Bernadette Calafell
Biography
Bernadette Marie Calafell, Ph.D. has served as faculty at universities across the U.S. After finishing her doctorate, she was Assistant Professor of Communication and Rhetorical Studies from 2003-2006. Following this, Dr. Calafell served as Assistant, Associate, and Full Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Denver, where she also served as Department Chair, Associate Chair, Director of Graduate Studies, and Director of Undergraduate Studies. In 2019, she joined the brand new department of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at Gonzaga University where she was the first Department Chair and worked to start up the department. Finally, in 2024, she came to the University of Oregon as Full Professor with a focus in Latina/o/x/e Studies. Dr. Calafell has authored Latina/o Communication Studies: Theorizing Performance and Monstrosity, Performance, and Race in Contemporary Culture, while also co-edited six books. She is the co-editor of the Horror and Monstrosity series through the University Press of Mississippi with Drs. Kendall Phillips and Marina Levina and the Critical Intercultural Studies Series through Peter Lang with Dr. Shane T. Moreman.
In addition to being tenured and promoted to full professor in two fields, Dr. Calafell has advised 23 doctoral students, 12 master's thesis or comps, and has directed undergraduate research in various programs, such as the McNair Scholars Program. She has been honored by the National Communication Association, including being named a Distinguished Scholar, a rare distinction bestowed upon scholars who have been active in the discipline of Communication Studies for more than twenty years and serve as exemplars. This distinction is particularly significant as a working class Chicana who started her education at the local community college and ended up with a Ph.D. Dr. Calafell has partnered with organizations, such as the Mile High Horror Film Festival and the Washington State Department of Licensing, to offer her expertise. She is also an active member of her local kink community where she is able to find joy in bridging theory and practice.
Education
B.A., Communication Studies, Arizona State University
M.A., Communication Studies, Arizona State University
Ph.D., Communication Studies, University of North Carolina
Honors and Awards
Research Awards
Distinguished Scholar, National Communication Association
Distinguished Scholar Award, Western States Communication Association
Distinguished Scholar Award, Critical and Cultural Studies Division, National Communication Association
Distinguished Scholar Award, International and Intercultural Communication Division, National Communication Association
Lilla A. Heston Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Interpretation and Performance, National Communication Association
Scholar-Activist Award, Feminist and Gender Studies Division, National Communication Association
Randy Majors Memorial Award, Caucus on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns, National Communication Association
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Communication Studies Division of the National Communication Association, Book of the Year Award for Queer Intercultural Communication: The Intersectional Politics of Belonging in and across Differences
Outstanding Contributions to Performance Studies Award, Performance Studies Interest Group, Western States Communication
2018 Outstanding Article Award, Feminist and Women’s Studies Division of the National Communication Association for “From Failure to Allyship to Feminist Solidarities: Negotiating Our Privileges and Oppressions Across Borders”
2018 Monograph of the Year Award, Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Communication Studies Division of National Communication Association for “Queer Utopias and a (Feminist) Iranian Vampire: A Critical Analysis of Resistive Monstrosity in A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night,” co-authored with Shadee Abdi and published in Critical Studies in Media Communication
Selected for a spotlight panel in the National Communication Association’s Teachers on Teaching series, National Communication Association
Best Book Chapter Award for 2012 given by the Ethnography Division of the National Communication Association for “(Academic) Families of Choice: Queer Relationality, Mentoring, and Critical Communication Pedagogy” co-authored with Krishna Pattisapu, published in Identity and Communication Research: Intercultural Reflections and Future Directions
Scholar of the Year, Latina/o Communication Studies Division and La Raza Caucus, National Communication Association, (Now referred to as the Córdova-Puchot Award for Scholar of the Year)
Out Through the Mind Award (for Tenure Track Faculty), 4th Annual LGBTQIA Gala, University of Denver
Distinguished Scholarship Award for 2004 given by the International and Intercultural Communication Division of the National Communication Association for the article “Reading Latina/o Images: Interrogating Americanos” co-authored with Fernando Delgado, published in Critical Studies in Media Communication
Teaching and Mentoring Awards
Faculty Mentorship Award, Rhetorical and Communication Theory Division, National Communication Association
Francine Merritt Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Lives of Women in Communication, Women’s Caucus, National Communication Association
William T. Driscoll Master Educator Award, University of Denver
Advocacy and Service Awards
Presidential Citation for serving as Editor of the Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, National Communication Association
Presidential Citation for activism and scholarship in the #CommunicationSoWhite movement and related efforts to uplift all minoritized communities in the discipline, National Communication Association
Presidential Citation for Exceptional Commitment to Social Justice and Activism within and beyond the National Communication Association
Lambda Award, Caucus on Gay and Lesbian Concerns, National Communication Association
Provost’s Champion of Change Award, University of Denver
Outstanding Faculty Award, Center for Multicultural Excellence, University of Denver
Teaching
Fall 2025 Office Hours: Monday, 10:00-11:30 a.m. (via zoom or in person) and by appointment