Webb-Sunderhaus 1

Dr. Sara Webb-Sunderhaus

Department of English and Linguistics
Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne
2101 E. Coliseum Boulevard Ft. Wayne, IN 46805
260-481-0153 webbs@ipfw.edu
ACADEMIC POSITION
Associate Professor, Department of English and Linguistics, Indiana University-Purdue
University Fort Wayne (IPFW), 2006present. Promoted and tenured 2013.
EDUCATION
Ph.D., English. The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 2006.
Dissertation: Composing Identities: Appalachian Students, Literacy, and Identity in the
Composition Classroom.
Committee: Beverly J. Moss (chair), Harvey J. Graff, and Patrick B. Mullen.
Specialization: Rhetoric, Composition, and Literacy
Areas of Concentration: Literacy, Language, and Writing in Marginalized Communities
M.A., English. Miami University, Oxford, OH, 2001.
Areas of Concentration: Twentieth-Century American Literature and Theorizing Feminist
Performances
B.A., English with 7-12 Teacher Certification. Bluffton College, Bluffton, OH, 1995.
PUBLICATIONS
Books
Rereading Appalachia: Literacy, Place, and Cultural Resistance. Co-edited with Kim Donehower.
Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, December 2015.
Articles
Keep the Appalachian, Drop the Redneck: Tellable Student Narratives of Appalachian Identity.
College English, forthcoming September 2016.

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Its Me and the Adjuncts: Writing Program Administration and Marginalized

Students/Teachers. Open Words: Access and English Studies 6.1 (2012): 19-32.
The Kairotic Moment: Pragmatic Revision of Basic Writing Instruction at Indiana
University-Purdue University Fort Wayne. With Stevens Amidon. Composition Forum 23
(Spring 2011).
When Access Is Not Enough: Retaining Basic Writers at an Open-Admission University.
Journal of Basic Writing 29.2 (2010): 102-121.
A Family Affair: Competing Sponsors of Literacy in Appalachian Students Lives.
Community Literacy Journal 2.1 (2007): 5-24. Print. Reprinted in: The Norton Book
of Composition Studies. Ed. Susan Miller. New York: W.W. Norton, 2009.
Deep Shit: A Dialogue About Rhetoric, Pedagogy, and the Working Class. With John Paul
Tassoni and Richard Lee Walts. Open Words: Access and English Studies 1.2 (2007): 24-47.
Book chapters
Life Gets in the Way: The Case of a Seventh-Year Senior. Retention, Persistence, and Writing
Programs. Ed. Todd Ruecker, Dawn Shepherd, Heidi Estrem, and Beth Brunk Chavez.
Forthcoming, Utah State University Press.
Re-Shaping Literacy Studies: A Theory ofand forAppalachia. Rereading Appalachia:
Literacy, Place, and Cultural Resistance. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2015.
179-198. Print.
Introduction. With Kim Donehower. Rereading Appalachia: Literacy, Place, and
Cultural Resistance. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2015. 1-12. Print.
The Kairotic Moment (with new afterword). With Stevens Amidon. Ecologies of Writing
Programs: Profiles of Writing Programs in Context. Ed. Mary Jo Reiff, Anis Bawarshi,
Michelle Ballif, and Christian Weisser. Anderson, SC: Parlor Press, 2015. 22-40. Print.
Living with Literacys Contradictions: Appalachian Students in a First-Year Writing
Course. Reclaiming the Rural: Essays on Literacy, Rhetoric, and Pedagogy. Ed. Kim
Donehower, Charlotte Hogg, and Eileen E. Schell. Carbondale: Southern Illinois
University Press, 2011. 207-221. Print.
Work in Progress

