Chair - Department of Communication at Georgia State University

Carol Winkler is currently the Chair of the Communication Department at Georgia State University. As a nationally recognized scholar in political and public communication and a former high school and college debater, Dr. Winkler understands the value debate pedagogy brings to academic success. Carol debated at Watauga High School in Boone, North Carolina. She twice qualified for the Bicentennial Youth Debates, sponsored by the Federal Government honoring the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution. She debated at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and represented UNC at the 1980 National Debate Tournament.

Dr. Winkler has published numerous academic articles on Presidential rhetoric, communication theory, and argumentation. She has also co-authored a three volume text on academic debate, Lines of Argument, published in 1993. She is also a strong advocate of using debate across the academic curriculum to improve communication skills for students in all fields of study. As chair of one of the three largest departments at Georgia State (over 1,000 students), Dr. Winkler has directed one of the fastest growing Communication Departments in the nation. In her six year tenure, she has more than doubled the size of her full-time faculty, instituted a Doctoral program, and brought in over 6.5 million dollars in research grants. As her department has grown she has continued to support the Georgia State University debate team because she knows that debate is one of the best ways to motivate and educate her students.

Having volunteered time providing visiting lectures to students of the Urban Debate League, assist graduates of the Urban Debate League with college advice and recommendations, provided technical support for video production and curriculum development. Dr. Winkler is strongly wedded to the goals and achievements of the UDL. With her cooperation, we hope that future UDL programs will work with Georgia State providing training, evaluation, and access to state of the art communication technology.

With the support of the Communication Department at Georgia State University, the UDLs could have access to technology that will increase the production of instructional videos featuring exhibition debates and training materials. With the advances in long distance learning, GSU might be able to increase the opportunities for assistance to less densely populated areas and more remote areas of the state and the nation. With the support of a state of the art communication department, the capacity to expand the scope of UDLs from its present focus to a broader more encompassing audience increases dramatically.