Preston Lynn Waller, Ph.D.

pwaller@mclennan.edu
Alamo Assignment
Office Phone: (254) 299-8950

EDUCATION

Ph.D.--1988
Texas Tech University
Cumulative GPA--4.0
English
Dissertation Title:  The Role of Ethos in the Writing of Proposals and Manuals

M.A.--1984
Eastern New Mexico University
Cumulative GPA--3.85
English

B.A.--1978
Panhandle State University
Cumulative GPA--3.9
English Education

B.A.--1977
Oral Roberts University
Cumulative GPA--3.3
English and Business Administration

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

McLennan Community College
1988-present

Teaching developmental English, freshman composition, technical communications, and literature courses online, on-campus, and in dual credit locations. Assisting in developing computer-assisted composition instructional methods. Investigating techniques of using Internet and LAN resources in conducting both on-campus and distance education writing classes.
 
Texas Tech University
1984-1988

Taught Essentials of English Usage, Essentials of College Rhetoric, Advanced College Rhetoric, Masterpieces of Literature, Introduction to Fiction, and Patterns of Reports and Correspondence.
 
Cal Farley's Boys Ranch
1983-1984

Parented twenty-four boys in dormitory. Taught junior high and upper-division English. Sponsored senior class.
 
Escalante High School
1982-1983

Evaluated and administered new curriculum. Taught high school English. Coordinated language arts program. Supervised field trips.
 
Kemper Elementary School
Spring 1981

Secured teacher/student cooperation during teachers' strike while on temporary assignment. Taught Indian, Hispanic, and Anglo elementary school students.
 
Eastern New Mexico University
Fall 1980

Taught freshman composition and literature courses. Specialized in linguistics and American literature.
 
Mosquero School System
1979-1980

Correlated and conducted all English classes for high school and junior high. Implemented English as Second Language program.
 
Walsh High School
1978-1979

Planned and supervised production of yearbook and newspaper. Directed two class plays. Taught upper-division English. Sponsored eighth grade class.

ADMINISTRATIVE EXPERIENCE

McLennan Community College
2003-present

English Coordinator, 2007-present; English and Reading Coordinator, 2004-2007; and Language Arts Coordinator, 2003-2004 (English, ESOL, Speech, Spanish, French, Journalism)--Monitor course enrollment during registration periods.  Provide current syllabi and course materials for adjunct professors.  Substitute for division director during registration periods.  Assist in leading orientation for adjunct faculty at beginning of semesters.  Schedule full-time and adjunct instructors.  Review capacity reports and determine student demand for course sections.  Coordinate bookstore requisitions.  Select and order textbooks for adjunct teachers.  Examine student evaluations of adjunct professors.  Observe classes taught by adjunct faculty.  Prepare and write assessment reports of adjunct instructors.  Conduct appraisal sessions with adjunct faculty.  Interview adjunct applicants.  Contact references and evaluate academic transcripts of adjunct applicants.  Select and recommend hiring of adjunct instructors.  Write letters of recommendation for adjunct teachers.  Supervise and mentor adjunct faculty.

McLennan Community College
1991-1993

Writing Lab Coordinator--Ascertained that students were placed in proper initial composition course (ENG 300, ENG 301, or ENG 311). Coordinated the grading of the MCC placement test. Scheduled and arranged holistic grading of exit essays. Maintained records and statistics concerning the Developmental English program. Supervised lab instructors, tutors, and work-study students. Reviewed texts for developmental writing classes. Revised ENG 300, ENG 301, and ENG 111 syllabi and instructor handbook as needed. Acted as liaison between the lab and English department and between the Developmental English program and the Director of Developmental Education. Conducted Developmental English essay contest. Produced The Write Stuff (the writing lab newsletter) and essay contest booklet. Identified, recommended, and implemented necessary changes in lab procedures. Assured correlation between developmental composition classes and lab components of the course. Constructed or provided needed quizzes, practice activities, writing assignments, and other hand-outs. Trained new personnel in the Developmental English program. Arranged the schedules of lab personnel. Submitted budget requests to the Chair of the Language Arts Department. Previewed, evaluated, and selected commercial hardware and software. Developed forms for the evaluation of lab effectiveness.
 
