Hard-working professor ends career that made an impact from coast to coast

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Some faculty members have a way of making the job look easy, and that almost effortless-looking approach provides one way to summarize Bob Richards’ career at Penn State.

Make no mistake, though, Richards worked hard — and made a lasting impact.

Richards, the John and Ann Curley Professor of First Amendment Studies and the longest-tenured faculty member in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, will retire from the University effective June 30, after 36 years of service.

“There is perhaps no faculty member in the history of the Bellisario College who has had a greater impact,” said Dean Marie Hardin. “He joined the program before it officially existed as a college — when it was a school. He worked under every dean it’s had, as a faculty member or administrator. What he has built will last.”

Richards’ relationship with Penn State extends nearly 45 years. He earned his bachelor’s degree in speech communication (with highest honors) in 1983 and his master’s in speech communication, along with a minor in journalism, in 1984 before beginning to build on what was a burgeoning broadcasting career.

Richards was a disc jockey and newscaster in Derby, Connecticut, before college and worked for radio stations in State College as a reporter, public affairs director and news director while a student. His first full-time job after leaving Penn State was with NBC Radio Network News in New York City.

He added a doctoral degree of jurisprudence from Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C., in 1987, and then served as a law clerk in Maryland and a judicial clerk in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas. In 1988, he returned to Penn State and accepted a one-year teaching contract.

“It seemed like a quick return but even in high school everyone knew what I was going to do in life. My nickname was ‘Professor’ because I liked to teach, and I knew I didn’t want to teach high school kids,” Richards said.

Richards’ tenure produced much more than simple longevity, though. He was immensely productive — authoring six books and parts of 16 others along with more than 75 scholarly articles and even presenting amicus briefs to the Supreme Court — and served on a variety of college- and University-level committees.

He created the Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment, and his expertise made him a go-to guest for media covering topics related to free speech and he hosted public affairs programs on the topic for local media outlets. More than that, the center built a reputation as a resource center and provided education and outreach focused on the First Amendment. Richards also served as a volunteer attorney doing pro bono work for Mid-Penn Legal Services in State College and the Student Press Law Center in Washington, D.C.

During his career Richards was honored on separate occasions by the Bellisario College for his research, teaching and service. He was named a Penn State Teaching Fellow by the Penn State Alumni Association in 2011 and earned the Scripps Howard Foundation’s “Teacher of the Year” award in 2007.

Along with his academic prowess, classroom success and collegiality, Richards made an impact as a creator — launching the Penn State Washington Program in 1995 and the Penn State Hollywood Program in 2015.

“I figured I’d be here a while and see where it went. Ultimately, there was never any reason to leave. The University always gave me the flexibility to be creative and entrepreneurial within the framework of higher education,” Richards said. “The Washington Program was the starting point. The University wanted to have a presence there and I had an idea about how it could work.”

What started out as an internship program became a combination of internships and on-location classes. Richards was involved with every aspect of the Washington Program — from finding housing options and classroom space to selecting students and teaching classes.

The startup program tested his communications skills and creativity. For example, when he read about the University of California acquiring a building in the nation’s capital, he figured they might need a tenant for some of that space. So, rather than Penn State investing in its own facility, Richards built a collaborative approach that served the program well for a quarter century.

The model provided proof of concept for a potential Penn State Hollywood Program, and even though Los Angeles was on the other side of the country starting that effort up was a little easier because of the lessons learns with the Washington Program 20 years earlier.

Each spring 16 students travel to Los Angeles to complete coursework and internships. The program has helped a tight-knit group of alumni in Hollywood grow closer and the opportunities have opened doors for many students to join their ranks after graduation.

Richards, who has lived in Los Angeles since the program started, has done everything from teach classes to schedule meeting space. He’s even picked out the Swedish meatballs for board meetings as part of his duties. It often demands a different skillset every day, but he has embraced the work and provided connections for alumni and opportunities for students while enhancing the reputation of the Bellisario College and the University in almost everything he’s done.

“I think I’m best at bringing a vision to fruition. There are a lot of people I’ve met in academia over the years that have all these great ideas, but nothing ever comes of it,” Richards said. “If you’re going to have great ideas, to have to be willing to put the work in to make them happen.”

He’s certainly done that, and in retirement he plans to keep working — just with a different focus.

Richards is a member of the Court of Master Sommeliers, and the Society of Wine Educators as a Certified Specialist of Wine. He’s written a monthly wine column for State College Magazine for nearly a decade, and he has regularly spent a good deal of time in the Napa Valley outside the academic year.

As a retiree, he can experience wine country during harvest season (September) for the first time, and he’s excited about that opportunity.

“The entertainment business interests me, and I’m in Hollywood. The wine business interests me, and I'm in California,” Richards said. “It’s an exciting time. I attended a podcasting seminar earlier this spring and I just might launch a wine and culinary podcast. We’ll see.”

Judging by his track record of making visions a reality, Richards might be on his way to again building something special.