English & Communication Faculty & Student Spotlights
The Department of English and Communication recognizes the achievements of our faculty members and outstanding students. There are so many great things happening in the in the department that you should know about!
Latest Spotlights
Associate Professor Earns Induction into AFTL and Appointment to New Role with CRLA
Associate Professor of Reading and Literacy Laurie Bauer was inducted as a member of UC’s Academy of Fellows for Teaching and Learning (AFTL) this past Spring. Membership in the organization is achieved through nomination and is comprised of UC’s “most outstanding teaching faculty” who are “dedicated to innovative, engaging, and effective teaching.” Dr. Bauer has also taken on a new leadership role as Events Coordinator with the College Reading and Literacy Association.
The Events Coordinator role is only Dr. Bauer’s latest association with the CRLA. She previously served as the On-Site Conference Chair from 2019-2022 and has also presented her own work at the conference on several occasions. Dr. Bauer “has published her work in the Journal of College Reading and Learning,” winning the journal’s Outstanding Article of the Year award in 2015. She has also served as a reviewer for the publication.
In recommending Dr. Bauer for induction into the AFTL, outgoing English and Communication chair Dr. Sue Sipple noted that Dr. Bauer is UCBA’s “only full-time faculty member dedicated to post-secondary literacy and developmental education.” As such, Dr. Bauer is responsible for having created the courses and curriculum that support UCBA’s most vulnerable students. She also hires, onboards, and supports faculty who work with these students and others, a testament to her commitment to the AFTL’s tenants of collaboration and commitment to service.
Dr. Bauer’s teaching philosophy places the success of students at the forefront of her curriculum. Specifically, Dr. Bauer is dedicated to working with students who “have been fighting an endless battle with themselves and the low expectations they receive from others,” striving to help them find their purpose so that they become more academically and personally successful.
Congratulations on your induction into the AFTL, and for your appointment as Events Coordinator with CRLA!
Communication Professor Wins 2024 Outstanding Faculty Service Award
In the Spring of 2024, Dr. Amber Peplow, a Professor of Communication, was awarded the UC Blue Ash Outstanding Faculty Service Award. The award honors faculty who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to UCBA through consistent service that has a significant positive impact on the college and/or community.
In her recommendation, English and Communication chair Dr. Sue Sipple commended Dr. Peplow’s leadership and service, acknowledging that both are “deeply connected to her respect for shared governance and faculty rights and responsibilities.” This is evident in Dr. Peplow’s position as a member of the UCAAUP Executive Committee where she has tirelessly negotiated on behalf of her colleagues, a display of her “commitment to the union and to the ideals that affect our daily lives as professors.” Dr. Peplow has also served on UCBA’s Study Abroad and Exchange Programs Committee, as well as Communication Coordinator within the English and Communication department.
Service is a cornerstone of Dr. Peplow’s educational and leadership philosophies. It is how she measures the success and impact of her work and reflects her concern for the wellbeing of her colleagues, the students, and the university. Ultimately, Dr. Peplow hopes that she is “able to help create policy, programs, etc.” that foster collaboration across disciplines, within the college, and throughout the University.
Regarding what this nomination and win mean for her, Dr. Peplow considers herself “tremendously honored to have [her] name included” with those of colleagues who precede her in this award and “whose leadership and hard work [she] deeply admire[s] and respect[s].”
Congratulations, Dr. Peplow, and thank you for your service to the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College!
Communication Professor Inducted into Academy of Fellows for Teaching and Learning
Associate Professor of Communication and English & Communication chair-elect Drew Shade was inducted as a member of UC’s Academy of Fellows for Teaching and Learning (AFTL) this past Spring. Membership in the organization is achieved through nomination and is comprised of UC’s “most outstanding teaching faculty” who are “dedicated to innovative, engaging, and effective teaching.”
Dr. Shade is one of several members from the English & Communication department at UCBA who are represented in the AFTL. When asked what induction represents for the career he has worked to establish in higher education, Dr. Shade joked that “it means that [he] can hang with the ‘cool kids’ and possibly be considered as one of them.” More seriously, he acknowledges the immensity of the honor and looks forward to collaborating further with colleagues to whom he has “looked up…as examples and mentors” since beginning his UC career in 2014.
