Associate Professor | Writing Program Director
Division of Humanities and Fine Arts | Keuka College
skapica@keuka.edu | 315.279.5351
Keuka College
Keuka Park, NY 14478

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in English, Northeastern University
Fields: Rhetoric and Composition
Dissertation: Permeable Boundaries: Rhetorical Delivery and the Negotiation of Obscenity
Committee: Chris Gallagher (chair), Elizabeth C. Britt, Ryan Cordell

Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies, Northeastern University

M.A. in English, Appalachian State University
Thesis: The Girl Who Made Good Being Bad: Bettie Page and American Post-War Ideology

B.A. in English, Appalachian State University

RESEARCH & PROFESSIONAL INTERESTS

Critical Humor Studies ✦ Law, Technology, & Science Fiction
Popular Culture & Philosophy ✦ Digital, Visual, & Cultural Rhetorics
Writing Studies ✦ Critical Pedagogy ✦ Directed Self-Placement

APPOINTMENTS

Associate Professor / Coordinator of First-Year Writing, Division of Humanities & Fine Arts, Keuka College (Keuka Park, NY). Summer 2018 – Present

Chair, Curriculum Committee. Academic Year 2023-2024
Co-Chair, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. Presidential Appointment.
Academic Years 2023-2024; 2024-2025

Director of Writing / Lecturer, University College, Fairleigh Dickinson University – Metropolitan Campus (Teaneck, NJ). Summer 2016 – Summer 2018

Adjunct Instructor, College of Professional Studies (Global Pathways) and Writing Program, Northeastern University (Boston, MA). Fall 2015 – Spring 2016

Writing Instructor, Torch Scholars Summer Immersion Program, Northeastern University (Boston, MA). Summer 2015

Teaching Assistant (Instructor of Record), Writing Program, Northeastern University (Boston, MA). Fall 2009 – Spring 2015

Writing Center Consultant, Writing Program, Northeastern University (Boston, MA). Fall 2009, Fall 2012, Summer 2012

Visiting Lecturer, Experimental College, Tufts University (Medford, MA). Fall 2012

Department Chair, English and Reading, Davidson County Community College (Lexington, NC). Spring 2006 – Summer 2009

English Faculty, Davidson County Community College (Lexington, NC). Fall 2003 – Fall 2005

Adjunct Instructor, Davidson County Community College (Lexington, NC). Fall 2002 – Summer 2003

Writing Center Consultant, Learning Assistance Center, Davidson County Community College (Lexington, NC). Fall 2002 – Spring 2003

Substitute ESL Teacher, British Language School (San Giorgio A Cremano, Italy). Spring 2002

Teaching Assistant (Instructor of Record), Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Fall 1999 – Spring 2001

Writing Center Consultant, Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Fall 1999 – Spring 2001

Research Assistant, Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). Fall 1998 – Summer 1999

PUBLICATIONS


Articles

“It’s a hideous, hideous stupidity”: Gallagher’s Comedy of Contempt. The Journal of American Culture, vol. 45, no. 2, 2022, pp. 125-138.

“Like a Realtor in Peoria”: Patton Oswalt, Twitter, and Heckling as Social Activism. Studies in American Humor, vol. 6, no. 1, 2020, pp. 62-90.

“What a Glorious Moment in Jurisprudence”: Rhetoric, Law, and Battlestar Galactica. Law, Culture and the Humanities, vol. 12, no. 3, 2016, pp. 543-565.

“I Don’t Feel Like A Copy”: Posthuman Legal Personhood and Caprica. Griffith Law Review, vol. 23, no. 4, 2014, pp. 612-633.

The Multivalent Feminism of The Notorious Bettie Page. Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, vol. 55, 2013.

Book Chapters

Disarming the Darkness: The Sobering Affect of Marc Maron’s Comedy. Co-authored with Lauren Hess. Stand Up Falling Down: Stand-Up Comedy, Addiction, and Mental Illness, edited by Linda Mizejewski and Robyn Warhol. TBD.

“The Circle Must Be Broken”: Imagining Legal Monsterhood through Doctor Who. Cultural Legal Studies of Science Fiction, edited by Kieran Tranter, Mitchell Travis, and Alex Green. Routlege, 2024.

