Sensitivity, Solidarity, and Higher Education: An Interview with Kendall Gerdes

This episode features an interview with Kendall Gerdes. Dr. Gerdes is an associate professor in the Department of Writing and Rhetoric Studies at the University of Utah, where she also serves as president of the local chapter of the American Association of University Professors. This interview focuses on her book Sensitive Rhetorics: Academic Freedom and Campus Activism, which won the Conference on College Composition and Communication's 2025 Outstanding Book Award. In addition to Sensitive Rhetorics, Dr. Gerdes coedited the collection Reinventing (with) Theory in Rhetoric and Writing Studies and has published articles in such journals as Philosophy & Rhetoric, Rhetoric Society Quarterly, and Kairos. The interview addresses the shifting landscape of rhetorical attacks on college students and higher education more broadly, the role of rhetorical theory in addressing those challenges, and the work of writing a book in the midst of a pandemic. This episode features a clip of the song "Down in the Basement" by HoliznaCC0. Episode Transcript