Calvin Pollak

Calvin Pollak is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of English (Rhetoric and Composition) at the University of Washington. He holds a Ph.D. in Rhetoric from Carnegie Mellon University (2021) and served as a postdoctoral teaching fellow in Technical Communication at Utah State University. His research focuses on technical communication pedagogy, linguistic justice, and discourse analysis, with publications in Technical Communication Quarterly, Written Communication, and The Journal of English Linguistics. He co-founded the re:verb podcast, which translates academic rhetoric studies into accessible public scholarship. His teaching emphasizes equitable teamwork, genre studies, and critical engagement with communication design decisions.

• Education: Ph.D. in Rhetoric, Carnegie Mellon University, 2021

Research interests include the intersection of technical communication and social justice, surveillance discourse, and the rhetorical dimensions of technological ethics. Recent work critiques militarized research practices and examines how textual evidence shapes public narratives about surveillance.

Through re:verb, Pollak democratizes academic knowledge about rhetoric and politics, addressing topics like political legitimacy, media representation, and public advocacy. His scholarship bridges theoretical frameworks with practical applications in education and civic engagement.