Education and Professional Experiences

Education 

• Ed.D. 1980 Virginia Tech, English Education; Doctoral Dissertation, "The Origin, Development, and Decline of the Secondary English Elective Curriculum."
• M.A. 1973 University of Virginia, English; Master's Thesis, "The Spiritual Progression of  Red Cross in the House of Holiness."
• B.A. 1972  Hollins College, English; Senior Honors Thesis, “Pearl:  The Hero's Journey in Theology and Image."

Postdoctoral Training

• National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar in Composition and Rhetoric, University of Texas at Austin, under the direction of Dr. James Sledd, 1981.

Professional Experiences

• Professor, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond (July 1996–present) 
  • Major Responsibilities
    • Teaching Adolescent Literature
    • English Methods
    • Teaching Seminar
    • Applied English Linguistics
    • Advisor for Graduate Students
• Chair, Department of Teaching and Learning, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University (July 2004–present)
• Co-Chair, Department of Teaching and Learning, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University (January–June 2004)
• Visiting Professor, Department of English, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (August 2003–December 2003)
  • Major Responsibilities
    • Teaching Adolescent Literature
    • Advanced Composition and Rhetorical Theory
    • Curriculum Study on English Education
    • Committee Member on Composition and Rhetoric Curriculum, Department of English.
• Associate Professor, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond (August 1990–June 1996)
• Assistant Professor, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond (August 1986–July 1990)
• Director of Publications, Hollins College, Roanoke, Virginia (August 1982–July 1986)
• Assistant Professor, English Department, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia (September 1980–May 1982)
• Assistant Professor, Department of English Language and Literature, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls (August 1979–May 1980)
• English Teacher, William Fleming High School, Roanoke, Virginia (August 1975–June 1978)
• English Teacher, Roanoke Catholic High School, Roanoke, Virginia  (September 1973–June 1975)

Professional Memberships

• National Council of Teachers of English
• Conference on English Education
• National Conference on Research in Language and Literacy
• Assembly on Literature for Adolescents
• Assembly on Appalachian Literature
• Assembly on Women in Life and Literature
• Phi Delta Kappa
• Phi Kappa Phi
• Phi Beta Kappa
• Delta Kappa Gamma
• Omicron Delta Kappa

State

• Virginia Association of Teachers of English
• Virginia Conference of English Educators
• Virginia Writers' Club
• Association of Teacher Educators in Virginia