The University of Montana Western

BROWSE PROGRAMS

Featured Profiles

Julie Bullard

professor of early childhood education

For the third time in as many years, Montana Western has a Carnegie Foundation Professor of the Year. (read more) Featured Faculty

Delena Norris-Tull

professor of education

The 2010 Montana Professor of the Year is continuing a proud tradition at Montana's premier teacher education institution. (read more) Featured Faculty

Kara Einarson

equine studies major

With a post-graduation job already secured in the equine industry, Kara Einarson’s career is off to a promising start. (read more) Featured Featured Profiles

Layne Carlson

assistant professor of equine studies

University of Montana Western equine studies professor Layne Carlson brings his 30 years of professional experience as a mixed animal practitioner into the classroom. (read more) Featured Faculty

Alan Weltzien

professor of english

University of Montana Western English professor Alan Weltzien is a champion of Montana literature. (read more) Featured Faculty

Anne Kish

assistant professor, librarian

As a librarian and head instructor of the School of Outreach’s library endorsement program, Anne Kish exemplifies experiential learning. (read more) Featured Faculty

Diana Taylor

school of outreach student

Diana Taylor is pursuing an early childhood education degree to enrich her life and bolster her skills for her job at a Head Start in Butte, Mont. (read more) Featured Outreach

Rob Thomas

professor of geology

The Carnegie Foundation's 2009 U.S. Professor of the Year is taking Montana Western's experiential learning to the national stage. (read more) Featured Faculty

Sean Eudaily

associate professor of political science

Sean Eudaily challenges his students to think critically to fully understand how lessons learned in his classroom impact life outside campus. (read more) Featured Faculty

Mike Morrow

associate professor of biology

Montana Western's biology program is now competitive in the national arena thanks to nearly $2 million in grants secured by Mike Morrow. (read more) Featured Faculty

Gay Garard-Brewer

visiting assistant professor of music

As a student in Montana's rural Bitteroot Valley plays their home piano, Gay Garard-Brewer sees and hears the notes over 100 miles away. (read more) Featured Faculty

Eric Dyreson

professor of mathematics

Mathematics is more than mere numbers for Eric Dyreson; it is also a philosophy capable of transforming one's perception of the world. (read more) Featured Faculty

Rebecca Petersen

education major

Rebecca Petersen is a living testament to the proud tradition of teaching educators at the University of Montana Western. (read more) Featured Students

Cathleen Flanagan

history major, drama education minor

For Cathleen Flanagan — secondary education, history major and drama minor — life's a stage and she's in the director's chair. (read more) Featured Students

Sheynoa Mataafa

general studies

On a frigid, snowy day in Dillon, Sheynoa Mataafa, a Hawaii native, does not regret her decision to move to Montana. (read more) Featured Students

Kaitlin Ens

english major

English major Kaitlin Ens counts five published articles to her name. For Ens, it's only the beginning of a promising career. (read more) Featured Students

Mitch Jessen

secondary education major

While most students entering college struggle with the decision of what to do with their futures, Mitch Jessen always knew what he wanted. (read more) Featured Students

Amanda Kortum

biology major

Amanda Kortum, a cellular molecular biology major, is already making a name for herself in her field. (read more) Featured Students

Berett Rosenkrance

environmental sciences major

One of the most shocking moments of Berett Rosenkrance's life came upon her return as a sophomore to the Montana Western campus. (read more) Featured Students

Brandon Brown

health & human performance major

For Brandon Brown, the transition from urban western Washington to Montana Western was like playing basketball: natural. (read more) Featured Students

I’m in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection. But with Montana it is love.

— John Steinbeck

Montana has a rich writing tradition.

Mary Clearman Blew, Ivan Doig, A.B. Guthrie, Jr., Jim Harrison, Richard Hugo, William Kittredge, Norman Maclean, Deirdre McNamer, Thomas Savage, Grace Stone Coates, and James Welch all produced some of their best work here.

Montana Western’s English department is staffed with faculty who are well-published poets, fiction novelists and non-fiction writers, giving students the unique opportunity to learn from real authors.

Degrees
Courses
Careers
Faculty
Contact

English degrees available from Montana Western:

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in English.

