nbsp;Steve Duck taught at two universities in the United Kingdom before taking up the Daniel and Amy Starch Distinguished Research Chair in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa, where he is a professor of communication studies and adjunct professor of psychology. He is also a Dean's Administrative Fellow and Chair of the Rhetoric Department. Duck has taught several interpersonal communication courses, mostly on relationships, but also on nonverbal communication, communication in everyday life, construction of identity, communication theory, organizational leadership, and procedures and practices for leaders. Duck has written or edited 60 books on relationships… and founded the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , which he served as Editor for 15 year, and co-founded a series of international conferences on personal relations. His book, Meaningful Relationships: Talking, Sense, and Relating, won the G. R. Miller Book Award from the Interpersonal Communication Division of the National Communication Association. Duck has also won several personal awards such as the University of Iowa's first Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award in 2001, the 2004 National Communication Association's Robert J. Kibler Memorial Award , the 2010 Helen Kechriotis Nelson Teaching Award from UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and elected 2010 Distinguished Scholar from the National Communication Association. He hopes to someday appear on a viral YouTube clip and be famous.
David T. McMahan graduated from Vincennes University with an A.S. degree. He received B.S. and M.A. degrees from Indiana State University and received his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. He has taught courses which span the discipline of communication, including multiple courses in interpersonal communication, media, communication education, theory and criticism. David�s research interests also engage multiple areas of the discipline with much of his research devoted to bridging the study of relationships and media. This work includes examining the discussion of media and the incorporation of catchphrases and media references in everyday communication. A great deal of research has been… derived from his experiences in the classroom and his commitment to education. His early work in this area focused on communication competence, self-conception, and assessment. His focus has since shifted toward topics that include both media and relationships, such as contradictions within advisor-advisee relationships and discussions of media in the classroom. His published work has appeared in journals such as Review of Communication, Communication Education, and Communication Quarterly as well as edited volumes. David is a member of the National Communication Association, Central States Communication Association, Eastern Communication Association, Iowa Communication Association, and Speech Communication Association of Puerto Rico. In addition, he has served numerous roles within these organizations. David has received multiple awards for his work in the classroom and has also been the recipient of a number of public service and academic distinctions. He hopes to someday become a cattle baron.