Biegelson explores community, social connections in teaching, writing

Nov. 16, 2022 | By Edidiong Idong-Bassey, communication assistant

Concepts of community and social connections are topics Daniel Biegelson seeks to address through his teaching at Northwest Missouri State University as well as his own writing.

Biegelson, a senior instructor of English, joined the Northwest faculty in 2012 after moving to the region with his wife. He stepped into the role after seeing an online advertisement for the opening and says he has loved every minute of teaching at the University. 

“There’s just there’s an enormous range of diverse experiences and students from all different backgrounds that I enjoy working with,” Biegelson said. “I am part of an amazing department that’s open, generous and democratic. I have fantastic colleagues who are interested in sharing their commitments to students and approaches to teaching. This kind of collaboration has helped me become a better teacher.”

As a writer, Biegelson was recognized in September as one of the Missouri Arts Council’s featured artists for his debut book, “Of Being Neighbors,” which was published last year. At Northwest, he teaches introduction to literature, creative writing and English composition courses.

“One of the things that really excites me is that it’s not just writers, but it’s painters, musicians, dancers and designers,” Biegelson said of the Missouri Arts Council honor. “I think it’s so important for us to recognize the creative impulse regardless of which art form it takes. The award brings together people from all these various arts, so I’m excited to be sort of amongst those other practitioners.”

Growing up, Biegelson enjoyed reading the poetry works of Allen Ginsburg, Adrienne Rich and Muriel Rukeyser, which inspired him to pursue a writing career. Biegelson’s inspiration for “Of Being Neighbors” stems from the 9/11 terrorist attacks and becoming a parent.

In the book, Biegelson meditates on the complexity of Jewish identity, the responsibility of parenthood, and the experience of community and isolation in a politically polarized United States. The book emphasizes process, the interconnection and connection among many voices.  

“What I want people to take away from the book is that community is a continual process,” Biegelson said. “It’s not something that is stable. It’s always in flux and requires continual commitment.

His teaching philosophy is grounded in the notion that everyone has something to teach. With that goal in mind, he strives to create a classroom environment for students to express their thoughts and think for themselves.

“My approach is to try to treat each student as an individual and convey to them that I’m interested in their ideas, intellect and what they have to say,” Biegelson said. “I think that learning happens when we feel respected and valued. If we all commit to the idea that we all have something to teach, then we all become teachers. In a sense, I think that’s true in life as well. We’re all teachers and we’re all students.”

Biegelson also serves as an associate editor of GreenTower Press and director of the Visiting Writers Series at Northwest. Such literary ventures are ways for him to give back to the University and the literary community.

“It’s a powerful thing to attend a reading, and I’ve always loved readings,” Biegelson said. “I think readings are places where community can be built because everybody at a reading is gifting their attention to someone else. Part of being a writer is obviously writing but also being a good literary citizen. What it means to be a good literary citizen is to promote and share the work of people you admire.”

To learn more about Daniel Biegelson and his writing, visit danielbiegelson.com.