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Daniel Vollaro, Ph.D.

Writing and Communication Instructor

Communication Consultant

Education

  • Ph.D. English, Georgia State University - 2008
  • M.A. Jewish-Christian Studies, Seton Hall University - 1993
  • B.A. English/ minor   in journalism, College of New Jersey - 1987

Teaching Positions

  • Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow, Georgia Tech, Fall 2007
  • Graduate Teaching Assistant, Georgia State University, 2003-2007
  • Adjunct Professor, Clayton State University, Summer 2004, Fall 2005
  • Adjunct Professor, Warren County Community College, 2002-2003
  • Adjunct Professor, Fairleigh Dickinson University, 1999
  • Teacher, Delbarton School, 1994-97

Courses Taught

 

English/Composition/Communication

  • Composition I [1101] (9) - 2000 - 2003
  • Composition II [1102] (7)
  • Technical Communication Practices (6)
  • Sophomore English* (3)
  • Junior English (2)
  • Developmental Reading (1)
  • Independent Study - Usability Testing (1)

Literature

  • World Literature (5)
  • American Literature (2)

Ethics & Philosophy

  • Genocide Studies* (8)
  • Introduction to Philosophy (2)
  • Introduction to Philosophy - telecourse (2)
  • Ethics and Moral Problems (1)
  • Ethics and Moral Problems - telecourse (1)
  • Ethics and Technology (1)

Religious Studies

  • World Religions* (6)
  • Quest for God* (6)
  • Perspectives on Death and Dying (3)
  • Comparative Religion (1)
  • Morality* (1)
  • Taoism Independent Study* (1)

Technology and the Classroom

  • Usability Testing - Taught usability techniques in my Technical Communication Practices course and coordinated a variety of student-run usability testing projects at Georgia Tech and St. Pius X High School.   
  • Course Web Design - Designed many course websites. My latest Technical Communication Practices website can be accessed at www.lcc.gatech.edu/~dvollaro3/techcomm01
  • Computer Classroom Courses - Designed and taught computer lab workshop versions of 1101 Composition at Georgia State University and Technical Communication Practices at Georgia Institute of Technology.

Academic Publications

Refereed Journal

  • "Lincoln, Stowe, and the 'Little Woman/Great War' Story: Making, and Breaking, a Great American Anecdote." Accepted for publication at The Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association.  
  • "Sixty Indians in Twenty Canoes: Briton Hammon's Unreliable Witness to History." Accepted for publication in the journal Native South.

Encyclopedia Articles

  • "Utopian Communities ," American History through Literature, 1820-1870 . Eds. Janet Gabler-Hover and Robert Sattelmeyer. New York: Scribner's, 2005.
  • "The Dial," American History through Literature, 1820-1870 . Eds. Janet Gabler-Hover and Robert Sattelmeyer. New York: Scribner's, 2005.

Meeting Notes (official transcription of professional conference)

  • "Learner-Centered by Practice-Learning Design," National Learner Infrastructure Initiative Meeting Notes , 2002.
  • "Partnering in the Learning Marketspace," National Learner Infrastructure Initiative Meeting Notes , 2002.
  • "Learning Materials, Tools, Markets, and Standards," National Learner Infrastructure Initiative Meeting Notes , 2002.

Non-Academic Publications

Restaurant Reviews ( selected list from The Courier-News)

  • "Family Values Important In Italian Eatery," September 11, 1992
  • "Tewksbury Inn Combines Old with the New," September 4, 1992
  • "Trends Reflects New Ideas in Healthy Dining," October 2, 1992

Feature Articles ( selected list from The Courier-News and Delbarton Today)

  • "Homeless in Somerset: Interfaith network aids affluent county's invisible poor," December 93.
  • A Matter of Pride: Paul Robeson Youth Achievement Awards set for Friday," February 24, 1994
  • "A School Called Pingry," March 24, 1994
  • "Shad Attack: Lambertville readies its 2-day paean to a fish," April 22, 1994
  • "Zia Pueblo Cultural Exchange," Delbarton Today , 1997.
  • "The Camden Project," Delbarton Today , 1997.

