Meet Our Professors: Kevin Stein, Communication
Posted: November 10, 2017 | Author: Samantha Niemann | Read Time: 2 minutes
Dr. Kevin Stein, associate professor of communication at Southern Utah University, researches rhetoric of attack (kategoria), persuasive defense (apologia), and responses to defense (his own theory called antapologia). He is the creator of Public Apology Central, the web's best source for crisis summaries, transcripts, videos, and audio of public apologies from politicians, organizations, media figures, and heads of state.
Stein earned his bachelor's in communication from SUU, masters in communication in speech communication from Idaho State University and his doctorate in communication with an emphasis in rhetoric and political communication from the University of Missouri. He started working at SUU in 2005 and loves interacting with students.
“I teach because I enjoy the dynamic environment of the classroom,” said Stein. “I love that even when my content is sometimes the same from semester to semester, the back and forth with students is never the same. It’s always unique.”
Stein regularly teaches the following classes:
- COMM 1310 - Thinking & Listening Critically
- COMM 2010 - Media & Society (as part of SUU’s Jumpstart program)
- COMM 2110 - Interpersonal Communication
- COMM 3020 - Communication Research
- COMM 3150 - Nonverbal Communication
- COMM 4502 - Political Communication
- COMM 6020 - Qualitative Communication Research
- COMM 6240 - Pop Culture Messages
- COMM 6240 - Political and Corporate Speechwriting
- COMM 6850 - Individual Graduate Research
- COMM 6900 - Masters Capstone Thesis
Stein served as the faculty senate president in 2015, chaired the academic affairs committee and led students in the exit polling for southern Utah during the most recent general and midterm elections.
He has published numerous articles addressing a variety of apologetic contexts including Mel Gibson’s anti-Semitic tirade, Barack Obama’s “World Apology Tour,” Zinedine Zidane’s head butting incident at the World Cup, George W. Bush’s federal response during Hurricane Katrina, and Soviet reaction to U.S. apologia following the 1960 U-2 incident.
Stein is motivated by the possibility that he could impact a student’s life in a positive way, and believes that education in all its forms makes us more compassionate beings.
“As much as I value my work and being successful each day in the classroom, nothing will ever be more important to me than my family,” said Stein.
Stein and his wife, Stacie, are coming up on their twentieth anniversary, they have five children. As a family, they enjoy reading and watching movies together, whether it involves pop culture or classic works.
This article was published more than 3 years ago and might contain outdated information or broken links. As a result, its accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Tags: College of Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty
