Earned Degrees:

  • Ph.D., Liverpool Hope University, and Maryvale Institute, U.K.

  • P.G.D., International Institute for Journalism

  • Master of Liberal Arts (ALM), Digital Media Design, Harvard University (Extension School)

  • M.A., John Carroll University

  • S.T.B., Pontifical Urban University, Rome; Seat of Wisdom Seminary, Owerri.

  • B.Phil., Pontifical Urban University, Rome; Seat of Wisdom Seminary, Owerri.

  • B.A., Imo State University, Nigeria

Professional Certificates:

  • Executive Leadership, Cornell University

  • High-Performance Leadership, Cornell University

  • Cultural Awareness, Loyola Marymount University

Expertise and Research Interests:

  • Media aesthetics

  • Digital media design

  • Digital storytelling

  • Participation and engagement in social media

  • Media, culture, and religion, with a focus on theological aesthetics and media evangelization.

The Reverend Dr. Emelu is a professor of communication at John Carroll University, United States, whose research and practices focus on digital storytelling and design, media aesthetics and theo-aesthetics. Dr. Emelu lives where digital media technology meets culture, communication, philosophy, theology and society.

He has extensive professional experience in the for-profit and nonprofit industries. He served as C.E.O., Editor-in-Chief and Deputy Editor of major newspapers or magazines; board member and chair, director, and officer of various organizations and corporations. He was the Director of Communication for the Catholic Diocese of Orlu in Nigeria. He was host, executive producer, and producer of two weekly television series for the Global Catholic Network, EWTN, in addition to creating numerous different programs for the same television network, several radio contents for the Immaculate Heart Radio, California, and website development for various organizations. He has served as a consultant to several organizations in Geneva, Nigeria, and the United States. He is the founder of Gratia Vobis Ministries, Inc. He is a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Orlu in Nigeria and had served as associate pastor at parishes in the United States and Nigeria. To know more about the Reverend Dr. Maurice Emelu, his professional background, research, and services visit his professional site. 

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Teaching Philosophy

As a teacher, he engages his students through dialogue for an exciting and ethical learning experience. His philosophy as a teacher is being an open-minded facilitator who accompanies students, irrespective of their background, in a family-like community of learning, through collaboration, critical thinking, supportive communication, and adaptive learning and service. His goal is to equip his students for the workforce and to prepare them to apply their knowledge in real-life successfully.

He has taught leadership and managerial skills for the nonprofit administration graduate program (John Carroll University), entrepreneurship (Jesuit Worldwide Learning via Georgetown University), and speech communication (John Carroll University). Currently, he teaches digital media plus communication, technology, and society at John Carroll University. He was a course designer and instructor for the Fresno Diocese Permanent Diaconate formation program. Before graduate schools, he also served as assistant principal and teacher of middle and high schools in Nigeria.

In addition to numerous research and educational publications, he has published eight books.