In her nomination, outgoing English & Communication AUH Dr. Sue Sipple commended Dr. Shade’s reflectiveness as a teacher, noting that he diligently uses student feedback to help reshape his courses to “address issues, improve teaching and learning, and better engage students.” One example of Dr. Shade’s commitment to student-centered learning is his utilization of the flipped classroom that allows him to focus more on the increased need that students have for individual support, especially post-COVID.
A cornerstone for induction into the AFTL is the candidate’s contributions to excellence in scholarly teaching. In addition to notable presentations at various conference venues, Dr. Shade’s teaching innovations have twice been recognized with awards from the National Communication Association, “the most prestigious professional organization in his discipline.”
Collaboration and a commitment to service are also key elements that members of the AFTL must embody. Dr. Shade has served on several committees, including the Scholarship and Honors Committee, Mediated Minds, and UCBA’s Executive Committee. He has authored and co-authored several articles, as well as a book chapter in Glee and New Directions for Social Change. He also speaks highly of a co-teaching experience with colleague Dr. Jessica Furgerson from which he learned about ungrading, a pedagogical approach that “focuses on detailed feedback as opposed to arbitrary letter grades.” Dr. Shade looks forward to his service through the AFTL and how it can inform his experiences at UCBA.
Congratulations on your nomination and induction into the AFTL!
Past Spotlights
Look back at some of the other achievements and past recognition for the great work being done at UC Blue Ash College in the English and Communication Department.
In the Spring of 2023, Liberal Arts major Briana James was presented with the UCBA Honor Student of the Year Award. This award is given to students who are academically strong, possess an exceptional work ethic, have clear goals for their future, and who are good spokespersons for their department and the college.
Briana is a first-generation college student and embraces the moniker as an opportunity “to advocate more for [herself]” and has made her “more willing to reach out when [she] need[s] help.” Dr. Sue Sipple agrees, describing Briana as “a student who is enthusiastic about taking on new challenges.” For Briana, the honor is a tangible reminder that her goals are within reach and something she has control over.
Currently, Briana is at UC Main Campus where she is majoring in Political Science and minoring in International Business. She is also preparing to take the LSAT this summer, a challenge she is primed to use as a “stepping stone in [her] journey to [her] dream career.” Dr. Sipple echoes Briana’s confidence and says there is “no doubt that she will achieve her goal of finishing law school and becoming an attorney.”
Ultimately, winning Honor Student of the Year Award represents Briana’s steadfast belief that she has “done [her] best before, so there should be nothing stopping [her] from doing [her] best now.”
Congratulations, Briana, and good luck in your future endeavors!
In the Spring of 2023, Dr. Drew Shade, an Associate Professor of Communication, was awarded the UC Blue Ash Innovative Teaching Award. The University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College Teaching Awards, which include the Innovative Teaching Award, are given to faculty members who have demonstrated outstanding contributions to the College through teaching. The Innovative Teaching Award is awarded to a faculty member to recognize their exceptional ability to employ innovative teaching techniques which positively affect student learning.
Dr. Shade credits his colleagues at UC Blue Ash for providing a strong foundation from which to build his own teaching philosophy and considers himself “lucky to be in their company and learn from them regularly.”
Ultimately, however, the award is contingent upon how students respond to Dr. Shade’s innovative application of his philosophy. In addition to the recognition from his peers, Dr. Shade also acknowledges that the honor supports “the positive feedback [he has] received for many years from students regarding [his] approach to teaching.” Not one to rest on his laurels, Dr. Shade views the award as “further momentum to keep finding ways to help our students grow and develop” at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College.
Dr. Jessica Furgerson, Associate Professor of Communication, was awarded the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College Exemplary Scholarship Award. This award is given to a faculty member to recognize their ability to demonstrate exemplary scholarship via discipline specific research, creative works, and/or the scholarship of teaching and learning. Dr. Furgerson’s new book, The Battle for Birth Control: Exploring the Lasting Consequences of the Movement’s Early Rhetoric, published in the Spring of 2023, explores the rhetorical history of the American birth control movement and the impact we still see today from the messaging and strategies that were used when it began over 100 years ago. She developed the book from her doctoral dissertation that focused on the rhetoric used in the birth control movement that started in the early 1900’s.
“The primary argument of the book is that the movement had to pursue a strategy of what I call political accommodation in order to advance its agenda. They had to frame their argument in ways that appealed to doctors, lawmakers and other people who would support the agenda," Furgerson said. "Because it was illegal to talk about contraception, they said, ‘Okay, we’ll let doctors talk about it.’ So, birth control was made kind of the exclusive purview of the medical community. Even to this day, a woman can’t get access to contraception without a conversation with her doctor.”
