Jessica Sheffield

I am currently a Ph.D. student in the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences at the Pennsylvania State University. My main research interests involve the intersections among rhetoric, technology, and community, particularly online vernacular rhetorics such as weblogs. I am also interested in environmental rhetoric, especially that which concerns America’s national parks. You can find out more information about me at my website.

Contact information

Office

316 Sparks Building #11
863-0127 (I am rarely in the office, so email is a much more reliable way of contacting me)

Online

email: via "In Touch" function on ANGEL
AIM: jlsatpsu
Y!M: jlsatpsu (profile)

Office hours

In person: Fridays 12:15-3:15 and by appointment

Even if you are stopping in during my posted office hours, it is a good idea to make an appointment to ensure that you are not conflicting with another student's scheduled time or that I haven't chosen that time to run to the library, eat lunch, etc.

I am generally (but not always) available on Mondays and Wednesdays between 9am and 5pm for appointments. To make an appointment with me outside of my office hours, you must email me at least 24 hours in advance (longer advance notice is highly preferable). You can check my Google Calendar for my up-to-date availability:

Online: Tuesday 6-9 PM (and whenever you see me online)

I will be available via instant messenger on Tuesday evenings from 6-9 PM. I may be available at other times; if you see me logged in, I am generally available for questions. (See "Contacting me via IM" for more information.)

Contacting Me Via IM

When using an instant messenger service to contact me, here are some things you should do:

• Tell me who you are. I have no idea who bigguypsu09 is, and frankly, I'm not sure I want to talk to him. Please identify yourself by name when you message me.
• Tell me what class you're in -- World Campus or University Park.
• Make an attempt at proper spelling, grammar, capitalization, punctuation, etc. IM is a much less formal contact method than email, phone, or face-to-face, so I understand the impulse to be careless or informal in your speech, but if I can't understand your question, I will find it difficult to answer it.
• Feel free to message me any time you see me online, office hours or not. I keep this account strictly for student communication, so if you see me online, chances are good that I am available for questions. (Very occasionally I will accidentally leave my client logged in, but I try not to.)

Here are some things you probably don't want to do:

• IM me while intoxicated. (Seriously.)
• Get my IM window confused with one of your friends'.
• Get my IM window confused with your significant other's. (Yikes!)
• Use a photo or avatar that's inappropriate, suggestive, etc.
• Put up an inappropriate/suggestive away message while chatting with me.

Contacting Me Via Email

While email is generally considered to be a less formal method of communication than a paper letter or face-to-face interaction, please recall that although the medium may have changed, the rhetorical situation has not – in other words, you are still communicating with an instructor. To that end, the following guidelines may be helpful when you are emailing me (or any of your other teachers):

• Salutations/greetings (Dear Jessica/Dear Ms. Sheffield) and closings (Sincerely, Regards, or just sign your name), while not always necessary, are nice and convey a sense of professionalism.
• Please allow 48 hours for a response before emailing me again. Do feel free to email again if you do not receive a response after 48 hours, as sometimes emails do slip through the cracks. I generally answer email 9AM-9PM M-Th and 9AM-3PM F (except when I am in class, of course). I check my email on weekends as well, but cannot say with certainty when I will be online, so please do not count on an immediate response on weekends.
• If you have a question, please check the assignment sheet, syllabus, and/or your class notes to see if the answer is readily found before emailing me.

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