Rate My Professor James Guignard

Dr. James Guignard is a Professor of English in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Writing at the Mansfield campus of Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, where he has been a faculty member since 2005, initially joining Mansfield University of Pennsylvania as Assistant Professor and Director of Composition. He advanced to Associate Professor and chaired the English and Modern Languages Department for eight years, including during the institutional consolidation into Commonwealth University. Guignard's educational background includes a PhD in English Composition and Rhetoric from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2005, an MA in English from Western Carolina University, and a BA in Communications from Appalachian State University. Before entering academia, he worked in nonunion construction, an experience that shaped his advocacy through APSCUF, where he currently serves as officer-at-large on the executive council. He has been honored multiple times for service and dedication at Mansfield University, including recognitions for 15 and 20 years of service.

Guignard teaches courses in composition, advanced and professional writing, composition theory, and environmental rhetoric. His research focuses on environmental rhetoric, particularly the rhetoric of the natural gas industry in northcentral Pennsylvania during the Marcellus Shale development. Key publications include co-editing Literature, Writing, and the Natural World (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2009) and authoring Pedaling the Sacrifice Zone: Teaching, Writing, and Living Above the Marcellus Shale (Texas Tech University Press, 2015). He has published essays in Liberal Education, A Journal for the Literature of Place, Virginia English Bulletin, and an essay on Rachel Carson and pedagogy in Ragazine.cc. Guignard contributes as a faculty sponsor for student scholarship showcases, peer reviewer for academic journals, and faculty adviser for the student newspaper. His work bridges teaching, writing, and local environmental issues, impacting students and the academic community.