Office: TECH 123
Front Desk:  281.290.5273

This program enables students to competently communicate ideas to others. To do this, students are taught skills in a variety of behaviors and the ability to choose the best approach for a given situation. Hence, the speech program instructors teach a variety of courses in order to increase students’ skills in being effective communicators.

Faculty and Staff

	Fay Lee, Ed.D. Dean 281.290.3406 Office: TECH 123-F
Melanie Steel Department Chair 281.290.3906 Office: HSC2 250-O	Professor Melanie Steel has been a full time faculty member in the Speech Department at Lone Star College-CyFair since January 2013. Along with teaching a full course load, Professor Steel works with the Center for Civic Engagement where she focuses on Deliberative Dialogues. Through one Civic Engagement initiative, Professor Steel and colleagues trained student moderators and held timely Dialogues in STEM classrooms centered around relevant course topics. Additionally, Professor Steel teaching an Honors Public Speaking course focused on Civic Engagement and Public Advocacy. Professor Steel received a Bachelor’s Degree in Telecommunications from Baylor University, a Master’s Degree in Public Relations from the University of Houston, and a Master’s Degree in Organizational Communication and Leadership from Gonzaga University.
Sunnye Pruden Professor   Click here for Professor Pruden’s Introduction Video	Sunnye Pruden is a 20-year veteran professor of speech communication at Lone Star College and a Founding Faculty member of the LSC-CF campus. She earned her B.A. in Speech Communication from Trinity University in San Antonio, and a M.A. in Speech Communication from Texas A&M University. Sunnye’s teaching philosophy can be summed up in one word: CONNECTION. Students learn when they are connected to each other, to the course material and to their instructor. Towards that end, she works to create a warm and inviting classroom environment (both face-to-face and online) where students feel safe to learn and practice new ways of reaching others through more effective communication.
Patrick Barton Professor	Patrick has been teaching at Lone Star College-CyFair since 2010. He loves teaching communication, because it’s an opportunity to share vital information, connect with others, improve ourselves, and change the world. In his spare time he loves going to the movies, taking in live theatre, running, reading, and playing video games. He does some community theatre acting and is very active as a volunteer in the arts. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from George Mason University with a double major in Communication Studies and Film Studies, and his Master of Arts Degree from Kansas State University in Community Studies.
Stacy Gresell Professor	Stacy Gresell has been teaching online and in the classroom for Lone Star College since 2007. She earned her BA at Illinois State and her Masters in Communication Studies at Eastern Michigan University. She worked in the non-profit world running a mentorship program in Detroit and also led training & diversity initiatives in the auto industry, so she brings a broad perspective in how a communication degree can be used to her real love - teaching. She hopes that every student enjoys discovering new ways to improve the communication in their relationships and world around them.
Shelby Villareal Professor   Click here for Professor Villarreal’s Introduction Video	Shelby Villarreal is proud to call Texas her home and spent all of her grade school years just around the corner from our Lone Star College campus. She received her undergraduate degree in Communication from Texas A&M University and completed her graduate degree in Communication Studies from Sam Houston State University. Many of her experiences, including teaching at Tsinghua University in Beijing and working in Washington, D.C. led her to pursue her dream of becoming a Communication Professor. She is grateful to have found the perfect home to live out that dream at Lone Star College. In addition to her passion for communication and education, she loves spending time with all of her family including her husband and their two daughters. Shelby has been with Lone Star College since 2015 and plans to continue to grow and share her love of speech here for as long as possible.