Education

Ph.D., English, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2024

Dissertation: “Multidimensional Kinships: Black and Indigenous Environmental Thought”

Graduate Certificate, Multicultural and Transnational Literatures, East Carolina University, 2015

M.A., English, concentration in Creative Writing (Poetry), East Carolina University, 2012

B.A., English, Ohio University, 2009     

Specializations:  Native American/Indigenous literature, African American literature, Appalachian studies, Environmental Justice and Nature Writing, Ecocriticism             


Awards and Recognition

Poem “Blue Ghosts,” nominated by Moss Puppy Magazine for a Best of the Net Award, 09/2024

Recipient, High Country Humanities Travel Fund Award, 02/2024

Recipient, Keith Cushman Graduate Prize for Scholarly Publications for "The Politics of Recognition and the Power of Place in Lumbee Women's Poetry," 12/2023

Finalist, WCU College of Arts & Sciences Teaching Award, 02/2023

Attendee, Summer PhD Residency Program, National Humanities Center, 07/2020

“Faculty Favorite” WCU student-athlete (football) nominated award, 11/2019

Poem “The Mighty Ohio” was a finalist in the 2019 Still: The Journal poetry contest, 10/2019

“Faculty Favorite” WCU student-athlete (volleyball) nominated award, 09/2018

Recipient, UNCG Fowler-Feather Scholarship for Graduate Summer Study, 07/2019

Poem “In A Sleepy Little County” was a finalist in the Still: The Journal poetry contest, 09/2017


Scholarly Publications and Research

Edited Volumes

Special Issues

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

Book Chapters

Non-Peer Reviewed Scholarly Journal Contributions

Book Reviews

Digital Humanities


Creative Publications

Poetry

Creative Nonfiction


Conference Presentations and Invited Talks

American Studies Association, Baltimore, MD, 11/2024

  • “Environmental Kinship and Community Recognition in Lumbee Literature”

International Mountain Studies Conference, Boone, NC10/2024

  • “How Can Appalachian Journal Support Trans-Mountainous Connections?”

*Proposal accepted, but conference cancelled due to Hurricane Helene damage

Association for the Study of American Indian Literatures, virtual conference, 04/2024

  • “Environmental Kinship and Community Recognition in Lumbee Literature”

Appalachian Studies Association, Cullowhee, NC, 03/2024

  • “Moving (in the) Mountains: Disability and the Evolution of Place”

Southeastern Association of Cultural Studies, Charlotte, NC, 02/2024

  • “Expansive Environmentalism in the 19th century: Sarah Winnemucca, Hannah Crafts, and Tesseracting Planes”

Association for the Study of Literature and Environment (ASLE) Spotlight, virtual event, 02/2024

  • “Ecologies of Place and Resilience”

Rhetoric and Composition Institute event held by the English Department at Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, 02/2024

  • “Helping Students with Severe Mental Health Challenges”

Modern Language Association, Philadelphia, PA, 01/2024

  • “Dreaming a Decolonized Climate: Indigenous Technologies and Relations of Class and Kinship in Cherie Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves”

South Atlantic Modern Language Association, Atlanta, GA, 11/2023

  • “Natasha Trethewey and Being Native to Coastal Mississippi”

Association for the Study of Literature and Environment and Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences, virtual presentation, event held in Portland, OR, joint biennial conference, 07/2023

  • “Engaging TEK in Appalachia”

Hills and Hollers Non-Tenure Track virtual conference, 06/2023

  • “Doing Scholarship on the Non-Tenure Track”

Southeast Native Studies Annual Conference, Pembroke, NC, 03/2023

  • “The Politics of Recognition and the Power of Place in Lumbee Women’s Poetry”

New Directions in Indigenous Book History, virtual symposium, 03/2023

  • “Reading the Archive for Early Indigenous Children’s Literature”

Appalachian Studies Association, Athens, OH, annual conference, 03/2023

  • “The Importance of Including Indigenous Literature in Appalachian Studies”

  • I also participated in a reading from I Thought I Heard a Cardinal Sing: Ohio’s Appalachian Voices, edited by Kari Gunter-Seymour, Ohio’s Poet Laureate, as part of the Women of Appalachia Project.

