About this Course & LU

Gender & Communication Class

Gender and Communication is an upper-level undergraduate class at Longwood University taken by Communication Studies and Women and Gender Studies students.  Many of the writers featured here have studied public speaking, communication theory, and mass media, among other communication topics.  Their work represents a variety of experiences and knowledge.

In this class, we will explore both the personal and social dimensions of gender, communication, and culture, and how all three interact in our lives.  We will examine how culture sculpts gender and communication, how gender shapes communication and culture, and how communication creates, reproduces, sustains, and sometimes challenges and changes the meaning of gender and, with that, cultural structures and practices.

About the Instructor

Dr. Naomi Johnson, Associate Professor and Chair of Communication Studies, teaches coursework related to organizational, interpersonal, mass  media, and gendered communication practices.  Dr. Johnson encourages experiential learning through student application of theory to better understand and enhance personal and professional communication.  Her research related to novels popular among teen girls has been reviewed in The New York Times, Newsweek, NPR, The Richmond Times-Dispatch, and other regional media outlets.  Her most recent study was printed in Women’s Studies in Communication.

Longwood University

Ranked as a top school by The Princeton Review and USA Today, Longwood University is situated in scenic central Virginia.   LU is a publicly funded, state liberal arts institution with nearly 5,000 students from over 25 states and other countries.

Longwood University Founded in 1839.