BA, University of Idaho
MA, University of Idaho
PHD, University at Buffalo - SUNY
An award-winning teacher, writer, outdoor educator, and international scholar, Dr. Pitts has lived and worked on five continents including Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe, pursuing his interests in the personal, cultural, and spiritual uses of narrative and the concept of the journey,Ìýparticularly with IndigenousÌýpeoples. Since 2000, Dr. Pitts has developed the professional writing and creative writingÌýprograms at Menu and taught literature, writing, multimedia studies, and intercultural communication.ÌýHis students have gone on to local, regional, national and international success.ÌýBorn in the center of Cajun country in Louisiana, he's lived throughÌýthe street-fighting of the Jordanian Civil War in Amman,Ìýbeen rescued by the Desert Patrol in Wadi Rum, worked as a construction supervisor in community developmentÌýin equatorial Africa, taught Crow Indians in Montana where his family lived,Ìýlived with his family in Turkey, and undertaken journeys around the worldÌýfrom the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trek in SpainÌýto the Kumano Kodo, an ancient journey through the sacred Kii mountain range of JapanÌýfor which he was a made a Dual Pilgrim. In JapanÌýheÌýfollowed in the sacred footsteps of Kobo Daichi on the island of Shikoku. A veteran runner andÌýmultisport endurance athlete, Dr. Pitts has competed at the national and international levels. He has three children.Ìý
Recent Scholarship:
Fulbright Scholar, Japan
University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan, 2023-2024 (U.S. Department of State, Japan-US Education Commission).
Fulbright Scholar, Japan
Keio University, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, Japan, 2019-2020 (U.S. Department of State, Japan-United States Education Commission).Ìý
Fulbright Scholar, Turkey
Hacettepe University,ÌýAnkara, Turkey, 2010-2011 (U.S. Department of State, Turkish Fulbright Commission).Ìý
Classes Taught:Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý
Introduction to Creative Writing, The Hero's Journey,ÌýWorld Literature, Nonfiction Writing.Ìý ÌýÌý
ÌýClick here for Current CV.Ìý