Jen Westmoreland
English Instructor
Phone: 651-450-3576
E-mail: jen.westmoreland@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: French and Francophone Studies -
University Of California-Los Angeles
Anthony Collins
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: LA-120
Phone: 651-450-3396
E-mail: acollins@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English Education -
Marquette University
Hilary Dahlman
E-mail: hdahlman@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Writing -
Hamline University
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English, General -
Metropolitan State University
Brian Dorr
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Phone: 651-450-3982
E-mail: bdorr@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) -
Majors: Business Administration and Management, -
Metropolitan State University
Master of Science (MS) -
Majors: Communication and Composition -
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Business Administration -
College of Saint Scholastica
Master of Business Administration (MBA) -
Majors: Business Administration and Management -
College of Saint Scholastica
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General -
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Lisa DuRose
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: L-225
Phone: 651-450-3341
E-mail: ldurose@inverhills.edu
Bio
Lisa DuRose is a first-generation college graduate who earned her B.A. in English at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Lisa went on to earn her M.A. and Ph.D. in English at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
She has taught in several Learning Communities at Inver Hills and currently co-directs the program. In addition, she serves as the English department coordinator. Her teaching specialties include 20th century American literature, composition studies and integrative learning.
Lisa teaches courses in:
- Composition
- The Novel
- Introduction to Literature
- The Short Story
- American Literature
Lisa has published her work in:
- The Journal of College and Character
- The Wallace Stevens Journal
- Prospects: An Annual of American Cultural Studies
- American Notes and Queries
- Rain Taxi
She has been teaching at Inver Hills since 2001 and is always energized by the students who inhabit her classroom and enrich her teaching with their diverse perspectives and experiences.
Outside the classroom, Lisa relishes her time with her family (her wife and their teenager) and can often be found gardening, cooking vegan specialties and indulging in the latest Netflix obsession.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit Gen -
Western Michigan University
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit Gen -
Western Michigan University
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit Gen -
Minors: Engl Tech/Busn Writing -
University Of Wisconsin-River Falls
Laura Funke
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes
Office: L-221
Phone: 651-450-3556
E-mail: lfunke@inverhills.edu
Bio
Laura has taught at Inver Hills since 2005. She teaches developmental writing, composition, and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses.
When she’s not teaching, Laura can be found chasing after her two sons, training for marathons, reading historical novels, studying Spanish, and watching documentaries.
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) - English, and Teaching English as a Second Language Minnesota State University, Mankato
Bachelor of Arts (BA) - English Education, Minor in Environmental Science Saint Olaf College
Eugene Gazelka
English Instructor
Office: LA-130
Phone: 651-450-3616
E-mail: eugene.gazelka@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
University Of Tennessee-Knoxville
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General -
The University Of West Florida
David Higgins
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: LA-123
Phone: 651-450-3736
E-mail: DHiggins@inverhills.edu
Bio
David Higgins completed his combined Ph.D. in English and American Studies at Indiana University. David earned his B.A. in English and History (with honors) at the University of Southern California. He is a specialist in 20th century American history and literature with a focus on science fiction and popular culture. His research explores imperial fantasy during the Cold War period and beyond.
David serves as the science fiction editor for the Los Angeles Review of Books and as an associate editor for the Journal for the Fantastic in the Arts. His article "Toward a Cosmopolitan Science Fiction," published in the June 2011 issue of American Literature, won the 2012 SFRA Pioneer Award for outstanding essay-length work of the year.
David has published in a number of journals, including:
- SFRA Pioneer Award
- American Literature
- Science Fiction Studies
- Science Fiction Film and Television
- SFRA Review
His work has appeared in edited volumes, including
- The Cambridge Companion to American Science Fiction
- Parabolas of Science Fiction
- Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy
David co-edited a special issue of Science Fiction Studies on "Science Fiction and Globalization" published in 2012. He is a division head for the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts (IAFA), where he reviews conference proposals and organizes presentation sessions for the Science Fiction division. He has served as a judge for the SFRA Pioneer Award and the Philip K. Dick Award.