Short Fiction (selected list)

  • "Wire Me Up," Creo , 2000
  • "Smart Bomb," Creo , 2002
  • "Gifts of the Spirit," Paperplates , 2001
  • "Machinery," Crania , 2000
  • "Manhood," Timber Creek Review , 1998
  • "The Vision," Blue Moon Review , 1998

Travel Writing

  • "White Water in West Virginia," Country Inns & Bed and Breakfast Magazine, October / November 1999
  • "Sail Away: A chartered boat trip through the Virgin Islands lets you see and do what appeals to you," Gannett Suburban Newspapers, July 17, 1994

Professional Writing and Editing Experience

Freelance Writing

  • Writing and Communication Specialist - Ran a freelance writing business from 1998 to 2005, working for a variety of clients, including Baker & Taylor Books, The Rickard Group, Chinese Books Cyberstore, among other clients. Wrote a proposal that raised $90,000 to start the after-school program for the Hispanic Family Center of Southern New Jersey in 1998.
  • Features Writer, Courier-News, Trenton Times, Gannett Suburban Newspapers, Country Inns and Bed and Breakfast Magazine, Delbarton Today, National Catholic Reporter   - contributed dozens of articles to the Features Department of the Courier-News and wrote a restaurant column for this daily newspaper in Bridgewater, NJ, from 1992 to 1994.   Wrote a student column for the Trenton Times from 1986 to 1987.

Editing Positions

  • Managing Editor, First Essays: A Peer Approach to Freshman Composition - Coordinated production for this new composition reader, published by Hayden-McNeal from 2005-2006. Also served as managing editor of a companion book for English 1102 called First Arguments .
  • Senior Editor, Country Inns and Bed and Breakfast Magazine - Served as Senior Editor in 1999, writing and editing travel articles for this national magazine.
  • Editor-in-chief, Common Ground - Edited and wrote most of the copy for this newsletter for the Department of Jewish-Christian Studies at Seton Hall University from 1991 to 1993.
  • Associate Editor, Baker & Taylor Books - Worked as an associate editor from 1989 to 1993. Wrote catalog copy for this book wholesaler's various marketing magazines. Freelanced for the company as a copywriter from 1998 to 2003.

Departmental Committee Work

  • Chair, Subcommittee on the Writing and Communication Website, Writing and Communication Committee, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008
  • Chair, Subcommittee on Communication Across the Curriculum, Writing and Communication Committee, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007 - 2008
  • At-Large Representative for the Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellows , Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007 - Present
  • Member , Textbook Evaluation Subcommittee and Website Design Subcommittee, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007 - Present
  • Managing Editor , composition textbook development committee, Georgia State University, 2006 - 2007
  • Handbook Evaluation Committee, Georgia State University, 2006

Tutoring Experience

  • Professional Writing Tutor, Instructional Support Center, 2000-2003 (Warren County Community College)
  • Professional Writing Tutor , Academic Support Center, 1999-2003 (Fairleigh Dickinson University)
  • Professional Writing Tutor , EOF and Learning Disabled students, 2000-2001 (Centenary College)

Professional Associations

  • Modern Language Association
  • American Studies Association
  • Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association

Student Workshops and Training

  • EOF Writing Workshop (Centenary College) - Designed and taught two research methods workshops for EOF students that focused on print and internet research techniques, library skills, and citation style
  • Research Methods Workshop (Warren County Community College) - Designed and taught a workshop that introduced non-traditional students to college-level research methods
  • SAT Prep/Verbal (Delbarton) - Taught a summer workshop that prepared juniors for the SATs, focusing on the verbal portions of the test
  • Writing Workshop (Delbarton) - Assisted another faculty member in teaching a writing workshop for incoming freshman at Delbarton
  • Community Service Coordinator Workshop (Delbarton) - Trained juniors and seniors at Delbarton to work as student coordinators for the school's 25 community service programs
  • Campus Minister Training Retreat (Delbarton) - Assisted in creating and running three weekend training retreats for senior campus ministers at Delbarton School

Presentations

Panels

  • "Politics, War, and Battlestar Galactica" (Panel Moderator) - Delivered a paper titled "The Consolations of Endless War: Militarism in the New Battlestar Galactica." PCA/ACA Conference, Atlanta, April 2006.
  • "History and African-American Literature"- Delivered a paper titled "A New Life for Frederick Douglass: Breaking Free of the Historicist Trap." (dis)junctions 2005 Conference, University of California, Riverside, April 2005.
  • "A 'Fixed Belief in the Nothingness of Everything': Reassessing Herbert Spencer's Influence on Theodore Dreiser" - New Voices Conference, Georgia State University, September 2004.
  • "Just War Theory" - Discussed and other ethical issues surrounding warfare in the modern age at a panel discussion commemorating the first anniversary of September 11. Warren County Community College, September 2002.
  • "Teaching the Holocaust" - Conference at William Paterson University, November 1996.

Moderator

  • "Building a Reader's Circle: Making the Cooperative Model Work in Academic Writing" - New Voices Conference, Georgia State University, September 2004.

Guest Lectures

  • "Genocides of the 1990s" (Guest Lecturer) - Seton Hall University, October 2000.