Furgerson says this also shows how imperfect social advocacy can be.
“To accomplish any major change or reformation it takes a lot of time, and it takes compromises, but those compromises also have consequences," she said. "Social change, especially because it’s such an important topic in a lot of different contexts right now, is messy, it’s not neat.”
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In the Spring of 2023, Jeff Fox, an Associate Adjunct Professor of Communication at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College, was awarded the Honored Adjunct Teaching Award. This award is given to an adjunct professor who proves to admirably contribute to the classroom, implement effective techniques that improve student learning and engagement in the college and/or their discipline.
Professor Fox has taught Introduction to Effective Speaking and Business Communication at UCBA since 2011 in both face to face and online formats. He prides himself on being responsive to students’ needs and meeting individuals wherever they are in the learning process. A sentiment seemingly shared universally about Professor Fox is that he “is understanding and flexible” with a tendency towards humor that draws in his students’ full attention.
For some, the inevitable anxiety that comes with public speaking is assuaged by Professor Fox’s teaching style and dedication to the success of his students. Several students agreed that Professor Fox “100% changed [their] confidence and public speaking skills” and called on prospective students to do themselves a favor by taking his Introduction to Effective Speaking class.
In accepting the award, Professor Fox considers it an honor and “value[s] the recognition” as he looks “forward to working with UCBA students for years to come.”
Dean Robin Lightner presenting Dr. Eric Van Hoose with the Distinguished Service Award
Dr. Van Hoose, the Manager of the Writing and Study Skills Center at UC Blue Ash College, was recently presented with the Distinguished Service Award. This honor is awarded annually to recognize and honor a staff member who has, over time, demonstrated outstanding contributions to the college. Those who work closely with Dr. Van Hoose are emphatic in recognizing his kind and compassionate ways in interacting with students, supervisees, and Center Director alike. To students, he provides much needed guidance by meeting students at their level of need and then guiding them to paths to help them achieve their goals.Dr. Van Hoose’s supervisees commend his managerial style, his active advocacy for students and tutors has created an equitable, positive, engaging culture that benefits the center, its community, and the college.
The Writing and Study Skills Center Director, Dr. Libby Anthony, states she “cannot think of someone more deserving of recognition for his excellent work at UCBA than Eric Van Hoose” in her nomination letter, and that “he is the tutors’ biggest cheerleader, and I know they appreciate his unwavering support and enthusiasm.” Eric has added value to the college for over eleven years and this award is well deserved. The UC Blue Ash community is honored to take the time and space to display our appreciation of his contributions.
Anna Hensley, Assistant Professor of English in the English and Communications Department at UC Blue Ash College, is set to be published in the online academic journal, Composition Forum: A Journal in Pedagogic Theory in Rhetoric and Composition. Dr. Hensley’s publication is an interview with Professor Howard Tinberg. Professor Tinberg is a person of note in the discipline of rhetoric and composition; he has taught for over thirty years at Bristol Community College and has enriched the field of composition and rhetoric through his extensive scholarship and his service as a former Chair of CCCC and former Editor of Teaching English in the Two-Year College. Dr. Hensley wrote in her abstract for the interview:
"I am inspired by Howard’s career-long commitment to highlighting the work of the two-year college and to exploring new and innovative ways to support two-year students in the writing classroom. In this interview, Howard and I discuss his recent work adapting the teaching-for-transfer (TFT) curriculum for the diverse two-year college classroom. He also reflects on the importance of teaching reading in the writing classroom and offers advice for new two-year faculty as they develop their identities as teacher-scholars working in open-access institutions."
The interview will be available in the volume 47, fall 2021 issue of Composition Forum.
Currently serving students in the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College’s Writing and Study Skills Center (WSSC), Dr. Balaskovits has recently published her second book: Strange Folk You’ll Never Meet. Published by the Santa Fe Writer‘s Project, this new collection of unusual, fabulist fiction leads you down strange paths for dark encounters with familiar fairy tales, odd people from history, and weirdos who may be living right next door.
Among the characters in these bizarre stories, a starving beauty finds a beast who can save her village, a man eats everything in sight but is never full, a woman gives birth to bloody animal parts, and a daughter is forced to dance every night to the reenactment of her fathers’ murder.