August Wilson Society, Pittsburgh, PA, biennial colloquium, 03/2023

  • "August Wilson's Place in Affrilachian and Appalachian Literature"

Southeastern Association of Cultural Studies, Charlotte, NC, annual conference, 02/2023

  • “The Politics of Recognition and the Power of Place in Lumbee Women’s Poetry”

Shaw University, Raleigh, NC (via Zoom), 10/2022

  • “Poetry Forms, Their Craft, and Their Uses,” undergraduate poetry workshop taught by Austin Hart (Dept. of English).

Bluefield State College, Bluefield, WV (via Google Meet), 10/2022

  • “Appalachian Literature’s Global Connections,” undergraduate course titled “Regional and Ethnic Literature” taught by Dr. Sudakar Jamkhandi (Dept. of English).

Digital Humanities Collaborative of North Carolina, virtual presentation, event centered in Charlotte, NC, 04/2022                                           

  • “Recovering Native American Children’s Nature Writing”

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Highlands Biological Station Study Abroad Program, Highlands, NC, 11/2021                                                    

  • “Microcosms of Appalachia,” undergraduate biology/ecology study abroad students taught by instructors Brent Martin, John Lane, and Lilly Knoepp.

East Carolina University, Greenville, NC (via WebEx), 10/2021                         

  • “A Balancing Act: Navigating Writing, Teaching, and Scholarship,” graduate course titled “Creative Writing as a Profession” taught by John Hoppenthaler (Dept. of English).

Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment, virtual biennial conference, 07-08/2021

  • “Home is What You Make It: Remapping, Spatial Sovereignty, and Sense of Place in Lehua Taitano’s A Bell Made of Stones”

Appalachian Studies Association, virtual annual conference, 03/2021

  • “Queerness in Appalachian Lit: Interviews”

Bluefield State College, Bluefield, WV (via Zoom), 10/2020

  • “Appalachian Literature’s Global Connections,” undergraduate course titled “Regional and Ethnic Literature” taught by Dr. Sudakar Jamkhandi (Dept. of English)

Appalachian Studies Association, Lexington, KY, annual conference, 03/2020

  • “Fighting Homogenization and Queer Representation in Appalachian Literature”

    *Accepted, but conference canceled due to COVID-19

North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC (via Skype), 01/2020                          

  • “Appalachian Environmental Writing,” graduate course titled “Climate Change Science and Art” taught by Dr. Katherine Martin (Dept. of Forestry and Natural Resources).

South Atlantic Modern Language Association, Atlanta, GA, annual conference, 11/2019

  • “Tommy Pico’s Questioning of ‘Traditional Indianness’”

Emory and Henry Literary Festival (invited talk), Emory, VA, 10/2019

  • “Gothic Realism in Charles Dodd White’s Short Fiction”

Bluefield State College, Voices of the Mountains event, Bluefield, WV, 09/2019

  • Invited talk/reading from Mountains Piled upon Mountains

Appalachian Studies Association, Asheville, NC, annual conference, 03/2019

  • “The Frozen Deaths of Ron Rash”

  • I also organized a reading from Mountains Piled upon Mountains and participated in the Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel reading.

South Atlantic Modern Language Association, Birmingham, AL, annual conference, 11/2018

  • “Environmental Thought and the Importance of Place in Stephanie Powell Watts’s No One is Coming to Save Us

Appalachian Studies Association, Cincinnati, OH, annual conference, 04/2018

  • “Robert Gipe’s Trampoline and Appalachian Ecofeminism”

Pop Culture Association/American Studies Association Joint Conference, San Diego, CA, annual conference, 04/2017

  • “Seeking the Supernatural in South American Lit”

North Carolina Teaching and Learning Association, Asheville, NC, annual conference, 03/2017

  • “Mindfulness in Language” (co-presented with Carrie Murray, Pitt Community College)

Appalachian Studies Association, Blacksburg, VA, annual conference, 03/2017

  • “Merging Appalachia and Ecocriticism: The Examination of a Subgenre”

