Meet our Faculty

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Meet our Faculty

Cynthia L. Bascom, Ph.D.

Professor of Communications

Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in Mass Communication, Ohio University, 1992

Master of Business Administration (Marketing Concentration), Ohio University, 1985

Bachelor of Fine Arts, (Graphic Concentration and Art Education) Denison University, 1979

Bio:

My background is particularly diverse encompassing the art, science, and business of communication. Having first been trained as an artist/designer and then as a businesswoman, I appreciate the aesthetic qualities of all types of communication, while I also understand the dynamic economic forces that shape marketing communication in the US and globally. Previously, I taught at Ohio University and Butler University; however, I have always wanted to teach in a Christian college, so I feel at home as part of the faculty of Bluefield College. Courses that I teach in the Communications and Graphic Communication programs include Principles of Speech, Mass Communication, Advertising, Public Relations II, Media and Society, Senior Seminar and Senior Project.

Contact:

Email:

Phone: (276) 326-4225

Pamela R. Merritt

Assistant Professor of Communications

Degrees Held:

Master of Arts in Journalism, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1984

Bachelor of Arts in English, Duke University, 1979

Bio:

My background is 28 years in several areas of professional media writing. I've worked as a freelance feature writer and as a staff reporter for daily newspapers in North Carolina and Virginia, in public relations for the Mining and Minerals Engineering Department at Virginia Tech, and for four years in technical writing and editing, putting together software guides and manuals. Since finding my home at BC, I have loved the small-school intimacy and the opportunity to share my passion for communications with students in classes and in producing the campus newspaper, which is now online and paper-free. The practice of journalism is changing rapidly, and I'm excited about the challenge of keeping BC communications majors current.

Contact:

Email:

Phone: (276) 326-4548

Robert C. Merritt, Jr., Ph.D.

Professor of English, Chair of Division

Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in English, University of Kentucky, 1990

Master of Arts in English, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1982

Bachelor of Arts in English, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1974

Bio:

I teach Creative Writing, and I am a writer. My poetry appears in Wild Sweet Notes II: An Anthology of West Virginia Poets and Coal: A Poetry Anthology. My book of poetry is entitled Landscape Architects. I have offered numerous workshops on the power of writing for healing and am a vice-president of The National Association for Poetry Therapy (www.poetrytherapy.org).

My research interests focus on modernism, and my book, Early Music and the Aesthetics of Ezra Pound, examines how Pound adapted some elements of pre-Mozartian instrumental music into his poetry and into his critical defenses of modern art. I have published essays on Joyce, Yeats, and Faulkner. Currently, I am researching ways in which various modern poets incorporate the healing power of words into their work.

I enjoy teaching a variety of courses in British, American, and World literature. I am faculty advisor for the college literary magazine, The Bluestone Review, and am editor of the online journal about Appalachia, The Nantahala Review (www.nantahalareview.org).

Contact:

Email:

Phone: (276) 326-4270

Wayne D. Massey, Ph.D.

Professor of English

Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in English, Ball State University, 1974

Master of Arts in English, Western Carolina University, 1970

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1961 Associate of Science in Business Administration, Bluefield College, 1959

Bio:

My professional background is varied. Upon graduation from Virginia Tech in 1961, I accepted a teaching position (English and business courses) at Tidewater Academy (later re-named Douglas MacArthur Academy) in Norfolk, Virginia, where I also served as baseball coach, assistant boys' basketball coach, and girls' basketball coach. Upon the school's closing in 1968, I accepted a position teaching English at Albemarle Academy in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, where I also served as the girls' basketball coach. While working under a doctoral fellowship at Ball State University, I taught freshman writing courses and served as substitute teacher for sophomore level literature courses. Upon receiving my Ph.D. degree in 1974, I accepted a position as headmaster and administrator of Woodlawn Academy in Chatham, Virginia, where I served for twelve years. The next two years I taught simultaneously as adjunct professor at three Virginia community colleges in Danville, Martinsville, and Lynchburg. The move to Bluefield College came in 1988.

My professional interests, too, are varied. Robert Frost, Thomas Hardy, and William Shakespeare are writers in whose works I have great interest. The use of language through the understanding of English grammar has always been a focus. Understanding Grammar, a thoroughly traditional approach to our language can be found on line at www.ugrammar.com, and actual texts are available through the Bluefield College Bookstore.

Teaching is my passion. Seeing students grow in their love for and appreciation of literature and language is my primary professional goal.

