ASU adds Dr. Brad Rawlins as new dean of College of Communications
Dr. Brad Rawlins, an experienced administrator and communications professor at Brigham Young University since 2000, is the new dean of the College of Communications at Arkansas State University, ASU officials announced Monday, April 2.
Dr. Rawlins replaces Dr. Russ Shain who retired July 30, 2010, after completing 20 years of distinguished service at ASU. In the interim, Dr. Osa Amienyi, chair of the Department of Radio-Television, has provided yeoman service as interim dean and will be returning to his chair position when Dr. Rawlins assumes his duties as dean July 1, 2012.
"I am excited about this opportunity to join the faculty in the College of Communications at Arkansas State University,” said Dr. Rawlins. “These are dynamic times in the communications professions, and I look forward to working with the exceptional faculty and staff at ASU to help prepare the next generation of communicators.
“I felt the energy and focus on the ASU campus to take the university to new heights, and I am eager to be a part of that effort. ASU will play a very important role in the continued economic growth of Jonesboro and all of Arkansas, and the communications industries will be a vital part of that growth."
Dr. Dan Howard, Interim Chancellor stated, “ASU is most fortunate to have recruited Dr. Brad Rawlins, following a rigorous national search, as the new dean of the College of Communications. He has outstanding academic credentials and a substantial amount of experience that combine to help make him an ideal choice as dean. For these and many other reasons, I am convinced that Dr. Rawlins will make many substantial and positive contributions to ASU in the future.”
Dr. Rawlins has served as department chair in the Department of Communications at BYU since June 2008 where he was responsible for the department budget, fundraising, alumni relations, hiring and annual reviews of faculty and staff, tenure and advance of faculty, serving on the college council and overseeing department governance.
Prior to that time, he was the associate chair for undergraduate studies where he was responsible for all curriculum decisions, managing teaching assignments, recruiting and training part-time faculty, managing selective admissions process, managing required internship program, and resolving undergraduate conflicts and academic honor code issues.
He also spent one year as the associate chair for graduate studies and supervised graduate students in the communications department.
Before his arrival at BYU, Dr. Rawlins taught at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va. His classes included advertising design, fundamental skills in media arts, principles of advertising, introduction to public relations, and others.
He began his teaching career at Walker College in 1991, teaching introduction to mass communications, introduction to media writing and news reporting, layout and editing, feature writing, advertising, and mass media law and ethics.
Dr. Rawlins has two bachelor of arts degrees from Washington State University, one in communications and one in foreign languages and literature (Spanish). He earned a master of arts degree in advertising and public relations and a Ph.D. in mass communication from the University of Alabama.
He has published articles related to trust, transparency, authenticity, ethics, and stakeholder relations as they relate to the practice of public relations. In 2003, he received the Pathfinder Award from the Institute of Public Relations for Research that enhanced the practice of public relations. Dr. Rawlins is a member of the Measurement Commission of the Institute of Public Relations, is the co-editor of the Journal of Communication Management, and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Public Relations Research and the Public Relations Journal.
Dr. Rawlins is actively involved in the Educators Academy of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), the public relations division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, and the International Public Relations Research Conference.
He is married to the former Patricia (Trish) Ann Martinez of Genesee Idaho, and they are the parents of five children.
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