Texas Tech University
1986-1988

Assistant Director of Composition--Maintained statistics concerning remedial English program. Identified, inventoried, and interpreted pass/fail rate of students in remedial program. Conducted studies concerning freshman composition program. Determined average class size and withdrawal rates. Ascertained grade distribution statistics. Scheduled and coordinated spring book fairs. Reviewed and recommended recently published texts for adoption. Coordinated library tours and instruction. Assisted in editing Guide for Students of Freshman and Sophomore English Courses.

BUSINESS EXPERIENCE

Bank of Southern Colorado
Summers 1986, 1985, and 1981

Assumed responsibilities of employees on summer leave. Organized documents for new bank charter. Drafted and typed forms for establishing of new bank.
 
Petro-Lewis Corporation
Fall 1981

Correlated files for 600 wells in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Louisiana. Created cross-reference system while on temporary assignment.
 
Springfield First National Bank
Summers 1981, 1979, and 1978

Accounted for mail-in and drive-up deposits. Entered account data into IBM computer terminal. Operated NCR proof machine. Scheduled appointments for officers. Carried out secretarial duties. Prepared cash letters.
 
Buena Vista Bank and Trust
Summers 1977 and 1976

Welcomed and introduced new customers to bank. Assumed responsibilities of employees on summer leave. Researched history of accounts on Bell-Howell microfilm reader/printer.

AWARDS AND GRANTS

Recipient of grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to attend workshop entitled "Remembering the Alamo," 2005

Researcher on notebook computer applications in instruction, 2004-2005

McLennan Community College Professional Development Leave, Fall 2001

Best Article of the Year for "A Grammar of Person for Technical Writing," published in Winter 1990 issue of The Technical Writing Teacher (co-authored with M. Jimmie Killingsworth), presented by the Association of Teachers of Technical Writing at Conference on College Composition and Communication convention in Boston, 1991

Developer of grant to International Business Machines Corporation for hardware and software for $200,000 communications computer lab, Fall 1991

William Bryan Gates Graduate Award in English, 1988-1989

Phi Kappa Phi, 1988

Researcher (with M. Jimmie Killingsworth) in ethnographic study of the projection of the author's personality in technical communication, funded by the Institute for University Research, 1987-1988

Allan L. Carter and Olga Meloy Carter Memorial Award, 1986-1987 and 1985-1986

Outstanding Student in Graduate German Course, 1985-1986

Research assistant (to Jeanette Harris) in study concerning the role of expressive discourse, funded by NCTE grant, 1985

English Department Outstanding Part-time Instructor, 1984-1985

University Outstanding Part-time Instructor, 1984-1985

Linda Mowery Speech Scholarship, 1982

PUBLICATIONS

The Natural Worlds of Writing Workbook, 2008

Writing for the Road Ahead, rhetoric for college freshman composition courses, 2007

The Natural Worlds of Writing, rhetoric for college freshman composition courses, published on CD-ROM, revised 2003, co-authored with David Chapman

"Crossing Borders: The Computer Network as a Place of Discovery in the Community College Composition Classroom," Spring/Summer 1996 issue of Teacher Education and Practice

The Power of Writing with Additional Readings, rhetoric/reader for college freshman composition courses with five chapters of sample documents, published by Mayfield Publishing Company, 1995, co-authored with David Chapman

The Power of Writing, rhetoric for college freshman composition courses, published by Mayfield Publishing Company, 1994, co-authored with David Chapman

Instructor's Manual to accompany The Power of Writing with Additional Readings, Mayfield Publishing Company, 1995

Instructor's Manual to accompany The Power of Writing, Mayfield Publishing Company, 1994

Book review of Writing up Qualitative Research by Harry F. Wolcott, Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, 1991

Book review of rhetorical portion of Effective Argument, Allan and Bacon, Spring 1990

"A Grammar of Person for Technical Writing," Winter 1990 issue of The Technical Writing Teacher, co-authored with M. Jimmie Killingsworth

Contributing bibliographer for The Longman Bibliography of Composition and Rhetoric, edited by Erika Lindemann, 1987-1988, 1986-1987, and 1985-1986

"Ethnography in Technical Writing Research," Proceedings, Southwest and Texas Popular Culture Association Conference, Oklahoma State University, 1988