At Inver Hills, David teaches composition and literature courses. He serves as campus coordinator for the Minnesota Undergraduate Scholars Program, and is the director of the Inver Hills Learning Communities program.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: American Studies, English -
Indiana University-Bloomington
Kathryn Klopfleisch
Instructor
Departments: English, Reading, Study Skills
Office: LA-116
Phone: 651-450-3273
E-mail: KKlopfleisch@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
MASTER OF ARTS (MA) -
Majors: ENGLISH -
MINNESOTA STATE UNIV MANKATO
Margaret LaFleur
English Instructor
Phone: 651-450-3307
E-mail: margaret.lafleur@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Writing -
University Of San Francisco
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Political Science and Government, General -
University Of Minnesota-Morris
Ellen Lansky
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: LA-124
Phone: 651-450-3660
E-mail: elansky@inverhills.edu
Bio
Ellen Lansky was born in Minneapolis and grew up in Overland Park, Kansas. She went to college at the College of St. Catherine in St Paul, MN (BA in English) and graduate school at SUNY-Binghamton (MA in English/Creative Writing) and the University of Minnesota (PhD in English). Her scholarly work on literature and addiction has appeared in Dionysos, Literature and Medicine, and several anthologies. She has written essays about the work and lives of Ernest Hemingway and Djuna Barnes, the Fitzgeralds, Dorothy Parker and Katherine Anne Porter, Jane and Paul Bowles, Carson McCullers and Tennessee Williams. Her essay “Under the Covers with Melissa Etheridge” appeared in Singing For Themselves: Essays on Women in Popular Music. Her fiction has appeared in many local and national publications, including Sugar Mule, Evergreen Chronicles, and Stiller's Pond. In September, 2011, North Star Press of St. Cloud published her first novel, Golden Jeep.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: English -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Engl Creative Writing -
Suny At Binghamton
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English -
College of St Catherine
Rachel MacDonald
E-mail: rachel.macdonald@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General -
University Of St Thomas
Nate Maertens
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Study Skills, Writing
Office: B-126
Phone: 651-450-3792
E-mail: NMaertens@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General -
San Francisco State University
Mary McCaslin Thompson
English Instructor
Department: English
Office: L-212
Phone: 651-450-3791
E-mail: MThompson@inverhills.edu
Bio
Interested in the intersection of academic literacy formation and personal development, Mary has focused her study on developmental composition pedagogy, literacy development in children and young adults with learning disabilities, and children's literature. She is also the co-editor of the essay collection The Academy and the Possibility of Belief: Essays on Intellectual and Spiritual Life. With her family, she manages a 20 acre patch of native prairie in western Wisconsin, where she studies the wildflowers and tends some honeybees.
At Inver Hills, she has served as the Coordinator for the English department and serves on the Inver Hills-Metropolitan State Community Garden advisory board, the Learning Communities advisory board, the InCollege Concurrent Enrollment Community Trustees board, and the Developmental Education Task Force. Her primary focus and best joy is in teaching students in her composition and literature classes.
Mary earned her BA in English and Certificate in Creative and Professional Writing at Saint Louis University. She completed the MA and doctoral coursework at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in Composition and Rhetoric. She also holds the Professional Certificate in Online Teaching from the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
Education Credentials:
Certificate of Completion (CEC) -
Majors: Writing -
Saint Louis University-Main Campus
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
Saint Louis University-Main Campus
Julie Nelson
English Instructor
Office: LA-130
Phone: 651-450-3455
E-mail: julie.nelson@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
MASTER OF FINE ARTS (MFA) -
Majors: CREATIVE WRITING -
MINNESOTA STATE UNIV MANKATO
BACHELOR OF ARTS (BA) -
Majors: ENGLISH -
CENTRAL UNIV OF IOWA
Nicholas Nownes
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: B-220
Phone: 651-450-3390
E-mail: NNownes@inverhills.edu
Bio
Nicholas Nownes earned his BA in liberal studies at California State University, Northridge, and completed his graduate studies at the University of Nebraska. At Inver Hills, he teaches composition and literature courses, and currently serves as faculty advisor to Accomplices, the College's arts and literary review.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: English -
University Of Nebraska At Lincoln
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English Composition -
Univ Of Nebraska At Omaha
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English/Liberal Studies -
California State University-Northridge
Erica Peterson
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Bio
Erica Peterson earned her Bachelor of Arts in English from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD, and her Master of Arts in English from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, SD. In 2006, she began teaching composition and literature courses at the University of South Dakota, and she has taught at Normandale Community College since 2008 and Dakota County Technical College since 2010. Erica is also part owner of a specialty food market that carries locally grown foods, and she lives on the free-range turkey farm where the market is located. (She can assure you that turkeys do not drown if they gaze skyward during a rainstorm, despite what you may have heard!) Erica finds it exciting when her two worlds—teaching and food/sustainability—merge in the classroom, and she has enjoyed occasionally bringing topics like food politics and agricultural issues into composition courses. Her greatest joy in the classroom is to see students grow as both writers and thinkers, and her hope is to inspire a love of lifelong learning. Erica and her husband live in the rolling hills of southeast Minnesota and have a little boy named Finn (who loves to impersonate the turkeys).
