Education

  • Ph.D. in English, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2019
  • M.A. in English, Texas Tech University, May 2014
  • B.A. in English, Southern Arkansas University, May 2012

Professional Summary

Dr. Jill Fennell leads the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering in advancing written, visual, and verbal communication skills. Before this position, Dr. Fennell was a Visiting Assistant Professor of Technical Communication at Georgia Tech. With a Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee, Dr. Fennell's expertise in affect theory and care ethics informs her approach to creating learning experiences that enable students to feel more agency during their communicative interactions. 

In her multifaceted role, Dr. Fennell champions a discipline-specific, professional, and technical communications program. From coaching research communication to co-teaching communication components, she equips students, faculty, and staff with essential skills. Dr. Fennell’s research interests work at the intersection of information design and instructional design as she innovates the teaching of technical, professional, and scientific communication.

Selected Publications

The Frank K. Webb Chair

Frank K. Webb graduated from Georgia Tech with a BME degree in 1938. During a career in the oil industry, he saw that engineers—and the companies they worked for—saw that communication skills were an important part of a professional’s career and a company’s success. Corporations would invest in their professional providing training seminars and workshops to enhance communication skills. Technical professionals would learn to speak and write clearly for a range of audiences, including colleagues, subordinates, supervisors, executives, and investors. When Mr. Webb learned that the Woodruff School was creating a communication program, he generously offered support, eventually endowing a Chair in communication within the School. 

In keeping with Mr. Webb’s goal of promoting communication skills for all engineering professionals, this program seeks to help all of our students and colleagues to effectively present their ideas to expert and non-expert audiences.  

Courses:

ME 2110—Creative Decisions and Design
ME 3057—Experimental Methods
ME 4056—Systems Laboratory

Workshops and Collaborations:

We work closely with our counterparts in Schools across the Georgia Tech College of Engineering:  

We welcome partnerships with other units!

Working with these programs, we jointly provide the following courses and workshops: 

  • CETL 8723: Scientific Writing for International Graduate Students (with GTLI )
  • Information sessions for graduate school Statements of Purpose and Fellowship applications (grad and undergrad students)
  • Workshops and editorial support for graduate school and fellowship applicants (grad and undergrad students)
  • Communicating to the Press and the Public (for graduate students and Post-Docs)

Individual support:

For Faculty and Graduate Students:
Review of proposals and manuscripts for clarity and organization

For Graduate Students and Post-Docs:
Review of Academic Job Statements
The Little Red Schoolhouse (a lecture course in clear writing)

For Undergraduate Students:
Review of Statements for graduate admission and for graduate fellowship applications.