BA in communication (with Theater concentration), The University of West Florida
MEd in reading education, Columbus State University
EdS in English education, Columbus State University
EdD in English education, Auburn University

Biography
Dr. Rickey Cotton has been at Southeastern University for over 25 years, serving as teacher, administrator, and mentor. He occupies a position as one of Southeastern's core faculty. His primary joy is teaching, though he as served administratively as a department head (13 years), as the chair of the General Education Task Force, and as the chair of the Regional Accreditation Steering Committee.

Dr. Cotton says that Southeastern's students are indeed a joy to teach, and his record in the classroom shows that the respect between him and his students is mutual. During his time here, he has twice received the Faculty Member of the Year award, in 1990 and 2007. More importantly, former students return to visit or contact him on a regular basis.

Along with his classroom teaching, Dr. Cotton often preaches or does workshops at local churches. In addition to preaching biblically-focused messages, he often teaches on such topics as practicing intimacy with God and engaging the great Christian poets.

With fellow English professor Paul Corrigan, Dr. Cotton wrote College in the Spirit: Christian Higher Education as a Calling. This short book presents vision and practice for "authentic and faithful learning" and is used in Southeastern's Christ, Culture and the University course. He also has published articles in such journals and books as English Journal, Literature and Belief, The Christian Reconstruction Journal, The ALAN Review, and Dialectic: A Publication of the Florida Conference of AAUP, Contemporary Issues in Young Adult Literature and Masterplots II: Juvenile and Young Adult Fiction.

Dr. Cotton teaches the following courses: Contemporary Literature, Creative Writing, Advanced Expository Writing, and Integrating Faith in the Language and Communication Arts. His research interests include spirituality, teaching and learning, faith integration in higher education, literature, and creative writing and composition.