Teaching Philosophy:

Rooted in Biblical principles, experience, study, and the counsel of respected mentors, my philosophy of teaching responds to Jesus鈥� core teaching that his disciples are to 鈥渓ove the Lord their God with all their heart and with all their soul and with all their mind鈥� and to love their neighbor as they love themselves.鈥� (Matt 22:37-39). My teaching practice鈥攁 skill and an art–has become more effective as my relationship with the holy triune God and understanding of His vast creation has deepened. This journey I share in precept and practice with my fellow students in the classroom and beyond. Through our conversation, study, and practice we aim to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). Together, we learn the value of the careful use of words, the joy of an apt phrase, and the power of a penetrating story. We learn to question and be questioned with grace. We learn to empathize with the downcast and champion the mistreated. Together, we learn to love God and their neighbor.

Approaching writing as a series of ongoing discoveries, one of my favorite quotes is, “No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader” (Robert Frost).聽 Since coming to Houghton in 2000, I have taught Writing in the Liberal Arts, Literary Non-Fiction, Narrative and Personal Essay, Writing about Spiritual Experience, and special topics courses such as Feature and Opinion Writing.

As the Director of the Writing Center, I train and oversee the Writing Center student consultants, have hosted the Penn-York 黑料科 Research Conference as well as a regional writing center research conference, and serve as the liaison to area high schools offering dual high school- and college-credit literature and writing courses.聽 I聽 have a three-year grant that allows me to work on multiple independent studies with students who travel with me and present their work at the National 黑料科 Research Conference.

My publications include biographical entries on Maya Angelou, Henri M. Nouwen, and Richard J. Foster, which have been published in The Encyclopedia of Women’s Autobiography and The Encyclopedia of Christian Literature, respectively.聽 Additionally, I write feature articles for The Cuba Patriot, a regional newspaper, covering places and news such as The Farmers’ Market, Addie’s Ice Cream, The Csehy Summer School of Music, and Wellspring Ministries.

I enjoy baking, walking, swimming, photography, reading and writing poetry, and wordplay.聽 My family and I reside in Caneadea, NY, at Rushford Lake.