ATHENS, Ohio (Oct. 20, 2008)—Dr. Raymie McKerrow, professor of Communications Studies, has been named the recipient of the National Communication Association Critical and Cultural Studies Division Lifetime Achievement Award and has also recently been named the Wittenberg Fellow. 

“The Lifetime Achievement Award is particularly meaningful in that it comes from a division within NCA that I helped to create,” said McKerrow, who has been a member of NCA for nearly 40 years and has served as its president.

The award is given to someone who notably impacts the Critical and Cultural Studies in NCA through their scholarship and mentoring. McKerrow received numerous letters of recommendation that acknowledged his contribution to the field of Critical and Cultural Studies.

One letter of recommendation said, “McKerrow is a tremendous mentor and he generously offers his time and support to nurture and encourage so many younger scholars (many of whom have become leading figures in the field today) who work on cutting edge progressive topics, especially topics committed to issues of social marginalization. In his usual humble, caring and sensitive style, he takes tremendous interest in the works of junior people and, in doing so, manifests a commitment to the constant growth and development of critical and cultural studies in the field.”

McKerrow will accept his award at the CCS’s business meeting at NCA on Nov. 23. He also received the Douglas W. Ehninger Distinguished Rhetorical Scholar Award from the NCA in 2006.

Earlier this year, McKerrow was named the 2008-2009 Wittenberg Fellow by Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio.

“Each year the university chooses someone from across the disciplines, so to be named a fellow for this year is a major honor,” said McKerrow.

The Wittenberg Fellow was founded in 1999 and is a prestigious distinction awarded by the University’s Board of Directors. Criteria for Wittenberg Fellows include significant contribution to human welfare, academic achievement and noteworthy achievement in a chosen field of study.

McKerrow has worked across disciplines to coordinate Ohio University’s McNair Scholars program. He has also edited one of the field’s leading journals, Communication Quarterly. He was nominated for the award by two Wittenberg faculty, and former doctoral advisees Dr. Virginia Martycz and Dr. Matthew Smith.

“Ray McKerrow has been a model academic throughout his career,” said Smith. “He has advanced our thinking about rhetorical practices through his scholarship. He has changed numerous lives through his teaching and mentoring. And he has served our discipline with distinction, having led scholarly associations regionally and nationally. Ray is the kind of professional we all aspire to be. Bringing him in as a Wittenberg Fellow allowed our students, colleagues, and administrators to see that model up close and personal.”

As part of the award recognition, McKerrow traveled to Wittenberg in mid-September to deliver lectures and meet with Wittenberg students and faculty. During the trip, he received a medal in recognition of the fellowship.

In addition to being the doctoral advisor for two Wittenberg faculty, McKerrow’s connection to Wittenberg University includes having served as a consultant during the creation of Wittenberg’s communication major.

McKerrow joined the faculty at Ohio University in 1995. He previously taught at the University of Maine and the University of Wisconsin. He received his doctorate from the University of Iowa.

He has published more than 40 scholarly articles and has coauthored a speech communication textbook, Principles and Types of Speech Communication, as well as a textbook on public communication, The Pragmatics of Public Communication.