"Using Technology to Build Connections"

Humans of Wake Forest: Digital Storytelling in the First-Year Writing Seminar (and Beyond)

This presentation reviews a digital storytelling campaign modeled after Brandon Stanton’s famous “Humans of New York” and begun at Wake Forest University in the first-year writing classroom. Students have collected stories from across campus–from students, faculty, and staff–to begin the “Humans of Wake Forest” campaign which attempts to enrich campus community-building through storytelling. This presentation offers an overview of the learning goals, activities, and stories collected during the Fall 2020 semester. The presenters will share stories, student experiences with participating in the project, and current plans for expanding the project in the current and upcoming semesters.

Presenter Information

Brianna Healey

Assistant Director of Academic Technology

Brianna Healey is the Assistant Director of Academic Technology, a division of Information Systems. Her position aims to enhance teaching and learning in the curriculum using digital technologies. Brianna aims to stay at the forefront of teaching, learning, and technology to provide transformative learning experiences for students at Wake Forest University.

photo of Keri Epps

Keri Epps

ACE Faculty Fellow, 2018 - 2020 Assistant Teaching Professor Writing Program, English Department

Dr. Keri Epps teaches introductory and advanced writing courses at Wake Forest University. Her research, teaching, and practice lie at the intersection of rhetorical genre theory, media studies, and community-engaged research. As an Academic and Community Engaged fellow, she has worked with local nonprofits to develop and facilitate literacy and creative writing programming for students in underserved schools in the Winston-Salem area.

Picture of Tahjanee Givens

Tahjanee Givens

Tahjanee Givens is a first-year Wake Forest student planning to major in Politics & International Affairs. She is also a profile writer for the Her Campus magazine at Wake Forest and was a student in Dr. Keri Epps' Writing 111 seminar.

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