Keri K. Stephens, PhD, is a Professor in Organizational Communication Technology, a Distinguished Teaching Professor, and Co-Director of the Technology and Information Policy Institute in the Moody College of Communication at The University of Texas at Austin. Her research program examines the role of technology in organizational practices and organizing processes, especially in contexts of crisis, disaster, and health. She has authored over 100 articles appearing in research journals, proceedings, and books, received 23 top paper panel awards at conferences, and her two most recent books are New Media in Times of Crisis (2019, Routledge), and the 2-time national-level award-winning book Negotiating Control: Organizations and Mobile Communication (2018, Oxford University Press). Stephens has received over $5 million dollars in external funding (as a PI or CoPI) from organizations like the National Science Foundation, Merck, Facebook, TxDOT, and TWDB. She runs the OPTIC Lab (Organizing Practices through Technology, Information, & Communication), is an Associate Editor with Management Communication Quarterly, and the Chair of the Mobile Communication Group for the International Communication Association. She is a former Secretary of the Organizational Communication Division of the International Communication Association, and a past Co-Chair of the Training & Development Division of the National Communication Association.
Stephens teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in Organizational Communication, Communication Technologies, Grant Writing, Communicating to Build Sales Relationships, and Communication Studies Internships. She is founding Co-Chair of the joint McCombs-Moody Professional Sales & Business Development Minor, and she has published with 43 different graduate students, 15 undergraduate students, and 8 industry/community collaborators. Her teaching has been honored at the University level with the President’s Associates Teaching Excellence Award, the Eyes of Texas Teaching and Mentoring Award, and the Academy of Distinguished Teachers at UT Austin.