This degree will prepare the graduate for a career in editing, journalism, public relations, communications and related fields as well as preparing the graduate for further education in graduate or professional school. Majors include:

Creative Writing
Literature
Professional Communications

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Secondary English Education.

This degree will prepare students to teach English in middle school or high school.

Sample Courses

Here are just two great examples of English courses at Montana Western. For a full course selection, please see the course catalog.

English 291 Small Press Publishing

This class is designed to familiarize students with small press publishing. It focuses on varied facets of the acquisitions, editing, design, promotion and marketing process. The course includes an orientation to Lost Horse Press, a working, nonprofit literary press. The course will address the following areas of small press publishing: history of the small press movement, manuscript acquisitions, editing, publishing as a business, design aspects of publishing, copyright law and permissions, promotions and marketing, fundraising, sales and distribution venues, writing genres, and the history and aesthetics of the book. Students will participate in all aspects of publishing: editorial, design, publicity, and marketing activities for the spring 2012 Lost Horse Press releases. This course offers in-depth, real-life experience with a working publishing house, meeting actual publishing deadlines and schedules in preparation for national distribution of Lost Horse Press books.

ENG 413, History, Structure, & Nature of Language

Introduction to the principles of linguistics and examination of the evolution and characteristics of the English language and human languages in general, with particular attention to semantics and major revisions of American English. Instruction will be a combination of lecture, group discussion, and other experiential activities.

An English degree will prepare you for a career as:

An advertisement writer
A newsletter editor
A columnist
A proofreader
A copy editor
A public relations director
A reporter
A speech writer
A grant writer
A television/radio editor
An information officer
An internet writer
A movie script supervisor
An English teacher
A corporate report writer/editor
A documentary writer/producer

Bethany Blankenship
Shane Borrowman
Diana Pharaoh Francis
Alan Weltzien

Bethany Blankenship, Ph.D.

Bethany Blankenship has a passion for helping students become better readers and writers. She implemented two new programs for freshmen writers at Montana Western: Directed Self-Placement and Stretch English. These programs have empowered students to take responsibility for their own learning and become confident, fluent writers. Blankenship also encourages service learning activities in her classes. Students in her classes have worked on behalf of the Beaverhead County Humane Society, the Dillon Public Library, and the Dillon Tribune.

Shane Borrowman, Ph.D.

Shane Borrowman is a teacher of writing and editor/co-editor of six collections of original scholarship, including “Trauma and the Teaching of Writing,” “Rhetoric in the Rest of the West,” and “On the Blunt Edge: Technology in Composition’s Pedagogy and History.” He has also edited/co-edited three writing textbooks, including “The Promise of America” and “The Cost of Business.” As a writer, his work has appeared in publications as diverse as “Renaissance Magazine,” “Brevity,” and “Rhetoric Review.” Borrowman has written on topics ranging from boxing in medieval England and the value of the astrolabe to Renaissance navigation to medieval Arabic scholars on Aristotle and Jeannette Rankin’s overlooked importance in the history of the American peace movement.

Diana Pharaoh Francis, Ph.D.

Diana Francis is a published fantasy novelist. She has published seven novels with Penguin Books and another with Pocket Books. She has forthcoming titles from Pocket Books and HarperTeen. Her titles include “Path of Fate,” “Path of Blood,” “Path of Honor,” “The Crosspointe Chronicles,” and “The Horngate Witches” series. Francis teaches fiction writing, literary theory, literature and publication classes at Montana Western. She is also the faculty advisor for Twisted Ink, Montana Western’s creative writing club.

O. Alan Weltzien, Ph. D.

Alan Weltzien is a published non-fiction writer and editor. He most recently published a memoir entitled “A Father and an Island” in addition to “The Norman Maclean Reader” and “Thomas Savage: a Forgotten Novelist.” Weltzien has received two Fulbright Fellowships and one University of Montana Faculty Exchange Award. Weltzien incorporates hands-on experiences and practical contact with the literature he teaches.

Contact

For more information about English at Montana Western, contact department chair Bethany Blankenship:

Main Hall 200
(406) 683-7360
b_blankenship@umwestern.edu.

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Mike Morrow named Montana Professor of the Year

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