Melody Bowdon

Associate Professor

mbowdon@mail.ucf.edu
407-823-6234
Office Hours: Summer 2009: Mondays from 7-8:30 in Adobe Connect Chatroom (through June 30)
Campus Location: CNH307B

Education

Ph.D. in English: Rhetoric, Composition, and the Teaching of English from University of Arizona (1999)
M.A. in English: Rhetoric, Composition, and the Teaching of English from University of Arizona (1995)
B.A. in English Literature; Secondary Education from Oklahoma City University (1991)

Research Interests

Technical and Professional Communication
Gender and Technology
Service-Learning and Higher Education
Distance-Learning

Selected Publications

Books

Scholarship for Sustaining Service-Learning and Community Engagement: Volume Eight of Advances in Service-Learning Research. Ed. with Shelley Billig and Barbara Holland. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, 2008. (Authored substantive introductory essay.)
Service-Learning in Professional Communication. Co-edited with James Dubinsky. Special issue of Reflections on Community Based Writing Instruction. Spring 2005. (Co-authored substantive introductory essay.)
Service-Learning in Technical and Professional Communication. With J. Blake Scott. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2003.

Articles/Essays

“Feminist Civic Engagement and the Role of the Bureaucrat: Graduate Education, Distance-Learning, and Community Action.” Role Play: Distance-Learning and the Teaching of English. Ed. Jonathan Alexander, et al. Creskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 2005. 147-162.
“Virtual Networks: Community-based Collaboration and Professional Writing.” Internet-Based Workplace Communication: Industry and Academic Perspectives. Ed. Kirk St. Amant and Pavel Zemlianski. Hershey, PA: International Idea Group, 2005. 107-129.
“Technical Communication and the Role of the Public Intellectual: A Community HIV Prevention Study.” Technical Communication Quarterly 13.3 (Summer 2004): 325-340.
“Public Schools, Private Ethics: Rhetoric and Service in Composition.” Professing Rhetoric: Selected Papers from the 2000 Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Ed. Frederick J. Antczak, et al. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002. 171-177.
“A Rhetorical Stance on the Archives of Civic Discourse.” With Thomas P. Miller. College English 61.5 (May 1999): 591-598.

Book Reviews

“A Practical Ethics for Professional and Technical Writing Teachers, or A Millers’ Tale.” Technical Communication Quarterly 11.2 (Spring 2002): 222-224. (Review essay.)

Conference Papers/Presentations

"Conscious/Conscientious Identification: Cognitive Theory andService-Learning Reflection." Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Francisco. March 2009.
Forthcoming "Strategies for Comprehensive Service-Learning Assessment: A Dynamic Model." With Kerry Purmensky, John Schell, and Amy Zeh. International Research Conference for Service-Learning and Civic Engagement. New Orleans. October 2008.
“What Makes Good Service-Learning Writers: Results from a Statewide Study.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. New Orleans, LA. April 2008.
"The Next Step: A Statewide Study of Community Impacts of Service-Learning in Writing Courses." Conference on College Composition and Communication. New York. March 2007. With Margaret Boreman.
"Professional Communication in the Nonprofit Sector: How Service-Learning Makes a Difference." International Association for Research in Service-Learning and Community Engagement. Tampa, FL. October 2007.
"Professional Writing in the Nonprofit Sector." Conference on College Composition and Communication. Chicago, Illinois. March 2006.
“The State of Collegiate Service-Learning and Civic Engagement in the State of Florida.” International Conference on Civic Education: Research and Practice. Orlando, FL. January 2006.
"Virtual Communities: Research on Service-Learning in the Digital Age." International Conference on Advances in Service-Learning Research. East Lansing, MI. November, 2005.
“When the Radical Becomes Familiar: The Pros and Cons of Institutionalizing Service-Learning.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Francisco. March 2005.
“Creating a Virtual Community through Web-Based Service-Learning.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Antonio. March 2004.
“Putting Service-Learning to the Test: A Comparative Study of Technical and Professional Writing Students’ Performance and Attitudes.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. New York. March 2003.
“User-Friendly vs. User-Centered Web Course Delivery: Implications for Technical Communication Programs.” With Blake Scott. Association of Teachers of Technical Writing. New York. March 2003.

