News from DePaul University's Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Discourse
On February 18, 2025, Professor Nancy LaFever visited the Invention Lab (SAC
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Spring offers the excitement of defrosting from Winter Quarter and the joy
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Did you know that the WRD Department offers two Combined Degree Programs that can help you save time and money while you earn your Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees? Learn more about the advantages of these programs to see if a Combined BA/MA is right for you.
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This past quarter, Dr. Lisa Dush taught WRD 532 Content Strategy, where students were able to practice applying content strategies in a professional setting. Students and Dr. Dush partnered with Just DePaul, a sustainability collective who is seeking to further the mission of social and environmental justice. Through assessing Just DePaul’s content and collaborating with each other, Students created a report of practical documentation and deliverables to be applied to current and future content on Just DePaul’s website and social media pages. Leo Swearingen and Shane Zimmer, who both took the class and are now in their last quarter of
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Spring offers the excitement of defrosting from Winter Quarter and the joy of new beginnings, especially for those graduating in June. Tabitha Jou Yi is a MAWRD student who is experiencing just that. Tabitha is currently a full-time high school English teacher who started the MAWRD Program in 2023. After completing her undergraduate degree, Tabitha began her secondary education career after a short break to pursue music. She has since had a primary focus of teaching English Literature classes, and she had her first taste of rhetoric in teaching AP Language and Composition. Additionally, she was seeking an endorsement in
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On February 25, 2025, Dr. Michael Gallaway presented his ongoing research into the co-production of whiteness in country music. With the Invention Lab (SAC 202) full of students, staff, and faculty alike—and even more attending via Zoom—Dr. Gallaway’s presentation was an insightful and illuminating picture of racial production in contemporary rhetoric. I caught up with Dr. Gallaway the following week to discuss his work in further depth and to shine a spotlight on this important area of research. Read on to hear what we discussed and get inspired to see and hear the world in new ways. Dr. Gallaway’s Goal
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On February 18, 2025, Professor Nancy LaFever visited the Invention Lab (SAC 302) to lead a presentation and discussion on branding and copywriting. Drawing from her experience as a copywriter at UL Solutions during her gap year from teaching, LaFever shared insights with an audience of undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty members alike. LaFever began by introducing the concept of organizational core competencies—the unique skills and abilities that drive a company’s success. She guided attendees through an exercise in identifying the core competencies of major companies such as Google, Amazon, Apple, and Nike. From there, she encouraged participants to
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*Originally posted by Leo Swearingen in Winter Quarter, 2024, with edits made to apply to Dr. Elliott’s iteration in the upcoming Spring Quarter 2025. At the intersection of The Avengers and Aristotle, WRD 288 Rhetoric & Popular Culture emerges to explore how pop culture shapes and is shaped by the art of persuasion. Taught this Spring Quarter by Dr. Timothy Elliott, this course is your ticket to entertainment and enlightenment in one. Read on to hear from Dr. Elliott and learn more about what the course entails. Are there any specific artifacts or events in pop culture the class will be taking a look
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This upcoming spring quarter, Professor Ames Hoffner is teaching WRD 377 Writing and Social Engagement: From Hip Hop to Hashtags. This course is a part of the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program, a program where students have the opportunity to engage in open collaboration and dialogue with incarcerated students at Cook County Jail. Over the quarter, DePaul students will consider incarcerated students their peers, while entering thoughtful discussions about social engagement as it pertains to ongoing, social issues. Each week, “outside” DePaul students will learn alongside “inside” students. This course is largely discussion-based, so all students will be able to
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In the upcoming Spring Quarter, Dr. Monica Reyes will be exploring counterstories and how, as rhetors, students can shift their perspective from harmful narratives. With a focus on the stories of immigrants and refugees, WRD 511: Rhetorics of Displacement focuses on pushing back against stereotypical, limiting language surrounding these communities. While learning how to move away from the ‘helpless’ immigrant and refugee narrative, students will discover how to critically and empathetically amplify the true experiences of these groups. What is a Counterstory? Influenced by cultural rhetorician Aja Martinez’s concept of the counterstory, Dr. Reyes explains that “Martinez’s description of counterstory
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On January 28, 2025, WRD faculty, students, and staff gathered in Arts & Letters Hall to hear Dr. V. Jo Hsu, Associate Professor in the Departments of Rhetoric and Writing and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, present “The Story Begins with a Sundering: On Narratives of Medical Uncertainty.” This illuminating talk explored transgender and disability medical narratives and was followed by a thought-provoking Q&A. Dr. Hsu began by explaining that narratives shape how we understand ourselves and our experiences while bound up in a shared world. “We are tethered to narrative threads,” they
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Workplace writing is a critical skill that professionals use every day, but what exactly is it, and how can students learn it? In Spring Quarter 2025, Dr. Timothy Elliott seeks to answer these questions in WRD 522 Writing in the Professions. Read on to learn more about what to expect in this graduate level course and see why you should enroll. Course Goals and Learning Outcomes WRD 522 Writing in the Professions seeks to define workplace writing while also equipping students with the tools to do it effectively. Instead of just discussing theories, Dr. Elliott will bring in industry professionals
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This Spring Quarter 2025, Dr. Julie Bokser is teaching WRD 203 Style for Writers, a core major class that helps students develop their ability to think and write effectively in a variety of genres. Read on to learn more about what this class entails and see why you should be excited to enroll this Spring Quarter! Course Goals and Learning Outcomes Dr. Bokser’s main goal for the course is to get students to think more deeply about language. By looking at the details of language use, like how sentences are structured, students can expect to learn how to make their
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