Our Faculty

This collaborative program includes faculty from K-State's department of communications and agricultural education, Staley School of Leadership, A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication and Institute for Civic Discourse and Democracy.

Department of communications and agricultural education

Jacqueline Aenlle | jaenlle@ksu.edu
Assistant professor, agricultural communications and journalism
Education: Ph.D. University of Florida
Research areas: Science communication, new media, public engagement, information processing

 

Jason Ellis | jdellis@ksu.edu
Professor, agricultural communications and journalism
Education: Ph.D. Iowa State University

 

 

Nellie Hill | nlhill@ksu.edu
Assistant Professor, agricultural communications and journalism
Education: Ph.D. Agricultural Communications and Education, Texas Tech University
Research areas: Persuasive communication to create behavioral changes

Katie Starzec | kstarzec@ksu.edu
Assistant professor, agricultural communications and journalism
Education: Ph.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Natural resource communication; landowner decision-making; sustainable food production

 

Jonathan Ulmer | julmer@ksu.edu
Associate professor, agricultural education
Education: Ph.D. University of Missouri, Columbia
Research areas: Adoption of innovations; program evaluation; STEM integration in agriculture

 

A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication

Raluca Cozma | cozma@ksu.edu
Associate professor, associate director of graduate studies
Education: Ph.D. Louisiana State University
Research areas: Political communication; international communication; media effects and credibility

Sean M. Eddington | seaneddington@ksu.edu
Assistant professor
Education: Ph.D. Purdue University
Research areas: New media; organizing and organizational communication; gender

 

Jacob Groshek | groshek@ksu.edu
Ross Beach chair in emerging media research, associate professor
Education: Ph.D. Mass Communication, Indiana University
Research areas: Media technology; social media and big data analytics; mis/disinformation in political and health communication

Tom Hallaq | thallaq@ksu.edu
Associate professor
Education: M. Ed. Eastern Washington University, Ed. D. Idaho State University
Research areas: Media literacy, media accessibility, and documentary storytelling with an emphasis on food accessibility

Colene Lind | colenejlind@ksu.edu
Associate professor
Education: Ph.D. University of Texas, Austin
Research areas: Political rhetoric and language; scientific and environmental decision-making; public participation

Nikhil Moro | nmoro@ksu.edu
Associate professor
Education: Ph.D. Ohio State University
Research areas: Digital media law; emerging technologies; international communication

Nancy Muturi | nmuturi@ksu.edu
Professor
Education: Ph.D. University of Iowa
Research areas: Community-based participatory research; health communication; communication for social and behavior change

Sam Mwangi | scmwangi@ksu.edu
Associate professor
Education: Ph.D. University of South Carolina
Research areas: Media and civic engagement; international communication; political communication

Katie Olsen | olsenk@ksu.edu
Assistant professor
Education: Ph.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Strategic communications; corporate and internal communication; employee engagement; organizational culture; career socialization/psychology

Heather Woods | hwoods@ksu.edu
Assistant professor, director of graduate studies
Education: Ph.D. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Research areas: Digital rhetoric; critical theory and power; communication, media and technology

 

College of Education

Susan M. Yelich Biniecki | susanyb@ksu.edu
Associate professor, Adult Learning and Leadership; Coordinator, Social Justice Education Graduate Certificate
Education: Ph.D. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Research areas: Adult learning, international adult education (emphasis on Central, Eastern, and South-Eastern Europe), continuing professional education, military learning

Staley School of Leadership

Mac Benavides, Ph.D. | mb2008@ksu.edu
Assistant professor
Education: Ph.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Community engagement and community-based global learning; qualitative and engaged research; leadership learning and development

 

Trisha Gott, Ed.D. | tcgott@ksu.edu
Associate dean, assistant professor
Education: Ed.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Student leadership education; leadership development; global leadership education and development

 

Drew Pearl | apearl@ksu.edu
Assistant professor
Education: Ph.D. McBee Institute of Higher Education, University of Georgia
Research areas: Institutionalization of community engagement; Motivations for and impacts of community-engaged learning; Academic publishing in higher education community engagement; Boundary spanners and community engagement professionals

Kerry L. Priest | kerryp@ksu.edu
Professor
Education: Ph.D. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Research areas: Leadership learning and development; leadership educator professional development; qualitative and engaged methods

Keyhan Shams | keyhan@ksu.edu
Research assistant professor
Education: Ph.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Leadership research and impact assessment, mixed-methods, public leadership

 

Tim Steffensmeier | steffy@ksu.edu
Professor
Education: Ph.D. University of Texas, Austin
Research areas: Public deliberation; civic leadership; argumentation

 

Mary Hale Tolar | mtolar@ksu.edu
Dean, associate professor
Mary Lynn and Warren Staley chair for leadership
Education: Ed.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Civic leadership; women in leadership; social movements

 

Andrew Wefald | wefald@ksu.edu
Associate professor, director of leadership communication doctoral program
Education: Ph.D. Kansas State University
Research areas: Leadership; leadership coaching; community engagement