Miscellaneous Publications

"What We Did Last Summer: Tips and Tricks for Teaching Online." UCF Faculty Focus. August 2008. http://www.fctl.ucf.edu/Publications/FacultyFocus/
“Service-Learning on the Web.” UCF eFaculty Newsletter. October 2006. http://www.cdl.ucf.edu/wordpress/efaculty/?m=200610
“Who Makes a Good Service-Learner? Preliminary Results from a Statewide Study.” UCF Faculty Focus. January 2006. http://www.fctl.ucf.edu/Publications/FacultyFocus/
“Building Community on the Web Through Service-Learning.” UCF Faculty Focus. September 2003. http://www.fctl.ucf.edu/Publications/FacultyFocus/

Awards

Research

Award for Excellence in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. University of Central Florida. 2009.
Regional Scholar for the Campus Compact Network Meeting: Advancing the Work. New Mexico, 2006. (One of four scholars from around the country chosen to participate in a think tank on research and service-learning.)
Senior Faculty Fellow for Research. Florida Campus Compact. Serve as a research mentor for service-learning faculty and practitioners around the state. 2005-present.
Gulf South Summit Award for Outstanding Contributions to Service-Learning in Higher Education. $500. April 2005.
National Finalist, Thomas Ehrlich Faculty Award for Service-Learning. Award sponsored by Campus Compact. 2005 and 2006.
Award for Excellence in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. University of Central Florida. 2004.

Teaching

Award for Excellence in Graduate Teaching. University Central Florida College of Arts and Humanities. $2000. 2009.
Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. University of Central Florida College of Arts and Humanities. $2000. 2008.
Outstanding Service-Learning Faculty Award for Florida. Florida Campus Compact. $500. 2007.
Teaching Incentive Program Award. University of Central Florida College of Arts and Sciences. 2004.
Outstanding Service-Learning Faculty Award. UCF Office of Service-Learning. Spring 2005.
Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. University of Central Florida College of Arts and Sciences. $2000. 2004.

Other

University Award for Excellence in Professional Service. University of Central Florida. $2000. April 2006.
Member, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. Inducted Fall 2006. National all-discipline honor society in higher education with an emphasis on academic excellence and community service.

Activities

Fall 2009 Activities

Senior Research Fellow, Florida Campus Compact
Coordinator, Graduate Certificate in Professional Writing, UCF Department of English
Chair, Advisory Board for UCF Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning
Alternate Member, UCF Institutional Review Board

Spring 2009: Sabbatical

Fall 2008 Activities

Senior Research Fellow, Florida Campus Compact
Coordinator, Graduate Certificate in Professional Writing, UCF Department of English
College of Arts and Humanities Representative, UCF Graduate Council, Policies and Procedures Subcommittee

Funded Research:

Collegiate Service-Learning and Civic Engagement in Florida: Research Models. Statewide project investigating the impacts of service-learning and providing leadership to a team of service-learning researchers around the state. Sponsored by Florida Campus Compact. FIPSE sub-contract. May 15, 2007 to September 1, 2008. $27,510.
The State of Collegiate Service-Learning and Civic Engagement in Florida. Statewide research project investigating the impacts of service-learning. Sponsored by Florida Campus Compact. June 1, 2005 to December 31, 2006. $27,488. Final report delivered to FCC and portions shared with Florida legislature December, 2006 (176 pages). FIPSE sub-contract.
Community Impacts of Service-Learning in Writing Courses: What We Know, What We Need to Know. National Council of Teachers of English. December, 2005 to August, 2006. $5000.

Program Development Grants:

The Ivey Lane Dream Center: A Proposal to Enhance the Future of Youth through Community Action. Melody Bowdon, PI. January 2006 to June 2006. The Corporation for National and Community Service. $6000 plus UCF Match.
Web-based Reflection on Service-Learning: A Course Model. Melody Bowdon, Co-PI. January 2004-June 2004. American Humanics Cohen Grant. Co-funded by UCF Burnett Honors College. $4000 plus UCF Match.