These tales invite you to spend time with people who, in the maddest of circumstances, chew their way forward. With elements of psychological horror, sly humor, and the fantastic, these stories will burrow under your skin, haunt your dreams, and make you wonder what worlds lie just beyond that tiny hole in the wall.
Brian Bailie, an Associate Professor of English in the English and Communication Department at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College, recently published an article in Present Tense: A Journal of Rhetoric in Society. In "So, Richard Spencer Is Coming to Your Campus. How He was Allowed on, and How You Can Confront Him,” Dr. Bailie opens the article explaining how the University of Cincinnati kept Spencer off its Clifton campus by charging an extra-security fee. Next, Bailie explains why this wasn’t the best solution, and finally, he provides an organizing strategy to create a community driven way to keep Spencer—and other speakers like him—off college campuses. Bailie closes the article explaining how such an organizing method creates a reusable solidarity network as well as claiming that a grassroots campus movement to block white nationalist speakers (like Spencer) reaffirms the value of students, faculty, and staff of color; their right to be on campus; their right to safety; and their basic humanity.
The Department of English and Communication is proud to announce that four faculty members have been awarded academic leave (sabbaticals) in 2021-22. Here are their names and a description—in their own words—of the projects they’ll pursue on their sabbaticals.
Libby Anthony, PhD, English
During my sabbatical, I will study the intersections between the pedagogies of writing instructors and knitting instructors. I plan to examine what educators—and especially writing teachers—can learn from the literacies and pedagogical practices of knitters and knitting communities, and my project asks how the literacy practices of knitting content creators can extend our understanding of learner-centered pedagogies. This area of research—craft rhetorics and pedagogies—is new to me, so I’m looking forward to having an entire semester to fully devote to beginning this new research project.
Brian Bailie, PhD, English
I’ll be on academic leave for spring semester 2022 to work on the community written book (tentatively titled), This Place of Ours. This book is a collaboration between the various writing groups affiliated with or previously connected to the Peaslee Neighborhood Center in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine (OTR) neighborhood. Professor Chris Wilkey (of Northern Kentucky University [NKU]) and I are serving as the editors to this anthology, which will include poetry, transcribed oral histories, excerpts from various community newspapers, artwork, and essays challenging the gentrification of OTR by 3CDC and the city of Cincinnati. This book already has a book contract with New City Community Press/Parlor Press that covers both printing and distribution and will be marketed to academics and community activists who study, teach about, and participate in university-community partnerships. This Place of Ours is a case study and demonstration of how writing can be used to mobilize desire as well as organize communities towards specific, quantifiable goals.
Shaorong Huang, PhD, Communication
I will have a one-semester academic leave during Spring 2022 to conduct research on the governing power of China’s current abbreviated political slogans. The main research method used in this project will be textual analysis and on-site interviews. In this project, the following questions will be explored: Can the common people and lower-level government officials remember the full contents of these abbreviated political and policy-specified slogans? To what extent do they understand the meanings of these slogans? Are these slogans mere symbols or something real to them? In what way do these abbreviated slogans affect their daily life and work? How helpful and successful are these slogans in governing the country?
Political slogans are a special form of language, the fittingly worded phrases or expression, the shared symbols, and above all, the persuasive rhetoric. This project will be a continuation of the research path of mine, since my research interests are in cross-cultural communication and political rhetoric. Moreover, the increased knowledge of China's political slogans will provide me with more examples I can use when I address issues of culture and intercultural communication in my communication classes.
Neely McLaughlin, PhD, English
During my sabbatical, I am studying what we as a society can learn about the current relationship between race and Christianity in the US by analyzing the intersection of Christianity and nineteenth century US literature. I focus on African Methodist Episcopal itinerant preacher Jarena Lee’s narrative, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and Martha Finley’s popular Elsie Dinsmore books. I am excited to have the opportunity for deep engagement with ideas that clearly matter today. It is an honor and privilege to have the time to focus on a project that is personally and intellectually compelling to me.
Susanna Clason, PhD, Associate Professor of English
When the University of Cincinnati Police Department (UCPD) decided to improve their writing skills, they called on Dr. Sana Clason for guidance. Working in coordination with UCPD Chief Maris Herold, Training Officer Lt. Robert Gutierrez, and Training Consultant Dawn Moore, Dr. Clason developed a four-hour in-service Technical Writing training session to address the specific needs of the UCPD.