Marc Maron as Philosopher: Comedy, Therapy, and Identification. The Palgrave Handbook of Popular Culture as Philosophy, edited by David Kyle Johnson, Palgrave, 2021.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97134-6_52-1

“I Kinda Like It When A Lotta People Die”: George Carlin’s Comedic Catharsis. The Dark Side of Stand-Up Comedy, edited by Eric Shouse and Patrice Oppliger, Palgrave, 2020, pp. 51-70.

“Phil Hartman” and “Marc Maron”. American Political Humor: Masters of Satire, edited by Jody Baumgartner, 2019, pp. 446-451; 536-540.

Reviews

Review of The Comedy Studies Reader, edited by Nick Marx and Matt Sienkiewicz. Studies in American Humor, vol. 6, no. 1, 2020, pp. 208-212.

Review of Living in Technical Legality: Science Fiction and Law as Technology, by Kieran Tranter. Griffith Law Review, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1080/10383441.2019.1670609.

Review: (All Jokes Aside: Standup Comedy is Phunny Business). Studies in American Humor, vol. 3, no. 2, 2017, pp. 251-253.

Solicited

Viečaitė, K., & Balčiauskas, M. (2024, April 4). 40 people who hit new levels of cringe and got shamed in this online group: Interview with expert. boredpanda.com, 4 Apr. 2024.
Interviewed as an expert on “cringe comedy.”

Viečaitė, Kornelija, and Austėja Akavickaitė. “This IG Page Hosts The Most ‘Sarcastic’ Memes, And Here Are 50 Of The Most Relatable.” boredpanda.com, 14 Sep. 2023.
Interviewed as an expert on sarcasm.

Creative & Creative Nonfiction

Blackbird Pie. [story] Bluff & Vine, vol. 8, Oct. 2024.
Untitled. [poem] Steam Ticket: A Third Coast Review, vol. 2, 1996.
Semeiotikos. [blog] semeiotikos.wordpress.com, 2005-2013.

CONFERENCES AND INVITED TALKS

International

“I Kinda Like it When a Lotta People Die”: George Carlin and the Comedy of Disaster. Panel: The Dark Side of Stand-Up Comedy. 29th Annual Conference of the International Society for Humor Studies, University of Quebec at Montreal, Montreal, 14 Jul. 2017.

The Law of Lawlessness: Post-Apocalyptic Interpellation in Falling Skies. Panel: Representations 3: Law in Popular Culture. Law, Literature and the Humanities Association of Australasia Conference: Interpellations, Australian National University, Canberra, 6 Dec. 2013.

What If God Was A Virtual Girl?: Posthuman Rhetoric, Law, and Caprica. Panel: The Roles of Rhetoric in Creating Legal Cultures. Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities (ASLCH) 16th Annual Conference, Birkbeck School of Law, University of London, 22 Mar. 2013. (Early version of article published in Griffith Law Review)

National

The Politics of Cringe: Humor, Digital Rhetoric, and the Circulation of Cringeworthy Internet Memes. Roundtable 3: Humor and Politics from a Global Perspective. Critical Humor Studies in Unfunny Times: An Online Roundtable Series, Oct. 2024.

Reading London: Intercultural Learning through Place. Symposium: Place, Peace, and Keuka College. 9th International Conference on the Development and Assessment of Intercultural Competence, Tucson, AZ, Feb. 2024.

More than a Mile: Using Short Films to Foster Intercultural Competency. Symposium: Place, Peace, and Keuka College. 9th International Conference on the Development and Assessment of Intercultural Competence, Tucson, AZ, Feb. 2024.

“Baseball and Football”: Arrangement and Distortion in a George Carlin Joke. Comedy/Humor: A joint conference of the American Humor Studies Association (AHSA) and Comedy Studies SIG of the Society For Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS), Saratoga Springs, NY, Jul. 2023.

Memory, Performance, Disaster: George Carlin’s “I Kinda Like it When a Lotta People Die.” Panel: Satire, Comedy and the Nature of Humor (Allied Organization: American Humor Studies Association). 30th Annual Conference on American Literature (ALA), Boston, MA, 23 May 2019.

