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Dr. Gwen O. Brown
B.A.
York College of Pennsylvania CONTACT
Dr. Brown is Associate Professor of Communication. She is concerned with the theoretical and pragmatic bases of national and international political communication. Her current research involves presidential communication in its function of defining national policies and the role both news and entertainment media play in our conception of politics and governance. Dr. Brown taught at the University of Maryland, Lincoln University, and Auburn University at Montgomery before joining the Radford University faculty. She is the recipient of the 1996 Radford University Award for Professorial Excellence. Dr. Brown currently serves as Graduate Program Coordinator. Q:
Would
you give us an overview of the courses you teach? A:
I teach both the undergraduate and the graduate Communication
Theory courses, Business
and Professional Presentations, Political Communication, and Politics
and Media. The
Communication Theory courses give students an introduction to the
discipline of Communication and the perspectives the discipline uses.
The Business and Professional Presentations course is designed to
enhance students’ communication skills for their future professional
lives. The Political
Communication and Politics and Media courses relate to my own research
area and involve teaching students the role that communication in
interpersonal, public, and mediated forms play in the realm of politics.
I also teach courses related to critical analysis.
For example, recently I taught a Contemporary Issues course that
focused generally on crisis communication and specifically on the use of
apologia or strategies of defense used by organizations and individuals
during crises. Q:
What
method of teaching do you prefer in these classes? A:
I would say that I approach teaching as a 50-50 proposition. I
try to find ways to explain theories, concepts, and skills to my
students and then I try to find ways to help apply that information.
So the course material becomes 50 percent information and 50
percent application. I also
think that teaching is a 50-50 proposition in that the classroom
experience shouldn’t be solely about the professor teaching; it should
be the professor teaching and the students learning.
Q:
Do you expect your students to have a specific academic
background to do well in your courses? A:
Our students come from a variety of backgrounds and they have
done very well. In
terms of our graduate program, we have students with undergraduate
degrees in areas as diverse as Business, English Literature, Sociology,
Psychology, and even Mathematics. Of
course, those with a background in Communication may begin with an
advantage. More important
than a specific background, though, students must have curiosity and a
desire to learn. Q:
How
much direct application of these courses do you think is possible? A:
Every
class we teach has direct application to students’ lives.
Some courses may initially seem more application-based than
others. For example, the
Business and Professional Presentations class clearly has application to
students’ future professions. Other
courses in our graduate degree program also immediately convey their
applied nature. Examples
include the Seminar in Organizational Communication, the Seminar in
Public Relations, Training and Development, and Issues Management.
Even courses, though, that might at first seem esoteric and
removed from our daily experiences can be quite useful.
For example, the Communication Theory course provides answers, in
the form of theories, to questions about our behavior and our ways of
thinking. Q:
What would be your advice to prospective students? A: Grad school is that once in a lifetime opportunity when we can, at least partially, shut out the rest of the world and concentrate on what we want to do, what we want to think about, what we want to read, and what we want to learn.. Students should take advantage of the wealth of knowledge and expertise that a graduate program has to offer. Only then can a student know the sheer joy of intellectual pursuit. So, I would say that my advice is to use every moment of your graduate career to learn as much as you can, garner as much knowledge and experience as possible from the courses and the faculty, and enjoy every minute of it.
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