In Memoriam, Dr. Andrew S. Rancer

Andrew S. Rancer

Ph.D., Professor Emeritus

In Memoriam

Andrew S. Rancer, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus

By Andrea Meluch, Ph.D. Associate Professor

Dr. Andrew “Andy” Rancer, Professor Emeritus, passed away on April 11, 2024, Dr. Rancer was a favorite professor, valued colleague, and highly respected scholar at UA. Dr. Rancer retired in 2018 after teaching at The University of Akron for 28 years.

Andy’s career spanned more than 40 years in higher education. He earned his B.A. and M.A. in Communication Studies from Queens College of the City University of New York in 1974 and 1976 and his PhD in Communication from Kent State University in 1979. He was a Communication Studies faculty member at Emerson College in Boston, MA from 1979 to 1991. In 1991, Dr. Rancer came to The University of Akron, where he spent the remainder of his career inspiring students who would go on to exciting careers in Communication.

Dr. Rancer was a treasured professor

in the School of Communication. He taught a wide variety of courses throughout his tenure, including Communication Research, Communication Theory, Interpersonal Communication, and Training Methods in Communication.

His thousands of students have posted their memories on social media and shared them with one another since his passing. We wish we could include them all.

Anthony Esposito, MA ‘92

I am saddened today to hear of the passing of one of my most influential professors, Dr. Andrew Rancer, from the University of Akron. He was a professor in my master’s program and catalyzed my desire to become a college professor. I have always wanted to emulate his exceptional teaching style, language use, and gregarious and animated public speaking style. Additionally, he was a prolific researcher in Communication Studies, with an emphasis on verbal aggressiveness and argumentativeness.

However, and most importantly, he was a benevolent man. I am sad I lost touch with him over the years, but if my students look carefully, they can see some of Dr. Rancer’s flamboyancy played out in my classroom.

I hope to have had half of the impact on my students he had on his students over his many decades of college teaching. Thanks, Dr Rancer, for contributing to my life and career; my prayers are sent to his wife and daughter. God Bless you, Dr. Rancer.

Kelsey Keys, BA ‘19

I had Dr. Rancer for Communication Research in Spring 2018 - his class was ALWAYS memorable. From his funny reflections on his own career to sharing stories about his family, or simply making research more interesting, he was a professor I looked forward to seeing each class.

One specific memory I have is, after class one day he pulled me aside and said he noticed I was struggling with a certain math/communicationrelated problem each student needed to solve. “I could see it on your face,” he said with his New York accent. He assured me it would be okay, and he would help me. It was meaningful as someone who’s always struggled with math - he made me feel seen and understood. Thank you, Dr. Rancer, for the laughs and the memories. Tom Lazar ‘01

I loved and would never miss Dr. Rancer’s courses – his style, passion and expertise were can’t-miss (along with his special blend of humor – him breaking into Christina Aguilera’s “Genie in a Bottle” mid-sentence, mid-lecture was/is still a favorite moment of my School of Communication experience at the U of A. Andrea M. Ferraro, Ph.D., APR, BA ‘86, MA ‘92, Ph.D. ‘15

I credit Dr. Andrew Rancer for me obtaining my Ph.D. I first met him in my master’s program in the School of Communication at The University of Akron. His passion, knowledge, and genuine concern for the learning of each of his students made him one of my favorite professors. After graduation, Dr. Rancer told me that I needed to go on for my Ph.D., but I was eager to return to my shopping center marketing career. I did promise, however, that I would eventually obtain it, but every year, I placed the pursuing of it on the back burner. Throughout the next decade, Dr. Rancer continued to press, “When are you going to get that Ph.D.?” When I came back to the University in the 2000s as a full-time professor, he declared, “It’s time, Andrea,” and I agreed, earning it in 2015. Dr. Rancer went on to become a dear colleague and friend of mine, and I will always remember his integrity, kindness, and generosity.

Andy Rancer and I have been partners in publishing for over 30 years. I’ve never met a more passionate, concerned, intelligent and dedicated scholar. He started out as my mentor, and we became colleagues and that turned into over 12 books and dozens of research articles. It also turned into a friendship that spanned decades and seasons of our lives. His impact on me as a person and scholar has left me with a duty to pass on his gift of inspiring young people and young scholars to not only study Communication but to strive to make a difference in the world. - Dr. Ted Avtgis

Left: Dr. Rancer’s headshots by Julie Cajigas.Right: (Top) Dr. Rancer with a recent class. Photo courtesy of the School of Communication. (Center) A selfie taken by Kelsey Keys with Dr. Rancer. Photo by Kelsey Keys. (Bottom) Dr. Rancer with his longtime collaborator, co-author and friend Dr. Ted Avtgis. Photo by Julie Cajigas.

Then, there are my own memories. In Summer 2011, I took a Special Topics graduate class on Argumentativeness, Verbal Aggressiveness, and Conflict with Dr. Rancer. His class was immensely helpful to my master’s thesis. As a professor, he was funny, kind, and knowledgeable. I would look forward to his class each week. Dr. Rancer encouraged me to pursue my PhD and dreams of becoming a professor. When I was hired at UA in 2019 as an Assistant Professor, he was one of the first people to stop by my office to say “hello” and catch up. His words of wisdom and encouragement inspired a great many careers in communication, mine included.

