Curriculum Vitae
MARY J. RIVERS
411 Shilling
Hall 5 River Valley Ranch
Department of
Communication White Heath, Illinois
Millikin
University 61884
Decatur,
Illinois 62522 217-687-4526
217-424-6287 E-MAIL: mrivers@mail.millikin.edu
EDUCATION
Ph.D. University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Speech Communication. May 1991
Major
Emphasis: Interpersonal Communication/ Discourse
Processes and
Language Behavior
Minor
Emphasis: Persuasion
Dissertation:
"When communication fails: The effect of dementia upon the management of
requests."
M.A. Governors
State University, University Park, Illinois, Emphasis in Interpersonal and
Intercultural Communication. May 1978.
Thesis:
"The effect of participation in organized sports on the self-esteem and
locus of control of eight- to twelve-year old girls."
B.A. Marquette
University, School of Speech, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Majors in Mass Communication and English. June 1968.
EMPLOYMENT
1995-present Associate
Professor, Department of Communication
Chair,
Department of Communication, Millikin University
1989-1995 Assistant
Professor, Department of Communication, Millikin University, Decatur,
Illinois.
1985-1988 Teaching
Assistant, Department of Speech Communication, University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign. Assignments included
the basic public speaking course and Introduction to Interpersonal
Communication.
1987 (Spring) Research Assistant, Department of
Speech Communication, University of Illinois.
Assisted Professor Sally Planalp in her research on the cognitive bases
of interpersonal relationships.
1982-1989 Instructor
and Tutor. Parkland College, Champaign,
Illinois. Assignments included teaching
developmental writing, research skills and computer-assisted composition, and
serving as tutor in the writing clinic.
PUBLICATIONS
AND PAPERS
Allee, S. & Rivers, M. (1999) Is there any change in an
elderly person’s satisfaction with communication if a dog is present? Presented
at the National Communication Association annual meeting in Chicago, IL,
November, 1999.
Planalp, S. and Rivers, M. (1987) Changes in knowledge of
personal relationships. Paper presented at the annual convention of the
International Communication Association in New Orleans, May, 1988.
Planalp, S., and Rivers, M. (1996) Changes in knowledge of
personal relationships. In Fletcher, G., and Fitness, J. (Eds.) Knowledge
structures and interaction in close relationships. Hillsdale, N. J.:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
Rivers, M. (1987) The argumentative rapist: An analysis of
the argument between Fr. Charles Curran and Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger. Paper presented at the Central States Speech
Association annual convention, Schaumburg, Illinois, April 1988.
Rivers, M. (1988) Managing the focus of attention: A
comparison of the conversations of normal and memory-impaired adults. Paper presented in the Top Papers panel for
the Commission on Communication and Aging at the Speech Communication
Association annual convention, New Orleans, November, 1988.
Rivers, M. (1989)
Communication and the Alzheimer’s victim:
Is this "The last of life for which the first was made"? Paper presented to the annual convention of
the Speech Communication Association, San Francisco, CA, November, 1989.
Rivers, M. (1990) What are we talking about?: a comparative
analysis of the focus management abilities of memory impaired and able-minded
interactants. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 18, 76-92.
Rivers, M. (1991) Rethinking the role of context in
communication. Presented at the annual
meeting of the Speech Communication Association in Atlanta, GA., November,
1991.
Rivers, M. (1992) Voice Lessons: Learning and teaching the
discourse of the discipline. Millikin
University Journal of Writing, 1,
7-15.
Rivers, M. (1993) How do I fail thee? Let me count the ways:
An analysis of ARD communicators’ responses to requests. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the
International Communication Association, Washington D. C., May, 1993.
Rivers, M. (1994) Rethinking the traditional model of
comprehension: Implications for interpretation of comprehension difficulties in
Alzheimer's patients. Presented at the
Gerontological Society of America annual convention, Atlanta, Ga, November,
1994.
Rivers, M. (1994) Saving Grace. American Kennel Gazette, May 1994. [Awarded Second place
for fiction by American Kennel Club; Awarded First Place for Short Fiction by
Dog Writers' Association of America, President's Award for Writing, DWAA, 1994]
Rivers, M. (1994) Professing made easy by the HP
palmtop. The HP Palmtop Paper,
3, 2, pp. 31-35.
Rivers, M. (1994) The friendship network. The Speech Communication Teacher.
Rivers, M. (1995)
Teaching Persuasion at a small university. Presented at the Central States Speech Association annual meeting
in Indianapolis, IN, April 1995.
Rivers, M. (1995)
Request management among ARD subjects: A typology for success and
failure. Presented at the
Gerontological Society of America annual meeting in Los Angeles, CA. November,
1995.
