Emily Brier
Asheville, North Carolina | ebrier@wcu.edu
CV up to date as of October 2024
Education
University of Louisville
Master of Arts in English
Fall 2015 – Spring 2017
Creative Culminating Project, poetry collection titled “Tonight We Feast Like Vultures”
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)
Bachelor of Arts in English
Fall 2011 – Spring 2015
Concentrations in Creative Writing and Literature
Minor in American Studies
Academic Appointments
Associate Instructor, Western Carolina University
August 2020 – Present
Courses taught:
o ENGL 101: Writing and Rhetoric
o ENGL 191: First Year Seminar: Creative Writing
o ENGL 202: Writing and Critical Inquiry
o ENGL 212/302: Introduction to Creative Writing
Instructor, Mitchell Community College
Fall 2017 – July 2020
Courses taught:
o ENG 111: Writing and Inquiry
o ENG 112: Writing and Research in the Discipline
o ENG 125: Creative Writing I
o ENG 126: Creative Writing II
o ENG 231: American Literature I
o ENG 232: American Literature II
Writing Center Tutor, Mitchell Community College
Fall 2017, Spring 2018, & Spring 2019
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Instructor of Record, University of Louisville
Fall 2016 – Spring 2017
Courses taught:
o English 101: Introduction to College Writing
o English 102: Intermediate College Writing
Writing Center Tutor, University of Louisville
Fall 2015 – Spring 2016
Service
Service at Western Carolina University
Labor-Based Grading Working Group, WRCS Program
Fall 2024 - Present
Safe Zone Training Facilitator
Fall 2023 - Present
Facilitate Safe Zone trainings at WCU
WRCS Workshop Creator and Facilitator
Fall 2023
Created two workshops on labor-based grading practices in the composition classroom, a beginning and advanced model, and presented to instructors and graduate teaching assistants in the WRCS program
WRCS Reading Group Creator and Co-Facilitator
Fall 2023
Created and co-facilitated a monthly reading group focusing on up-to-date pedagogy and critical conversations among WRCS faculty, focusing on equitable teaching practices
First-Gen Advocacy Training Faculty Facilitator
Spring 2023 – Present
Present First-Gen Advocacy Training alongside the Mentorship and Persistence to Success (MAPS) office to faculty and staff once per academic year
WCU Literary Festival Advisory Board
Fall 2022 – Present
First-Gen Advocacy Board Member
Fall 2022 – Present
Coulter Faculty Fellow
August 2022 – July 2023
Served as a Faculty Fellow in Inclusive Pedagogy within the Coulter Faculty Commons at WCU, holding regular trainings and workshops for faculty and staff
Workshop Creator and Facilitator
September 2022 – April 2023
Created and facilitated the following workshops for faculty and staff as Faculty Fellow:
o September 19, Ungrading: What Next?, 60-minute session at Teaching and Learning Day sponsored by the CFC
o October 7, Labor-Based Contract Grading in Writing Classrooms, 60-minute session for the English Studies Department
o October 26, Revising Syllabus and Course Policies for Equity, 60-minute session for faculty and staff across the university
o November 11, Supporting First-Generation, Rural, and Appalachian College Students, 60-minute session for faculty and staff across the university, co-hosted with Mentoring and Persistence to Success (MAPS) office
o February 2, LGBTQ+ Competency in the Nursing Field, 60-minute session
o February 24, AccessFest, 3-hour workshop for faculty and staff, in partnership with the Office of Accessibility Resources
o April 20, Alternative Assessment Strategies, 45-minute conversation with Faculty Forward in the CFC
Gender and Sexuality Learning Community Faculty
Fall 2022
English 101 Assessment, WRCS Program
May 2022
Mentor to Graduate Assistants
August 2021 – Present
Mentor English graduate assistants through the 2021-2022 school year, discussing composition pedagogy related to teaching English 101 and English 202
Teaching Materials WRCS Committee
August 2021 - May 2022
Liberal Studies Evaluation
June 2021, June 2022
Evaluated liberal studies artifacts at Western Carolina University to determine adherence to university liberal studies outcomes in individual courses
Member, English 101 Outcomes and Textbook Committee
August 2020 – May 2021
Assessed learning outcomes for English 101 and selected a new textbook for departmentwide use
Service at Mitchell Community College
Chair, Curriculum Infusion Sub-Committee of Equity and Inclusion Council
January 2020 – May 2020
Chair, Mental Health Sub-Committee of Faculty Senate
August 2019 – May 2020
Co-Facilitator and Co-Creator, Safe Zone Training
May 2019 – May 2020
Member, Equity and Inclusion Council
September 2018 – May 2020
Member, Faculty Senate
May 2018 – May 2020
Early College Application Review
January 2018, January 2019
Assessor, Mitchell Essential Learning Outcomes
December 2017 – May 2020
Professional Service
Member, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Appalachian Studies Association
March 2021 – March 2023
Member, Scholarship Committee, Appalachian Studies Association
December 2021 – March 2023
Member, Advisory Board, University Press of Kentucky
January 2021 – Present
Advise University Press of Kentucky on book series “Appalachian Futures: Black, Native, and Queer Voices,” including giving feedback to authors on preliminary manuscripts
Member, Steering Committee, Appalachian Studies Association
March 2019 – March 2023
At-large steering committee member for the Appalachian Studies Association and annual conference, attending committee meetings and helping plan association events
Other Service
English Graduate Organization, University of Louisville
Fall 2016 – Spring 2017
Served as Secretary, Social Media Coordinator, and M.A. Liaison for the University of Louisville’s English Graduate Organization, facilitating graduate student workshops, community outreach fundraisers, and social events
Academic Publications
Fernandes, Maggie, Emily Brier, and Megan McIntyre. “We’re All Still Grading: A Call for Honesty in Writing Assessment Discourse.” Composition Studies, vol. 51, issue 2, 2023.
