Prize Writer

Universitas, the Online Newsletter from the Pittsburg State University College of Arts and Sciences featured an article titled "Prize Writer" about me! This is indeed an honor!

Robin Pettibon, a 2011 graduate of Pittsburg State University, is not only a writer, but, as someone who's had an essay published in the Sigma Tau Delta Review, she can be thought of as a writer's writer.

Having an article published in the "Sigma Tau Delta Review" is coveted by aspiring student writers.

"Robin is one of our brightest and best," says Casie Hermansson, Professor of English. "I for one am not surprised by this honor at all. Her work is of the highest quality, she has an inquiring mind, and a wonderful personality. " 

While her essay is a critical review of an aspect of The Canterbury Tales, Robin has a wide range of abilities as is evidenced by the fact that her main concentration in English Studies is in technical writing.

"I chose to specialize my education by customizing my electives towards online and web technologies," says Pettibon. "I truly have a passion for creating interactive documents. "

Robin's "Sigma Tau Delta Review" essay was written originally for a course taught by Paul McCallum. She then rewrote that paper as the final assignment in Don Judd's Advanced Composition course.

"Robin was relentless in revising her paper, and the quality shows," says Don Judd, Associate Professor of English. "As a result of all her writing courses and her hard work, [Robin] has developed her writing skills to a new level."

 As a result of Robin's high level of writing proficiency, Dr. Judd and Dr. Janet  Zepernick  were extremely happy to have her work as a tutor in the Writing Center this last year.

"While we have some very good tutors in the Writing Center, Robin was a standout, both for her good tutoring skills and for her maturity and professionalism," explains Judd.  "She will be missed in the Writing Center."

While Pettibon's piece was of a literary nature, her tastes pull her in a different direction.

"I love to write 'how to' tutorials and currently maintain a blog titled Design in Tech Writing," says Pettibon.

In this blog, she shares pieces she has created throughout her career at PSU, as well as 'how to' articles that offer solutions to problems writers may encounter using various softwares, e.g., Adobe InDesign, Acrobat, and Microsoft Word.

Her work as a tutor at PSU's Writing Center has also been helpful in her own education.

"This position has built my ability to identify a writer's needs and develop a mini writing lesson on-the-spot to educate others, enhancing my skill set for writing online tutorials," she says. "I strongly urge students of various writing disciplines to work in writing centers as well. The experience truly hones one's own abilities. After graduation, I see myself writing online tutorials for a company such as Google, Apple, or Adobe." 

Robin Pettibon will be continuing her education at Pittsburg State as she has accepted a graduate teaching assistantship to study for a master's degree in the English Department.