Rivers, M (1999) In the shadow of Changing Woman. Presented at the National Communication
Association annual meeting in Chicago, IL, November, 1999.
Rivers, M. (2000) For better or worse: Let's make it
better. Communication Teacher, 14,
4, Summer, 2000.
Rivers, M. (2001) Navajo Women and abuse: The context for their troubled relationships. Presented at the annual Intercultural Communication Conference, Miami, FL., March 2001.
Rivers, M. (2002) “Dancing at
Halftime: Sports and the Controversy over American Indian Mascots.” [Book
review] Ethica, 16, 1.
Rivers, M. (2003) Activism: Navajo Style. Poster presentation at the National
Communication Association annual meeting, November 2003, Miami, FL.
Rivers, M. (in press) Navajo Women and abuse: The context
for their troubled relationships. Journal
of Family Violence.
TEACHING
Gender
Communication: A junior-level course
which draws upon the extensive body of
research in Sociology, Psychology, Political Science, and Communication to
examine the communication differences
between men and women and the ways in which communication shapes our cultural
expectations of gender.
Interpersonal
Communication: A sophomore level
course which expands upon the basics presented in Fundamentals of Communication
(see above). Focus is on understanding
principles of self-understanding, communication, perception, and relationship
management as they relate to various forms of
relationships, communication, and issues.
Intercultural
Communication: A senior level seminar
which explores the variations among cultures in belief systems, systems of
thought, values, perceptions of the world, and beliefs about humanity and
deities. Relates these variations to
their impact upon tempts to communicate between cultures and postulates means
for improving such communication.
Persuasion
Theory and Practice: A senior seminar
focusing on theories of persuasion and social influence, often within a
practical framework for application.
Previous courses have worked with the United States' presidential
campaign of 1992, recruiting practices
of various organizations, and media practices of influence.
Relational
Communication: A senior-level honors
seminar exploring current theory and research related to communication in three
forms of intimate relationships: family, friendship, and romance.
Small Group
Communication: A sophomore-junior level
course which investigates the theory and practice of small group communication,
including issues of leadership, rules and norms, conflict, problem-solving, and decision-making.
Strategic
Communication: An introductory course
that teaches students basic skills and principles necessary for later
coursework in Persuasion, Public Relations, and Television Production. Topics include basic market analysis,
fundamental persuasion principles and introduction to copyediting.
Issues in Mass
Media: A junior level course that
encourages to students to think critically about mediated messages. Presented in an historical framework, the
course asks students to analyze the critique their own media use as well as the
broader societal consumption of mediated messages.
Investigative
Methods in Communication: Introduces sophomore majors to the breadth of the
research methods used by communication scholars. The goal is to make them critical readers of journals and
research.
The Scientist
and the Indian: a sophomore-level
social science course focused on the ways social scientists conducted and
conduct research (good and bad) among Native American populations.
Native
Americans of the Southwest: a sophomore level, interdisciplinary course that
weaves together the stories of two tribes, the Ancestral Puebloans and the
modern Pueblo, emphasizing the interrelationships of geography, history,
culture and communication.
Navajo Voices:
a multidisciplinary Freshmen seminar that investigates the culture of the
Navajo tribe through the use of their own writings, cultural artifacts, and
stories.
Business and
Professional Communication: Focuses on teaching students more advanced elements
of public speaking in the organizational setting. Important topics to cover include: audience analysis, management of focus groups, development and
use of visual aids, including overhead projectors, video, and computers, handling hostility, development and use of data-presentation forms, and management of
convention presentations.
Fundamentals
of Communication: A skills course
focusing on improving students' abilities to function well in various settings
such as public speaking, small groups, job interviews, families, friendships,
and romantic relationships.
College
Composition I & II: Composition I
focuses on the development of essential essay writing skills using various
modes of exposition. Composition II
advances the student's writing skills to longer, more formal work such as term
papers, business reports, and theses.
LECTURES
AND SEMINARS
"Communication
concerns for using telecommunication systems in education." Presentation
for the Nursing Review program at DeKalb College, Atlanta, Ga.
"Management
of the hostile audience." One-day seminar for employees of HUD in Atlanta,
Georgia.
"Communication
issues for the memory-impaired." Guest speaker for seminar on Health
Communication, University of Illinois, Fall 1988.
"Making
sense of conversations with the memory-impaired." Presentation for the Millikin University
Faculty Forum, February, 1991.
"A quick
and dirty review of errors most commonly made by college writers." Workshop presented for Writing Associates,
February, 1993.
