William Devine
Professor Bill Devine is Chair of English and Language Arts and Professor of English at Taft College. He is also a former Liberal Arts Chair and Lead Instructor for the school’s Transition to Independent Living (TIL) Program. TIL endeavors to provide developmentally disadvantaged students with independent living skills through total immersion in living skills classes, job training, dorm life, and college activities.
Professor Devine grew up in Kern County, where while a young person he had to toss flakes of hay to the steers, provide feed to the chickens, and feed the pig before catching the bus to school to Taft.
He earned his Master’s Degree in Literature from California State University, Fresno, where he also earned his Bachelor of Arts degree. While at CSUF, he took part in the university’s International Program in Florence, Italy. He taught three years in Japan, during which time his Master’s Thesis won the Outstanding Thesis Award and was nominated for the Dean’s Medal.
He met his future wife and two stepdaughters in Japan, and the couple’s American son is now attending college. While Professor Devine has presented at numerous conferences and published both fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, his first love is teaching and learning from each new generation of students in his classroom. He says he looks forward to each semester and helping young people meet the challenges of the future.