
Dr. Michael Charlton
Chair | Professor
Dr. Michael Charlton
Professor of English
Director of Graduate Studies
Ph.D., English, University of Oklahoma
M.A., English, University of Oklahoma
B.A., English, University of Oklahoma
Office: Eder Hall 222K
Office Phone: (816) 271-4312
Email: mcharlton@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Wednesdays 1 P.M. – 3 P.M.
Thursdays 12:30 P.M. – 2 P.M.
By Appointment

Deb Treat
Administrative
Assistant
Deb Treat
Administrative Assistant
Office: Murphy 207A
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: dtreat@missouriwestern.edu

Dr. Kaye Adkins
Professor
Technical Communication
Dr. Kaye Adkins
Professor
Technical Communication
Ph.D., English, University of Kansas
M.A., English Composition, University of Kansas
B.A., English, Technical Communication – Pittsburg State University
Office: Eder Hall 222J
Office Phone: (816) 271-4310
Email: kadkins@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Monday 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. (in person or in Canvas chat)
Thursday 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
By appointment

Dr. Jordan Atkinson
Associate Professor
Communication
Dr. Jordan Atkinson
Associate Professor of Communication
B.A., Morehead State University
M.A., Morehead State University
Ph.D. West Virginia University
Office: Eder 222 Q
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: jatkinson3@missouriwestern.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Google Scholar Site
Office Hours:
Monday and Wednesday 1:00 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.
By Appointment
Dr. Jordan Atkinson is an Associate Professor at Missouri Western State University where he teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in organizational, crisis, small group, media, and oral communication. As a communication scholar investigating instructional, organizational, and family communication contexts, Dr. Atkinson’s research has been published in the journals Communication Education, Communication Teacher, Journal of Communication Pedagogy, Basic Communication Course Annual, Ohio Communication Journal, and Iowa Journal of Communication. Dr. Atkinson has also published book chapters in Communication and Learning, Casing the Family, Communicating Advice, and Casing Sport Communication. Dr. Atkinson regularly presents his research at the National Communication Association (NCA) and the Eastern Communication Association (ECA).
Dr. Atkinson is currently serving on the Convention Committee at NCA and recently served as the Secretary of the Instructional Development Division. Dr. Atkinson has served in multiple leadership positions at ECA, including the Chair and Program Planner of several interest groups, the Program Planner of the Graduate Student Poster Session, the Short Course Director, as an Executive Council member, and a member of the Nominating Committee. Dr. Atkinson is currently serving as the Planner of the 2022 Undergraduate Scholars Conference at ECA. Dr. Atkinson also serves as an Editorial Board Member for the Journal of Communication Pedagogy, Communication Research Reports, and Communication Quarterly. For his service to the discipline, Dr. Atkinson was awarded the 2021 Presidential Citation Award for Service from NCA.
At Missouri Western, Dr. Atkinson serves as Chair of the Graduate Council, as well as a member of the Faculty Senate, the Honors Committee, the Three-Minute Thesis Committee, and the department’s Scholarship Committee, Grade Appeal Committee, and Assessment Committee. Dr. Atkinson serves the students of MWSU as the Faculty Advisor of the Student Honors Organization. Previously, he was the Faculty Advisor for the Communication Club and Lambda Pi Eta. In 2019, he was awarded the Outstanding Student Advisor of the Year at MWSU.
Dr. Atkinson is originally from Pikeville, Kentucky, a region in the Appalachian Mountains full of history, hospitality, beauty, and charm. He completed his Ph.D. in Communication Studies at West Virginia University where he was awarded the Doctoral Student Teaching Award and the Doctoral Student Peer Collegiality Award. Dr. Atkinson completed his M.A. in Communication and two B.A. degrees in Secondary Education and Communication from Morehead State University in Kentucky. As an avid college sports fan, you can find Dr. Atkinson cheering on the Kentucky Wildcats or West Virginia Mountaineers anytime they are playing. Dr. Atkinson enjoys teaching at Missouri Western and he hopes to continue seeing creativity, innovation, and hard work from his students each semester.