Humanities Education Research Association, San Francisco, CA, annual conference, 04/2015

  • “From Gatewood to Davis: How Technology Changes the Way We Write About the Appalachian Trail”

Duke Young Writer’s Camp, Durham, NC, 06/2014

  • “Nature and Environmental Poetry,” 6th-12th grade students taught by instructor Kevin Dublin

Northside High School, Pinetown, NC, 12/2011

  • “An Introduction to Reading and Interpreting Poetry,” 12th grade AP English course taught by Brandon Paul

Southeastern Writing Center Association, Tuscaloosa, AL, annual conference, 02/2011

  • “Here, And/Or There: Having Two Writing Centers on Campus”

English Graduate Student Organization, Greenville, NC, annual conference, 04/2011

  • “Buried Imagery: Poems from a Burial Ground”


Selected Conference and Panel Administration

Appalachian Studies Association annual conference, Cullowhee, NC, 03/2024

  • Chair, “Appalachian Environmental Creative Nonfiction” panel

Rooted in the Mountains annual symposium, Cullowhee, NC, 09/2023

  • Chair, “Appalachian Writing Communities” panel

Greensboro Bound Literary Festival, Greensboro, NC, 05/2023

  • Moderator, “Lost and Found in Indigenous America” panel

Rooted in the Mountains annual symposium, Cullowhee, NC, 09/2022

  • Chair, “Appalachian Mental Health Reflected in Literature” panel

Appalachian Studies Association annual conference, virtual, 03/2021

  • Chair, “Queer Appalachian Literature” panel

Appalachian Studies Association annual conference, Asheville, NC, 03/2019

  • Chair, “Reading from Mountains Piled upon Mountains” panel

Appalachian Studies Association annual conference, Cincinnati, OH, 04/2018

  • Chair, “Eco-Centered Modes and Frameworks of Appalachian Literature” panel


Academic Appointments and Teaching Experience

Appalachian State University, Boone, NC

  • Editor, Appalachian Journal: A Regional Studies Review, 2024-Present

  • Graduate Affiliate faculty, Appalachian Studies program, 2024-present

  • Affiliate faculty, English Department, 2024-Present

  • English Lecturer, 2023-2024

    • RC 2001: Introduction to Writing Across the Curriculum

    • ENG 2120: African American Literature

    • ENG 2040: World Literature (taught as Global Indigenous Literature)

Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC

  • English Associate Instructor, 2023

  • English Instructor, 2020-2023

  • English Lecturer, 2016-2020

    • ENGL 101: Writing and Rhetoric [including LC versions]

    • ENGL 202: Writing and Civic Life [including LC versions]

    • USI 130: University Studies [including with ASP program]

    • ENGL 206: Literature and the Environment

    • ENGL 429: Studies in Professional Writing (taught as Environmental and Nature Writing)

