected publications:

"Baby Dreams." Word Catalyst Magazine. March 2009.

"The Toilet Paper War." The Battered Suitcase. April 2009

Hundreds of newspaper articles over 14 years on issues such as health, government, social issues, education, and human interest.

Author "Inside the Hospital" weekly column for The Natchitoches Times.

First place winner Best News Story and Best Feature Story, Louisiana Press Association.