Cristyn L. Elder

Cristyn L. Elder is an Associate Professor in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of New Mexico, and currently serves as Faculty Senate President. Her work focuses on supporting underrepresented student populations through writing program administration, writing across the curriculum, and ESL instruction. She holds an MA in TESOL from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and a PhD in English from Purdue University, specializing in Rhetoric and Composition.

• Education:
• PhD in English (Rhetoric and Composition), Purdue University
• MA in TESOL (Language Program Administration), Middlebury Institute of International Studies

Her research emphasizes equity in writing education, particularly for multilingual learners and marginalized groups. She has published in journals such as WPA: Writing Program Administration, Composition Studies, and Writing Center Journal, and co-edited Defining, Locating, and Addressing Bullying in the WPA Workplace (2019). She co-founded Present Tense: A Journal of Rhetoric in Society and WPA-GO, a graduate student organization within the Council of Writing Program Administrators.

Award-winning educator, Cristyn has received multiple recognitions for teaching excellence, including UNM’s 2018-2019 Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award and the 2016 Innovation Award from the Council on Basic Writing. She advocates for LGBTQIA+ and undocumented student communities.