Elizabethtown College English Department

Becoming a teacher was not always Dr. Matt Skillen’s dream. Initially, he wanted to be a theater designer. After taking an English class in college, he discovered his love for the subject.

As the current chair of English department at Elizabethtown College, Skillen is now devoted to passing on his enthusiasm and love for the subject to his students.

Skillen is the director of the secondary English education program, primarily working with students looking to go into the teaching field. He focuses on writing and language instruction. He was also involved in the development of the Young Adult Literature course offered through the English department.

Skillen teaches mostly secondary education courses. He especially enjoys teaching classes focused on methods, saying, “I get to share parts of my practice with the next generation of teachers.” He has also designed an author-specific course on Hunter Thompson.

Publications and Projects

Many of the articles Skillen publishes deal with teaching strategies and ideas. He loves telling stories about positive classroom experiences he has had or relaying the successes of other teachers.

He recently published a column about a summer school program he developed with a colleague. They developed new curriculum for eighth grade students who were failing. Once this program was enacted, all of the students involved were able to move on to high school. Skillen says he “found real inspiration in the lives of these kids.”

Students’ Thoughts on Skillen

His classes are well received and enjoyed by students. Former English professional writing student Stephen Hajcak took Skillen’s Writing for the Web and Social Media course. He says, “One thing I really liked was that he made the work more about the student. He didn’t just give you a topic and a page requirement. Every project let you talk about an aspect of yourself while still learning skills.”

Sophomore professional writing major Rebecca Easton was in Skillen’s Ecology in Short Fiction. She says that “he gave you the sense that there was no such thing as a stupid question or stupid answer, even if you gave the wrong answer. He was very constructive.” Easton also said that she always enjoyed going to his class because “he brought a certain energy into the classroom.”

Life Outside Academia

Outside of his academic work, Skillen likes to read books about the military or espionage. A few of his favorite authors are Brad Thor and Nelson DeMille. He mostly writes for academic purposes but sometimes dabbles with writing music.

When not busy with academic work, Skillen can be found spending time with his wife and two kids. He enjoys playing guitar and is involved in the band at his church. He also likes to be outside, either hiking, fishing or hunting.

Author Bio:

Lee Soltys is a member of the class of 2017 and had a double major in Sociology/Anthropology with a concentration in criminology and English professional writing. She completed an honors in the discipline project for her sociology major using elements from her professional writing major. Lee has been published in other places on campus, including VOX Literary Magazine (now called Fine Print) and on the Sowing the Seed website compiled by Dr. Newton of the religious studies department.

 

Tags: careers, Dr. Skillen, faculty, secondary education