Ashley Starling Patriarca

Education
Virginia Tech (May 2013)
Ph.D., Rhetoric and Writing
University of North Carolina at Charlotte (May 2007)
M.A., English
Field of Concentration: Technical and Professional Writing
University of Alabama at Birmingham (May 2003)
B.A., English and Communication Studies
Magna cum Laude

Academic Employment
West Chester University of Pennsylvania (August 2013-present)
Assistant Professor of English (International Business Writing)

Dissertation
Safety at the Margins: A Rhetorical Analysis of Occupational Risk Communication in
Construction
Committee Members: Carlos Evia (chair), Jim Dubinsky, Carolyn Rude, Quinn
Warnick

Publications
Review of Managing Corporate Social Responsibility: A Communication Approach, by W.
Timothy Coombs and Sherry J. Holladay. Technical Communication 60.2
(2013): 151-152.
Beyond Compliance: Participatory Translation of Safety Communication for Latino
Construction Workers. With Carlos Evia. Journal of Business and Technical
Communication 26.3 (2012): 340-367.
Review of Risk and Crisis Communications: Methods and Messages, by Pamela
(Ferrante) Walaski. Technical Communication 59.4 (2012): 346-347.

Review of Technical Communication Strategies for Today, by Richard JohnsonSheehan. Technical Communication 59.2 (2012): 172-173.
Review of Writing for Conferences: A Handbook for Graduate Students and Faculty, by
Leo Mallette and Clare Berger. Technical Communication 59.2 (2012): 158-159.
Review of Envisioning Collaboration: Group Visual-Verbal Composing in a System of
Creativity, by Geoffrey A. Cross. Technical Communication 58.4 (2011): 334-335.
Research Centers as Change Agents: Reshaping Work in Rhetoric and Writing.
With Brian Gogan, Kelly Belanger, and Megan Fisher. College Composition and
Communication 62.2 (2010): 336-363.
Review of Risk Communication: A Handbook for Communicating Environmental, Safety,
and Health Risks, by Regina E. Lundgren and Andrea H. McMakin. Technical
Communication 57.2 (2010): 225-226.

Conference Presentations
Finding a Place for Grant Writing Pedagogy. Conference on College Composition
and Communication. Tampa, FL. March 2015. (Accepted)
Nonprofit Rhetorics: How NPOs Envision and Frame Their Work for Public
Audiences. Association for Business Communication 79th Annual
International Conference. Philadelphia, PA. October 2014.
A Backchannel Goes Public: Imagining a Rhetorically Driven Professional
Communication Home. Presenting with Rebecca Pope-Ruark, Matthew R.
Sharp, and Jennifer Veltsos. 2014 Annual Conference of the Council for
Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication (CPTSC). Colorado
Springs, CO. September 2014.
Socially Awkward Media: The Rhetoric of Social Media Practices During
Organizational Crisis. Association for Business Communication 78th Annual
International Conference. New Orleans, LA. October 2013.
Articulating Risk Communication: A Rhetorical Analysis of OSHAs Construction
Safety Training Materials. Association for Business Communication 76th
Annual International Conference. Montreal, Quebec, Canada. October 2011.

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Twitter and Trauma: Managing Risk Information Using Social Media. Association
of Teachers of Technical Writing Conference. Atlanta, GA. April 2011.
Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word: Toyota Recall Notices and the Rhetoric of
Apology. Presented with Quinn Warnick, Christopher Toth, and Cynthia
King. Association for Business Communication 75th Annual International
Conference. Chicago, IL. October 2010.
Crisis, Risk, and Business-Community Communication. Association for Business
Communication 74th Annual International Conference. Portsmouth, VA.
October 2009.
Digital Natives, Visual Learning, and Visual Literacy: From Generation Y to
Generation Z. Roundtable discussion, co-led with Eva Brumberger.
International Visual Literacy Association Conference. Chicago, IL. October
2009.
Of Digital Natives and Visual Literacy: A Critical Examination of the Millennial
Learner. Presented with Eva Brumberger. International Visual Literacy
Association Conference. Chicago, IL. October 2009.
The Potentialities and Problematics of a Task-Oriented Research Center Model.
Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Francisco, CA,
March 2009.
Owning Professional Communication: Mediating Differences in the Classroom
and the Corporation. Hofstra University Who Owns Writing? Revisited
Conference. Hempstead, NY. October 2008.
Funding and Framing Rhetorical Research in the Public Interest. Presented with
Kelly Belanger. Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Seattle, WA. May
2008.

