D. Robert DeChaine
I come to the Liberal Studies department as an alumnus of CSULA, and I’m happy to call this campus my second home. I teach each of the Liberal Studies core courses, as well as courses in cultural studies, globalization, social movements, community studies, and critical pedagogy. I hold a joint appointment in the Communication Studies department, where I teach courses in rhetorical theory, history, and criticism. I’m also a departmental advisor who’s eager to help students to formulate and realize their goals at CSULA.
As a scholar, I explore the rhetorical and cultural politics of everyday life. I earned my Ph.D. in Cultural Studies at the Claremont Graduate University, where I studied rhetoric and public argumentation, critical social theory, human rights, social movement theory, and political philosophy. In 2005, I published a book entitled Global Humanitarianism: NGOs and the Crafting of Community (Lexington Books). In it, I examine how contemporary humanitarian-based nongovernmental organizations attempt to shape understandings of “community” in a globalized world. My recent research has included studies of the Minuteman Movement, public performances of citizenship, and subversive uses of play in everyday life. I’m currently at work on a project that examines physical and symbolic constructions of borders and their social and cultural significance