Dr. Catherine Levey: Passion

By: Elizabeth Vu and Max Anguiano

Passion is defined as a powerful emotion and or boundless enthusiasm. Dr. Levey has a passion for her work, as well as everything else she may try. Notes, tests, overheads, research, articles, preparations for conferences, e-mails, and letters all make up some of the daily writing that Catherine Levey takes part in. “Some days I write up to 30 full pages, depending on how busy I am.” Dr. Catherine Levey is an associate professor in English with an emphasis in social linguistics. Dr. Levey is committed and dedicated first and foremost to her students. Any professional must
have this passion in order to be great at what he or she does. Her passion drives her to encourage students to explore and expand their knowledge of daily life, language, and writing, not only at Grand College but in every other possible median that they may be faced with.

Where It Began

Levey thought back to when she was in the fifth grade, she then accompanied her friend Jane to Jane’s father’s workplace. Jane’s dad was a professor at a local college. “I was fascinated by all the books he had,” Catherine shared. This was her inspiration to become a college professor. School came and went easily for Professor Levey. Levey completed her B.A. in English and French at Morehead State University and then her M.A. in English at the same university. Catherine’s strong work ethic and passion forced her to go back to school after teaching middle school and high school. She enjoyed teaching middle school, but she felt her true calling was becoming an educator at a University. Levey then went on to completer her PhD at Michigan Tech in Rhetoric and Technical Communications.

Today, Tomorrow, and Next Week

Dr. Levey has been at Grand College for eight years. She teaches ENG 261: The Study of Modern English, ENG 362: The History of the English Language, ENG 364: Sociolinguistics, and ENG 461: Language and Gender. Dr. Levey writes a lot in her profession. A lot of students fail to realize how much writing goes into English classes as well. She is published and writes at least two 20 page articles a year. These often come in book chapters and journals. Her writing comes in all shapes and sizes but in particular she has focused on language issues, language and gender concerns, and linguistics. Her writings are not limited to this, as she writes every day. The reason she has such a strong passion for her work is because she is allowed to write, research, and teach what she loves. This is key to liking and developing a passion for writing.

Roadblocks

Catherine also claims that the road to success has not always been easy. “Writing was hard for me,” Catherine explains. She said that it was really hard for her to sit down and start a piece of writing. She said that a poetry class in high school helped the most with her writing capabilities and brought her into a deeper appreciation for writing. This genre of writing introduced her to the wide world of writing, and since then, Catherine can’t get enough of it. Many students are faced with some of the same attitudes on writing. But Levey hopes that students will find a distinct type of writing that matches the individual’s personality. After all this, Dr. Levey says she still has little time to do what she enjoys. “I never have any time to write!” She claims that she never has time to focus on one specific thing. Dr. Levey needs to stay up to date with research in her field because the world is constantly changing.

Daily Double

Levey has to balance a daily schedule full of instructing classes, having office hours, attending meetings, and communicating with staff and students. A regular day for one class may involve writing up notes, instructions, guidelines, feedback, and tests. Not to mention the writing she may do on the board or overhead. Every so often, a student may ask for a recommendation letter as well from this well-liked Professor. She would gladly comply because of love and passion to help others.

Key Notes

Dr. Levey encourages everyone to write, as much as possible. She says reading is just as important. “With reading and writing one can learn and share new ideas,” Levey promotes. She also wishes writers to become versatile in their writing style, through writing in different genres for different audiences than the norm. She knows that writing is not always easy, as she has experienced herself, but challenges students to find their interests and then write about them.