EDWARDSVILLE – The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville awarded Gary Hicks, PhD, professor in the Department of Mass Communications, with the William and Margaret Going Endowed Professorship Award, the most distinguished faculty award of the College. A member of the LGBTQ+ community with more than 25 years of work experience as a media and communications academic, Hicks’ research has focused on the impact of media on society’s marginalized communities. “My research covers what once were considered taboo topics whose study was clearly not valued by many universities,” explained Hicks. “There are a relatively small number of scholars who do this kind of research. I find one reason for that is the historical lack of embrace by academia.” “While I was working on my doctorate many years ago, I was warned by several of my professors that I might have a hard time even being hired due to prejudice
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