Isidore K. Dorpenyo

Isidore K. Dorpenyo is an Associate Professor of Professional Writing and Rhetoric in the Department of English at George Mason University. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in technical, scientific, and professional communication while conducting research on intercultural communication, localization, election technologies, social justice, and AI-powered translation systems.

• PhD, Rhetoric, Theory and Culture, Michigan Technological University (2016)
• MS, Rhetoric and Technical Communication, Michigan Technological University (2013)
• BA, English, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (2008)

His research focuses on structural oppression in technology design, particularly translation glitches in algorithmic systems that perpetuate cultural erasure. He examines how digital translation impacts non-Western cultures, bringing together conversations about systemic injustice, user experience, and technology design to advance humanistic values in technical communication.

His publications span journals like Journal of Business and Technical Communication, Technical Communication Quarterly, and Community Literacy Journal, with a 2023 award-winning article on social justice pedagogy. Recent work includes a book analyzing biometric technology in Ghana’s elections.

• 2023 CCCC Technical and Scientific Communication Award for Best Article on Pedagogy
• $10,000 CHSS Faculty Research and Development Award
• $30,000 Curriculum Impact Grant (as co-recipient)

Dorpenyo has supervised dissertations on topics including leisure activism in HBCUs, health narratives of South Asian communities, and technical communication as tactical knowledge-making. He contributes to curricular reforms and explores intersections between technology and civic engagement.