Dr. David Gillette

Degree	Major Emphasis	Institution	Year
Ph.D.	Rhetoric,  History of the Novel	University of New Mexico	1995
M.A.	Creative Writing	University of New Mexico	1992
B.A.	Broadcasting and Film, Latin-American Anthropology, Creative Writing	University of Iowa	1985

Teaching and Research Interests

Interactive Narrative Design
Project Based Learning in STEAM
Usability Design
Technical and Professional Communication
Composition and Rhetoric

Selected Publications

Hitt, S. Gillette, D. & Shumaker, L. & Lefton, T. “Arts-Based Methods in Engineering Ethics Education.” Chapter 4, Section 24. The Routledge International Handbook of Engineering Ethics Education. Routledge Press. December 2024 (©2025).

Gillette, D. & Haungs, D. “The Importance of Fostering Many Support Communities for Curriculums that Combine Liberal Studies with Engineering.” Engineering Studies: Journal of the International Network for Engineering Studies (INES) Vol. 7, No. 2, August 2015.

Gillette, D. & Lowham, W, Haungs, M. “When the hurly-burly’s done, of battles lost and won: How a Hybrid Program of Study Emerged from the Toil & Trouble of Stirring Liberal Arts into an Engineering Cauldron at a Public Polytechnic.” Engineering Studies: Journal of the International Network for Engineering Studies (INES) Vol. 6, No. 2, 108-129, August 2014.

Gillette, D. “Looking to Cinema for Direction: Incorporating Motion into On-Screen Presentations of Technical Information.” Technical Communication: Journal of the Society for Technical Communication. Volume 52, Number 2, May 2005, pp. 138-155.

Gillette, D. “Metaphorical Confusion and Spatial Maps in an Age of Ubiquitous Computing.“ Special Issue On Modeling Information in Electronic Space. Ed. Jonathan Price. Technical Communication: Journal of the Society for Technical Communication. Volume 48, Number 1, February 2001, pp. 42-48.

Selected Presentations

Gillette, D., Haungs, M. & Fowler, T. “Centering Meaning-Filled Design Within Engineering Education: Recommendations on how to integrate interdisciplinary architectural design charrettes, community engagement, sustainability principles, and adapted Agile methodologies into a student-centered, project-based engineering program", Engineering Education for Sustainability, SEFI Annual Conference, TU Dublin, IE. Sep 11-14, 2023

Invited Keynote Presentation: Gillette, D. "Oh My, What Now?: Future Focused Storytelling, Interactive Design and Sustainable Futures." BCU International Steam Conference, Birmingham, UK. September 11, 2020.

Gillette, D & Haungs, M. Presented: "Renewing Liminal Space: 2Towns & the Troubling Tales of an Urban Tunnel," Symposium on Engineering and Liberal Education, Union College, Schenectady NY, June 2, 2018.

Courses Taught                                           

LAES 301 Project-Based Learning; Design, Agile Teamwork/Management
LAES 301 Advanced Project-Based Learning; Design, Project Leadership
LAES 461 Senior Project in Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies
LAES 462 Capstone Senior Seminar in Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies
ENGL 317 Film Styles & Genres: Documentary
ENGL 411 New Media Arts I
ENGL 412 New Media Arts II
ENGL 421 Advanced Topics in Technical and Professional Communication      

Awards and Honors

Ocean Sight One—Revealing the Hidden Ecologies & Histories of California’s Ghost Ship Reefs. Hearst Foundation Award for Scholarship in Education. Co-Principle Researchers: David Gillette (LAES/English), Michael Haungs (LAES/Computer Science), Thomas Fowler (Architecture). Industry Partners: Marcos Lutyens (Artist & Environmental Activist, LA), Travis Shakespeare (Television & film Executive/Producer, LA). An immersive visualization, STEAM-Education partnership between Architecture, Liberal Arts and Engineering studies, and the Cal Poly Expressive Technology Studios space—integrating ecological study and environmental activist art with interactive 3D cinematic storytelling and experimentation. Total funding awarded in 2022, $20,700.

CLA Global Engagement Grant
Unique on-the-ground exchange leading to hybrid virtual and on-the-ground student & faculty educational experience between Birmingham City University, Birmingham U.K and Cal Poly, SLO. Onsite visitation, Birmingham, UK September 2023. Total Funding Awarded: $4,000, Spring 2023

2010 Cal Poly President’s Award for Service Learning, co-awarded with Professor Thomas Fowler (architecture). Awarded in recognition for the design, direction and completion of a community-development project with the San Luis Obispo Housing Authority to design and receive final city/county approval for the construction of a new office complex for the Housing Authority and 18 new low-income and subsidized housing units for San Luis Obispo residents moving from an unhoused situation into a larger community.