Degrees (including institutions): MA (1988) and PhD (1993) from University of South Carolina

BA (1985) from Clemson University

Awards/Honors: Distinguished Research Professor, AUM

Elizabeth Agee Prize, from University of Alabama Press for Mark Twain, Travel Books, and Tourism (Tuscaloosa: U of Alabama Press 2002).

Activities (academic and civic): Co-founder of the professional organization Society for American Travel Writing; inaugural Steering Committee member of the International Society for Travel Literature; member of the Mark Twain Circle of America, South Atlantic Modern Language Association, and Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment.

I chose to teach because… I simply never wanted to leave college. I watched my professors and always wondered what it would be like on the other side of the podium. I was excited by the prospect of always talking about ideas and the power of language to move people emotionally and intellectually.

My greatest joy in teaching is… listening to students explain an idea that they have discovered while reading, or seeing in their eyes that moment of “Oh, yeah. I get it.” I know that may sound hokey, but it is true. As I say many of the same things semester after semester, I still find joy in the moments of interaction between the students and a variety of ideas.

I chose to work at AUM because… I respected the mission of the university and believed that it served a vital role in the region. I was impressed likewise with the faculty the Department of English and Philosophy whose members were active, highly successful as scholars but always kept a caring focus on the needs of their students. All of that was clear to me in the interview process, and I knew that I would be comfortable here. Fourteen years later I remain proud to be a part of AUM and hope I serve the institution and the student body well.

My passion(s) is/are… my family. That is an obvious but true statement. Outside of that, I feel deeply about literature and writing and how transformative both can be. I am also deeply moved by musical expression and the natural landscape.

My philosophy of teaching is… based around drawing out students by encouraging them to open their minds and hearts to literature and their own writing and to recognize how rewarding their intimate interactions with language can be. I believe, notwithstanding all my talking in the classroom, the best learning is simply a process of discovery for the students. My job is to set up a climate for that individual journey, to organize a course and to say, in effect, “look at this” and then help them to tell me what they see.

When I have free time, I… get outdoors whenever possible. I listen to music or play guitar

The craziest thing I’ve done is… this must remain a mystery. 

If I knew I could not fail, I would… sign up to play Carnegie Hall, enter the U.S. Open Tennis tournament, and publish the next great American novel all in the same weekend.