PRESENTATIONS

"Coordinating a Freshman Composition Program: Managing Details, Ensuring Quality, and Providing Opportunity," March 2007, Conference of College Teachers of English, College Station, Texas

"Law Enforcement Academy Grammar Workshop," October 2004, Police Academy, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Panel Discussion Concerning Opportunities and Dilemmas of Online Education," August 2003, Professional Development Day, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Review of Work by Student Playwrights," April 2002, Fine Arts Building Theatre, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Publication," March 2002, Board of Directors Meeting, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Considerations in Internet-based Instruction," January 2002, Professional Development Day, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Quality in Internet-based College Courses," October 1999, Board of Directors Meeting, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Designing and Teaching an Internet-based Composition Course," February 1999, Texas Community College Teachers Association, Houston, Texas

"Teaching an Internet-based Class: From A-Z," January 1999, Professional Development Day, McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"Rhetorical Ramifications of Internet Publication: A Case Study," January 1999, Literary Festival at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Belton, Texas

"Revelations and Confessions of a Distance Educator: The Rewards and Trials of Designing and Implementing a Virtual English Classroom on the Internet," April 1998, Conference of College Teachers of English, San Antonio, Texas

"Implementing a Web-based Distance Education English Course," February 1998, Waco Independent School District, Waco, Texas

"Orientation to Computer-assisted Composition Courses," February 1996, On-campus seminar at McLennan Community College, Waco, Texas

"For Novices to Experts: Successful Rhetorical Instructional Techniques Using the Daedalus Integrated Writing Environment," November 1994, League for Innovation 1994 Annual Conference on Information Technology, Houston, Texas

"Crossing the Border: A View of History and Class Structure as Related to the Frontier in El Norte and Like Water for Chocolate," October 1994, Southwest Regional Conference on English, Laredo, Texas

"Using a Networked Lab to Teach Writing," March 1994, Using Technology to Improve Teaching and Learning Conference, Richland College, Dallas, Texas

"Why Am I Here: Special Concerns within the Discourse Community of the Remedial/Developmental English Classroom," October 1989, South Central Modern Language Association, New Orleans, Louisiana

"The Greatest of These: Charity and Self-Reliance in Thoreau's Walden and Franklin's Autobiography," October 1988, Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico

"Ethnography in Technical Writing Research," February 1988, Southwest Popular Culture Association, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma

"Participant or Voyeur: The Use of Observation and Imagination in Michael Herr's Dispatches," October 1987, South Central Modern Language Association, Houston, Texas

"The Influence of Augustine's On Christian Doctrine on Edwards' A Divine and Supernatural Light," March 1987, South Central Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, North Texas State University, Denton, Texas

"Birth's Mark, Life's Stain, and Eternity's Radiance in Hawthorne's 'The Birthmark' and Shelley's 'Adonais'," March 1987, Conference of College Teachers of English, Corpus Christi, Texas

"Religion and Reality: The Differing Views of Jonathan Edwards and Charles Brockden Brown," March 1986, Conference of College Teachers of English, Arlington, Texas

"The Forgotten Scent of Wisteria: Faulkner's Use of the Southern Code," March 1985, Conference of College Teachers of English, San Antonio, Texas

CONFERENCE PARTICIPATION

Participant in Dell Computer Technologies Workshop, January 2006, Round Rock, Texas

Participant in annual convention of the Conference of College Teachers of English, March 2005, Waco, Texas

Participant in 12th Annual Humanities Series Workshop, "The Movie Theater as a Classroom," February 2005, Dallas, Texas

Participant in Nonfiction Writing Online Workshop, Gotham Writers' Workshops, Fall 2004, New York City, New York

Participant in annual convention of the Conference on College Composition and Communication, March 2004, San Antonio, Texas

Participant in Educators Workshop, United States Marine Corps, June 2003, San Diego, California

Participant in several on-line conferences regarding the use of computers in composition instruction (i.e., the Teaching in the Community College Online Conference from Hawaii, the Alliance for Computers and Writing, etc.), annually

Participant in Blackboard Technical Training Conference, March 2003, Waco, Texas

Participant in Texas Community College Teachers Association conference, annually

Participant in McLennan Community College Professional Development Day, annually, Waco, Texas

