Skip to Content
Department of English
MA in Rhetoric & Composition

Faculty

This directory contains helpful information about our faculty, including their contact information, educational background, teaching and research interests, commonly taught courses, and selected publications. See what our faculty can offer you!

Faculty Members
Associate Professor and Director of the Writing Center Dr. Deborah Balzhiser

Dr. Deborah Balzhiser joined the Department of English at Texas State University in 2005, and has taught rhetoric, composition, and technical communication since 1992. Her research and teaching interests include workplace communication, processes, and best practices; medical rhetoric, visual rhetoric, instructional technologies, culture and technology, and design methodologies. 

Assistant Professor Dr. Eric Leake

Dr. Eric Leake joined the Department of English at Texas State University in 2013, and took over the directorship in the fall of 2020. His research and teaching interests include empathy studies, nonrational rhetorics, and civic literacies. 

Dr. Octavio Pimentel

Dr. Octavio Pimentel joined the Department of English at Texas State University in 2005. Critically trained in rhetoric, writing, and education, Dr. Pimentel combines these fields to address critical issues pertaining to minoritized individuals in the Rhetoric Composition Technical Communication fields. 

Director of Undergraduate Studies Dr. Nancy Wilson

Dr. Nancy Wilson joined the Department of English at Texas State University in 1992. She coordinated and then directed the Texas State Writing Center from 1995-2014, and is currently the Director of Lower Division Studies. Her research and teaching interests include T.A. practicum, composition pedagogy, composition theory, and women's rhetoric.