A prolific scholar, over the course of his career Dr. Rancer co-authored several books, contributed numerous book chapters, and published in the most prestigious journals in the field of communication, including Communication Monographs, Communication Education, and Communication Quarterly. His main research area was on the traits of argumentativeness and verbal aggressiveness in communication. His scholarship on communication traits had various applications, including ways to avoid destructive communication in relationships and improve conflict management skills.

Over the course of his career, he earned numerous awards for

scholarship and teaching, including the Eastern Communication Association Centennial Scholars Award. In 2020, Dr. Rancer was honored by the Ohio Communication Association with the Distinguished Scholar Award, which recognizes faculty who have contributed significantly to scholarship in the field of Communication.

Dr. Rancer created lasting connections with so many colleagues and students during his time at UA and beyond. Here are a few more memories of Andy from mentees and colleagues: Elizabeth Graham, Ph.D.

Last week we lost a very good man, Dr. Andrew S. Rancer. I am heartbroken. I met Andy in May 1982 at the Eastern Communication Association Conference. I was an MA student, and this was my first conference. I didn’t know anyone and was intimidated by the whole event. However, this conference turned out to be very consequential for me.

I was introduced to Andy. He was already an accomplished scholar, so I was amazed that this person, who I just met, spent considerable time talking with me about my future career. This conversation resulted in my choice to attend Kent State University for my Ph.D. degree. By the way, I wasn’t special, Andy regularly spent time with students offering encouragement, advice, humor and especially his Rodney Dangerfield impression. Our

paths crossed many times over the last 45+ years as we both worked at the University of Akron and Kent State University. Andy was a generous friend and colleague. He was available when I needed advice and support, and I could count on his good nature, reasoned judgment, and ready smile. I will miss him always.

Dr. Therese Lueck, Professor Emeritus

When Dr. Rancer joined the School of Communication, he brought what we would soon recognize as his trademark enthusiasm. He also brought a strong research agenda that en-hanced the scholarly profile of the school.

Dr. Rancer took pride in establishing long-term relationships with those he worked with in the classroom and at the office. He took particular pleasure in celebrating accomplish-ments, whether they were his students’ efforts, his colleagues’ achievements, or his own successes in reaching new audiences with his teaching or finding new perspectives through his research.

Andy’s enthusiasm for teaching, learning, and collegiality will be sorely missed.

Rhiannon Kallis, Associate Professor

It was always a joy talking with Andy when he stopped by the office because he had such positive energy. Any time he read about an accomplishment of mine; he would extend such thoughtful congratulations. It was so kind for him to take time to chat with me and get to know me as a new faculty member. His support meant more to me than he knows. I will truly miss Andy.

McKenna Vietmeier, Associate Professor of Instruction

Dr. Andrew Rancer, or Andy as most knew him, was so much more than a colleague. He was passionate about the success of his students, the prosperity of the School of Communication, and the support of his coworkers. Highly recognized for his contributions to the study of aggressive/argumentative communication, you would expect someone serious and intimidating. But that wasn’t Andy. He always had a

Photos on this and the facing page, which feature Dr. Rancer with students and colleagues at the school’s 40th anniversary and other events, were provided by The University of Akron School of Communication.

smile and a kind word for anyone who crossed his path. He was known to pop into the offices of his coworkers to share a funny story, offer encouragement during hectic periods of the semester, or to invite them to view the livestream of his dog playing at Camp Bow Wow just to brighten their day.

When the School of Communication hosted its 40th and 45th Anniversary celebrations, Andy was there to welcome back past students and share in the joy of their achievements postgraduation. Many alumni pointed to Andy as one of their biggest cheerleaders during their time at the University of Akron.

As alumni shared stories about him, it was impossible not to get emotional and you could see the joy and pride in Andy’s eyes.

That is what we will miss the most about Andy – his constant championing of our efforts (big or small), his unwavering dedication to the field of communication, and most of all, his friendship.

Carol Savery, MA ‘05

Dr. Rancer was an inspirational researcher, scholar, published author, teacher, mentor, advisor, colleague, and friend. I learned so much from him. His dedication to students and the Communication discipline encouraged me to teach in colleges. He remained my forever advisor.

Julie Cajigas, Professor of Practice

The thing that I remember most about

Andy was how proud he was of his daughter Aimee. When she started working at Pinterest and when she started working for Gary Vaynerchuk, a famous influencer turned marketing guru, he stopped by to let me know and to share her experiences. His face lit up and his grin spread as wide as it ever did anytime he talked about his daughter.

One little thing that made me smile about Andy was his tenuous relationship with Twitter. When Andy learned that my research and publications were in social media, he asked me if I could explain Twitter to him. I certainly tried. Andy got an account set up – largely to read his daughter’s tweets I recall - but he still didn’t trust it. For the next, well, forever I guess, he would update me on his Twitter usage any time we ran into one another. It always made me chuckle that it was the first thing that came to his mind when he saw me. “I’m reading all kinds of things,” he would say in his rushed, friendly style, “but I’m not ‘tweeting’ anything.”

Andy was a Communication giant, but you would never know from his humble persona. He was one of the most supportive and encouraging colleagues I have had over more than a decade teaching. When I opened my email to see if I had photos of Andy, a dozen emails came up with encouraging remarks and congratulations for my achievements big

and small. Northeast Ohio and the Communication world will not be the same without him. I will miss him, and I send my love and support to his family.

Andy was always caring, curious, and a delight to be around. Dr. Andrew Rancer will be missed by all who knew him and, especially, by the School of Communication faculty, staff, and students. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from him and be mentored by him and I will cherish his memory.

- Dr. Andrea Meluch

https://buchtelite.com