Dr. Stacia Bensyl
Professor
English
Dr. Stacia Bensyl
Chair & Professor of English
Ph.D., English, University of Nebraska – Lincoln
M.A., Anglo-Irish Literature, University College Dublin
B.S.E., English, Northwest Missouri State University
Office: Eder Hall 222C
Office Phone: (816) 271-5936
Email: bensyl@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Wednesday 11 A.M. – 1 P.M.
Thursday 10 A.M. – 11 A.M. & 3 P.M. – 4 P.M.

Dr. James Carviou
Associate Professor
Journalism
Dr. James Carviou
Associate Professor of Journalism
Director of Digital Media Master’s program
Griffon Yearbook Adviser
Ph.D., University of Iowa
M.A., University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
B.A., University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Office: Eder 222 G
Office Phone: (816) 271-5605
Email: jcarviou@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Monday & Wednesday: 11 A.M. -12:30 P.M. & 3:30 P.M. – 4:30 P.M.
By Appointment

Dr. Jennifer Jackson
Associate Professor
Communication
Dr. Jennifer Jackson
Associate Professor of Communication
Ph.D., University of Memphis
M.A., University of Cincinnati
B.A., Otterbein College
Office: Eder Hall 222L
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: jjackson63@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Wednesday 12 P.M. – 4 P.M.
By Appointment

Dr. Susan Martens
Associate Professor
English
Dr. Susan Martens
Associate Professor of English
Director of Prairie Lands Writing Project
Ph.D., English, University of Nebraska – Lincoln
M.A., English, University of South Dakota
B.A.E., English and History, Wayne State College
Office: Eder Hall 201B
Office Phone: (816) 271-4315
Email: smartens@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Thursdays: 12:30 P.M. – 3 P.M.
By appointment

Dr. David McMahan
Professor
Communication
Dr. David McMahan
Professor of Communication
A.S., Vincennes University
B.S., M.A., Indiana State University
Ph.D., University of Iowa
Office: Eder 222E
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: mcmahan@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Monday & Wednesday 9 A.M. – 9:30 A.M. & 11 A.M. – 1 P.M.
By Appointment

Dawn Terrick
Advanced Instructor
English
Dawn Terrick
Advanced Instructor of English
M.A., English, Clarion University of Pennsylvania
B.A., English, Allegheny College
Office: Eder Hall 222F
Office Phone: (816) 271-4313
Email: terrick@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Thursday: 1:30 A.M – 4 P.M.
By Appointment for Zoom Conference

Dr. Mei Zhang
Professor
Communication
Dr. Mei Zhang
Professor of Communication
B.A., Zhejiang University
B.A., Fudan University
M.A., Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
Office: Eder 222I
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: meizhang@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
Thursday 12:30 P.M. – 2 P.M. & 3:30 P.M. -4:30 P.M.
By Appointment
Part-Time Faculty

Susan Garrison
English
Susan Garrison
Part-Time Instructor
Degrees: M.A. English; BJ Journalism
Office: Hearnes 213
Office Phone: (816) 271-4401
Email: garrison@missouriwestern.edu

Rachael Drenckpohl
English
Rachael Drenckpohl
Part-Time Instructor of English
Phone: 816-271-4490
Email: rdrenckpohl@missouriwestern.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Nicole Garret
English
Dr. Nicole Garret
Part-Time Instructor of English
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: ngarret@missouriwestern.edu

Jenny Jackson
English

Cynthia Jeney
English
Cynthia Jeney
Part-Time Instructor of English
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: jeney@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
TBA

Meredith Katchen
English
Meredith Katchen
Instructor of English
M.A., English Composition Theory and Pedagogy, California State University, Fresno
B.A., English, California State University, Fresno
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: mkatchen@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
TBA

Brooksie Kluge
English
Brooksie Kluge
Advanced Instructor of English
M.A., English – Literature, Missouri State University
B.A., English – Literature, Missouri State University
Office: Eder Hall 212C
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: bkluge@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
TBA

Donell Murray
Communication
Donell Murray
Part-Time Instructor of Communication
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: dmurray7@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
By Email

Gary Smith
Communication
Part-Time Instructor of Communication
Office: Eder 222O
Office Phone: (816) 271-4490
Email: gsmith16@missouriwestern.edu
Office Hours:
TBA