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Debra Burgauer

Office: 389 Bradley Hall
Phone: (309) 677-3304
E-mail: dlb@bradley.edu

A native of Quincy, Illinois, Debra Laaker Burgauer graduated with honors in 1974 from Illinois State University, earning a B.A. in English and a teacher certification. From 1974 to 1980, Dr. Burgauer taught English and French in public and parochial high schools in central Illinois. In May 1982, she graduated with distinction from Bradley University earning a M.A. in English. She has been teaching Freshman Composition since 1980 and joined the department in Fall 1995 as a full-time lecturer. In addition, she teaches ENG 124, American Writers and ENG 233, American Literature to 1865. In December 2004 she completed her Phd. in English Studies from Illinois State University. Dr. Burgauer's research concentrates on teaching methods for composition and American literature.

Her research interests include science fiction, writing pedagogy, reader-response theory, young adult literature and contemporary American authors, especially Kurt Vonnegut and John Barth. Dr. Burgauer assists her husband with the research, editing, and promotion of his own science fiction writing career.

Dr. Burgauer serves as an academic advisor for English majors and is on the planning committee for the Mid-America Book and Paper Fair that benefits Bradley's Cullom-Davis Library. She is a member of the Modern Language Association (MLA), the National Council for Teachers of English (NCTE), the Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar (ATEG), and Science Fiction Research Association (SFRA). She was involved with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts with her son and daughter, and is also a board member of the Friends of Peoria Public Library.