Description
Khanh Gia Ngo, M.A.
Adjunct Communication Studies Faculty | Community College Educator | Public Speaking Instructor
Khanh Gia Ngo is a dedicated communication studies educator whose teaching and scholarship are deeply rooted in equity, access, and student success within the community college system. A former community college student herself, Khanh brings both academic expertise and lived experience to her public speaking courses—helping students not only develop confident delivery skills, but also understand the broader social, cultural, and interpersonal contexts in which communication takes place.
Khanh currently teaches Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication, and Intercultural Communication across several Southern California community colleges, including Orange Coast College, Santiago Canyon College, Santa Ana College, and Cerritos College, as well as Essentials of Public Speaking at California State University, Long Beach. She has extensive experience teaching across modalities, including face-to-face, hybrid, and fully online asynchronous courses, and is certified to teach online within the Rancho Santiago Community College District.
Her pedagogical approach emphasizes clarity, adaptability, and authenticity, guiding students to see public speaking as both a practical skill and a powerful tool for self-advocacy and civic engagement. Khanh’s public speaking instruction is informed by her research interests in instructional communication, interpersonal and intercultural communication, edutainment, and—most centrally—the experiences of community college students of color navigating transfer pathways.
Khanh earned her Master of Arts in Communication Studies from San Diego State University, graduating with a 4.0 GPA. Her master’s thesis, “There Is No Billboard for Transfer,” uses a community cultural wealth framework to challenge deficit-based narratives and highlight the strengths, resilience, and capital that community college students of color bring to their educational journeys. Her work has been nationally recognized, including a Top Paper Award from the National Communication Association’s Community College Section.
Committed to long-term leadership in higher education, Khanh is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Community College Leadership at Kansas State University. Through her teaching, research, and service, she strives to create learning environments that are equitable, accessible, and responsive—ensuring that students in public speaking courses feel seen, supported, and empowered to use their voices with confidence and purpose.