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English -
University Of South Dakota
Mary Petrie
English Instructor-summer
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: B-132
Phone: 651-450-3550
E-mail: MPetrie@inverhills.edu
Bio
Mary Petrie earned a BA in East Asian Studies with a minor in Chinese at Hamline University; she earned both an MA and PhD in English with minors in Feminist Studies at the University of Minnesota, where she also held a number of positions as an Administrative Fellow, including with the University of Minnesota's Commission on Women.
In addition to serving as a full-time faculty member in the English Department, Mary founded and teaches in the Gender and Women's Studies Department which offers an accelerated online Emphasis in Gender and Women's Studies. Mary is a certified peer reviewer for Quality Matters (QM), a nonprofit setting standards in online education; many of Mary's own courses are offered online and have earned certification as courses which meet QM standards.
Her teaching interests are in women writers, feminist theory, creative writing, and contemporary fiction. She is the recipient of a number of writing awards, including a Loft McKnight Creative Nonfiction Award, Minnesota State Arts Board Grant, and Creative Nonfiction Mentor Series; her writing has most recently appeared in the Rake Magazine, The Women's Colony (now defunct online magazine), and the New York Times, and her first play will be staged for Youth Performance Company's 2013-14 season. Prior to joining the IHCC faculty, Mary was the Executive Director of Farm in the City (an arts and environmental nonprofit) and she continues to dabble in a myriad of volunteer and community-service endeavors, largely related to environmental issues.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Feminist Studies -
University OF Minnesota
Master of Arts (MA) -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: East Asian Studies -
Hamline University
Beata Pueschner
English for Academic Purposes Instructor
Office: S-110
Phone: 651-450-3593
E-mail: BPueschner@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English -
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Bachelor of Science (BS) -
Majors: International Business -
Minors: Management -
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Jamie Randall
English Instructor
Phone: 651-450-3465
E-mail: jamie.randall@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
Augsburg University
Bachelor of Arts-Creative Writing (BA) -
Augsburg College
Associate of Fine Arts (AFA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
North Hennepin Community College
Associate of Arts (AA) -
North Hennepin Community College
William Reichard
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: B-125
Phone: 651-450-3845
E-mail: WReichard@inverhills.edu
Bio
William is an educator, author, and editor. He holds a Ph.D. in Twentieth Century American Literature, an M.A. in creative writing (poetry), and a B.A. in Film Studies, all from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.
He has taught both undergraduate and graduate level courses at the U of M (literary studies and creative writing), and undergraduate courses at the University of St. Thomas, St. Catherine University, and the College of St. Scholastica.
William has published seven collections of poetry, most recently Our Delicate Barricades Downed (2021) and The Night Horse: New and Selected Poems (2018). He is the editor of American Tensions: Literature of Identity and the Search for Social Justice, an anthology of contemporary fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction, and he revised and edited The Evening Crowd at Kirmser’s: A Gay Life in the 1940’s. He lives in Saint Paul.
Read about William Reichard Exhibiting Work at Friedli Gallery and Studio on Inver Hills News.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Film/Cinema/Media Studies -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Keith Richter
Writing Tutor Instructor of English
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: L-223
Phone: 651-450-3541
E-mail: KRichter@inverhills.edu
Bio
Even before Keith received his B.A. in anthropology in 1992 from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, he had already made up his mind to abandon archaeology and instead pursue a career teaching English. During his undergraduate years, he had become more interested in excavating texts and analyzing the cultures within those texts than digging square holes in the unforgiving earth and scrubbing rusty nails.
Keith received his M.A. in English from Kansas State University in Manhattan in December 1996, and nine months later, IHCC hired him as a writing tutor and a part time English instructor. While at IHCC, Keith has created a training course for tutors of English Language Learners, co-presented a session called “Beyond the Five-Paragraph Essay” at the Minnesota Association for Developmental Education Conference in 2009, attended the National Summer Institute on Learning Communities at The Evergreen State College in 2011, and presented a session called “Integrating College Readiness in LCOMs” at IHCC's Learning Community Institute in 2012.
Keith has taught full time since 2007, teaching mostly developmental and college-level composition, but his other teaching interests include American Indian fiction and gothic literature.
