USU Eastern Press Release
Utah State University Eastern associate professor Michaelann Nelson has been named a USU Presidential Leadership Fellow. Nelson, an associate professor of English in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, is one of three USU professors to earn the prestigious distinction.
The Presidential Leadership Fellows program aims to increase the number of academic leaders from the arts and humanities, specifically those historically excluded and underrepresented from the ranks of chairs, deans, and university presidents. The fellows participate at the top levels of campus leadership; professional and development activities; and mentoring sessions from the president, cabinet members, and other leaders in higher education.
“Statewide Campus is committed to fostering the professional development of our faculty and staff to promote holistic leadership,” stated Rich Etchberger, Vice Provost and interim Vice President for Statewide Campuses. “Different backgrounds and perspectives create better outcomes, which for us results in better learning environments to help our students be successful academically.”
The program, which originally began at the University of Utah, was expanded in August 2022 to include USU and other Utah higher education institutions as part of a $1.3 million grant from the Mellon Foundation. USU is proud to participate in the program and to train future leaders and offer opportunities for professional development throughout Statewide Campuses.
Nelson teaches courses in composition, introductory literature, literary analysis and British literature to students throughout the state via the Interactive Broadcast System. Her research focuses on the rhetoric of wilderness in the Southwest, with a particular focus on the literature of Glen Canyon and the larger role those texts play within the environmental movement.
She is the advisor for Sigma Tau Delta, the undergraduate English Honor Society, and each year she takes a group of students to present their work at the annual conference. She has won the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Undergraduate Mentor of the Year award as well as the English Department Teacher of the Year award.
Nelson is also the director for the Writing Center on the USU Eastern campus. She has served in the USU Faculty Senate for five years, where she is the chair of the Faculty Diversity and Equity committee. She recently received a grant from the Utah Humanities Council to bring the Smithsonian exhibit Crossroads, which examines the current state of rural America, to USU Eastern.