Contact:

Email:

Phone: (276) 326-4275

Michaele A. (Mickey) Pellillo, M.A.

Assistant Professor of English

Degrees held:

MA English, Virginia Tech, 1987

BS Social Work, West Virginia University, 1977

BA Religion and Philosophy, Bluefield College, 1998

BS Exercise and Sports Science, Bluefield College, 2009

Bio:

My primary interests in the English field are writing, tutoring writing, and Holocaust and Appalachian literature. I created the college's face to face and online writing centers. The online center won a national award. I also run the writing across the curriculum program, helping faculty incorporate writing into their courses.

I also love teaching interdisciplinary courses and online courses. One such course I particularly enjoy is our interdisciplinary, online, cross multiple college campuses course on the Appalachian Trail. In this course students study the art, biology, outdoor recreational opportunities and the literature of the Appalachian Trail and nature in general and then experience the AT firsthand with an overnight group hike. I truly enjoy sharing my love for the outdoors with students.

Contact:

Email:

Phone: (276) 326-4273

Cynthia L. Bascom, Ph.D.

Professor of Communications

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Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in Mass Communication, Ohio University, 1992

Master of Business Administration (Marketing Concentration), Ohio University, 1985

Bachelor of Fine Arts, (Graphic Concentration and Art Education) Denison University, 1979

Bio:

Pamela R. Merritt

Assistant Professor of Communications

Degrees Held:

Master of Arts in Journalism, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1984

Bachelor of Arts in English, Duke University, 1979

Bio:

My background is 28 years in several areas of professional media writing. I’ve worked as a freelance feature writer and as a staff reporter for daily newspapers in North Carolina and Virginia, in public relations for the Mining and Minerals Engineering Department at Virginia Tech, and for four years in technical writing and editing, putting together software guides and manuals. Since finding my home at BC, I have loved the small-school intimacy and the opportunity to share my passion for communications with students in classes and in producing the campus newspaper, which is now online and paper-free. The practice of journalism is changing rapidly, and I’m excited about the challenge of keeping BC communications majors current.

Robert C. Merritt, Jr., Ph.D.

Professor of English, Chair of Division

Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in English, University of Kentucky, 1990

Master of Arts in English, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1982

Bachelor of Arts in English, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1974

Bio:

I teach Creative Writing, and I am a writer. My poetry appears in Wild Sweet Notes II: An Anthology of West Virginia Poets and Coal: A Poetry Anthology. My book of poetry is entitled Landscape Architects. I have offered numerous workshops on the power of writing for healing and am a vice-president of The National Association for Poetry Therapy (www.poetrytherapy.org).

My research interests focus on modernism, and my book, Early Music and the Aesthetics of Ezra Pound, examines how Pound adapted some elements of pre-Mozartian instrumental music into his poetry and into his critical defenses of modern art. I have published essays on Joyce, Yeats, and Faulkner. Currently, I am researching ways in which various modern poets incorporate the healing power of words into their work.

I enjoy teaching a variety of courses in British, American, and World literature. I am faculty advisor for the college literary magazine, The Bluestone Review, and am editor of the online journal about Appalachia, The Nantahala Review (www.nantahalareview.org).

Wayne D. Massey, Ph.D.

Professor of English

Degrees Held:

Ph.D. in English, Ball State University, 1974

Master of Arts in English, Western Carolina University, 1970

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1961 Associate of Science in Business Administration, Bluefield College, 1959

Bio:

My professional interests, too, are varied. Robert Frost, Thomas Hardy, and William Shakespeare are writers in whose works I have great interest. The use of language through the understanding of English grammar has always been a focus. Understanding Grammar, a thoroughly traditional approach to our language can be found on line at www.ugrammar.com, and actual texts are available through the Bluefield College Bookstore.

Teaching is my passion. Seeing students grow in their love for and appreciation of literature and language is my primary professional goal.

Michaele A. (Mickey) Pellillo, M.A.

Assistant Professor of English

Degrees held:

MA English, Virginia Tech, 1987

BS Social Work, West Virginia University, 1977

BA Religion and Philosophy, Bluefield College, 1998

BS Exercise and Sports Science, Bluefield College, 2009

Bio:

My primary interests in the English field are writing, tutoring writing, and Holocaust and Appalachian literature. I created the college’s face to face and online writing centers. The online center won a national award. I also run the writing across the curriculum program, helping faculty incorporate writing into their courses.