Collegiate Affiliation
Writing Studies

Molly M. Kessler is an Associate Professor of Writing Studies at the University of Minnesota, where she also serves as Associate Chair and Director of Graduate Studies. Her research examines the intersections of rhetoric, health, and medicine, with particular attention to how people narrate experiences of illness and stigma. She is the author of Stigma Stories (Ohio State University Press, 2022) and a chapter contributor to the award-winning collection Covid and… How to Do Rhetoric in a Pandemic (Michigan State University Press, 2023). Her scholarship has been recognized with multiple national awards, including honors from the Association for Teachers of Technical Writing and the Association for the Rhetoric of Science, Technology, and Medicine. Dr. Kessler teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on technical communication, health and medical writing, and rhetorical studies of health, medicine, and disability. She has been recognized for her excellence in mentoring and career support. In addition to her research and teaching, Kessler is active in interdisciplinary collaborations on patient experience, medical communication, and health humanities.

Educational Background & Specialties
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Educational Background

  • PhD: Professional Technical Communication, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2017
  • M.A.: Professional Technical Communication, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2014
  • B.A.: English: Professional and Technical Communication, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2013

Specialties

  • Rhetoric of health and medicine
  • Professional and technical communication
  • Rhetoric of science