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Name: Sara A. Mehltretter Drury
Background: I grew up in a suburb outside of Buffalo, New York. Which suburb? Orchard Park, home of the Buffalo Bills. I graduated from Mount Mercy Academy, a Catholic high school for young women in South Buffalo. I received my Bachelor of Arts in Communication and in Political Science from Boston College, earning Phi Beta Kappa honors. For graduate school, I began my track mid-westerly by heading to the Pennsylvania State University, where I earned my M.A. and Ph.D. in Communication Arts and Sciences. I worked for a year as a Research Associate at the Kettering Foundation in Dayton, Ohio, before coming to work at Wabash.
Department and specialty at Wabash: Rhetoric. I teach and research on the quality and character of U.S. public discourse, including courses in public speaking, deliberation, political rhetoric, religious rhetoric, and classical rhetorical theory.
Favorite part of Wabash: Wabash students are invested in and take responsibility for their education, and they also balance work and fun in their lives. Teaching a classroom of young men like that is my favorite part about working here.
Favorite place on the campus: When I walk or bike to school, I enjoy traveling through the Arboretum. It’s especially pretty as the sun begins to shine through the leaves and branches of the trees. It’s a peaceful way to start or end a day on campus.
Favorite food: Wings. Preferably from Duff’s, a wings restaurant in Buffalo, but I’ll take any variety of buffalo-style chicken wings.
Something people might not know about you: I love the theater! Growing up, I acted in plays and musicals, and I enjoy attending local, regional, and Broadway productions. And, more recently, I was lucky enough to play the role of Frosine in Wabash’s April 2012 production of Molière’s The Miser.