Course Spotlight — WRD 264: Language, Self, and Society

How do our personal language experiences fit into larger social frameworks? This Autumn Quarter 2025, Professor Margaret Poncin Reeves seeks to answer just that in WRD 264: Language, Self, and Society. I sat down with Professor Poncin Reeves to discuss in detail what this course entails—read on to learn why you should enroll!  What are your goals for the course and what can students hope to learn?  In this course, students will think about how their personal language backgrounds connect to larger societal patterns. The course is primarily focused on the U.S., but investigates the diversity of language in the

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Alumni Spotlight – Madeline Crozier

MAWRD alum and current PhD candidate Madeline Crozier started working in DePaul’s Writing Center in 2017 as an undergraduate student and garnered a sense of purpose that she has taken with her throughout her career. During her time at DePaul, she found an understanding of the power of mission-minded work and scholarship. “I found [at the Writing Center] shared values, beliefs, a core understanding of learning, and a sense of shared mission.”  Through her current role as the Graduate Assistant Director of the Writing Center at the University of Tennessee (UT), MAWRD alum Madeline Crozier is fulfilling a sense of

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Course Recap – WRD 532: Content Strategy

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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Student Spotlight – Tabitha Jou Yi

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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Faculty Spotlight — Dr. Michael Gallaway  

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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Event Recap: Branding and Copywriting with Professor Nancy LaFever 

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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Course Spotlight – WRD 288: Rhetoric and Popular Culture

*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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Course Spotlight – WRD 377: Writing and Social Engagement: From Hip Hop To Hashtags

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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Course Spotlight – WRD 511: Rhetorics of Displacement

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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Event Recap — Dr. V Jo Hsu’s “The Story Begins with a Sundering”

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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