Contact: Sasha Steinberg

STARKVILLE, Miss.—For more than three decades, Professor John E. Forde has inspired thousands of Mississippi State students pursuing degrees and fulfilling careers in communication and related fields. Forde was the featured speaker for this year’s recent Rabideau Lecture on Teaching Excellence and spoke on the value of a college education and the role that educators play in preparing students for their professions.

“I tell my students in class that their degree gives them freedom to pursue opportunities,” said Forde, longtime head of MSU’s Department of Communication, which is currently home to more than 550 majors. “I believe strongly in arts and sciences education and the idea of balancing the broadness of thought with specific skills areas.”

Forde said a major aspect of his teaching philosophy is to inspire students to be objective and empathetic when engaging in civil discourse and networking with others. He regularly reminds students that performing well in their classes, doing internships and making connections before graduation are key to academic and professional success.

“Being able to look somebody in the eye and talk makes a big difference,” he said. “Who you know gets you in, and what you know keeps you going. You never know who you’re going to meet, and one opportunity can lead to another. Every job I’ve ever gotten is through networking, and we have to teach students how to be assertive in doing that.”

Forde said his passion for teaching and willingness to experiment have led him to success in relaying course material. He enjoys telling memorable stories, playing music that relates to lecture content, engaging students, staff, alumni and professionals in online Twitter discussions, and offering class recordings and podcasts. Finding new ways to engage students in the classroom can be challenging, but Forde said the benefits are worthwhile.

“Students really want to know you care. You should try and help them not only in class, but also after they’ve graduated and are successful,” he advised colleagues. “You don’t know sometimes what kind of impact you’ve had until people contact you later on. When somebody trusts you to send their child to the department where they graduated from years ago, I think that really says a lot.”

Born in Mississippi and reared in Omak, Washington, Forde has been a faculty member in MSU’s communication department since 1987 and has served as department head since 2004. He teaches the department’s Principles of Public Relations course.

Forde earned his bachelor’s degree in communication from MSU in 1983. At the University of Southern Mississippi, he earned his master of science in public relations in 1984 and his Ph.D. in communication in 1988. 

Prior to teaching, Forde was director of public relations at then William Carey College in Hattiesburg from 1985 to 1987.

Forde has served as chair and co-chair of the Universal Accreditation Board, president of the Southern Public Relations Federation and president of the Public Relations Association of Mississippi, both the state chapter and two local chapters.

Along with the SPRF Hall of Fame, Forde has been inducted into the Public Relations Society of America College of Fellows and the University of Southern Mississippi School of Mass Communication and Journalism Hall of Fame.

Last year, Forde was inducted into the Arthur W. Page Society, considered to be the world’s premier professional association for senior communications and public relations executives and educators.

The Rabideau Lecture on Teaching Excellence annually honors Peter Rabideau, former MSU provost and founder of the Center for Teaching and Learning. For more on the Center for Teaching and Learning, visit www.ctl.msstate.edu.

MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences includes more than 5,300 students, 300 full-time faculty members, nine doctoral programs and 25 academic majors offered in 14 departments. Complete details about the College of Arts and Sciences and its Department of Communication can be found at www.cas.msstate.edu or www.comm.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.