Professional and Educational Background: I graduated from the University of North Florida in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in French. I continued at UNF for my graduate work and graduated in 2012 with a Master of Arts in English literature. In 2014, I began teaching at Tallahassee Community College as an adjunct instructor, before coming to NFC for Spring 2019.
Why I Chose This Field of Study: I teach English, both writing and literature, though literature is my specialty. I initially chose to study literature, because I am a writer and avid reader. I believe in the importance and power of stories and storytelling, and I ultimately wanted to bring that to the classroom. There is a sort of universality of storytelling, something that connects everyone. I tell my students this, and it has continued to remind me why I study it.
An Interesting Fact About Myself: An interesting fact about myself is that I used to work for Disney. I first worked at a water park (where I met my wife), but I moved over to work at Magic Kingdom, where I was a ride operator for several rides including Dumbo and the Little Mermaid.
What I Love Most About Teaching: In all of my courses, I deliberately try to expose my students to diverse voices. I actively choose readings for my students from interesting people and voices that are unfamiliar, and I deliberately try to expose them to contemporary voices like Zadie Smith, Kelly Link or Neil Gaiman. I want them to be aware of the fact that literature is more than just a bunch of boring dead white guys, and that writings that are important can also be interesting. I designed my course on graphic novels with this in mind. I wanted my students to see that comic books, even ones about superheroes, could say something important.
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