University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC

  • Copyeditor, School of Nursing, 2019-2021

Pitt Community College, Winterville, NC

  • Writing Center Coordinator, 2014-2016

Beaufort County Community College, Washington, NC

  • Writing Center Assistant Director/Lead Tutor, 2014

Beaufort County Community College, Washington, NC

  • Adjunct English Instructor, 2014

    • ENG 111: Writing and Inquiry

Miller-Motte College, Greenville, NC

  • Adjunct General Education/English Instructor, 2014

    • ENG 101: Composition I

Edgecombe Community College, Tarboro, NC

  • Adjunct English Instructor, 2013-2014

    • ENG 111: Writing and Inquiry

    • ENG 114: Professional Research and Reporting

    • DRE 099: Developmental Reading and English, Level 4

Craven Community College, New Bern, NC

  • Adjunct English Instructor, 2013-2014

    • ENG 111: Writing and Inquiry

    • ENG 112: Writing and Research in the Disciplines

    • ENG 114: Professional Research and Reporting

East Carolina University, Greenville, NC  

  • Graduate Teaching Assistant, 2011-2012

    • ENG 1100: Foundations of College Writing

    • ENG 1200: Composition

East Carolina University, Greenville, NC

  • University Writing Center Consultant, 2010-2012

East Carolina University, Greenville, NC

  • First-Year Writing Studio Consultant, 2010-2011

Americorps, Chillicothe, OH

  • GED Course Instructor/Intern with Ross County Children’s Services, 2007-2008


Service and Leadership

Academic Service

Appalachian State University

Department

  • FT RC Gen-Ed Faculty at large, RC Gen-Ed Program Committee

  • Cold Mountain Review Committee

  • Moderator, Capstone Day

College

  • Guest speaker (invited), graduate bib and methods seminar taught by Mr. Trevor McKenzie

    University

  • AppState MHFA Committee

  • Guest speaker (invited), “Portraying Indigenous Peoples: Educator, Cast and Crew Workshop” event

Western Carolina University

Department

  • Member, DEI and Writing Pedagogy Working Group,

  • Member, English Studies Department NTTF Collegiate Review Committee,

  • Guest speaker (invited), senior seminar on mental health taught  by Dr. Mae Miller Claxton

  • Assessor, WRCS Assessment Committee

  • Member, ENGL 202 Outcome Revision Working Group

  • Ink selection committee (served three nonconsecutive years)

  • Member, Joyner Fund Committee

  • Member, DCRD Revision Team

  • Member, Antiracist Writing Pedagogy Working Group

  • Member, ENGL 101 Outcome Revisions & Textbook Selection Working Group

  • ENGL 202 Textbook Selection Committee

  • Guest speaker (invited), literature and the environment course taught

    by Dr. Diane Martinez

  • Mentor, English Graduate Student Mentorship Program

    College

  • Moderator, 2018 Graduate Research Symposium

    University

  • Assessor, Liberal Studies Assessment (served three nonconsecutive years)

  • Guest Speaker on Plagiarism, Athletic Department

  • Virtual Academic Success Coach, 2020

  • Member, Rooted in the Mountains Symposium Planning Committee

  • Panelist, Student Athletic Association

  • Panelist, First Generation College Student Celebration

  • First Generation Student Advocate

  • Mentor, MAPS Mentoring Program

Pitt Community College

  • Tutorial and Academic Success Center Advisory Council

  • Volunteer Procter, Early College High School

East Carolina University

  • Discussion leader/panel facilitator (invited), Showing of The Lesser Blessed followed by discussion, Dr. Jessica Bardill, event organizer

  • English Graduate Student Organization Vice President

  • English Graduate Student Organization Treasurer

  • Guest speaker (invited), folklore course taught by Dr. Jim Kirkland

Community Service

Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, Ars Poetica Exhibit, Blowing Rock, NC

  • Poetry Judge

West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Poetry Competition, Lewisburg, WV

  • Poetry Competition Judge

Greensboro Bound Literary Festival, Greensboro, NC                                                          

  • Member, Author Selection Committee

Asheville Farmstead School, Candler, NC                                                       

  • Secretary, Board of Directors

  • Member, Board of Directors

Eppes Middle School, Greenville, NC

  • Volunteer, “Poetry on Demand” table, Art and Literature Night hosted by Pitt County PAGE

Service to the Profession

Mentor, American Studies Association’s Environmental Justice Caucus

First Reader, CNF

Manuscript Reviewer

Article Reviewer


Trainings and Certifications

Updated First Gen Student Advocate Training, 1/2023

Instructor Training, Mental Health First Aid, 10/2021

Step UP! Bystander Intervention, 3/2021

Bi+ Certified (additional certification through SafeZone), 10/2020

UNC Coaching Skills Seminar, 10/2020

Teaching Online with Impact (updated), Summer 2020

Teaching Online with Impact (pilot,) Summer 2019

GreenZone Certification, 9/2017

SafeZone Certification, 2/2017


Professional Memberships

Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment

Native American and Indigenous Studies Association

Appalachian Studies Association

American Studies Association

North Carolina Writers’ Network

Association for the Study of American Indian Literatures

Alternate ROOTS

Council of Editors of Learned Journals