Michelle Garland

Visiting Assistant Professor

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A South Carolina native, Dr. Michelle Epstein Garland is Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication as well as for the MS Innovation and Leadership program at Furman University. Dr. Garland brings 20 years of teaching experience and commitment to creating an innovative and collaborative learning environment. She teaches courses such as Interpersonal Communication, Public Speaking, and Leading Innovation for Groups and Teams. In addition to her teaching background, Dr. Garland brings industry experience having been the Training Manager for a Supply Chain and Logistics company in the area. Dr. Garland holds a PhD. and M.S. from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, and a B.A. from College of Charleston, all in Communication.

Honors and Awards

  • 2026 Chair, Instructional and Developmental Communication Division of International Communication Association

Education

  • Ph.D., University of Tennessee-Knoxville
  • M.S., University of Tennessee-Knoxville, B.A., College of Charleston

Research Interests

Dr. Garland's resides in the field of Instructional Communication. Her research largely focuses on teacher-student communicative interactions and student cognitive and affective outcomes. She also explores areas of assessment, teaching applications, training practices, and other elements relevant to the learner experience.

 

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

  • Violanti, M. T., & Garland, M. E. (2024). Faculty verbal messages: Scale development and initial validation. Frontiers in Education, 9:1380097. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2024.1380097
  • Garland, M. E., & Violanti, M. T. (2021). Rock my world: Rewind to a better transition to remote learning. Frontiers in Communication, 6:641873. doi: 10.3389/fcomm.2021.641873
  • Garland, M. E. (2020). Behind the mask: A creative project to introduce dark side of communication topics. The Carolinas Communication Annual, XXXVI, 1-6.

Peer-Reviewed Book Chapters

  • Garland, M. E., & Christen, S. (2022). The COVID-19 shuffle: A dance of adaptability and flexibility for instructional communication through perceived immediacy, teacher clarity, and teacher confirmation. In J. A. Kuypers (Ed.) Personal and administrative perspectives from the communication discipline during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lexington Books.
  • Garland, M. E., & Violanti, M. T. (2019). Training time: Make the most of your experience. In S. Kelly (Ed.) Computer-mediated communication for business: Theory to practice. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Competitively Selected Confrence Papers

  • Garland, M. E., & Sheida, T.* (2024). Faculty support and the student-athlete experience: Student-athlete well-being, teacher confirmation, and interpersonal solidarity. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Gold Coast, Australia.
  • Garland, M. E., & Violanti, M. T. (2020, Top Paper Panel). Open communication may not be promotive communication: Faculty messages and learner outcomes. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Gold Coast, Australia (moved to virtual conference due to COVID-19).
  • Garland, M. E. (2019, Division Top Paper Award). Behind the mask: A creative project to introduce dark side of interpersonal communication topics. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Washington, DC.
  • Garland, M. E. (2019). GIFTS: Using student assumptions to introduce, clarify, and apply uncertainty reduction theory concepts. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Washington, DC.
  • Garland, M. E., & Violanti, M. T. (2019, Top Paper Panel). Beyond boundaries of student-teacher communication: Exploring relationships among faculty memorable messages and student motivation, relational distance, and learner empowerment. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Washington, DC.
  • Professional Workshops and Presentations
  • Garland, M. E. (2026, April). Leading high performing teams. Workshop for the Women’s Leadership Initiative Program sponsored by the Center for Innovative Leadership of Furman University, Greenville, SC.

*Additional publications and professional works can be found in the CV.

 

Additional Professional Activity

  • 2026 Journal of Communication Editorial Board

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