Tyler S. Branson joins the Writing Program after earning his Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition from Texas Christian University. Tyler received his BA in English from the University of Oklahoma and his MA in American studies from the University of Kansas. He also has a certificate from the Digital Humanities Summer Institute at the University of Victoria.
His expertise and range of study reflect in Tyler’s various teaching and publishing endeavors. He has taught many lower and upper division courses in writing and rhetoric and has published work on civic engagement in the humanities, the public sphere, and writing assessment. Tyler’s current project examines problematic partnerships in the field of Writing Studies and the role these partnerships play in representing the field to the larger public.
Tyler has many exciting publications and presentations in the upcoming year. His most recent and forthcoming publication, “Going Public in the Humanities: Undoing Myths and Facing Challenges,” he co-wrote with Sarah R. Robbins and will be featured in The Cambridge Handbook of Service Learning and Community Engagement. He notes on his blog, tylersbranson.wordpress.com, that the work “should be a vital contribution to engagement scholarship across disciplines.” He will be attending the Conference on College Composition and Communication in Houston Texas, where he will present his newest work, “Situating Problematic Partnerships in the Field of Composition.” This presentation follows many, as Tyler has presented his work at major conferences such as the MLA, the CCCC, Watson, and the RSA, which feature composition and rhetoric.
Tyler’s upcoming goals include conducting research and interviews for a larger book project on problematic partnerships, which will analyze key cases in writing MOOCs, the Common Core, and labor issues in Writing Studies. As he states, “My goal is that all the writing and teaching in store over the next few months will work as an incubator for a broader understanding of these ‘problematic partnerships,’ which, as I’m starting to see, and what I’ll eventually argue, is a huge part of the work we do and have been doing in the field for some time.”
In his spare time Tyler enjoys hiking, bike rides, and watching college football. He lives in Santa Barbara with his wife and their elderly cat named Beatrice. He will be teaching Writing 2 and Business Writing in the fall. You can read more about his teaching and research on his funny, interesting and insightful blog, http://tylersbranson.wordpress.com.
