Biography

Patrick Reed Mills became a college educator through the example of his father who taught classical rhetoric and public address courses at the University of Illinois and at San Diego State University for many years.  Dr. Mills received his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in Speech Communication at SDSU in the 1970’s.  He entered the doctoral program in Communication at the University of Colorado where he researched communication theory and the linguistic aspects of interpersonal communication, his principal interests in the field.

After gaining his Ph.D. at Boulder in 1980, Dr. Mills was employed as an adjunct instructor at Palomar College and as a lecturer at SDSU and the University of California, San Diego.  He has been a tenured professor at Palomar since 1984.  He has worked for several years in the curriculum review and approval process and has served twice as Chair of the Speech Communication/American Sign Language department.  He has taught courses in Interpersonal Communication, Human Communication Theory, Small Group Communication, and Public Speaking.