Emily Gerlikovski

Emily Gerlikovski is a Graduate Fellow and Lecturer in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, affiliated with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. Her research focuses on how marginalized and disenfranchised families navigate communication about identity, uncertainty, and relational transitions, particularly in contexts involving gender/sexuality, health disruptions, and non-normative family structures. She holds an MA in Communication from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a BA in Communication and English Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Teaching responsibilities include serving as Instructor of Record for courses such as Communication 210 (Public Communication in Everyday Life), Communication 101 (Public Speaking), and Faculty Extender for Communication 595 (Stigma in Healthcare). She has also served as a Teaching Assistant for Communication 102 (Introduction to Communication).

Her research has been recognized through awards including the Illinois Distinguished Fellowship and President’s Research in Diversity Travel Award. She is a Volunteer Research Affiliate at the MAKE IT Lab in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies. Recent publications address long-COVID patient experiences, interdisciplinary sexuality education, and family communication dynamics.