Tamara Toomey MS

Biography

I am the Director of First-Year Writing and the Chair of the Communication Arts, Language, and Literature Department (CALL) at Western. I teach courses in English on campus and via concurrent enrollment throughout Colorado. Prior to coming to Western, I taught in public schools in Arkansas (4^th grade ELA and 7^th grade ELA), worked for Teach for America, ran grant-funded after-school programs in Appalachia and Nebraska, taught college in Idaho and Nebraska, worked as an academic advisor, directed a student transition & retention team, and managed orientation and enrollment at a rural college in Nebraska. I also served as the executive assistant to the interim Western president and worked as a bank branch manager. There is no end to the things you can do with an undergraduate degree in English.

What most excites you about your field?

I absolutely love teaching writing and literature at multiple levels. I cannot think of anything more important, especially in our current cultural moment, than learning to read, write, and think independently about what it means to be human in an ever-changing world and how these skills and knowledge can help us navigate these changes successfully to build a life and existence that we find meaningful and impactful to others. The best part of my job is helping students through that process.