Biography
Dr. Marsha W. Rhee is Chair of the Department of Rhetoric & Communication Studies and an Associate Professor of English at Johnson C. Smith University. A postcolonial performance scholar specializing in 20th-century African American literature and rhetoric, she holds a Ph.D. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. from the University of Iowa, and a B.A. from Jackson State University. A 2020 HistoryMakers Fellow, UNCF/Mellon National Speaker, a HERS Leadership Institute alumna and a certified Kauffman FastTrac@ Facilitator, Dr. Rhee's administrative and instructional leadership bridges academic governance, curriculum innovation, digital literacy, and community-engaged pedagogy.
Having served as a regional ambassador to South Korea and Japan for the Women's Federation for World Peace--USA (WFWP), Dr. Rhee extends her work into international diplomacy and cross-cultural communication, equipping students with agile, human-centered communication and global entrepreneurial frameworks alongside foundational humanities.
In her administrative and teaching roles, Dr. Rhee leads programmatic assessment, multimedia writing curriculum development, and high-impact retention strategies that connect rhetorical theory to interdisciplinary performance, economic literacy, and workforce readiness.
Dr. Rhee serves on the boards and advisory committees for Mecklenburg International Fashion Week, Black Research Support Network, and the Charlotte Center for Literary Arts (Charlotte LIT), leads Collegiate Sisters for Action, Inc. as President and CEO, and advises chapters of Sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society and Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society for First-Year Students.
