Office hours by appointment.
Michael E. Burns (Ph.D., North Dakota State University) is a teaching assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Colorado Boulder. He also serves as the Director of TEDxCU. He is an award-winning instructor who teaches several courses that focus on persuasion, leadership, small group dynamics, team problem solving, sport communication and training and development. Dr. Burns' professional experiences outside of academia include working for NBC’s Today Show at the 2006 Torino, 2008 Beijing, 2012 London, 2016 Rio de Janeiro, 2018 PyeongChang, 2020 Tokyo, and 2022 Beijing Olympic Games. While at the Today Show he works on the production management and logistics team. Dr. Burns also worked as a communication specialist for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Dr. Burns is an applied communication researcher and has published and presented research in the areas of persuasion, message development, higher education and the college transition, narrative influence, instructional communication, training and development, and family communication.