Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies

Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies

The RHCS curriculum analyzes and theorizes symbolic action across a variety of venues, including law, rhetoric, media, elective politics, history, resistance efforts, public memory, and relational dynamics.
Major & MinorCourses

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Rhetoric Event

Chronicles of Courage II: Reporting on Difficult Subjects in Difficult Times

Wednesday, April 9, 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Jepson 118

Continuing community building from spring 2024, we welcome back award-winning journalists, Tania Rashid, Elizabeth Flock, and Neil Brandvold for “Chronicles of Courage II: Reporting on Difficult Subjects in Difficult Times.” Elizabeth Flock will share her reporting on giving birth in Gaza and anti-abortion clinics. Tania Rashid will share her reporting on the student-led protests and fall-out in Bangladesh. Neil Brandvold will share his reporting on migrants detained in Panama and the prison state in El Salvador.

Sponsored by the Gottwald Speaker’s Fund, the Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies, the Department of Journalism, and the School of Arts & Sciences.

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Wunpini Fatimata Mohammed

Media, Culture and Decolonization

Join the Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies for a book talk with Wunpini Fatimata Mohammed, assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Cornell University.
Media, Culture, and Decolonization: Rerighting the Subaltern Histories of Ghana invites us to look at media and culture from a decolonial perspective. Through African epistemologies and knowledge systems, this book examines media by highlighting how African languages, cultures, and traditions can completely shift how we think of knowledge. It is an offering to anyone curious about the relationship between culture, language, and media. By focusing on African language media in Ghana, such as film, television, and radio, the book emphasizes the importance of espousing a decolonial politic and praxis in the process of co-creating knowledge with indigenous communities. It succinctly connects the struggles of global majority countries and demonstrates how (neo)colonialism and imperialism impede the work toward liberatory futures. It deconstructs subalternity and marginality within the nation-state, demonstrating its fixity and malleability in the processes of cultural production. 

April 1, 2025
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
University of Richmond, Weinstein Hall, Brown Alley Room 313
231 Richmond Way
University of Richmond, VA 23173
 

Student Success

With its innovative bridging between an emphasis on critical/ethical thinking and a focus on the practical role of communication in public life, the Department of Rhetoric Communication Studies empowers students to find fulfilling careers and professional and educational experiences across a wide diversity of subjects. Our RHCS students have gone on from UR to make exciting, creative, and vital contributions to civic culture.

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RHCS Inclusivity Statement

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Faculty Highlights

Dr. Timothy Barney
Barney awarded faculty fellowship for digital humanities initiative

Timothy Barney, professor of rhetoric and communication studies, was awarded the 2025 Mednick Faculty Fellowship Award from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges in the amount of $2,800 for the project, "Mapping the Ford Foundation," a digital humanities initiative co-led with Nicole Sackley, associate professor of history and American studies. The University of Richmond selects one faculty member annually to apply for the grant.

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Scholarship Repository Readership

The University of Richmond's Scholarship Repository shares faculty publications with a world-wide audience. The map below shows where articles from RHCS faculty are being read around the globe.

Resources

Library Research Guide

Speech Center

Writing Center

Research Forums

Contact Us

Mailing Address:
Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies
402-C Weinstein Hall
231 Richmond Way
University of Richmond, VA 23173

Phone: (804) 289-8263
Fax: (804) 287-6496

Department Chair: Paul Achter
Academic Administrative Coordinator: Robin Mundle