"Advising
voice students about program notes." Workshop presented with Dr. Randy
Brooks for voice faculty in the College of Fine Arts, Millikin University,
February, 1993.
"Reweaving
the threads: Communicating with memory-impaired clients." A two-part in-service presented to nursing
homes caring for residents with dementing illnesses. 1994.
"Communication
between doctor and client." A
workshop prepared for veterinary students on improved communication with pet
owners. 1995.
"Therapy
Dogs as Communication Facilitators in Nursing Homes." Millikin Faculty Forum, February, 1995.
"Diversity
in the Classroom." Eight-hour
workshop for Millikin Faculty on understanding issues of multiculturalism as
they relate to classroom effectiveness, September, 1995. I was one of a four-member team.
"Teaching
to Diversity." The second workshop in our diversity series, this one dealt
with differences in learning styles.
Attendees practiced changing pedagogical methods in order to reach as
broad a spectrum of styles as possible.
October, 1995
"Incorporating
Multicultural Content in our courses."
The final workshop in Millikin's Diversity series, this 8-hour session
explored various ways to broaden course content to include perspectives and material
from other cultures. November, 1995.
"Issues
for improved communication with the memory-impaired." Presented at the Alzheimer's Association
Conference in Champaign, Illinois, November, 1995
"Don't
blame it on the planets: Male-female differences in communication." Presentation for the annual Women's Studies
Conference, Ohio Wesleyan University, March, 1998.
"Navajo
Ways of Knowing". Presentation for
the First Annual Symposium on Undergraduate Education, Millikin University,
October, 1999.
"Dogs and
therapists." Lecture for Professor Anne Ramelsberg's Freshmen Seminar,
Fall, 1999.
“In the Shadow
of Changing Woman,” presentation for Pilling Chapel’s “Walking in a Sacred
Manner” program, April, 2000.
"Understanding
Navajo perspectives on healing and wellness." Lecture delivered for Cheryl Hilgenberg's class, April, 2001.
"What the
Anasazi can tell us." Panel presentation for U.S. Studies program on
reform in the U.S. in the face of diversity.
April, 2001.
Panelist on “Cirque de Communique,” National Communication Association meeting in Miami, FL November, 2003
Workshops
Attended
"C-SPAN
in the Classroom." Three-day
workshop in Washington, D.C., that focused on ways to incorporate video,
particularly C-SPAN's, into courses in Communication, Political Science,
Nursing, Government, Sociology, and others.
June 1992. (Funded by C-SPAN and
a grant from Millikin University.)
"The
Freshman Experience." Conference
and workshop at the University of South Carolina, exploring innovations in
socializing first-year students into the college culture. (Funded by a grant from Millikin University)
"Teaching
and Diversity." A week-long
workshop sponsored by the Great Lakes Colleges Association which focused on a
variety of multicultural issues on the American campus. (Funded by a grant from the Lilly
Foundation.)
SERVICE
Member,
Writing Across the Disciplines Committee, 1989-1991.
Member,
Library Advisory Committee, 1991-1994
Social Science
Division Consultant for Writing Across the Disciplines, 1991-1993.
Advisor, WJMU,
1995-present
Chair,
Department of Communication, 1995-present.
Member,
Council on Curriculum, 1993-1995, 1999-2001.
James Millikin
Scholars Honors Project Advisor for:
Elizabeth Wallin (1989-91), Heather Robinson (1991-93), Lisa Hokamp
(1991-93), Tracey Warnes (1992-94). Sandra Mills (1999-2001), Shannon Couch
(2000-2002)
Member,
Research Advisory Group, 1994-96.
Member,
Principal Search Committee for Centennial High School, 1994.
Manuscript
Reviewer for Journal of Personal and Social Relationships.
Member of
Accreditation Steering Committee, 1995-1996, responsible for writing the
Introduction to the Millikin Self-Report, the application for continued
accreditation by the North Central Association.
Member,
Committee on Distinctive Nature of Arts and Science, 1995-present.
Member,
Council on Global Issues, 1995-1996
Chair, Social
Science Division, 1995-1998
Tabor
Strategic Planning Committee, Co-Chair of Task Force on Research, 1996
Communication
Department Webmaster, 2000 to present.
Chair of 3
search committees for Communication faculty, 1999-2001.
Member of
Advisory Committee on Promotion and Tenure, 2000-2004.
Member of
Planning and Budget Committee, 2000-present.
Chair, Social
Science Division, 2003-present.
MEMBERSHIPS
Broadcast
Educators Association
International
Network on Personal Relationships.
National
Communication Association.
Phi Kappa Phi
Honor Society, University of Illinois Chapter.
Who’s Who in
Professional and Business Women.
Who’s Who in
International Women.