What year did you graduate from Illinois College? What did you major in? Did you have any minors?
I graduated in 1998 with a B.A. in history and political science.
Did you go on to graduate school or pursue any further education?
After a 13 year hiatus, I began a Master’s degree in Literacy at Middle Tennessee State University. In 2017, I attained my Ph.D. in the Education of Students with Exceptionalities from Georgia State University.
What has your career path looked like since you graduated? What former jobs have you held? What is your current profession?
Well, it’s not been a direct route. Following my time on the hilltop, I worked for an insurance company in Springfield, briefly. I then relocated to Tennessee and worked as a journalist for a few years. Upon another relocation to Houston, I received my teaching certificate through the University of St. Thomas and became an elementary teacher. I worked with third and fourth-grade students in inner-city Houston and Nashville for 11 years prior to pursuing my Ph.D.
I am now an Assistant Professor of Special Education at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte. I teach literacy and assessment classes. I also conduct research to support students with learning disabilities and other struggling writers in writing more effectively.
How do you think Illinois College prepared you for the workforce and for life after college?
I feel like a robust liberal arts education prepared me to land on my feet. While job titles and settings changed throughout the years, I had the ability to acquire new skills that were necessary to meet success. That was fostered at IC.
I also received outstanding advisement. During my doctoral program, I spoke with two of my advisors about how I always had excellent advisors. One of them casually remarked, “You demand it.” I had never considered that, but the type of personalized attention and direction I received at IC became my benchmark for all advisors to follow.
Finally, I am a professor today. I am measured by student evaluations. Sitting in the classrooms of outstanding professors at IC, I established a norm for what I consider to be great teaching. These professors include Karen Dean, Robert Kunath, Jeff Abernathy, James Davis, Lynn Saunders, and the list goes on. My practice benefits from their example, and my students’ evaluations indicate as much.
Do you have any interesting academic achievements coming up (publishing, research, performances, etc.)?
This month Participatory Literacy Practices for P-12 Classrooms in the Digital Age will be published, and my chapter written with Katie Schrodt, a longtime research partner, and several of our doctoral students called “#TextMeetsTech: Pre-service teachers navigating meaning and identity through transliteracy practice” appears in that book. Debra McKeown and I presently have two articles that are in press with the journal, Education and Treatment of Children – “Meeting the needs of middle school writers in a special education classroom: SRSD for the informational genre citing text-based evidence” and “Writing is revising: Improving student writing through individualized asynchronous audio feedback.” On Friday, we got the news that another article has been accepted, with minor revisions, to our top practice journal. The next big project is finalizing an application for an early career National Science Foundation grant. Fingers crossed.
Are there any words of advice that you would give to IC students today?
When I was at IC, I didn’t consider for a moment that I would be in education or a professor. Consistently learn new skills and opportunities abound. Through reading, podcasts, mentors, and courses, make yourself ready so you can say yes when an offer comes. If an offer sounds a little bit scary because you’re not sure you can do it, absolutely do it.
Be infinitely curious. Don’t rely solely on others to teach you; learn to teach yourself. Pursue your interests relentlessly. Take big risks. Be more concerned with what could go right than what could go wrong. Get comfortable saying, “I don’t know;” it’s the place every great lesson begins. Surround yourself with excellence. Vote.
Questions by Jessica Korbel
THE RAMBLER 