Since the initial pilot training sessions to UCPD Leadership in February 2019, Dr. Clason has taught six sessions with many more scheduled throughout the 2019-2020 academic year. The curriculum design teaches effective writing strategies for creating persuasive, ethical documents that respond effectively to UCPD’s broad and varied audiences’ needs, abilities, and interests; practical information on planning and organization strategies; and how to develop a writing process of composing, revising, and editing that creates effective writing using correct sentence structure and grammar.
Dr. Clason is an Associate Professor in the English and Communication Department where she teaches English Composition and Applied Workplace Writing in UCBA’s Bachelor in Technical and Applied Studies program.
Sonja Andrus, PhD | Associate Professor of English & Composition Coordinator
Sonja Andrus, Associate Professor of English at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College, is one of three co-authors to be published in the September 2019 issue of Teaching English in the Two-Year College (a publication of the National Council of Teachers of English). Dr. Andrus along with Howard Tinberg and Sharon Mitchler produced the article, “Teaching for Writing Transfer: A Practical Guide for Teachers,” which introduces two-year college composition faculty to the TFT (Teaching for Transfer) curriculum and to help those faculty make the leap into using it in their own local contexts. The article opens with a brief historical discussion of transfer theory in the discipline, and then examines the TFT curriculum, as it was developed in Writing Across Contexts (by Kathleen Blake Yancey, Leann Robertson, and Kara Taczak) and how it can be successfully modified to be implemented into open-access, two-year college writing classrooms, using our own experiences and modifications to share how to do it. Dr. Andrus also serves as the Composition Coordinator for the English and Communication Department at UCBA.
William Jennings, PhD | Associate Professor of English and Communication
Has politics changed…or have we changed? Moreover, why is it so difficult to talk about politics these days? These are the two central questions that lay behind two of Dr. Jennings’ recently completed research projects. “State of Arousal” is a rhetorical study that examines the language behaviors of presidential candidates over the past seventy years. With the aid of computer analysis, the tones of political hopefuls can be contrasted against each other in ways that often are overlooked. That data that emerges presents the case that the reliable and normative stylings that brought Harry Truman and Dwight to the White House have been incrementally replaced by a more volatile and emotional one.
In a related study supported by the Scripps Foundation, Dr. Jennings studied the interactions of forty Cincinnati-area voters and their attitudes about politics. Seated in six different focus groups with three ideological perspectives (conservative, liberal, and mixed), these participants managed to discuss their feelings about government, politics, media, their fellow citizens and the idea of building common ground. By isolating key expressions and their use, Dr. Jennings concludes that the group participants engage in a practice called “virtue signaling” which implies a political ideology without expressing it explicitly. The findings from “Seeking Common Ground” will be presented at the Ohio Communication Conference on October 6, 2018.
In recent years, Dr. Jennings has been using games in the classroom in order to teach particular practices and concepts to students. One of the most successful of these, “Pandemic” has been used to teach collaboration and planning to future managers. However, a careful examination of the game reveals that it could be usefully deployed in a wide array of classroom settings including biology, mathematics, and informational technology courses. Dr. Jennings’ chapter on cooperative games in the classroom will appear in Learning, Education, and Games from ETC Press / Carnegie Mellon University in Autumn, 2018.
Dr. Jennings is an Associate Professor in the Department of English and Communication, where he teaches courses in the areas of Public Speaking, Persuasion, and Image Management.
Jessica Furgerson, PhD | Assistant Professor of Communication
Please join us in welcoming Jessica Fergerson, PhD this fall to the UCBA Communication department. Originally a Texas native, Jessica recently joined the Faculty at UCBA after serving as the Director of Debate at Western Kentucky University for the past five years. This is actually a return to Ohio for Jessica as she completed her PhD at Ohio University in 2014. Jessica has a vast teaching background that covers everything from Public Speaking to Electoral Speech Writing and Analysis and she truly loves being in the classroom and working with students!
Jessica's educational background is in rhetoric and gender studies which drives her current research interests including feminist rhetoric, political communication, image repair, and popular culture. As an avid fan of television show creator Shonda Rhimes, Jessica is particularly excited about her upcoming book chapter "Abortion in Shondaland: Daring Departures from Oppressive Industry Conventions." She is currently working on her first book: The Battle for Birth Control: Discourses of the Movement from 1914-2014.
