Pocatello is my home town, and it’s where I feel I belong. After high school, I earned a certificate in Graphic Arts, but I really wanted to study English. Instead, I had been convinced by the people (parents) who paid for my education and who knew my high school “track record” I needed to learn something “more practical.”  About ten years later, after living in various places around the North West (Jackson Hole, Wyoming for two years—no small feat when you’re young and on your own!), I returned home and enrolled (at my own expense) at ISU as an English Major. I used the grants and scholarships I was later awarded to earn my BA in English and, because I used my elective courses to study art, a minor degree in Art History. Directly after earning my BA, I enrolled in Graduate School; it seemed to be the natural, next step. Through a combination of hard work, tenacity, and support from many of the people in the English Department, I proudly reached my goal. And, now, I do my best to teach.

Freshman Composition and Critical Reading and Writing are the courses with which I’m most familiar. I emphasize close reading and careful organization of essays. These skills, and the ability to teach yourself, are, to me, what a higher education is all about. My authority to teach these subjects stems from my personal experience as a student. Some of the best advice I received was from my graduate mentor who suggested I “follow my heart.” I would add, never give up. I bring to my classrooms what was taught to me by the good professors here at ISU. Go Bengals!

Courses Taught

• Eng. 102, Critical Reading & Writing
• Eng. 110, Introduction to Literature
• Eng. 101, College Composition
• Eng. 90, Developmental Writing

Office: LA 207-B
Office Phone: 282-5481
johnsylv@isu.edu