Dr. Vittoria S. Rubino

Vittoria S. Rubino, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Composition

Western Connecticut State University
181 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810

Office: HI 218 A, Midtown Campus
Phone: (203) 837-8025
Email: rubinov@wcsu.edu

Vittoria S. Rubino holds a Ph.D. in Composition & Rhetoric from St. John’s University, A.G.C. in Higher Education Administration from Stony Brook University, M.A. in English Studies from Iona College, and B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Secondary Education from Concordia College. Her academic and professional trajectory bridges secondary and higher education, linking research on student development with evidence-based writing pedagogies to provide a comprehensive perspective on the continuum of student learning in writing and rhetoric.

In secondary education, Vittoria served as an English teacher, department head, and vice principal at an accredited 1-to-1 private school, where personalized instruction and inclusive practices supported students with diverse learning, social, and emotional needs. These experiences informed her conviction that teaching must balance rigor with compassion, while adapting to the intellectual, developmental, and affective needs of learners.

In higher education, Vittoria has served as a professor, writing center director, writing program administrator, and faculty leader in writing across the curriculum at institutions such as the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and Ramapo College of New Jersey. At Western Connecticut State University, she coordinates the Composition program and teaches Composition 1: Introduction to Composition and Rhetoric and Composition 2: Rhetoric and Research.

Her forthcoming book on arts-based pedagogies for first-year writing highlights the generative interplay between theory and practice, showing how transdisciplinary approaches to composition and research can make the process of learning more personally meaningful, accessible, equitable, and transformative. Through publications, conference presentations, and invited talks, she continues to advance a vision of writing pedagogy that is deeply informed by transdisciplinary pedagogies, responsive to student diversity, and attentive to the connections between social and educational contexts.

Vittoria is committed to supporting faculty and enhancing student engagement with writing across disciplines. If you are interested in any of the following, please do not hesitate to reach out:

brainstorming, drafting, or revising work for professional publication or conferences,
developing a workshop on an aspect of the writing process for students or faculty in your course, program, or department,
collaborating to identify what resources, if any, are needed to support faculty offering writing-intensive courses across the curriculum,
and more!

Manuscript in progress:

Reimagining First-Year Writing: The Intersection of Art, Design, and Inquiry. Under contract with Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group. Excepted August 2026.

Highlighted publications:

“Design Thinking as a Pedagogical Tool for Writing Centers.” Programmatic Perspectives, Special Issue: Design and Design Thinking in Technical and Professional Communication: Examining Our Pedagogies, Practices, and Perspectives, January 2024. https://programmaticperspectives.cptsc.org/index.php/jpp/article/view/46

“How Explicit Institutional Objectives Can Influence Peer Consultant Development.” The Journal of Student Leadership, vol. 7, no. 1, April 2023. https://www.uvu.edu/slss/docs/jsl/jsl-v7-i1-2023_accessible.pdf

“The Instructional Value of Formative Assessment and Feedback.” The Teaching Professor, March 2023. https://www.teachingprofessor.com/topics/grading-feedback/formative-assessment/the-instructional-value-of-formative-assessment-and-feedback/

“The Value of Low-Stakes Writing.” Educate & Inspire: Center for Faculty Excellence, no. 6, December 2022.

“Part One: A Community of Practice, at a Military Academy?” Praxis, http://www.praxisuwc.com/praxis-blog/2021/4/14/part-one-a-community-of-practiceat-a-military-academy , 2021.

“Part Two: A Community of Practice—At a Military Academy? Fostering the Synergetic Spirit for Writing Center Work with Undergraduate Consultants.” Praxis, http://www.praxisuwc.com/praxis-blog/2021/4/28/part-two-a-community-of-practiceat-a-military-academy-fostering-the-synergetic-spirit-for-writing-center-work-with-undergraduate-consultants , 2021.

“Re-animation through Electro-stimulation: Frankenstein and Electrical Science.” The Rail, the Body and the Pen: Essays on Travel, Medicine and Technology in 19^th Century British Literature. McFarland Press, 2020.

“Invoking the Studio Art & Design Spirit in Writing Instruction.” Humanities Bulletin, https://www.journals.lapub.co.uk/index.php/HB/issue/view/85, 2020.

“The Artistry of Composition: Bringing Design-Thinking to Writing Studies.” Exquisite Corpse: Art-Based Writing Practices in the Academy. Edited by Nathalie Virgintino and Katherine Hanzalik. Parlor Press, 2019.

“The New Woman in Victorian Literature.” The Victorian, vol. 1, no. 2, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20190808161457/https://journals.sfu.ca/vict/index.php/vict/article/view/53

Highlighted conferences and invited talks:

Standing Interest Group: Composition Embedded Consultants. International Writing Center Association Conference. Cleveland, OH. October 2025.
“Bringing the Arts, Outside, and Rituals to the Classroom.” Roundtable session. College English Association. Philadelphia, PA. March 2025.
“Arts-based Pedagogies and the Development of Self-motivated Inquiry.” Workshop session. Northeast Modern Language Association Conference. Philadelphia, PA. March 2024.
“Everyday Strategy: The Writing Center and Institutional Mission.” Organized and chaired a roundtable session. International Writing Center Association Conference. Baltimore, MD. October 2023.
“A Rubric of One’s Own: Collaborative Grading and Professional Excellence.” Workshop presentation facilitator. U.S. Naval Academy. Annapolis, MD. May 2023.
“Creating Communities of Practice through Peer Tutor Development.” Organized and chaired an Engaged Learning Experience Session. Conference on College Composition and Communication (via National Council of Teachers of English). Chicago, IL. February 2023.
“Delivering Student Feedback.” Facilitated workshop for faculty teaching Military Leadership. West Point, NY. October 2022.
“Decoding Writing Prompts.” Facilitated workshop for cadets performing a written task for The Army of the Republic: Leading Citizen Soldiers course. West Point, NY. August 2022.
“Reflection, Fragmentation, and Improvisation: Meaning Making in Virtual and Traditional Classrooms through Inclusive Pedagogies.” Conference on College Composition and Communication (via National Council of Teachers of English). On Demand panel session. April 2021.
“Reframing the Goals for Undergraduate Research in FYW through Studio-Based Pedagogies.” Making Matters: Multimodal, Multilingual, Multigenre Practice for Writing Instruction. Delivered virtually due to COVID-10 pandemic. Engaged Learning Experience Session.Conference on College Composition and Communication (via National Council of Teachers of English). Milwaukee, WI. March 2020.
“Planning and Processing Large Writing Projects: Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations.” Professional development for Cadets in the West Point Writing Program, U.S. Military. Academy. West Point, NY. October 2019.
“Arts-Based Pedagogies in First-Year Writing.” Conference on College Composition and Communication (via NCTE). Kansas City, MI. May 2018.

Certifications:

2023 Social-Behavioral-Educational (SBE) Comprehensive, Collaborative Institutional Training, Initiative, Number: 54053144

2023 IRB Member/Administrator, Collaborative Institutional Training, Initiative Number: 54053146

2023 Responsible Conduct of Research for Administrators, Collaborative Institutional Training, Initiative, Number: 54053145

2022 Contracting Officers Representative (COR), Mission and Installation Contracting Command, West Point, NY. DoDAAC: W16XYA

2019 State University of New York, Exploring Emerging Technology for Lifelong Learning and Success, Number: PFQ7JXZBPN7D

2014 National Institute of Health, Office of Extramural Research, Protecting Human Research Participants, Number: 1540735