David Kaufer is Professor and Head of English at Carnegie Mellon University. He also co-directs a Master of Design Program in Information Planning and Communication Design that is run jointly between the Department of English and the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon. This program trains writers and visual designers in effective strategies of communication that integrate the verbal and visual arts. He is on the research steering committee of the Rhetoric Society of America. He has authored or co-authored five books, 80 articles, and numerous conference papers. His research focuses on rhetorical theory and writing and ways of using technology to develop writing skills in students from K-16.