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Literacy Beliefs and Practices of Appalachian Academics. Currently analyzing data for this book
project, which will focus on how Appalachian literacies and identities evolve as they
progress through their education and into their professional careers.
Bibliography Entries
Annotation of Michelle Navarre Clearys How Antonio Graduated On Out of Here: Improving the
Success of Adult Students with an Individualized Writing Course for Bedford Bibliography of
Basic Writing. Ed. Robert Miller and Chitralekha Duttagupta. New York: Bedford/St.
Martins, forthcoming.
Annotation of Gary Tate, John McMillan, and Elizabeth Woodworths Class Talk for Bedford
Bibliography of Basic Writing. Ed. Gregory Glau and Linda Adler-Kassner. New York:
Bedford/St. Martins, 2002. 87-88. Print.
Annotation of Gail Stygalls Unraveling at Both Ends: Anti-Undergraduate Education, AntiAffirmative Action, and Basic Writing at Research Schools for Bedford Bibliography of
Basic Writing. Ed. Gregory Glau and Linda Adler-Kassner. New York: Bedford/St. Martins,
2002. 23. Print.
EDITORIAL EXPERIENCE
Guest Editor, ProfHacker, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Washington, DC, January 2011.
Web.
FELLOWSHIPS AND GRANTS
Purdue Research Foundation Summer Faculty Grant. Purdue University, 2013. $8,000.
Summer Faculty Grant. IPFW, 2010. $8,000.
Dissertation Fellowship. The Ohio State University, Department of English, Winter 2006.
Carnegie Initiative Teaching Development Fellowship. The Ohio State University,
Department of English, Summer 2005.
Conference Scholarship. Appalachian Studies Association, Spring 2005.
Critical Difference for Women Professional Development Grant. The Ohio State
University, Fall 2004.

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College of Humanities Graduate Research Small Grant. The Ohio State University, Fall
2003.
University Fellowship. The Ohio State University, 2001-2002.
Graduate Education Enrichment Fund Travel Grant. Miami University, Fall 2000, 2001.
Graduate Student Association Travel Assistance Fund Grant. Miami University, Fall 2000, 2001.
Graduate Summer Scholarship. Miami University, Summer 2000, 2001.
AWARDS AND HONORS
Project #mobileEDU. IPFW, 2011.
Robert Hacke Scholar-Teacher Award. College English Association. 2009. $550.
Nominee, Student Choice Award for Teaching Excellence. IPFW, 2009.
Finalist, Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum. The Ohio State University, Spring 2004.
Preparing Future Faculty Fellow. The Ohio State University, 2003-2004.
Carolyn Washburn Houtchens Award in Literature. Miami University, Spring 2001.
Phi Kappa Phi, National Honor Society. Miami University, Spring 2001.
INVITED TALKS
Theorizing Appalachian Literacy Research. Keynote address, Celebration of Scholarship
Conference. Shawnee State University. Portsmouth, OH, April 2016.
Re-Reading Appalachia: Literacies of Resistance. Department of English Graduate
Workshop. The Ohio State University. April 2013.
Appalachians Re-Shaping the Academy. Public lecture sponsored by Literacy
Studies@OSU and the Composition, Rhetoric, and Literacy program in the
Department of English. The Ohio State University. April 2013.

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Competing Sponsors of Literacy in Appalachian Students Lives. English 501: Teaching

College English. The University of Louisiana at Lafayette. February 2010 and 2011.
Overview of Literacy Studies. English C517. IPFW. March 2008.
Appalachian Students, Literacy, and Identity in the Composition Classroom. English
Club. IPFW. March 2007.
I Walk the Line: Surviving and Thriving in Graduate School. Graduate School Workshop.
Otterbein College. Westerville, OH, April 2004.

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
Re-Shaping Literacy Studies: A Theory ofand forAppalachia. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. Houston, April 2016.
Rhetorical Theories of Appalachian Literacy. Conference on College Composition and
Communication. Indianapolis, March 2014.
A Narrative Can Be Explained in More Ways than One: Digital Media and the Transition
from Basic to First-Year Writing. Conference on College Composition and
Communication. Las Vegas, March 2013.
Mapping Appalachia: Current Research in Literacy Studies. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. St. Louis, March 2012.
Scholarly Resistance: Appalachians Re-reading the Academy. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. St. Louis, March 2012.
Writing in Crisis: Retaining Basic Writers during Difficult Times. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. Atlanta, April 2011.
Retention Practices and the Work of Basic Writing. Thomas R. Watson Conference.
Louisville, October 2010.
Writing the First Year: Retaining Basic Writers. Conference on College Composition and
Communication. Louisville, March 2010.

