During his tenure at the University of West Georgia, he has served as the program coordinator for the M. Ed. in Reading Instruction, and later, as the the director of the Teaching Fellows Program. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses for pre-service and in-service teachers focusing on effective literacy instruction. His research interests include reader response theory applications in the elementary school classroom as well as the nature of the use of literature by teachers during instruction. Prior to moving into higher education, Dr. Ponder began his career as a public elementary school teacher in Louisiana.