Richard Bernard has been all around the state of Ohio, but one thing has stayed consistent throughout the adjunct professor’s travels: his love for (and involvement in) higher education.
He is currently lectures in the Communication (COM) department at Sinclair, teaching Interpersonal Communication and Effective Public Speaking among other classes.
Bernard has degrees from Kent State University, one in sociology and the other in speech telecommunication (now known as communications).
From a young age, Bernard had an interest in the communications field, including radio and television. He took the opportunity to work at several stations across Indiana and Ohio, including ones in Akron, Indianapolis, and WHIO in Dayton. He thought that his entire career would exclusively be in radio. In fact, he did not have much of a desire to teach. But that, like everything in life, eventually changed.
While working at WHIO, he received an offer to begin teaching news writing and that is where his part-time teaching began.
In addition to instructing at Kent State, Bernard has also been a faculty member at University of Dayton and Sinclair. He recalled gaining his Sinclair position after seeing a call for adjuncts.
His full-time career consisted of positions that did not involve teaching as well. For over a decade, he was the Director of Communications at the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce. In addition, he served as the Director for Capital University’s former Dayton satellite campus.
“Whatever I’ve done full time, I’ve taught part-time regularly,” Bernard said.
Having both a “day job,” as he called it, and a teaching job, Bernard had to find a balance. He explained that he was successful in keeping himself organized and often had to multitask.
“I still have those skills, I just use them less often,” he added.
Bernard described one of his responsibilities – especially now that he is exclusively teaching – as staying in-the-know with the field of education.
“It’s critical for me to keep myself updated on things pertaining to my courses,” he added.
Doing so allows him to bring real-world examples into the classroom and teach content in ways that are relevant and understandable to students. He likes to stay on top of technology developments as well.
Something that makes teaching enjoyable for Bernard is being able to constantly learn from his students. In particular, he admires the dedication that full-time employees and single parents have to getting an education from Sinclair.
Considering these sorts of circumstances, he tries to “be as supportive as [he] can be.” When needed, he refers his students to resources such as the Ombudsman.
When asked about his future in teaching, Bernard had this to say: “As long as they want me [at Sinclair], I want to be here.”
Bernard and his wife enjoy watching romantic comedies and murder mysteries. For quite some time, they also vacationed in Sarasota, Florida.
Thank you, Professor Bernard, for your commitment to helping members of the Dayton community learn and develop fulfilling careers.
To read other features in the Awesome Adjuncts series, click here.
Carly Webster
Staff Writer