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Literacy Inside and Out: The Retention of Basic Writers. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. Louisville, March 2010.
Basic Writing and Retention. Fort Wayne Teaching Conference. Fort Wayne, IN,
February 2010.
We're All in This Together: Collective Identities, Classroom Space. Feminism(s) and
Rhetoric(s) Conference. East Lansing, MI, October 2009.
Curricular Design, Basic Writing Courses, and Student Success. College English
Association. Pittsburgh, March 2009.
All in the Family: The Influence of Multi-Generational Literacy on the Composition
Scholar. Conference on College Composition and Communication. New Orleans,
April 2008 (in absentia).
Mapping Identities: Place-Based Literacies in the Composition Classroom. National
Council of Teachers of English. New York City, November 2007 (in absentia).
I Thought She Would Like It: Appalachian Students Performance of Identity in the
Composition Classroom. Conference on College Composition and Communication. New
York City, March 2007.
(Re)Inventing the University: Appalachian Students Composing Community in the
Composition Classroom. Conference on College Composition and Communication. Chicago,
March 2006.
Resisting the Connection: Appalachian Students in the College Composition Classroom.
Appalachian Studies Association. Dayton, OH, March 2006.
Community, Identity, and Resistance in Appalachian Composition Courses. Women of
Appalachia Conference. Zanesville, OH, October 2005.
A Space of Ones Own: Appalachian Students Creating Community in a College
Composition Classroom. College English Association. Indianapolis, March 2005.
Community, Literacy, and Identity: Appalachian Students in the College Composition
Classroom. Appalachian Studies Association. Radford, VA, March 2005.
Balancing Acts: Appalachian Students Negotiating Literacy and Identity in a College

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Composition Classroom. National Council of Teachers of English Assembly for Research

Mid-Winter Conference. Columbus, OH, February 2005.
Higher Learning: Literacy Practices and Beliefs of Appalachian College Students. Women of
Appalachia Conference. Zanesville, OH, October 2004.
Thats What Friends Are For? The Case of an Appalachian College Student. College English
Association of Ohio. Columbus, OH, April 2004.
It Dont Matter if Youre Black or White? Student Reaction to Feminist Pedagogy. Conference
on College Composition and Communication. San Antonio, March 2004.
Thats What Friends Are For? The Case of an Appalachian Student. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. San Antonio, March 2004.
And Never the Two Shall Meet? The Role of the Teacher in Classical Rhetorical and Feminist
Pedagogies. Feminism(s) and Rhetoric(s) Conference. Columbus, OH, October 2003.
Killing Me (None Too) Softly: A Young Feminist T.A. Negotiates Authority, Critical Pedagogies,
and Gender. Midwest Modern Language Association. Minneapolis, November 2002 (in
absentia).
I Will Remember You: Death Narratives in an Urban Appalachian Family. American Folklore
Society. Rochester, New York, October 2002.
The Story of Truth: Representations of Domestic Violence in Early Modern and TwentiethCentury Literature. Northeast Modern Language Association. Toronto, April 2002.
Whats a Working Class, Urban Appalachian Doing in a Place Like This? A Graduate Students
Experience. Conference on College Composition and Communication. Denver, March
2001.
Materialist Feminist Mimesis in the Theatre of Caryl Churchill. Midwest Modern Language
Association. Kansas City, Missouri, November 2000.
In A Sweat Over Sweat: One Students Experience Writing a Summary. Conference on College
Composition and Communication. Minneapolis, April 2000.
RESEARCH SEMINARS

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Dartmouth Summer Seminar for Composition Research, August 2015.

ADMINISTRATIVE EXPERIENCE
IPFW
Associate Director of Writing, 2016-present.
English W129 Course Coordinator, 2008-2014.
Writing Center Director, 2006-2007.
Ohio State University
Peer Writing Consultant Director, The Writing Workshop/Center for the Study and
Teaching of Writing, 2004-2005.
Graduate Administrative Associate, The Writing Workshop, 2002-2003, 2004-2005.
Placement Reader, The Writing Workshop, 2002-2003, 2004-2005.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
IPFW (Assistant Professor 2006-2013; Associate Professor 2013-present)
Undergraduate
English W129: Introductory Elementary Composition
English W130: Principles of Composition
English W131: Elementary Composition I (some sections online)
English W395: Individual Study of Writing
Folklore F101: Introduction to Folklore
Womens Studies W225: Gender, Sexuality, and Popular Culture
Womens Studies W302: Gender, Violence, and Popular Culture
Cross-listed
English W397/C507:
English W460/B502:
English W462/C682:
English W462/C682:
Folklore F430/F512:

Introduction to Writing Center Theory and Practice

Introduction to Literacy Studies
Composing Communities (cross-listed with FOLK F430)
Women and Literacy (cross-listed with WOST W302)
Composing Communities

