Brayden Stivala

Contributing Writer

The fall season as ESU not only brought on new students, but a new professor as well. Dr. Nate DeProspo joins the English department, bringing a new take on how students can improve their professional skills.

ESU hired DeProspo this past summer as an English professor. Despite being a new face among the faculty, DeProspo has an extensive academic background in writing through his undergraduate degree from Penn State University.

DeProspo’s parents were both college professors. Both pursued English, his father specialized on early American literature while his mother specialized in poetry. Although a confident writer growing up, it was not until later into his undergraduate studies DeProspo committed to his teaching career.

“I was just thrown into the classroom in grad school. All of a sudden, you’re teaching, and then you either figure it out or you don’t,” said DeProspo. “Eventually I did get interested in it almost by necessity, so I don’t even know if it was exactly a choice, but luckily, I did become interested in the profession that I now do.”

DeProspo would later go on to earn his doctorate in rhetoric and composition from the University of South Carolina. From there, he would continue teaching at Oberlin College where he dedicated his time to ensuring his students develop professional skills that would promote their success beyond the classroom.

As DeProspo pursued his study of rhetoric at USC, he worked closely under other professionals in the field. One of them being John Muckelbauer, whom he’s stayed connected with after grad school, and even co-hosts a podcast with, in addition to Nathaniel Street, called “Thinking With…” It has released 61 episodes since Feb. 2021.

In addition to recording podcasts with his academic peers, DeProspo engages in a number of other hobbies including disc golf, pick-up basketball and spending quality time with his wife and cat at his new home in Easton, Pa.

Despite still adjusting to a recent move and new job, DeProspo has ambitious goals for his students.

“Something I’ve noticed over the last few years is that there is a little bit of a decline in sort of basic professionalism skills,” said DeProspo. “That’ll be the goal, I think, for the coming weeks, is having conversations with the students who are a little bit less engaged and figuring out a way to get them engaged.”