Eric Van Hoose | Manager, Writing and Study Skills Center
Welcome Eric Van Hoose as he steps into his new role as Manager of the Writing and Study Skills Center. Eric has worked as an academic tutor at the center since 2010. In addition to working closely with students in one-on-one support sessions, he is working with other tutors in the center to co-create and co-lead the college's English Conversation Group, which promotes community and understanding across languages and cultures. In March 2018 he and the rest of the WSSC staff will be leading a workshop on starting inclusive student support groups as well as holding a roundtable discussion on how student reflection can be used to help support students in tutoring sessions at the Eastern Central Writing Central Association Conference. Eric is also hard at work in UC's doctoral creative writing program for fiction, where he volunteers as an editorial assistant for The Cincinnati Review. Eric's essay on novel writing was recently published in Full Stop Quarterly. His piece of short fiction "Sunday Night"won first place in the 2016 short prose contest at the University of Texas at Austin's literary journal, Bat City Review.
Kevin Oberlin | Associate Professor of English & Placement Coordinator
University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College Associate Professor Kevin Oberlin has several recent publications in poetry journals. "Eastern Neck" was published in Parks & Points in its April 2017 celebration of National Poetry Month, and "Dormant" was published in Roanoke Review in their Summer 2017 issue. Both poems explore the personal connection we as individuals make with specific places in nature. A series of his poems was also published in Ghost Proposal in July of 2017: "Book Whose Belief Punishes Silence After the Awkward Pause," "Book of Permanent Goodbye," "Like Soup Whips the Apple," and "The Decay of Collective Memory." An additional poem from this series, "River, Like Other People, is Never Herself," is forthcoming in December 2017 in Pacific REVIEW. Poems in this series are part of a chapbook manuscript that experiments with a grid structure as a way to investigate the thought process of each poem's speaker and invite the reader to explore different approaches to reading and interpreting the poem. These poems build off of the formal innovations of poet Leah Nielsen, whose work piloted this type of chart as an organizing principle for poetry.Dr. Oberlin's poetry chapbook, Spotlit Girl (2008), was a winner of the Wick Student Chapbook Competition, and is available from Kent State University Press. Dr. Oberlin is an Associate Professor in the Department of English and Communication, where he teaches courses in the areas of Composition, Creative Writing, and Literature.
Rhonda Pettit, PhD | Professor of English
A new book by University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College English professor, Rhonda Pettit is receiving critical acclaim from noted poets around the country. Riding the Wave Train is the latest book of poetry produced by Pettit, who makes her home in Northern Kentucky. "Wave train" is a term used in the sciences that refers to a succession of waves occurring at periodic intervals and traveling in the same direction, especially a group of waves of limited duration," says Pettit. "The book could be read as an innocence to experience narrative, though at times experience invades the innocence stage. It might also be seen as movement from the personal world to the public one." The book is receiving very positive reviews from noted poets, including Cathy Smith Bowers, the 2010-12 Poet Laureate of North Carolina, who highlights a passage from one of the poems.
I was the grand-daddy long-legs thrown hard against the garage door today, and I was the hand that threw it.
Thus concludes one of the most stunning poems in Rhonda Pettit's new collection Riding the Wave Train," says Smith Bowers. "As exquisitely structured as it is lyrically compelling, this book is a must have for lovers of fresh, original, insightful poetry." This is the second book of poetry that Pettit has published; she also serves as the contributing poetry editor for various publications and has developed programs and events to keep the interest in poetry alive, both at the college and in area high schools. "At a time in our history when verifiable facts can be called "fake news," we need more than ever the kind of authentic truth that poetry can give us -- whether it's about a single moment in an individual's personal life, or a response to a larger social concern" says Pettit. "Personal honesty and authenticity set the stage for public honesty and authenticity. Poetry cleanses and clarifies." Pettit will be featured, along with other local poets, during a book signing at Joseph Beth Booksellers in Crestview Hills on September 26 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. The book is also available for purchase online.
