Michael Salvador, professor and chair of the Cal State San Bernardino communication studies department, has been appointed to be the new associate dean at CSUSB’s Palm Desert Campus.

Prior to CSUSB, Salvador was a professor and associate director in the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University. 

“I am tremendously excited to join the Palm Desert Campus,” said Salvador. “Having taught PDC students and worked with PDC staff during my term as chair of communication studies, I know, firsthand, the innovativeness and dedication to student success at this amazing campus!”

Salvador, who has received the National Communication Association’s Research Award in Environmental Communication and the Outstanding Dissertation Award, teaches in the areas of communication and problem solving, and communication and culture. His research focuses on environmental communication, particularly on conflicting cultural constructions of the relationship between humans and nature.

He serves on the editorial board of Environmental Communication, the official journal of the International Environmental Communication Association, and has facilitated public meetings and decision-making forums attempting to find solutions to local environmental problems, including salmon recovery, wolf reintroduction and water pollution in the Pacific Northwest. Salvador has been published in the Environmental Communication Journal and the World Communication Journal.

Located in beautiful Palm Desert, the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees, a doctorate in educational leadership, and teacher credentials and certificates. With more than 1,400 students, it is the Coachella Valley’s four-year public university and plays a vital role in educating and training the region’s growing population.

For more information about the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus, contact Mike Singer in the campus’ Office of Public Affairs at msinger@csusb.edu or (760) 341-2883, ext. 78107, or visit the campus website.