Lauren L. Buisker, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Rhetoric
Department of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies
Director of Debate
Bates College
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
I am an Assistant Professor of Rhetoric in the Department of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies at Bates College, having earned my Ph.D. in Communication from Colorado State University in 2025, my master's degree in Communication from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2021, and my undergraduate degree in Communication Studies from South Dakota State University in 2019. My research uses critical feminist perspectives to understand the rhetoric of anti-sexual violence organizing, and I have published articles on this subject in Rhetoric Society Quarterly, Southern Communication Journal, Women & Language, and Communication Studies.
As a daughter of two high school teachers, I am a passionate educator, having taught classes on argumentation, debate, deliberation, interpersonal communication, introductory writing, gender and communication, political communication, popular culture, public speaking, rhetorical criticism, and workplace communication. I also currently serve as the Director of Debate for the Bates College Brooks Quimby Debate Council.
Publications
Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles
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Buisker, Lauren L. "Articulating Hierarchical Victimhood: Rhetorical Mirroring in Anti-Fat and Rape Culture Discourses." Rhetoric Society Quarterly 54, no. 5 (2024): 467-482. https://doi.org/10.1080/02773945.2024.2408555
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Buisker, Lauren L. “Erasing Race: Convenience Memories of Anita Hill and Rhetorics of White ‘Worthy Victimhood' in Coverage of the Ford/Kavanaugh Hearings.” Southern Communication Journal 89, no. 3-4 (2024): 153-166. https://doi.org/10.1080/1041794X.2024.2389813
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​Buzzetta, Autumn, Lauren L. Buisker, Elizabeth A. Williams, and Cari Whittenburg. “‘Nobody Knew the Rules’: Nonprofit Resilience, Rules, and Resources during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Communication Studies 75, no. 5 (2024): 537-558. https://doi.org/10.1080/10510974.2024.2382623
Buisker, Lauren L. “Weaponizing Apologia in Response to Me Too: Organizational Silencing in CBS Coverage of Charlie Rose.” Women & Language 46, no. 2 (2023): 331-362. doi:10.34036/WL.2023.019
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Buisker, Lauren L., and Kylie J. Johnson. “What is ‘So Severe, Pervasive, and Objectively Offensive?’: Defining Sexual Harassment, Investigating Reporting Requirements, and Supporting Disclosures with Feminist Role-Playing.” Feminist Pedagogy. (Accepted; forthcoming 2025).
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Book Chapter​
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Long, Ziyu, and Lauren L. Buisker. “Care, Justice, and Resilience: Designing Positive Employee Communication from Organizational Communication Perspectives” in The Routledge Handbook of Employee Communication and Organizational Process, eds. Soojin Kim, Patrice M. Buzzanell, Jeong-Nam Kim, and Alessandra Mazzei (Routledge, 2025): 246-256.
Book Review
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Buisker, Lauren L. Review of “What It Feels Like: Visceral Rhetoric and the Politics of Rape Culture.” Quarterly Journal of Speech 109, no. 2 (2023): 199-200. doi: 10.1080/00335630.2023.2201433​
Selected Honors and Awards
Excellence in Teaching Award for a Graduate Teaching Assistant | College of Liberal Arts | Colorado State University | Spring 2025
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​Rose B. Johnson Article-of-the-Year Award for “Erasing Race: Convenience Memories of Anita Hill and Rhetorics of White ‘Worthy Victimhood’ in News Coverage of the Ford/Kavanaugh Hearings” | | Spring 2025
Top Panel Recipient in the Communication Education Division | Central States Communication Association | Spring 2025
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Gordon F. Hostettler Award in Research, Teaching, and Service for Outstanding Doctoral Candidate | CSU Department of Communication Studies | Fall 2024
Top Student Paper for “'She is a Good American Citizen': Transforming Legible Victimhood and Rhetorics of Radical Belief in the Justice Movement for Recy Taylor” | Organization for Feminist Research on Gender and Communication | Western States Communication Association | Fall 2024
Doctoral Honors Seminar Cohort Member | Rhetoric and Performance Division | National Communication Association | Salt Lake City, UT | Summer 2024
Vice President for Research Graduate Scholars Program, Class of 2024-2025 | Colorado State University | Spring 2024
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Outstanding Mentor in SPCM 200: Public Speaking | CSU Department of Communication Studies | Spring 2024
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Top Student Paper for “‘We Must Stick by Our Guns’: A Rhetorical History of Organized Violence in the U. S. Radium Corporation’s Archives” | Organizational and Professional Communication Interest Group | Central States Communication Association | Spring 2024
Top Student Paper for “Erasing Race: Convenience Memories of Anita Hill and Rhetorics of White Worthy Victimhood in Coverage of the Ford/Kavanaugh Hearings” | Organization for Feminist Research on Gender and Communication | Western States Communication Association | Spring 2024
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James R. Irvine Scholarship | CSU Department of Communication Studies | Fall 2021​
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Impact Teaching Award for Inspiring Efforts During COVID-19 | UIUC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | Spring 2021
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Top 12 Great Ideas for Teaching Students (G.I.F.T.) Submission | National Communication Association | Fall 2020
Henry L. Mueller Award for Most Outstanding New Teaching Assistant | UIUC Department of Communication | Spring 2020