Interpersonal Communication, Communication Theory,
Gender and Communication, Environmental
Communication, Public Policy Advocacy
Jim Hasenauer is from Rochester, New York on the southern shore of Lake Ontario where his Irish-American relatives relished language and instilled that love in him. He debated in grammar school, high school, and at Iona College in New Rochelle, NY where he graduated with a double major in Speech and Sociology in 1971. He did two years of graduate work at Lehman College, City University of New York and then earned his Ph.D. from USC in 1976. His dissertation was on deception in friendship relationships.
Hasenauer taught at the University of Maryland from 1975-1979 and came to CSUN as a lecturer that fall. He was appointed to the full time faculty in 1983.
Hasenauer teaches courses in interpersonal communication, gender and communication, communication theory, and advanced public speaking. He also teaches in the Public Sector Management Program offered through CSUN Extended Learning. “I’m most interested in how individuals and groups use communication to construct satisfactory and productive relationships and communities” Hasenauer says.
He helped establish University 100: Freshman Seminar which is intended to help first semester freshman make sound personal, social, academic and ethical choices as they make the transition into university life.
In the late 1980's, Hasenauer became very involved in bicycle, trails and park advocacy and he now applies his communication expertise in a number of these decision making contexts. He was the founder and has served on the Boards of Directors of the Concerned Off-Road Bicyclists Association here in Los Angeles and on the International Mountain Bicycling Association. He was appointed by Governor Davis to serve on the California Recreational Trails Committee, and by the former director of California State Parks to the California Roundtable on Recreation Parks and Tourism. In 1998, these efforts led to Hasenauer’s induction into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame.
Hasenauer finds that this involvement in environmental deliberations informs his academic work and vice versa. He regular attends and presents at the biennial Conference on Communication and Environment and he is active in the Environmental Communication Division of NCA. He often speaks about communication, human relations, conflict resolution, community building and non-profit leadership at national and international conferences on environmental issues and recreational trails.