Faculty News

Faculty News and Awards

HELLO Welcome new faculty members

JENNIFER HARKER has joined the College of Media as an assistant professor in the Advertising and Public Relations program. Harker earned her Ph.D. from the School of Media and Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a Roy H. Park Doctoral Research Fellow and taught courses in public relations writing. Prior to pursuing her Ph.D., Harker was the senior director of marketing and communication at Cal Farley’s, one of the nation’s largest privately-funded child and family service organizations, located in Amarillo, Texas. She is a frequent presenter and has an expertise in sport crisis communication.

JASPER FESSMANN

is a new visiting assistant professor in the Advertising and Public Relations program. Fessmann is a frequent presenter and guest lecturer and has conducted numerous workshops and seminars on public interest communications, crisis management and public relations. He recently earned his Ph.D. in mass communication from the University of Florida. His research program focuses on developing the foundation of the emerging field of public interest communications - using strategic communications to advance social causes. Previously, he was the owner and CEO of Fessmann Concept, a public relations and management consulting company in Berlin, Germany. JAY GILMORE has joined the College as a visiting assistant professor for the new Sports and Adventure Media major. Gilmore brings extensive experience as a producer and reporter for media outlets including American Sports Network and Sinclair Broadcast Group WZTV Fox 17, and as a sports director for Meredith Broadcasting WGCL TV and Scripps Broadcasting WPTV. Previously, he was an adjunct instructor at Middle Tennessee State University and Nashville State Community College. Gilmore received his master’s degree in journalism from the University of Alabama.

THANK YOU

Teaching Assistant Professor TOM STEWART retired after 18 years with the College. Stewart began teaching parttime in 2005 and became a full-time faculty member in 2011. He has taught courses in news reporting, media ethics and law, news writing and copy editing. He has led important revisions to the Journalism curriculum and has served as coordinator of multiple sections of the introductory media writing class. Stewart is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and has been an advisor for the College of Media’s SPJ chapter. Prior to joining the College, Stewart worked at the Tribune-Review in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, where he spent three decades rising through the ranks from a part-time reporter and copy editor to editor of the newspaper. Even in retirement, Stewart plans to continue teaching courses in news writing and media law and advising the College on adapting curriculum in those areas.

WVU REED COLLEGE OF MEDIA AMONG THE BEST IN MEDIASHIFT RANKINGS The College of Media has topped two different “best of” lists for innovation. MediaShift, the premier destination for insight and analysis at the intersection of media and technology, recognized Dean Maryanne Reed in “EducationShift20: Honoring Innovative Journalism Educators.” Additionally, faculty members Dana Coester and Gina Martino Dahlia were listed in “MediaShift20: Recognizing Digital Media’s Top Innovators” for their work on “100 Days in Appalachia,” which was also recognized in the “Top 6 Journalism Collaborations of 2017.”

CORIO, BEESON AND COESTER RECEIVE FACULTY AWARDS Joel Beeson and Dana Coester were recognized with the College of Media’s Faculty Research Award and Emily Corio received the Outstanding Teaching Award for the 2017-18 academic year. Beeson and Coester demonstrated exemplary performance in scholarly research and creative activity by pushing the boundaries of “new” media. Corio was recognized for her excellent classroom teaching and for leading the creation of a new sports and adventure media major.

NICE WORK Promotions

Alison Bass was recently promoted to associate professor. She teaches investigative reporting and writing, multimedia journalism, and health and science journalism. Bass is an award-winning journalist and the critically acclaimed author of “Getting Screwed: Sex Workers and the Law.” Prior to joining the College in 2012, Bass taught journalism at Mount Holyoke College, Brandeis University and Boston University. Bass was a long-time medical and science writer for The Boston Globe, and her work has also appeared in the Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and on Public Radio International’s website. She holds a master of liberal arts degree from Harvard University Extension School.

Bob Britten has been promoted to teaching associate professor. Britten joined the College in 2008 and recently developed a new course on media literacy designed to teach students to critically analyze news and media reports, enabling them to better gauge the credibility of information. Prior to coming to WVU, Britten worked as a reporter, designer, art director, graphics editor and editorial director. Britten has worked for newspapers of various sizes (the Greenville Record-Argus, the Meadville Tribune, the Columbia Missourian, the Seattle Times), as well as publications such as Vox, Allegheny magazine, Farm Journal, and its subsidiary, Beef Today. His areas of interest include visual communication, rhetoric and culture and the role these play in building and maintaining social memory. Britten has taught courses in magazine design, information graphics, interactive design, and qualitative research methods.