Introduction

Richard G. Jones, Jr. is Professor and Chair of Communication Studies at Marshall University, where he also directs HerdWork Humanities. Born and raised in the mountains of North Carolina, he was the first in his family to go to college, an experience that has shaped a career devoted to regional public universities and the students they serve.

He earned his B.A. and M.A. in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina Greensboro and his Ph.D. in Human Communication Studies, with a focus on culture and communication, from the University of Denver. He then spent 13 years at Eastern Illinois University, where he earned the rank of full professor while directing the basic communication course, piloting the university’s first dual credit course, and co-chairing a revision of its general education learning goals.

Since 2023, he has led Marshall’s Department of Communication Studies, a unit of about 27 faculty and staff, through a new budget model, a curriculum redesign, and the launch of an online B.A. He led the creation of the nation’s first dual degree pairing an M.D. with an M.A. in Communication Studies and helped lead Marshall’s general education redesign proposal. He also built the HerdWork Humanities Internship Program after serving as Co-PI and lead author of its $1.8 million Mellon Foundation grant. The program combines paid internships with career-focused coursework and faculty and site mentoring, helping humanities students connect their education to meaningful work.

Dr. Jones is an award-winning teacher. His honors include being named EIU’s Faculty Laureate for 2016–2017 and receiving two nominations for U.S. Professor of the Year. He is the author of Communication in the Real World, which received the National Communication Association Basic Course Division’s Textbook of Distinction Award and is now in its third edition, and Our Communication, Our World. He has also published articles and book chapters on identity, culture, and communication. 

Outside the university, he has been part of more than 30 community theatre productions and has served on the boards of both a community theatre and a professional theatre. He also loves the art and science of cooking and the simple yet profound act of eating good food with good people.