words.
As human beings, language is central to nearly all of our endeavors; design and web work are certainly no exception. Even for great designers, an inability to communicate the reason for one's choices to a client will ensure that those ideas never see the light of day. Furthermore, designers—particularly on the web—are increasingly becoming de facto content producers, responsible for everything from headlines to microcopy. With an extensive background in academia, where applying verbal skills to the study of the visual was my stock-in-trade, I am confident that my facility with words sets me apart from others in my field. I am available for speaking and teaching engagements, as well as freelance writing assignments, in any of the subjects mentioned below.
blog.
My blog, "Field Notes from the Digital Prairie," serves as a sort of virtual notebook, collecting my thoughts on some of the things that make me tick both professionally (design, web technology and culture) and personally (mostly music, with the occasional diversion into my previous life as an academic studying the history of religions and Bollywood film).
Recent posts:
web technology.
For more information on my work in the field of the web, please visit my connections page.
Publications:
- "Is a Niche Social Network Right for Your School?" Link: The Journal of Higher Education Web Professionals, July 2011.
- "Mapping Memory: Web Designer as Information Cartographer" (A List Apart 266, August 26, 2008)
Presentations:
- "The Serial Effect: Audio-Based Content," 2015 CASE Multimedia Workshop, Washington, DC, June 19, 2015.
- "What Does the Web Say? Thinking about Sound and the Internet," Confab Higher Ed, Atlanta, GA, November 13, 2014.
- "What Does the Web Say? Thinking about Sound and the Internet," HighEdWeb 2014, Portland, OR, October 20, 2014.
- "What Does the Web Say? Thinking about Sound and the Internet," HighEdWeb Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, May 22, 2014.
- "The Dream Org Chart," HighEdWeb Michigan, Flint, MI, May 20, 2013.
- "Reach Out and Touch Someone: Marshall McLuhan and the Tactile Web," HighEdWeb 2012, Milwaukee, WI, October 8, 2012.
- "There's Life Beyond the Four-Year University," HighEdWeb 2012, Milwaukee, WI, October 8, 2012 (with Tonya Oaks Smith).
- Panel member, "Tools & Techniques," #campuscom: Exploring Social Media at the University of Chicago, May 6, 2011.
- "Wrangling the Octopus: Managing Your New Media Ecosystem," eduWeb Conference, Chicago, July 26, 2010.
- "A Bird in the Hand: Using Twitter in Higher Education Communications," eduWeb Conference, Chicago, July 21, 2009.
- "Meet the (Social) Media," South Side Arts & Humanities Network Meet the Press event, March 18, 2009.
- “Embracing New Media and Web 2.0,” CASE V conference, Chicago, Dec. 10, 2007.
history of religions, hinduism, bollywood, and more.
While earning a B.A. with Honors in Comparative Mythology and an M.A. from the University of Chicago Divinity School, I had the opportunity to write, speak, and teach about a variety of subjects.
Publications and Papers:
- "The Hero with a Thousand Voices: The Relationship Between the Narrative and Academic Styles," in Working with Student Writers: Essays on Tutoring and Teaching (2nd ed.), edited by Leonard A. Podis and Joanne M. Podis (Peter Lang, 2010).
- Book Review: Connected Places by Anne Feldhaus (University of Chicago South Asia News, Vol. 31, Spring/Summer 2006)
- Shifting Spaces: Religious Space and National Space in Hindi Film (Fall, 2005)
- "Monuments in Immovable Stone:" Collective Memory and Mourning in the Ramjanmabhumi Movement (Spring, 2003)
- Darshan, Television, and Media Theory in India (Winter, 2003)
- "Game" in Keywords of Media Theory (Winter, 2003)
- Playing With Tradition: Sacrifice, Ritual, and the Mahabharata's Dice Game (Fall, 2001)
- The Web of Dharma: Sita’s Trial by Fire and the Ramayana on the Internet (Winter, 2001)
- Women, Cattle, and Sacred Drink: The Legitimation of Kingship in Three Mythic Contexts (Spring, 1999)
Courses Taught:
- "The Hindu Tradition," St. Xavier University; Spring 2005 & Summer 2003
- "Introduction to Hinduism," Northwestern University; Winter 2004 (TA)
- "Perspectives on Sacred Narrative," Oberlin College; Fall 1999 (writing tutor)
- "Celtic Mythology," Oberlin College; Spring 1997 and Fall 1998 (Experimental College Instructor)
Presentations:
- “The Film Industry and Contemporary Politics” at USEFI India Program Pre-Departure Orientation hosted by University of Chicago South Asia Language and Area Center, June 26 – 29, 2006
- “An Introduction to Bollywood,” presented to Kelly McKee’s Asian Studies class at Lake Forest High School, September 29, 2005.
- Discussion Group Leader, “Viewing the World Through Media and Popular Culture” University of Chicago Summer Workshop for Educators, June 20-23, 2005.
- “Hindu Nationalism and the TV Ramayan” at “Themes of Identity and Conflict in South Asia, 1947 to Present: Workshop for Educators,” March 27, 2004
- “Sacred Space, National Space, Cinematic Space” presented at University of Chicago South Asia Student Conference, February 27-28, 2004.
- "Hinduizing the Nation in the TV Ramayan" presented at "Boundaries: The Juxtaposition of Religion, Ethnicity and Politics in South Asia," workshop for Chicago Public Schools teachers, June 30-July 1, 2003.
- “The Web of Dharma: the Agnipariksha and the Ramayana on the Internet,” presented at "Tongues of Fire: Languages and Literatures of South Asia," Center for South Asian Studies Spring Symposium, University of Hawaii, April 11-12, 2002.