Suzanne M. Gut, MS

Make a Living. Make a Life. Make a Contribution.

I am an accidental teacher. As an English major, my sights were set on becoming an editor, but during in my senior year of undergraduate work, I was afforded a chance to teach conversational English in Greece. I was intrigued and accepted not sure about this what I had gotten myself into, but after the first five minutes of my first class, I knew had found my passion and path. I was hooked and have never looked back or regretted my choice to teach.

I have been involved in language studies and acquisition throughout my career as an ESOL instructor, composition instructor, public speaking instructor, and writing  and reading tutor at the high school, community college, and university level!

My greatest challenge has been to help students find a balance of hard and soft skills in their communication activities. My responsibility as an educator is to help students find and maintain this balance and expose them to opportunities where they can best use their language tools to better express themselves and think critically. My ultimate goal is to empower students to use those tools and thoughtfully choose appropriate genres and rhetoric to progress and produce good, effective communication, not communication that is “good enough.” My current research and challenges involve helping others (and myself) better understand and navigate digital rhetoric. Specifically, I research how we can be better communicators through academic email. Email is a digital communication tool many of us use every day and need to understand even though it may not be a user’s top choice of communication medium.  

Additionally, I firmly believe students can thoroughly and meaningfully learn while having fun in the classroom. My courses are upbeat and filled with humor, pop culture references, and snark! I also firmly believe in servant leadership, making a difference outside of the classroom, and being a role model. I am incredibly active in student life and encourage others to embrace M.E. Davenport’s mission, “Make a living. Make a life. Make a contribution.”