{"id":4191,"date":"2026-11-13T17:10:50","date_gmt":"2026-11-13T23:10:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/?p=4191"},"modified":"2026-11-13T22:13:23","modified_gmt":"2026-11-14T04:13:23","slug":"faculty-friday-meet-ashley-rader-who-built-a-career-around-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/2026\/11\/13\/faculty-friday-meet-ashley-rader-who-built-a-career-around-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"Faculty Friday: Meet Ashley Rader, Who Built A Career Around Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cShe makes all of us better,\u201d Terri Easley-Giraldo, chair of Communication Studies, recently wrote about Professor Ashley Rader. Photos By: Jordan Soltz<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

When friends come to Gianna Umentum complaining about homework, her first instinct used to be fixing the problem. She\u2019d offer advice or even make them a to-do list.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, she just asks if they\u2019d like to study together.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Umentum credits the change to Professor Ashley Rader\u2019s interpersonal communication class at Johnson County Community College.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOften, rather than advice, people just need someone to converse with,\u201d Umentum wrote in an email.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The class changed how she sees herself, too. Umentum always considered herself more of a listener than a talker until she realized she spent most conversations planning her reply instead of understanding what someone was telling her.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Those everyday shifts are exactly what Rader hopes students take with them. To her, communication isn\u2019t just a course requirement. It\u2019s something students carry with them long after the semester ends, into their relationships and their careers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But the classroom wasn\u2019t where Rader expected to end up.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

From reporter to professor<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rader spent nearly eight years as a professional journalist after finishing her undergraduate degree in 2001, writing and taking photos in community journalism. The job came with its share of strange assignments, including a gas station robbery where the thieves made off with all the chocolate milk.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhich was just funny, right?\u201d Rader said.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She loved the work, but over time, something started to feel off.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like I was kind of sitting on the sidelines of life a little bit,\u201d Rader said. \u201cLike, I was talking about what other people were doing that was awesome, not doing something as much awesome, I guess.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After earning her master\u2019s degree in 2008, she tried teaching as an adjunct. What started as an experiment turned into a calling. Rader realized she might not be the best writer who ever lived, but she was a strong interviewer who loved being around people, and interpersonal communication and public speaking felt like a natural fit.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Eighteen years later, she still can\u2019t picture being anywhere else.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d rather be in the classroom than anywhere else,\u201d Rader said.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Learning the system the hard way<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Part of what connects Rader to her students is her own path through college. As a first-generation college student, she knew she was supposed to go but had little guidance on how to navigate it once she got there. She sees that same uncertainty in many of her students today.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her path also didn\u2019t follow a straight line. Rader finished her doctorate two years ago, at 44.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And for students worried about their GPA, she offers a little perspective. Rader earned only two Bs in college.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The irony?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Both were in interpersonal communication and public speaking, the very subjects she now teaches.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t necessarily ready, and I was still learning how to do college work,\u201d Rader said. \u201cBs are okay. They\u2019re really okay.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

No one leaves a stranger<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In her classroom, nobody stays anonymous for long. Rader makes it a priority to learn every student\u2019s name and something about them within the first week and a half, and no class goes by without everyone being recognized.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going to get out of my class without making friends,\u201d Rader said.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Students notice. Umentum describes Rader as professional, humorous and laid-back, someone who makes students feel heard and valued. Instead of lecturing while students quietly take notes, Rader fills class time with activities and discussions that get everyone involved.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Katelyn Fisk, another of Rader\u2019s students, appreciates that class often starts with Rader asking students about their lives and actually listening to the answers. That lesson about listening stuck with her. Fisk wrote that paying attention to body language and showing someone you\u2019re engaged has changed how she approaches every conversation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the other person can tell you are listening and actually want to be in the conversation,\u201d Fisk wrote in an email, \u201cit makes whatever you\u2019re talking about much deeper and more meaningful.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A colleague people count on<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rader\u2019s impact reaches beyond her own classroom. Terri Easley-Giraldo, chair of Communication Studies, wrote that Rader is constantly looking for ways to improve her courses and has helped strengthen the department\u2019s curriculum through years of change. She also serves on college committees, supports faculty development and mentors newer instructors as they find their footing.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cShe makes all of us better,\u201d Easley-Giraldo wrote in an email.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What her students teach her<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The learning goes both ways. Rader said her students have taught her humility, along with a steady supply of new slang, which she enjoys dropping into sentences to tease her 15-year-old daughter.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ask what she\u2019d be doing if she weren\u2019t teaching, and her answer is the opposite of her job: growing exotic plants and reading books.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be like a professional introvert,\u201d Rader said.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The lesson that sticks<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What Rader finds most rewarding isn\u2019t a strong test score. It\u2019s watching students grow as people, learning to express themselves and thinking about the relationships and lives they want.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She knows she may never see the full impact. Her hope is that years from now, a former student facing a hard time or a big decision will remember something from her class.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe one little thing I said, or one thing we learned, changed their decision-making,\u201d Rader said.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In her classroom, nobody stays anonymous for long. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":4194,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_ppma_block_editor_authors":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[390],"ppma_author":[365],"class_list":["post-4191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","tag-faculty-friday"],"author_meta":{"display_name":"Gabrielle Thompson","author_link":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/author\/sepstein\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/files\/2026\/11\/5-Ashley-Rader-teaching-300x169.jpg","coauthors":[{"link":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/author\/gabrielle-thompson\/","display_name":"Gabrielle Thompson"}],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["Life<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Life<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["Faculty Friday<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Faculty Friday<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 2 days ago","modified":"Updated 2 days ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on November 13, 2026","modified":"Updated on November 13, 2026"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on November 13, 2026 5:10 pm","modified":"Updated on November 13, 2026 10:13 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"authors":[{"term_id":365,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"gabrielle-thompson","display_name":"Gabrielle Thompson","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","avatar_alt":"","avatar_decorative":"","author_category":"","first_name":"","last_name":"","user_url":"","job_title":"","description":""}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/files\/2026\/11\/5-Ashley-Rader-teaching.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4191"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4191\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4201,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4191\/revisions\/4201"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4194"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4191"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.jccc.edu\/messenger\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=4191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}