Teaching

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

The interdisciplinary approach I take in my research informs my teaching, in which I invite students to employ an array of critical approaches, from formal close reading to text-mining techniques. For example, while exploring the work of Langston Hughes with advanced undergraduates, I began with careful attention to his rhythmic syncopation and vernacular diction, but I then led discussions of jazz, the cabaret, and a GIS map of Harlem. I have built on my commitment to designing innovative courses around three pedagogical principles: cultural acuity, which encourages students to see their writing as a meaningful engagement with urgent social questions; winsome interdisciplinarity, which aims to welcome writers from outside the humanities; and individualized consultation, which engages students through writing-center tutoring strategies. Through these principles, I make a case for the enduring relevance of humanism across the disciplines, especially by fostering open classroom dialogue. This also entails a policy of inclusivity for students of all identities, what one called “the utmost respect” for “everyone in the class.”

TEACHING INTERESTS   

Twentieth-Century Transatlantic Literature, Science and Technology Studies, African American Literature and Culture, Sound Studies, Digital Humanities, Film Studies

TEACHING EXPERIENCE         

Assistant Professor, Grand Valley State University

  • War, Trauma, and Technology, HNR 152
  • Afrofuturism in Society, AAA380
  • Social Media in Culture, DS350
  • Interdisciplinary Research Methods, INT301
  • Climate Change in Popular Culture, ENS 242
  • Introduction to African American Studies, AAA201
  • Diversity in the United States, INT 201
  • Digital Identities and Communities, DS201

Visiting Lecturer, Indiana University, Bloomington

  • “Narrating Sonic Subculture,” Introduction to Fiction, L204
  • “From Dialect to Data,” Introduction to Poetry, L205

Co-teacher, Indiana University, Bloomington

  • “Modernism and Metropolis,” Literary History 3: Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries: L316, Spring 2018

Associate Instructor, Indiana University, Bloomington

  • “Rhythm, Race, and Recording,” Introduction to Poetry, L205
  • Introduction to Fiction, L204
  • Professional Writing Skills, W231
  • “Race and Media,” Introduction to Composition, W131
  • “Human Efficiency,” Introduction to Composition, W131

Teaching Assistant, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston

  • Introduction to Composition, ENG 1001, Spring 2015
  • Professional Writing, ENG 3001, Fall 2014
  • Writing Center Tutor, 2013-14