Rate My Professor Carolyn Cross

Dr. Carolyn M. Cross is a professor in the Speech Communication department at Houston Community College, where she has served on the faculty since 2015, and currently directs the Honors College at the Northeast Campus (Northline Campus). A proud graduate of Lamar University with a B.S. in Mass Communication (2006), she earned her Ph.D. in Communication Studies from Regent University. Her dissertation, titled "Between Worlds: A Phenomenological Exploration of Communicative Behaviors Among Non-Black Members of Black Greek Letter Organizations," investigates co-cultural identity negotiation and the communicative strategies of marginalized individuals in historically Black spaces. Prior to her tenure at HCC, Dr. Cross held faculty and leadership positions at Texas Southern University, Lone Star College, and Houston Independent School District.

Dr. Cross's research specializations encompass interpersonal and intercultural communication, co-cultural theory, rhetorical analysis, and identity negotiation within diverse organizational contexts. She is the author of "Intergroup Dialogue: A Pedagogical Tool for Continuous Allyship for Black Women," published in 2021 in Women’s Studies in Communication, which promotes intergroup dialogue as a pedagogical strategy for sustained allyship. In her leadership role at HCC's Honors College, she fosters enriched interdisciplinary courses, leadership development, service learning, and transfer opportunities for high-achieving and first-generation students. As project lead, she collaborated with colleagues to secure a $5,000 grant from the Community College Civic Info Challenge for the Community Information Ambassadors program, establishing community information centers and training residents as local news sources. An active professional, Dr. Cross is a member of the National Communication Association, Southern States Communication Association, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She has contributed to panels on racial justice, such as Scholars on Strike, and represents HCC on the Gulf Coast Intercollegiate Honors Council. Additionally, she serves as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Communication at Lamar University, where her teaching philosophy centers on empowering students to use communication for leadership, cultural bridge-building, and social change.