Participant in Literary Festival at the University of Mary Hardin- Baylor, January 2003, 2002, 2001, and 2000, Belton, Texas

Participant in National Rural Electric Cooperative Association's 60th Annual Meeting, March 2002, Dallas, Texas

Participant in screenplay writing workshop, August 2001, Lindale, Texas

Participant in summer art workshop in preparation for illustrating The Natural Worlds of Writing, June 2001, Cloudcroft, New Mexico

Participant in National Rural Electric Cooperative Association's Annual Directors' Conference, February 2001, San Antonio, Texas

Participant in Southwest Writers Workshop Conference, August 1999, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Chair of Creative Writing Session on Fiction and Poetry, January 1998, Literary Festival at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Belton, Texas

Chair of session concerning computer usage in the teaching of writing at two-year colleges, March 1993, Conference on College Composition and Communication, San Diego, California

Chair of session entitled "Students' Roles in the Assessment Process," March 1991, Conference on College Composition and Communication, Boston, Massachusetts

Chair of session entitled "By Our Own Bootstraps: Two-Year Teachers of Composition Redefine Professionalism," March 1990, Conference on College Composition and Communication, Chicago, Illinois Associate

Chair of session entitled "A Narrowed Focus: Five Specialized Writing Journals," March 1989, Conference on College Composition and Communication, Seattle, Washington

Chair of session entitled "A New Look at the Classical Tradition," March 1988, Conference on College Composition and Communication, St. Louis, Missouri

RECENT COMMITTEE WORK

Language, Literature, and Communication Division Administrative Assistant Search Committee, Spring 2008

Director of the Center for Instructional Design and Operations Search Committee, Spring 2007

Advisory Committee to the Vice President of Instruction, 2002-present

Course Management System Committee, Spring 2005-present

Student Grievance Committee, Spring 2006

Committee to study issue of online conference/office hours, Spring 2006

Technology Help Desk Specialist Search Committee, Fall 2004

Chair of Language Arts Division Director Search Committee, Spring and Summer 2004

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Editorial Committee, 2000-2002

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Administrative Processes Committee, 2000-2002

CLEP and SAT English Placement Committee, Spring 2001

Faculty Council, 2000-2001

Faculty Compensation Committee, 2000-2001

English Department Search Committee, 2000-2001 and 1999-2000

Chair of Distance Learning Advisory Committee, 1998-2001

Freshman Composition I Curriculum Revision Committee, 1998-1999

Freshman Composition I Textbook Adoption Committee, 1998-1999

Personnel Handbook Committee, Spring 1998

Chair of English Department Search Committee, Fall 1997

WWW Home Page Committee, 1996-present

Instructional Technology Committee, Chair, 1996-1997

Technology Committee, 1992-1997

Computer Advisory Committee, 1993-1996

Chair of English Department Search Committee, Spring 1995

English 1301 and 1302 Handbook Committee, Fall 1994

English Department Mission Statement Committee, Spring 1994

DISTANCE EDUCATION

Published CD-ROM based textbook entitled The Natural Worlds of Writing with David Chapman, Fall 2001

Designed Internet-based ENGL 2379 (Forms of Literature: Drama) section, Fall 1999

Certified as Distance Education Web Publisher, Texas A&M University, Fall 1998

Implemented Internet-based ENGL 1301 (Freshman Composition I) section, Spring 1998

Designed Internet-based ENGL 1301 (Freshman Composition I) section, Fall 1997

Certified as Distance Education Specialist, Texas A&M University, Summer 1996

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Drama Ministries, Victorious Life Church, 1992-present

Small Group Ministry Leader, Victorious Life Church, 1998-present

University Interscholastic League Ready Writing Contest Judge, 1989-2007

Youth Ministries, Victorious Life Church, 1996-2007

Deacon Board, Victorious Life Church, 2000-2007

Bible Quiz Team Assistant, Victorious Life Church, 1998-2005

Track and Field Judge, Lorena Middle School, 2002 and 2003

Football down marker, Lorena Middle School, 2002

Little League Baseball book keeper, Lorena Little League, 1995-2000

Missions to Mexico Participant, 1996 and 1998

Christian Boys Scouting Program Leader, Victorious Life Church, 1990-1999