Poster Presentations
Communicating Risk: Organizational Contexts, Audiences, and Constraints.
Association for Business Communication Conference. Philadelphia, PA.
October 2014.

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Safety at the Margins: Competing Organizational Cultures in OSHA's Susan

Harwood Training Grant Program. Association of Teachers of Technical
Writing Conference. Las Vegas, NV. March 2013.

Online Presentations
Research Publics and Informing Policies through the Research Center. Seminar
Leader. National Council of Teachers of English. Web. February 2011. With
Kelly Belanger, Brian Gogan, and Megan O'Neill.

Courses Taught at WCU

WRT 120: Effective Writing I (Spring 2014)
WRT 200: Critical Writing and Research (Spring 2014)
ENG 320: Writing and Computers (Fall 2014)
ENG 368: Business and Organizational Writing (Fall 2013; Spring 2014)
ENG 371: Technical Writing (Fall 2013; Fall 2014)
ENG 400: Research Seminar, Grant Proposal Writing (Fall 2014)

Previous Teaching Experience

Instructor, Virginia Tech (Spring 2013)
Instructor of Record for one section of English 1105: Introduction to College
Composition: Critical Reading, Writing, and Thinking and two sections of English
1106: Writing from Research. This section of 1105 focused on preparing a learning
community of international students for college-level analytical writing. Students
in 1106 conducted primary and secondary research about local communities and
proposed solutions to problems faced by those communities.
Instructor, Virginia Western Community College (Fall 2012)
Instructor of Record for two sections of English 111: College Composition 1, one
section of English 09: Individualized Instruction in Writing, and one section of SDV
108: College Survival Skills. Students in these related courses write critically and
thoughtfully about familiar places and communities. In doing so, they prepare
themselves to write in a thoughtful manner about unfamiliar places and situations.

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Graduate Teaching Assistant, Virginia Tech (2009-2011)

Instructor of Record for five sections of English 3764: Technical Writing. Students in
this service course practiced developing, writing, and evaluating appropriate
documents and presentations for the workplace.
Graduate Teaching Assistant, University of North Carolina at Charlotte (2006-2007)
Instructor of Record for one section of English 1101: English Composition and two
sections of English 1102: Writing in the Academic Community. Students in these
courses learned to write for classroom and public contexts, supporting their
arguments with careful research.

Research and Grant Writing Experience

Graduate Research Assistant (Virginia Tech College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences,
2012)
Research on External Funding Resources Project. Researched external funding
resources (grants, fellowships, awards) for five professors in Communication
Studies, Mathematics, and Education.
Graduate Research Assistant (Center for the Study of Rhetoric in Society, 2008-09)
National Writing Project Grant (U.S. Department of Education, $30,000 award). Coauthor. Collaboratively wrote, edited, and proofread proposal for the Blue Ridge
Writing Project (first National Writing Project site at Virginia Tech in five years);
developed promotional and application materials for 2009 Summer Institute
Institute for Society, Culture, and the Environment Grant (Virginia Tech, $20,000 award).
Reviewer. Edited and proofread CSRS collaborative research group proposal for
developing interdisciplinary research partnerships
Michigan People, Michigan Places; Our Stories, Our Lives Grant (Michigan Humanities
Council, $15,000 award). Co-author. Collaboratively wrote, edited, and proofread
proposal for a community theatre production focusing on rhetoric and social
change in a 1979 Title IX/14th Amendment lawsuit filed by the Michigan State
University womens basketball team
Construction Accidents in the News: Using Journalism to Improve Safety Grant
(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health). Co-author. Collaboratively
researched, wrote, edited, and proofread proposal for research project that analyzes
representations of construction industry risks in mass media and trade publications
2008 Public Programs Planning Grant (National Endowment for the Humanities). Coauthor. Collaboratively wrote, edited, and proofread proposal for Invisible Seasons, a
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feature-length documentary that focuses on roles of rhetoric and social change in

