Welcome from the Chair

With this first issue of our Iowa State University English department magazine, Between the Lines, I am happy to reconnect with our alumni and friends to share some highlights from our current activities and invite you to do the same. We know that after studying literature, linguistics, creative writing, and technical communication with us at Iowa State, you have put your education to work in many interesting ways. The goal of Between the Lines is to build the English department community by sharing the stories of our students and alumni.

Tessa Brow (B.A. in English, 2012) is in the ideal position to help make connections between current and past Cyclones. As explained in the first article, Tessa helps students chart their path to a fulfilling future as the director of LAS Career Services at Iowa State. Her office navigates this important work in part through the use of the CyHire tool, where Iowa State alumni can list their internships and job opportunities when they want to hire another Cyclone. As English department alumni, you know where to look to find other great communicators when you are in a position to hire. You can reach CyHire at https://cyhire.iastate.edu/.

You can be sure that the English department, as in the past, continues to develop students’ communication skills. The next two articles provide a glimpse of some of the current efforts. First, all English majors are invited to take the technical communication internship course to provide them with work experience in communication and an opportunity to reflect on the experience. The course hones the communication skills students have developed in English courses while building their professional identities as responsible communicators. Second, students in English 3120, Communicating Science and Public Engagement, are getting practice with one of the most valued communication skills—tuning a message to an audience—by conveying science concepts to a middle school audience. They meet in beautiful spaces such as the Ames Public Library and Reiman Gardens to welcome children from all over Ames and neighboring towns who are interested in learning more about science.

English department alumni Ramsey Tesdell and Tom Lindsley are two of the people who are helping to identify other relevant experiences for Iowa State students through their service on the Technical Communications Advisory Board. The advice and support from these technical writers are welcomed by faculty who are working to meet the new demands in a field looking for employees who are not only good ommunicators but also effective navigators of new AI-based tools.

For the last four years, our department has worked closely with John Deere to provide them with a communication training program in the summer. This program has expanded every year and has become an integral part of outreach for the department. This program also helps inform curriculum development of our advanced communication courses. Our relationship with John Deere exemplifies the importance communication plays in the workplace and illustrates how the skills we teach in the department are integral to workplace success.

Alumnus Taylor Sklenar has remained in Ames to teach in the English department. He took the opportunity to partner the students in the Creative Writing and the Environment program with a local bookstore to host regular events for emerging writers in our department. English department
students benefit from the monthly meetings where they share their work with a broader audience.

Lydia Lee, an undergraduate student majoring in English and Music, has also had a chance to present her research—thanks
to the mentorship of Prof. Abby Dubisar. Dubisar teaches students like Lydia how to turn their own ideas into research projects that are fueled by their own interests. The knowledge and practices they learn from the mentored research process empower them to present themselves as creative and capable problem solvers in the job market.

I hope the stories in this issue will prompt you to reconnect with us. Please let us know where life has taken you and what you are doing. You can send us a note at chair_engl@iastate.edu.

Going forward, we plan to send out two issues of Between the Lines per year, one in print and electronic format (in November) and the other in electronic format only (in April/May). I hope you enjoy our first issue.

Best,
Volker Hegelheimer
Chair, Department of English