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: English -
Kansas State University
Wanda Synstelien
English Instructor-Summer
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: B217
Phone: 651-450-3261
E-mail: wsynstelien@inverhills.edu
Bio
Wanda Synstelien is an English Professor in the Department of English at Inver Hills Community College where she has been a faculty member since 2011. Previously, Wanda had been teaching since 2000 at Southwest Minnesota State University. Wanda will complete her Ph.D. in May 2013 at Iowa State University in addition to having already completed a Master's of Science in Education, a Masters of English, and an undergraduate degree in English with a teaching certificate.
Her research interests lie in the area of developing English curriculum and teaching strategies with a focus on online tools, resources and real world applications. Throughout her career, she has also focused on concurrent enrollment partnerships in order to better align educational systems. Wanda has worked on several university and college committees in addition to sitting on NACEP's research committee and serving as the co-chair for the IHCC CEP advisory board.
Education Credentials:
Certificate (CERT) -
Majors: Massage Therapy -
Saint Paul College
Certificate (CERT) -
Majors: Yoga Teacher Training -
Minneapolis Community and Technical College
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: Education Policy Studies -
Iowa State University
Master of Science (MS) -
Majors: Education -
Southwest Minnesota State University
Master of Business Administration (MBA) -
Majors: Business Administration -
St. Cloud State University
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
University Of Dallas
Master of Science in Education (MSED) -
Southwest Minnesota State University
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
University Of Dallas
Kristin Thoennes
English Instructor
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: B-133
Phone: 651-450-3494
E-mail: KThoennes@inverhills.edu
Bio
Kristin has a Masters degree in English (with an emphasis in Rhetoric and Composition) from St. Cloud State University. She taught at St. Cloud State University, the Minnesota School of Business, Anoka-Ramsey Community College, the University of Minnesota, and North Hennepin Community College before joining the English department at Inver Hills.
Kristin has been a trainer and consultant in business and industry, creating industry-specific curriculum and then teaching employees to improve their written communication skills. Kristin also has been a writer and editor for various publishing companies in Minneapolis and New York City. In those roles, she wrote over 40 children's nonfiction books; supplemental teachers' materials, feature pieces, and indexes for high school textbooks; and authors'/writers' guidelines for various publishing houses. She also is a successful grant writer and has taught community education classes in writing. She has been an online tutor trainer for a national company as well.
Kristin enjoys creative writing and has had a short story published in The Wisconsin Review. At Inver Hills, she teaches composition and professional writing courses, and she is a member of the Developmental Composition Committee and the Concurrent Enrollment Committee. Kristin lives in Minneapolis with her family and takes advantage of the many cultural opportunities the city offers.
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
Saint Cloud State University
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: Engl Lang/Lit, Gen -
Saint Cloud State University
Matt Williams
Instructor, English-Summer
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes, Student Services, Writing
Office: S-110
Phone: 651-450-3667
E-mail: MWilliams@inverhills.edu
Bio
The scholarly pursuits of Matthew Clark Williams fall within the tradition of critical composition studies. As such, his teaching and research explores the relationships between the production of meaning through language and broader social dynamics. The foundations for his work bridge many different areas, including: Pragmatism / Deweyan scholarship, history of education and schooling, political economy, educational anthropology / ethnography, history and theory of Liberalism, sociocultural theories of language, contemporary rhetorical theory, pedagogies from critical / Marxist / Left Hegelian traditions, and-of course-scholarship in composition studies.
He is currently working on a book that engages in a reconstruction and “Pragmatist Critique” of college preparation, particularly in regard to secondary/post-secondary writing instruction and hopes to see this published in the next year or two. When he's not in a classroom or writing in a Dinkytown coffee shop, he can usually be found in his garden, on his single-speed Surly bike, or at a Twins game.
Educational Background:
- PhD: Writing Studies, University of Minnesota: Twin Cities, 2012.
- MFA: Poetry, University of Minnesota: Twin Cities, 2007.
- BA: Philosophy and Humanities, University of Northern Iowa, 2004.
Education Credentials:
Doctor of Philosophy (PHD) -
Majors: Communications Technology/Technician -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
University Of Minnesota Twin Cities
Richard Carr
English Faculty
Departments: English, English For Academic Purposes
Office: LA-130
Phone: 651-450-3634
E-mail: richard.carr@inverhills.edu
Education Credentials:
Master of Arts (MA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
Bowling Green State University-Main Camp
Master of Fine Arts (MFA) -
Majors: Creative Writing -
Bowling Green State University-Main Camp
Bachelor of Arts (BA) -
Majors: English Language and Literature, General, Philosophy -
Macalester College