sports
Invisible Seasons Outreach Program. Co-author/designer. Designed document that
proposes outreach program associated with proposed feature-length documentary
Invisible Seasons
Faculty Research Assistant (Summer 2008)
Science and Mathematics Inclusive Learning and Engagement (SMILE). Assistant to
Carlos Evia. Developed research survey and recruitment materials; recruited
possible research study participants
Graduate Research Assistant (Center for the Study of Rhetoric in Society, 2007-08)
Institute for Society, Culture, and the Environment Grant (Virginia Tech, $17,500 award).
Co-author.
2007 Public Programs Planning Grant (National Endowment for the Humanities). Coauthor. Collaboratively wrote, edited, and proofread proposal for Invisible Seasons,
a feature-length documentary that focuses on roles of rhetoric and social change in
sports
Terra Incognita Film Screening/Panel. Organizer. Recruited panel participants;
developed promotional materials; assisted with panel-audience interaction for
Terra Incognita film event
CSRS Research Panel Series. Co-organizer. Planned and organized promotional
materials for Bernice Hausmans presentation on Telling Stories about Genocide:
Ethnicity, Memory, and Polyphony in Rwanda
CSRS Website. Website Manager. Revised and updated website with event, project,
and resource information

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Service
Advisor, Serpentine Yearbook (Fall 2014-present)
Chapter Sponsor, Sigma Tau Delta (Fall 2014-present)
Member, Distance Education and Technology Committee (Fall 2014-present)
Member, Business and Technical Writing Minor Committee (Fall 2013-present)
Leader, Rhetoric Special Interest Group, Association for Business Communication (October
2012-October 2014)
Oversaw Rhetoric in Business Communication open resource; promoted
rhetorical inquiry within the organization
Editorial Assistant, the minnesota review, Virginia Tech (2011-2012)
Provided technical and submission assistance to authors; developed help
documents for submission site users; managed communications between authors
and editors; proofread manuscripts; managed blog
Professional Writing Program Assistant (2009-2010)
Collected course, mission, and faculty information from undergraduate
professional writing programs; maintained program listserv; developed program
social media accounts; revised award criteria/applications for student awards;
contributed to internship program development
Public Knowledge Journal, Virginia Tech (2008-2011)
Advisory Board Member (July 2011-June 2012)
Editor-in-Chief (July 2010-June 2011)
Journal Manager (July 2009-June 2010)
Copy Editor (June 2008-June 2009)
Special Issue Assistant Editor, Configurations (Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts),
University of North Carolina at Charlotte (Spring 2007)
Maintained correspondence with authors; edited Reality Made Over special issue
of Configurations

Professional Communication Positions

Freelance Copy Editor (2007-2008)
Transcribed letters, corrected transcriptions, and proofread manuscript for Katrina
M. Powells Answer at Once (2009); edited University of Alabama at Birmingham
2008-2009 student handbook
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Technical Writer/Trainer, University of North Carolina at Charlotte (2006-2007)

Researched, wrote, and designed proposal for a university-wide call center to be
hosted in UNC Charlottes Enrollment Management Unit; provided technical
assistance and training in faculty-development workshops on Banner platform;
edited and proofread four training manuals for transition to Banner; wrote, edited,
and designed monthly newsletter covering transition to Banner

Professional Memberships
Association for Business Communication
Association for Teachers of Technical Writing
Society for Technical Communication
National Council of Teachers of English
College Composition and Communication

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