Associate professor of Communication and Public Relations, Dr. Barbara Gainey, has been named the new interim chair of the KSU Communication Department.
“The interim chair has all the duties, responsibilities and accountability for effectively leading the department,” said Robin Dorff, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. “The ‘interim’ refers to the fact that it is a stand-in appointment made without a search process and is in effect until a permanent chair is selected through a formal search process.”
The Communication Department’s faculty members nominated Gainey for the position, and the dean, in consultation with the faculty, appointed her as interim chair.
Gainey is currently the director of the Communication Department’s Public Relations program with research interests that include crisis communication, crisis management, leadership and public engagement through new media.
Former chair Birgit Wassmuth announced she would be leaving after accepting a postion as director at Kansas State University’s A.Q. Miller School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Gainey has gained more than 20 years of experience within the professional communication field and was awarded the George Beggs Advisor of The Year Award for advising the KSU Public Relations Student Society of America chapter in 2007.
One of Gainey’s main concerns as chair is keeping communication flowing within the department as it continues to grow and implement new programs.
“The challenge is, as the department gets larger, staying in touch and keeping the communication channels open and trying to meet the needs of faculty and students,” Gainey said. “I think we’ll all be very engaged together in moving the department forward.”
The department is currently implementing new minors in public relations, crisis preparedness and a new certificate in multiplatform news reporting. Each of these minors will be effective Fall Semester 2013.
Gainey said she is glad to help facilitate the growth of the Communication Department and is excited to be taking on a role that she hasn’t performed.
“I’m enthusiastic,” Gainey said. “It’s a new challenge. It’s a role I haven’t done in academia before. I’ve managed programs outside of academia, but this is a new role for me. We’re going to work together closely in the department, and I think it’s going to go fine.”