Alyssa Ferreri
Alyssa Ferreri submitted her poem "Eyes" to Saad Ghosn's annual anthology, For a Better World 2017: Poems and Drawings for Peace and Justice by Greater Cincinnati Artists. During spring semester 2017, Dr. Rhonda Pettit encouraged her student Alyssa Ferreri to submit a poem to Saad Ghosn's annual anthology, For a Better World 2017: Poems and Drawings for Peace and Justice by Greater Cincinnati Artists. Alyssa's poem "Eyes" was accepted along with 2 of Dr. Pettit's, and they both had the opportunity to read together with other poets at the SOS Art Reading in June 2017 at the Cincinnati School for the Performing Arts in Over the Rhine (OTR). Alyssa's poem also appears in volume 24 of the Blue Ash Review, our college literary magazine, along with a second poem by Alyssa, "What Nightmares Are Made Of." The magazine is available in a print edition and will be archived online.
Brenda Refaei, PhD | Associate Professor of English
Dr. Brenda Refaei will end her term as the Department of English and Communication's Composition Coordinator, and Dr. Sonja Andrus will take over. Dr. Brenda Refaei will end her second term as the Department of English and Communication's Composition Coordinator on August 14, 2017. In her six years as Coordinator, she has worked with English faculty in the design, implementation, and assessment of composition and developmental writing classes. In addition, she has worked with faculty across UC on the University Composition Committee to develop course descriptions and outcomes.Dr. Refaei has excelled in this role, and she has found it gratifying, as well. "I was grateful to be the composition coordinator for the department during semester conversion," Dr. Refaei said. "I was able to work with faculty in the department and across the University to ensure that the semester courses were designed to meet the needs of UCBA students. Working with Ruth Benander and Sonja Andrus, I was able to support faculty as they adopted eportfolios in their classes. I am especially proud of the work Ruth Benander and I put into the redesign of English 0097 that allows students to work at their own pace. Determined students have been able to place into first year composition directly from this course skipping another developmental course." For this work, the Two-Year College English Association awarded Drs. Refaei and Benander an Honorable Mention in their 2017 Diana Hacker Awards for Outstanding Programs in English. Dr. Sue Sipple, Chair of the Department of English and Communication, has high praise for Dr. Refaei's work as Composition Coordinator. "Brenda has been a fantastic asset to our department. She has helped us hire quality part-time and full-time faculty; she has mentored those faculty to help them do their best work; and she has collaborated with our seasoned faculty and colleagues on other campuses to make sure our composition courses are doing all they should be doing. I am so grateful for Brenda's exceptional work, and I know that she will achieve a great deal in the future, even as she turns her attention to new areas of interest." Once her term as Composition Coordinator ends in mid-August, Dr. Refaei will focus her energy on her teaching and research, "I look forward to having more time to spend on developing my classes and researching how students learn. I am eager to work with Dr. Sonja Andrus as she assumes the Composition Coordinator position." The Department is grateful for Dr. Refaei's remarkable service to the department and to our students. Her leadership as Composition Coordinator has been exceptional.
Sonja Andrus, PhD | Associate Professor of English & Composition Coordinator
Dr. Sonja Andrus has been elected as the Department of English & Communication's new Composition Coordinator for a three-year term beginning August 15, 2017. Dr. Andrus sees the role as a collaborative one. In her new position, she'll wok with English faculty and with faculty in other disciplines to support their efforts to help students become better writers. "Writing is at the core of so much of what we do at the college, and in particular in our department. Working with my colleagues on the questions we have about writing is exciting to me." Dr. Sue Sipple, chair of the Department of English and Communication, is equally excited to have Dr. Andrus in this leadership position. "Sonja will do a fantastic job of building on the work of her predecessor and of moving us in new and interesting directions," Sipple said. One of Dr. Andrus's priorities in her new role is to continue dialogue within the department about our values in writing and in writing instruction. She believes that these conversations are essential in helping faculty understand composition assessment outcomes. Dr. Andrus said, "I think that discussions of our values regarding writing and writing instruction can also help us to see how there are many paths to the same destination, help us see and value one another's varied pedagogical approaches to the course learning outcomes. While we want to know that assessment of the courses leads to valuable discussion of student learning, we must begin by knowing what we want to know, and sometimes that means backing up and knowing what we care about. I think we need to start there." Dr. Andrus understands that students are frequently challenged by college writing. "Each class makes writing seem foreign; the history professor wants it this way, but the science professor wants it that way. And it can seem like there is nothing tying those models together, and it can further seem arbitrary; what worked in that first science class doesn't seem to work in the second. Students with a really strong background in writing (not just a talent for writing, but a really strong, deep understanding of how writing works and why it works that way) will find the connections across their courses regarding the methods and means expected of them." Through the work she does in her composition classes, Dr. Andrus helps students "perform the practical tasks of writing in every facet of their lives, not just in college but well beyond." In her new leadership role in the department, she'll support faculty in their efforts to do the same. Congratulations to Dr. Sonja Andrus on her new position as Composition Coordinator!
