Richard G. Jones, Jr., Ph.D.
Introduction

Richard G. Jones, Jr., Ph.D.

Professor of Communication Studies Website: http://richardgjonesjrphd.com

INTRODUCTION

Richard G. Jones, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor of Communication Studies
Program Coordinator/Academic Advisor - Communication in Organizations
Dual Credit Speech Coordinator

Student Help Hours for Spring 2023:

Mondays 1:00 - 2:00, Tuesdays 3:30 - 5:30, Thursdays 2:00 - 3:00, and by appointment

Background: I have been at Eastern Illinois University since 2010 and served as the director for CMN 1310G for ten years, coordinating all sections of Introduction to Speech Communication and supervising and training graduate teaching assistants. 

Working with students and helping them be successful in and out of the classroom is my goal. 

My primary research areas include:

  • Communication, culture, identity, and intersectionality
  • Communication pedagogy
  • Critical communication pedagogy
  • Instructional communication
  • Interpersonal communication
  • Intercultural communication
  • Public/presentational speaking
  • Leadership communication  

I'm an advocate for social justice committed to diversity and inclusion:

Diversity and inclusion are at the core of my values and practices as an academic. I have had direct and substantive engagement with inclusive excellence (IE) for 16 years and have served on EIU's Making Excellence Inclusive (MEI) team since it was formed in 2012.

Through my core commitments to IE, I strive: to advocate for my constituents, engage in research that amplifies the voice of people with multiple marginalized identities, teach classes that focus on cultural literacy and social justice, and help make institutional and structural changes from inside and outside of “the room” that will have lasting effects.

The knowledge, perspective, and edification that come from diverse encounters are not to be underestimated. It’s a renewable, not a finite, fuel for our growth and progress as a society.

I'm also the author of two textbooks: 

Communication in Organizations: I'm the coordinator and academic advisor for the Communication in Organizations option area within Communication Studies. Many students start college but have to leave or take a break for a variety of reasons. This program was designed to help those students complete their college degree online. It's very rewarding to work with my advisees over the course of their time at EIU and help them achieve their goal of becoming college graduates. 

Dual Credit: I'm the Dual Credit Speech coordinator and work with several area high schools and several teachers in District 214 (in the Chicago suburbs) to help students get EIU credit while still in high school. 

Teaching: I have known I wanted to be a teacher since I was 7. Helping students realize the importance and power of communication in their everyday lives is a passion. I was nominated by EIU for the US Professors of the Year program twice and was named Faculty Laureate in 2016-2017 for my commitment to general education. Click here to read the text of my Faculty Laureate address.

Courses Frequently Taught: 

  • CMN 1310: Introduction to Speech Communication
  • CMN 2010: Introduction to Communication Theories
  • CMN 2630: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication
  • CMN 3710: Intercultural Communication
  • CMN 3903: Rhetoric of Gender and Sexuality 
  • CMN 5240: Communication Pedagogy
  • CMN 5510: Interpersonal Communication 
  • CMN 5740: Small Group and Team Communication