Becoming Pop Cultured

              Kevin Mitchell is the department chair for the College of Communications at College of Southern Nevada, a community college that services the greater Las Vegas area. Department chair is an elected position that he has held for the past seven years. He likes serving in that role but does point out “it’s always a challenge.” One aspect of that job he says is challenging is he does not like “cleaning up other people’s messes.” Other than that, Mitchell has nothing but complimentary things to say about his position as well as the college he works for. With a wide range of experience gained from teaching at several other colleges and universities, Mitchell is quick to sing the praises of his current institution. He points out that there is amazing equipment at the community college where he is currently working, but states people just do not know about it. Some of the equipment that he says is unknown to the general public is the state-of-the-art videography equipment as w

              When Kevin Mitchell started college, he had no plans to become a college professor. In fact, he planned to become an engineer. He was inspired to change course when a college professor who believed in him told him he could teach communications.   Once Mitchell started studying communication, he found he liked those classes more than his math classes. “I thought, I’ve found a home,” Mitchell remembered, “Communications students talk to each other, math students don’t.”              Mitchell received his undergraduate degree in Communication with an emphasis in rhetoric from Northern Arizona University. From there he went on to complete a Master’s in Communication from Northern Illinois University. He did some doctoral work at Arizona State University, but never completed the degree. He concedes that the pay is lower without a doctorate when teaching at the college level, but that doesn’t seem to bother him. While completing his graduate work and since that time, Mitche