KSU Communications professor passes away

Rozell Duncan.

Rozell Duncan.

Alex Delaney-Gesing

Rozell Duncan, a Kent State undergraduate advisor and associate professor of communication studies, passed away on Aug. 15.

Duncan, 67, was worked as a full-time faculty member of the university for nearly three decades. Her areas of expertise included a focus on the impact of gender on workplace socialization, experiential and service learning, as well as organizational communication.

“She was fully invested in the success of her students and colleagues, she cared deeply about others and she worked tirelessly for the benefit of her school, her college and for Kent State University,” said Amy Reynolds, dean of the university’s College of Communication and Information

Duncan was the author of several published scholarly articles and featured in various academic research papers presented around the world.

Most recently she was part of a panel presented at the 45th Annual Conference of the International Society for Exploring Teaching and Learning

“Career Research as a Class Assignment,” “Immediacy Behaviors in the Superior-Subordinate Relationship,” and “The Scholarship of Application: The Interaction of Theory and Practice.”

Prior to joining the Kent State community, she retired from a 30-year career in management at the Summit County Department of Job and Family Services, and was an adjunct faculty member at The University of Akron.

Duncan graduated from Muskingum College with a Bachelor of Arts degree, earned a Master’s of Arts degree from The University of Akron, and received her Ph.D. from Kent State.

While at the university, Duncan taught in the School of Communication Studies. This past summer she was an instructor for four classes: Organizational Communication, Internship in Communication Studies, Independent Study, Communication Studies, and Practicum in Applied Communication.

She is survived by her husband, David, daughter, son-in-law, granddaughters, grandson and great-granddaughter.