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Womens Studies W302: Women and Literacy (cross-listed with ENG W462/C682)
Graduate
English C517: Professional Scholarship in Writing Studies
English C697: Independent Study in Writing
English C780: Composition in the 21st Century (online course)
English C780: Teaching on the Margins
The Ohio State University (Graduate Teaching Associate, 2002-2006)
English 109.01: Intensive Reading and Writing
English 109.02: Intensive Reading and Writing
English 110.01: First-Year English Composition
English 110.03: Intensive First-Year English CompositionService Learning
English 367.01: The U.S. ExperienceService-Learning
English 367.01: The U.S. Experience
English 367.06: Composing CommunitiesAppalachia, Folkways, and Language
English 467: Writing and Learning (apprentice to Dr. Beverly J. Moss)
Miami University (Graduate Teaching Associate, 1999-2001)
English 111: College Composition
English 112: College Composition and Literature
English 112: College Composition and Literature-Pilot Course

WRITING CENTER EXPERIENCE

Writing Center Consultant, The Ohio State University, 2001.
University College Basic Writing and ESL Writing Center Tutor, University of
Cincinnati, 1997-1999.
SERVICE
Profession
National Council of Teachers of English
Judge, Norman Mailer Writing Awards, 2014.

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College Section Reviewer, NCTE Annual Convention, 2014.

Selection Committee, Richard Ohmann Award for Outstanding Article in College
English, 2014.
Conference on College Composition and Communication
Co-Creator and Chair, Special Interest Group on Appalachian Literacies and
Rhetorics, 2012-present.
Stage I Proposal Reviewer, CCCC Annual Convention, 2013, 2015, 2016.
Council on Basic Writing
Executive Board, 2013-present.
Executive Board Community Committee, 2012-2013.
Review Work
Manuscript Reviewer, Basic Writing e-Journal (BWe), 2014; College English, 2013-2015;
Journal of Basic Writing, 2015-2016; Journal of Research in Rural Education, 2014;
Research in the Teaching of English, 2002.
Textbook and Digital Tools Reviewer, Cengage, McGraw-Hill, Pearson.
External Reviewer, Bluffton University Research Center Summer Grant proposals, 2012.
University
IPFW
Summit Scholars Competition Essay Evaluation Committee, 2015.
Peer Review Subcommittee, Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching,
2009-2015.

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Developmental Studies Subcommittee, Faculty Senate, 2012-2015. Chair, 2013-2014.

Mentor, Student Research and Creative Endeavor Symposium, 2014.
Mentor, Summer Writing and Project Development Institute, Center for the Enhancement
of Teaching and Learning, 2013.
Advisory Board, Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching, 2009-2012.
Chapman Scholars Essay Competition Evaluation Committee, 2010.
Women Faculty Network, 2006-2007.
Ohio State University
Founding Steering Committee Member, Graduate Student Interdisciplinary Seminar
on Literacy Studies, The Ohio State University, 2005-2006.
Holistic Essay Scorer, Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing, The Ohio State
University/Central Ohio Technical College, April 2005.
Early English Composition Assessment Program (EECAP) Participant, Center for the
Study and Teaching of Writing, The Ohio State University, April 2002, November
2002.

College (all at IPFW)

Symposium on Teaching and Learning Planning Committee, 2011-2016.
Womens Studies Program Committee, 2012-2015.
Assessment Committee, 2008-2010. Chair, 2009-2010.
Department

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IPFW
Tenure and Promotion Committee, 2015-2016.
Scholarships and Awards Committee, 2014-2015.
Faculty Review Committee, 2013-2015.
Composition Committee, 2006-2007 and 2008-2014. Chair, 2009-2010 and 2012-2013.
Rhetoric/Composition Faculty Research Group, 2006-present.
Graduate Studies Committee, 2007-2009 and 2011-2013.
English W129 Subcommittee Chair, 2009-2010.
Faculty-Student Reading Series co-host, Fall 2007.
Ohio State University
The Collaborative (Digital Media Project), 2003-2006.
Graduate Peer Mentor, 2002-2003, 2004-2005.
Graduate Student Representative, Composition Graduate Course Offerings
Subcommittee, 2002.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
Appalachian Studies Association
College English Association
Council on Basic Writing
Conference on College Composition and Communication
National Council of Teachers of English

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