Emeritus Faculty

Joseph C. Harry is an associate professor emeritus in the Department of Strategic Communication and Media where he taught introductory and advanced journalism courses. He was a newspaper reporter for more than a decade prior to his move into academia. He joined the SRU communication faculty in 1998. Dr. Harry holds a master's degree in journalism from The Ohio State University and a doctorate degree from Michigan State University in mass media studies.

His published research has centered on the sociology and practice of news sourcing, the rhetoric and ethics of mass communication, and more recently the linguistic and semiotic contours related to the semantics and pragmatics of journalistic quotation.

Dr. James Laux received his Bachelor of Science degree, his Master of Arts degree, and his Ph.D from Bowling Green State University. Dr. Laux began teaching at Slippery Rock University in 1989 where he taught numerous classes including Basic Concepts, Organizational Communication, Public Speaking, Research Methods, Small Group Communication, and Senior Seminar.

Stewart taught in the areas of media and mass media production, and communication research methods for 29 years (1985-2014). While there he published the textbook, Principles of Communication Research (Pearson), and participated in several state, national, and institutional organizations.

He was an undergraduate of Slippery Rock State College (BA,1980), with an MA and PhD in Communication Studies from the University of Iowa (1984). He continues to live with his wife, Victoria, in Grove City.

Throughout her 27 years as a faculty member at Slippery Rock University, Dr. Valerie Swarts distinguished herself as a role model to her colleagues, a dedicated professional serving the department and university, and a tireless advocate for her students.

Dr. Swarts taught a variety of communication classes to students in all of the Communication concentrations and across the university - courses including Public Speaking, Communication Concepts, Small Group Communication, Dyadic Communication, Argumentation, Persuasion, Communication Theory, and Visual Literacy. Dr. Swarts' legacy, however, may most firmly lie in her many years of dedicated stewardship of our Senior Capstone Seminar course. From mock interviews to portfolio development, and from lectures on business etiquette to professional presentation development, Dr. Swarts' personalized attention to generations of students gave them the skills they needed to step confidently into the workforce and become ambassadors of our department and university.

Dr. Swarts received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech Education from Wichita State Univeristy, her Master of Arts degree in Rhetorical Studies from Colorado State University, and her Ph.D in Rhetorical Studies from the University of Iowa.

Dr. Amy Walters was a valued member of the Communication Department at Slippery Rock University for 27 years. Over the course of that time she worked tirelessly on behalf of our students as a devoted teacher and adviser. Dr. Walters taught many classes, but her speciality was the teaching of Public Speaking. Dr. Walters was also instrumental in the development of the department's Visual Literacy class and served as department chair during the 2016-17 year. She served in numerous leadership capacities with APSCUF and was a highly valued member of the department and university faculty.

Dr. Walters received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from West Virginia University, her Master of Science degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from West Virginia University, and her Ph.D in Rhetoric and Communication from the University of Pittsburgh.

Mark Zeltner is an associate professor emeritus in the Department of Strategic Communication & Media where he taught courses in journalism, television production, and media history for 23 years. During that time, Dr. Zeltner served as chair of the department for three years and as advisor to The Rocket for 13 years. Under his leadership, The Rocket won a Pinnacle award and a National Pacemaker award, placing the newspaper in the top 15 student newspapers in the country. Dr. Zeltner’s primary fields of research are in journalism ethics, media convergence and small college media advising. Dr. Zeltner earned his MA from the University of Tulsa and his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia.