Having received her Ph.D. in rhetoric and composition from Purdue University, her
M.A. in Creative Writing and British Literature from Eastern Kentucky University,
and her B.A. in Speech Communications and English from Muskingum College, Dr. Cubbison
coordinates the English department mentoring program for graduate teaching assistants
and fellows. As a writing teacher, she sees her primary goal as encouraging students
to see writing as a vital activity in and out of the classroom. This goal arises out
of her interest in online communication, particularly the discourses of online support
groups and fan groups. Her dissertation, Validating Illness: Internet Activism in
Response to Institutional Discourse, examined the development of rhetorical skills
and activist efforts on the part of people with chronic fatigue syndrome and/or fibromyalgia
syndrome. Her interest in the study of global popular culture and fan communities
is yet another way she attempts connect students to their world. Her current research
interest covers general education reform as a change management challenge for colleges
and universities.