Bunny Yeager and the Visual Rhetoric of Postwar Pin-Ups. 18th Biennial Conference of the Rhetoric Society of America (RSA), Minneapolis, MN, May/Jun. 2018.

Reassembling Kairos: (Always) Do the Right Thing. Panel: (Re-) Assembling Resistance: Spaces and Places of / as Responses to Linguistics. Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) Annual Convention, Kansas City, MO, 16 Mar. 2018.

“Like A Realtor in Peoria”: Patton Oswalt, Twitter, and Heckling as Social Activism. Panel: Humor and Satire in Online Formats/ on Social Media (Allied Organization: American Humor Studies Association). 2018 Modern Language Association (MLA) Annual Convention, New York, NY, 5 Jan. 2018.

“Betting On Black”: Comedic Intimacy and the Rhetorical Space of All Jokes Aside. Panel: Bringing Down the House: Re-Centering the Histories of Humor and Comedic Performance. American Studies Association (ASA) Annual Convention, Denver, Colorado, 17 Nov. 2016. (Paper based on book reviewed for Studies in American Humor)

Special Session Panel (organizer and presider): “The Cultural and Rhetorical Work of Stand-Up Comedy.” 2016 Modern Language Association (MLA) Annual Convention, Austin, TX, 7 Jan. 2016.

“Accept or Reject”: Obscene Art, Digital Circulation, and Kairos. Panel: Circulate, Amplify, and ‘Selfia’: Digital Moments of Risk and Identity Production. CCCC Annual Convention, Tampa, FL, 21 Mar. 2015. (Presentation of an early version of a chapter from dissertation, Permeable Boundaries)

Dirty Pictures, Delinquency, and Distribution: 1950s Pin-Ups and The Negotiation of Obscenity. Panel: On the Borders of Popular Culture. Rhetoric Society of America (RSA) 16th Biennial Conference, San Antonio, TX, 23 May 2014. (Presentation of an early version of a chapter from dissertation, Permeable Boundaries)

More than Medicine: Stand-Up Comedy, Affect, and Community Engagement. Panel: Affective Resonance and the Circulation of Cultural Goods. RSA 16th Biennial Conference, San Antonio, TX, 24 May 2014. (Panel developed out of Wayne State University doctoral seminar on Affect and the Public Sphere; paper inspired by course developed for Tufts University Experimental College, Analyzing

“What A Glorious Moment in Jurisprudence”: Rhetoric, Law, and Battlestar Galactica. Panel: Law Goes Pop. ASLCH 15th Annual Conference, Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, 16 Mar. 2012. (Early version of article published in Law, Culture, and the Humanities)

Representing the Queen of Curves: The Multivalent Nature of The Notorious Bettie Page. Panel: Unorthodox Stardoms. Society for Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS) Annual Conference, Boston, MA, 21 Mar. 2012. (Early version of article published in Jump Cut)

Invited

Star Faculty Panel: Artificial Intelligence: Friend or Foe? Panelist. Keuka College, 11 Mar. 2025.

Formative Feedback and Assessment. Center for Teaching & Learning and Writing Center “Lunch and Learn.” Keuka College, 7 Sept. 2023.

The Future of Stand-up Comedy Studies. Roundtable participant. Comedy/Humor: A joint conference of the American Humor Studies Association (AHSA) and Comedy Studies SIG of the Society For Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS), Skidmore College, 11 Jul. 2023.

ChatGPT Is Not the End of the World: Generative A.I. in the Classroom. Center for Teaching & Learning and Writing Center “Lunch and Learn.” Keuka College, 13 Apr. 2023.

Unmaking the Grade: Labor-Based Contract Grading. Center for Teaching & Learning and Writing Center “Lunch and Learn.” Keuka College, 28 Mar. 2023.

Open Discussion Focused on A.I. Technology. Panelist. Keuka College, 12 Apr. 2023.

To Grade, or Not to Grade? That is the Question. Invited session leader. “Reflect, Reframe, Renew,” Keuka College Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) Annual Retreat. Penn Yan, 19 Jan. 2023.