Brier, Emily. “Pandemic Pedagogy: Practical and Empathetic Teaching Practices.” The Social, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Theory Archives (SPECTRA), 2021.
Conference Presentations & Invited Talks
Brier, Emily. "Transforming Creative Writing Spaces into Sites of Radical Queer Belonging." Conference on College Composition and Communication, April 2025, Baltimore, MD. Paper presentation.
Brier, Emily. “Inclusive Pedagogical Course Practices.” Westmoreland Community College, half-day paid workshop, 11 January 2024, virtual. Invited workshop creator and facilitator.
Brier, Emily, Eileen Elizabeth Espinoza, and Stacy Jane Grover. “Appalachian Futures: Writing and Publishing Queer Appalachian Literature with University Presses.” Appalachian Studies Association Conference, 18 March 2023, Ohio University, Athens, OH. Roundtable facilitator and participant.
Bowden, Melody, Emily Brier, Adenike Davidson, and Lisa Langstraat. “Purposeful Practices of Hope: Critical Emotional Studies and Writing Instruction.” Conference on College Composition and Communication, 15 February 2023, Hilton Chicago, Chicago, IL. Workshop co-creator and co-facilitator.
Brier, Emily. “Creative Writing, Mental Health, and the University Classroom.” Rooted in the Mountains, 29 September 2022, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC. Presented paper.
Brier, Emily. “Appalachian Women’s Place-Identity Assertion Through Food in Contemporary Literature.” Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association Conference, 13 April 2022, Virtual. Presented paper.
Brier, Emily. “Pandemic Pedagogy, In Ongoing Retrospect.” Virginia Tech Graduate Academy of Teaching Excellence Teach-In, 23 March 2022, virtual. Keynote speaker.
Brier, Emily. Young Harris College Continuing Education Course, 22 February 2022, virtual. Invited Guest Speaker.
Brier, Emily and Maggie Fernandes. “Transformative Conversations: Ungrading Strategies to Support Classroom Equity and Transparency.” Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy, 15 February 2022, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. Workshop co-creator and co-facilitator.
Brier, Emily. “Let’s Go Zoomers! Concurrent Modalities in Hybrid Composition ‘Classrooms.’” South Atlantic Modern Language Association Conference, 4 November 2021, Virtual. Roundtable participant.
Blair Brier, Emily. Down Yonder Zine Author Reading and Q&A. All Y’all EDU, 29 June 2021, Virtual. Read essay and answered questions.
Brier, Emily. “Queer Kitchen Tables: Intersections of Queerness, Food, and Women in Contemporary Appalachian Literature.” Appalachian Studies Association Conference, 12 March 2021, virtual. Presented paper.
Brier, Emily. “Pandemic Pedagogy: Practical and Empathetic Teaching Practices.” The Race, Space, Place Initiative at VCU Unconference, 20 November 2020, virtual. Presented paper.
Brier, Emily. Valencia College Visiting Author, April 2020, virtual. Visiting Author.
Brier, Emily and Alesha Dawson. “Screen Door Review in the Greater Context: Studying and Discussing an Independent Literary Magazine’s Place in a Queerer South.” South Atlantic Modern Language Association Conference, November 2018, Birmingham, AL. Presented paper.
Brier, Emily. “Tonight, We Feast Like Vultures.” Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association Conference, March 2018, Indianapolis, IN. Creative performance.
Brier, Emily. “Voicing Appalachia: Poetry as Exploration of Liminal Appalachian Identities.” Appalachian Studies Association Conference, March 2017, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. Creative performance.
Brier, Emily. “Whose Job Is It? Helping First-Generation Students Apply for College By Bridging Gaps Between Families and High Schools.” Appalachian Studies Association Conference, March 2017, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. Roundtable participant.