Professor Poppy McLeod teaches her 200-person discussion class (COMM2760) like a small seminar. Every year she guides them through an exploration of case studies in communications based on the current political and cultural climate. “This year we discussed the implications of Twitter and Facebook in organizing protests in Egypt and the Philippines,” Allie* ’12 says, “whereas I know in the past the discussion had centered on YouTube videos regarding 9/11.”
Her contributions to the Cornell community have been vast, but most students would comment that it isn’t just her research that makes Professor Poppy McLeod a great teacher, but her teaching style and presence. “Poppy is amazing. She really knows what she’s talking about and she helps us see how things apply on a case-by-case basis so you really get a firm foundation of the material and its pragmatism,” says Lindsey* ‘12.
Currently, Professor McLeod teaches two main undergraduate courses. Introduction to Persuasion and Social Influence (COMM2760) is a case-based survey of the influence of social media, news media, and even public signage on behavior. Her second class, Communication and Decision Making in Groups (COMM3100), uses an “experiential format to learn about the role of communication in small groups,” Professor McLeod says. In this class, students recreate famous experiments and collect their own data, which they then analyze and compare to the results of the original study. She also teaches a graduate seminar in theory and research about small groups. “I love doing research and learning about new things, and I think of myself as creative and a little eccentric,” says Professor McLeod.
Her own research centers on these subjects as well as the management of work teams and the influence of technology on collaboration and group dynamics. With over 30 publications to date and several coming out this year, Professor McLeod is a leading expert on teamwork and leadership development and has even consulted for a number of Fortune 500 companies (Keycorp, The Lubrizol Corporation, The Sherwin Williams Company, The Swagelok Company, the Sparrow Healthcare System) as well as taught internationally prior to her days at Cornell. She has had visiting professorships at SDA Luigi Bocconi Business School in Milan, Italy, and at the Helsinki School of Economics and Business Administration in Finland. Today, Professor McLeod is the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Communications Department and according to the Johnson School website, she is on the CALS Faculty Senate as a Senator and Secretary of the Executive Committee.
Professor McLeod grew up in Trenton, NJ as the third of four children. After graduating high school, she attended Syracuse University where she earned a B.S. in Psychology and went on to get her Master’s Degree and Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Harvard. After finishing graduate school, she switched gears, becoming a professor in business school for about 20 years before joining the Communication Department at Cornell.
“I chose Cornell because my research on computer-mediated communication in small groups was a great fit with the department here,” she says. “My expectations about the rigorous research environment have been met and exceeded, and the quality of students has also exceeded my expectations.”
Just the Facts:
Activities you were into when you were in college: Peer advising, Freshman orientation
Current Activities/Hobbies: Birdwatching, dancing, reading
Tell me about your research – past publications, future publications, current projects: I currently have a $80,000 grant from the Hatch Foundation for studying emotional and linguistic factors in intergroup bias. One project going on in my lab right now is an examination of intergroup bias within the Greek Letter System on college campuses.
A second major research interest is in social factors associated with virtual environments. In my lab we are currently doing an experiment to examine teamwork in virtual environments, and especially the role of task type. I am also studying the effects of personal identity in virtual environments.
If you could change one thing about Cornell right now, what would it be? A great strength of Cornell is the variety of activities and resources. This variety sometimes creates challenges for finding out about things and for managing to take advantage of everything. I especially wish students were less stressed out trying to do so many things.
How do you think women are portrayed/treated on campus? I imagine there is lots of variation across departments and functions. I think the environment for women in my own department is very positive.
Best part about Cornell: I’ve been here 6 years. My favorite parts: Being surrounded by so many smart and thoughtful people all the time – this includes students and colleagues; and the sheer beauty of the campus at any time of the year.
If a genie lamp showed up on your doorstep and you got one wish, what would it be? Corny but true – peace on earth.
Have you read the list of 161 Things? Have you done any of them or do you plan to? I have read it, and I’ve done about a dozen of the things already; I spotted a few I might try :-)
Who is your biggest hero/role model? My mother.
Favorite quote? “Take care of your sister.” (see above)