Star Faculty Panel: Meet Your Professors. Panelist for Excellence in Academic Achievement Award. Keuka College, 19 Oct. 2022.

Procrastination Nation: Work/Life Balance and ADHD. Wolf Tales, Keuka College, 20 Sept. 2022.

“It’s Not Therapy”: Gallagher and Stand-Up Comedy as Anti-Therapy. Commenter: Eric Shouse, East Carolina University. Panel: Harm and Healing. Ethics and Aesthetics of Stand-Up Comedy Conference, Bucknell University, 8 Apr. 2017.

TEACHING

Keuka College

Division of Humanities & Fine Arts, Writing Program
ENG 100: Writing as Discovery
ENG 110: Writing as Inquiry
ENG 112: Writing as Argument
ENG 118: Poems, Plays, and Prose
ENG 220: Reading the World
ENG 230: Tutoring in Reading and Writing
ENG 218: Principles of Creative Writing
ENG 319: Creative Nonfiction
COM 320: Business and Professional Communication
COM 321: Digital Space & Social Change
FP 302: Reading London (Group Field Period®)
KC 101: Practicing Academic Culture
KC 201: Thinking & Talking (HEOP)

Fairleigh Dickinson University

University College, School of Humanities, Writing Program
ENWR 0098: Fundamentals of Academic Writing I
ENWR 1101: Academic Writing
ENWR 1102: Academic Research and Writing

Northeastern University

College of Professional Studies, Global Pathways
ESLG 0630: College Writing
ESLG 0550: Research and Writing for Graduate School

Department of English, Writing Program and General Studies Program
ENGW 1102: 1st Year Writing Multilingual Writers
ENGW 1110: Introductory Writing
ENGW 1111: College Writing
ENGW 3301: Advanced Writing in the Disciplines
ENGW 3304: Advanced Writing in Business Administration

Opportunity Scholarship and Outreach Programs
Summer Immersion College Writing

Tufts University

Experimental College
EXP 0039 F: Analyzing Stand-Up Comedy

Davidson County Community College

Department of English
ACA 090: Student Success Strategies
ACA 115: Success & Study Skills
ENG 080: Writing Foundations
ENG 090: Composition Strategies
ENG 095: Reading & Composition Strategies
ENG 111: Expository Writing
ENG 113: Literature-Based Research
ENG 114: Professional Research & Reporting
ENG 242: British Literature II
ENG 262: World Literature II
ENG 273: African-American Literature
HUM 130: Myth in Human Culture
HUM 220: Human Values & Meaning

Appalachian State University

Department of English
ENG 1000: Expository Writing
ENG 1100: Introduction to Literature

HONORS AND AWARDS

Academic Advising Fellows Program, Keuka College. Academic Years 2023-2024 & 2024-2025.

Selected Team Participant (with Nick Koberstein), Deliberation & Debate Workshop, The Council of Independent Colleges, Washington, D.C. July 2022.

Excellence in Academic Achievement Award, Keuka College. Spring 2022.

2020 Jack Rosenbalm Prize for American Humor, Honorable Mention, American Humor Studies Association. Awarded Spring 2022.

Research Grant (Humanities & Fine Arts Division), National Comedy Center Archives (George Carlin), Jamestown, NY. Summer 2021.

Summer Sabbatical (Group Field Period; Course Development), Keuka College. Summer 2021.

Acorn Award (for service), Keuka College. Spring 2021.

Selected Participant, Wayne State University Summer Doctoral Seminar, “Affect, The Public Sphere, and Social Movements,” led by Dana Cloud (University of Texas, Austin). June 2013

Finalist, Graduate Student Essay Contest (Northeastern University), “What A Glorious Moment in Jurisprudence”: Rhetoric, Law, and Battlestar Galactica. Spring 2012

Winner, John Foster West Creative Writing Award (Appalachian State University), Poetry. Spring 1995

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Critical Humor Studies Collective – Member
American Humor Studies Association (AHSA) – Member
Rhetoric Society of America (RSA) – Member