Welcome Mollie Stambler, Ph.D.

Dr. Mollie Stambler is the newest addition to the faculty of the School of Writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication (WRTC). Her fascinating academic background combines the social science and the humanities.

As an undergraduate at Northern Arizona University, Dr. Stambler double-majored in applied sociology and English. She began a master's degree in sociology, but, as she put it, “life circumstances” led her to take a break from academic work, but not from higher education.

Before returning to graduate school as a student, Dr. Stambler worked in a university setting as an academic program administrator and content strategist/technical communicator. Later, she earned a Master's degree in Library and Information Science, where she was able to expand her expertise on information intermediation and user experience. “And,” she says, “I discovered a love for archives.”

When she entered the Ph.D. program at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Stambler was able to bring together all of her interests and experiences through a program focused on rhetoric and technical communication. “My current research focuses broadly on health discourse and user experience,” she says, “and I’m especially interested in wellness rhetorics, with a focus on ableism, health disparities, literacies, and justice.”

Dr. Stambler has completed a variety of different projects from historical archival research to usability testing/UX to surveys and interviews. She’s working on a book project examining people's experience with rhetorics of food and ableism in employee wellness programs.

Dr. Stambler is also an international research partner in the Building Digital Literacy cluster at the Digital Life Institute, a group working to theorize and develop pedagogical activities to foster multiple literacies for engagement in a digital life. In addition to her research program, she brings expertise in teaching first year writing, technical communication, digital and visual rhetoric, medical and science writing, and usability and user experience.

Outside of work, she enjoys hiking and the outdoors, playing board games, and cooking. Always looking for new things to apply her talents to, Dr. Stambler says, “I'm currently learning to bake bread.”

Her enthusiasm comes through when she reflects on her new home. “After living in many parts of the U.S.,” she says, “I’m excited to make Virginia and the beautiful Shenandoah Valley my home!”