Ashley Hay

is a PhD student at Penn State University in Communication Arts and Sciences
and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

My research

I am driven by the question how do we become sexual? As a research agenda, this translates to my focus on the rhetorical production of a/sexuality, sex education on social platforms, and a-spec (asexual-spectrum) identity formation.Sometimes, this means I turn my eye toward kinky influencers on TikTok; other times, I focus on midlife women's divorce rhetorics. Across the board, I am interested in the collision of digital platforms, a/sexual becoming, and vernacular rhetorical expression. Check out some of my published research below (more incoming!):TikTok's Excessive Labors in Peitho (2024)

My creative work

I am a poet and an essayist in my free time. Currently, I enjoy experimenting with hybrid forms that braid prose, poetry, and theory. My creative work has been published in The Timberline Review, Prism, and elsewhere.I also create highly-specific writing playlists!

My teaching

  • is driven by intersectional feminist and queer pedagogies that emphasize mutual, generous, and lifelong learning

  • incorporates critical media, critical algorithm, and contemporary rhetorical theoretical approaches to our everyday forests and trees

  • integrates student-driven digital cultures alongside rhetorical theory and praxis

  • prioritizes the learned skill of giving & receiving productive critique

Other pursuits

While working on my Master's thesis, I began to receive requests for copies from friends and family as a form of adult sex ed. That's when I realized that I needed to build better pedagogy into my more theoretical work. Now, I am pursuing a certificate in sex education from the University of Michigan's SHCP to round out my education.After this training, I plan to take on projects with more explicit focus on feminist pedagogy, sex ed praxis, and a-spec educational opportunities.

© Ashley Hay.