Holy Cross Professor Recognized for Achievements in the Humanities

WORCESTER, Mass. – Patricia Bizzell, professor of English at the College of the Holy Cross, has been named the Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J., Professor in the Humanities. This rotating professorship is awarded to Holy Cross faculty for a term of three years and recognizes a professor in the humanities for his/her achievements. The chair is named in honor of Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J., president emeritus of Holy Cross, who initiated the beginning of co-education, a strong commitment to athletics, the professionalization of the teaching faculty, and a growth in endowment to pay for the advances.

“I have the greatest respect for him [Rev. Brooks] and well remember working with him on several college committees while he was President. I am honored to occupy a chair bearing his name,” says Bizzell.

Bizzell will use the professorship to complete a master’s degree in Jewish Liberal Studies at Hebrew College in Newton Centre, Mass., and to pursue other scholarly projects including work in the College’s Passport Program, an innovative, residential program designed to acclimate first-year students to the challenging academic life at the College; and to develop a course on American rhetoric and public speaking for the College’s Montserrat program.

Bizzell, a member of Holy Cross faculty since 1978, earned her B.A. from Wellesley College and her Ph.D. in English literature from Rutgers University. She is a nationally recognized authority on the teaching of composition and has lectured and conducted workshops at other institutions and at scholarly meetings. Bizzell is the author of numerous articles and essays on composition theory. Her book, The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times to the Present, which she co-authored with Bruce Herzberg, received the National Council of Teachers of English Outstanding Book Award in 1992. She was recently awarded the 2008 Exemplar Award by the Conference on College Composition and Communication. The award recognizes those representing the highest ideals of scholarship, teaching, and service to the entire profession, through a national and international scope.

At Holy Cross, Bizzell has served as the director of the Writing-Across-the-Curriculum Program, chair of the English department, director of the College Honors Program, and as Speaker of the Faculty.

Bizzell, who resides in Worcester, Mass., will formally assume the position on July 1, 2010.