Faculty
The core faculty in TPPC, many winners of prestigious national awards, experienced journal editors, and leaders in their fields, are experts in such areas as rhetorical theory, reading theory, composition, rhetoric and philosophy, pedagogy, electronic media, usability testing, organizational culture, composition and professional communication history, research methods, linguistics, English education, narrative, and writing‑across‑the‑curriculum.
The following faculty members are associated with the TPPC program. They may serve as a chair or as a primary member of a program of study committee.
Kelli Cargile Cook (2000); Associate Professor; Ph.D. 2000 Texas Tech University; professional/technical communication and online writing pedagogy, assessment, program development and administration; web-based training. President, Council for Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication (http://cptsc.org/); Vice President, Association of Teachers of Technical Writing (www.attw.org).
Patricia M. Gantt (1999); Professor; Ph.D. 1993 University of North Carolina; English education and narrative.
Lisa Gabbert (2004); Assistant Professor; Ph.D. 2003 Indiana University;
folklore and qualitative research methods.
Keith Gibson (2007); Assistant Professor; Ph.D. 2003 Pennsylvania State University; rhetoric of science and technology, ancient rhetoric, science and public policy.
Keith Grant-Davie (1991); Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies; Ph.D. 1985 University of California (San Diego); rhetoric and composition theory.
David E. Hailey, Jr. (1994); Associate Professor; Ph.D. 1994 University of New Mexico; professional communication and interactive media.
Christine Hult (1985); Professor and Associate Dean of HASS; Ph.D. 1982 University of Michigan; computers in the writing classroom, research writing, writing in the disciplines, program and teacher assessment, and women in academia.
Joyce Kinkead (1982); Professor and Associate Vice President for Research; Ph.D. 1979 Texas A&M-Commerce; writing program administration, personal narrative, undergraduate research, and English education.
Ryan M. Moeller (2004); Assistant Professor; Ph.D. 2004 University of Arizona; critical computer game studies, rhetorical theory, rhetorics of technology, and professional communication. Director, Learning Games Initiative at USU.
Students
Following are some brief descriptions of our current students.
David M. Christensen (2005)
My research focuses on the rhetoric and genre fields of proposal and grant writing. I've served for three years as Project Lead for the English Department/Electrical and Computer Engineering Department cooperative Online Editing Center, and I also work as a Research Assistant for the NSF ADVANCE grant at USU.
Jason Cootey (2006)
My study is concentrated on the generation of computer game development documentation. I also am interested in computer games as artifacts of communication. In my spare time, I cycle all the beautiful Cache Valley roads that go for miles in every direction.
Amanda Metz Bemer (2006)
I'm a second year Ph.D. student with interests in spatial rhetorics, gender, computer games, and technology in general. I am the Assistant Director of the Suite Lab, the English Department's newly remodeled computing environment.
Laura Vernon (2006)
My interests include environmental rhetoric, organizational communication, and
professional writing. In addition to teaching and coursework, I help the university's ADVANCE program with writing, marketing, and training projects designed to improve the recruitment and retention of women faculty.