Dean Cady Short-Thompson with Dr. Ruth Benander
The 2017 All-University Faculty Awards Celebration Honors the English Department's Ruth Bunander and Adam Burkey. With a dedication to student learning, attention to student engagement, and service to perpetuating excellent teaching, Dr. Benander has distinguished herself as a very deserving recipient of this award. She is always on the cutting edge of teaching strategies and has been ahead of the curve in implementing such new ideas as problem-based learning activities and flipped classrooms. Dr. Benander has also had a big impact on the college through her longstanding role as Co-Director of our Learning & Teaching Center. She has created, led and participated in Faculty Learning Communities that have transformed the teaching of its participants.
Dean Cady Short-Thompson with Dr. Adam Burkey
As someone who teaches developmental English, as well as first-year and second year composition, Dr. Burkey works with students from a wide range of academic backgrounds. One of his primary objectives is removing the barriers between the classroom and the students' personal lives, so they can see writing as an outlet for personal reflection and growth. Dr. Burkey's colleagues commend him for the creative ways he works to connect with students and help them understand difficult concepts. His methods include using Google Drive to provide real-time feedback on writing assignments and drawings with conversation bubbles that help students integrate different voices into their writing.
Awards were given to 2016-17 Outstanding Students in English & Communication, Briana Harper and Danielle Maraan. Briana Harper is a Communication major with interests in persuasion and human interaction. She has put these skills to work as a Student Ambassador and during her service in the military. Students and instructors alike have noted how readily she shares her time, energy, and ideas with those around her. Sharing her time easily, Briana combines an authentic curiosity about the world along with the creative talents to reinvent and improve it. Danielle Maraan is a Communication major whose interests seem boundless. Over the course of her studies at UCBA, Danielle has explored every facet of her major available at this campus. Her quiet commitment to quality scholarship has left a deep impression on those around her. It is this ethic that has been a constant presence in Danielle's efforts and mark her as a student who has earned the respect of her instructors and the admiration of her classmates.
Shaorong Huang, PhD | Professor of Communication
Shaorong Huang received his Ph.D. in speech communication in 1994 from Bowling Green State University, USA. With a research interest in political rhetoric and cross-cultural communication, he has published one academic book, To Rebel Is Justified: A Rhetorical Study of China's Cultural Revolution Movement: 1966-1969 (1996) and more than twenty research articles. He has also published other books including translations and college English textbooks. His most recent books are The Romance of the Western Chamber, a Kunqu Opera: Translation, Introduction and Annotations (2013); Mu Guiying Takes Command, a Beijing Opera: Translation, Introduction and Annotations (2015); and Grand Occasion in the Golden Years of Zhenguan, a Beijing Opera: Translation, Introduction and Annotations(2015).
Dr. Ruth Benander & Dr. Brenda Refaei | English and Communication Department
The basic writing program at UC Blue Ash College, designed by Dr. Brenda Refaei and Dr. Ruth Benander, has been awarded honorable mention in the Diana Hacker TYCA Outstanding Programs in English. The Diana Hacker TYCA Outstanding Programs in English Awards for Two-Year Colleges and Teachers are given annually and honor two-year college teachers and their colleges for exemplary programs that enhance students' language learning, helping them to achieve their college, career, and personal goals. The basic writing program at UC Blue Ash College, designed by Dr. Brenda Refaei and Dr. Ruth Benander, has been awarded honorable mention in this award competition. Drs. Refaei and Benander designed an emporium model basic reading and writing course for students to work at an accelerated pace to progress to college composition and skip a second developmental course. Course modules built in the LMS allow students to create an eportfolio of their writing. Pedagogical changes included abandoning whole class lectures for daily "just in time" personal instruction while students worked at their own pace. The modules provide guidance students need to move forward through their writing, while the instructors circulate, giving individual explicit instruction when necessary. A department committee judges the eportfolios as eligible to skip the next developmental course. In student satisfaction surveys, students overwhelmingly agree that they find this approach effective for their learning. Since the implementation of this program, fifteen students have moved from the introductory basic writing course directly into First Year Composition.
Please contact Sue Sipple if you have a faculty member or student who you think should be highlighted.
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