Missouri School of Journalism Welcomes New Faculty for Fall 2007; Names Three to Acting Posts

Margaret Duffy Strategic Communication Chair Dean Mills Convergence Journalism Dean Jim Sterling Strategic Communication Faculty Esther Thorson Strategic Communication Faculty

Links

Brian Foster, University Provost Chicago Sun-Times Christian Science Monitor Columbia University Graduate School of Business Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute Illinois College Journalism Library KBIA Leo Burnett Los Angeles Times Missouri State University Modern Fiction Studies Mojo Ad Museum of Modern Art NPR PBS PS1 Purdue University San Diego Union-Tribune Starcom University College, London University of Iowa University of Maryland University of Texas-Austin McCombs School of Business Walt Disney World Young & Rubicam

Columbia, Mo. (Oct. 1, 2007) -- Students at the Missouri School of Journalism welcomed several new faculty members this semester, and three long-time professors have assumed acting administrative positions for the year.

New to the school are:

• Dorothy Carner, journalism librarian and adjunct professor;
• Andrea Heiss, assistant professor and director of the School's Arts-in-Depth Program, a collaboration with the College of Arts and Sciences, funded by the Carnegie Corporation, that encourages journalism students to study fine arts;
• Barbara Ifshin, assistant professor and account director of Mojo Ad, the School's student-staffed, full-service strategic communication agency; and
• Janet Saidi, assistant professor and KBIA news director.

Those assuming acting administrative roles through June 2008 are:

• Esther Thorson, associate dean of graduate studies, as acting dean of journalism;
• Margaret Duffy, associate professor of strategic communication, as acting associate dean of graduate studies; and
• Jim Sterling, professor of strategic communication, as chair of strategic communication.

Thorson's appointment as acting dean of journalism, announced in April by University Provost Brian Foster, will allow Dean Mills, dean of journalism, to spend the coming year overseeing the development and program-planning activities of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. The School will dedicate the Institute during its centennial celebration in September 2008.

"We've added some great scholars and professionals to our already strong team," Thorson said. "With the right people in the right places, we're well-positioned to lead the world's first and finest school of journalism into its second century of teaching and research."

Dorothy Carner

Andrea Heiss

Janet Saidi

New Faculty Members at the Missouri School of Journalism

Dorothy Carner is the head of libraries at the Missouri School of Journalism. In that role, she oversees both the Frank L. Martin Journalism Library and the Columbia Missourian Newspaper Library. For 11 years, Carner served as reference librarian and business bibliographer at the University of Texas-Austin McCombs School of Business, a top-20 business school with more than 6,000 students. She earned a master's degree in library and information sciences from the University of Texas-Austin and bachelor's and master's degrees in education from Missouri State University.

Andrea Heiss is the director of the Arts-in-Depth Program at the Missouri School of Journalism and teaches cultural reporting in the magazine journalism area of study. The recipient of two Fulbrights and a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, Heiss earned her doctorate in American Studies at the University of Iowa, her master's degree at Purdue University, and her bachelor's degree, Phi Beta Kappa, from Illinois College. Her research interests include modern American art, cultural history, new journalism and contemporary literature. Heiss has worked for numerous publications, including the Chicago Sun-Times, Korea Business Week and Modern Fiction Studies. In addition, she has served as a grant writer and consultant to PS1 and the Institute for Art and Urban Resources, a part of the Museum of Modern Art. As a Fulbright professor in South Korea, where she lived for seven years, Heiss wrote and presented about American culture to programs in Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Russia.

Barbara Ifshin is an assistant professor of strategic communication at the Missouri School of Journalism and account director of Mojo Ad, the School's student-staffed advertising and public relations agency. As the senior vice president of advertising and creative services at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., Ifshin managed all aspects of global advertising. She developed and led Disney's in-house agency, called the Yellow Shoes Creative Group, and managed the work of international advertising agencies Leo Burnett and Starcom, both in Chicago. Ifshin played a key role in revitalizing Walt Disney World marketing, transforming the advertising from a product approach to emotional ads targeted to both family and adult segments. Previously, Ifshin managed national accounts, including AT&T, Johnson & Johnson and Jell-O, at Young & Rubicam in New York. She earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Maryland and a master's in business administration with an emphasis in marketing from the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

Janet Saidi is an assistant professor of radio-television journalism and news director at KBIA, one of the most successful NPR affiliates in the country. After working for 10 years as a writer and producer, she came to KBIA in 2006 from California, where she was the associate producer for the four-hour series "Remaking American Medicine," broadcast nationally on PBS in October 2006. Saidi also co-produced and -hosted a nightly culture magazine on San Diego's NPR-affiliate station for three years. She has written for the Christian Science Monitor and the Los Angeles Times and wrote a regular column, "Magazine Scene," about the magazine industry for the Books section of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Saidi spent nearly a decade living in England, where she earned a master's degree in literature from University College, London.

Also joining the School this fall are two Knight Editing Fellows, Jeanne Abbott and Liz Heitzman, and the School's second Harte Information Graphics Teaching Fellow, Keith Claxton.

Related

April 27, 2007: Dean Mills to Take a Year's Break from Dean's Responsibilities, Provost Announces Beginning June 4, Dean Mills will "step back" from the dean's job for a year, returning to full-time duty in June of 2008, as the School begins its centennial celebration and looks forward to the opening of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. Esther Thorson will serve as acting dean. [More]

March 8, 2007: New Harte Teaching Fellow Shares Information Graphics Expertise with Missouri Journalism Students John Duchneskie, the graphics editor of the Philadelphia (Penn.) Inquirer, has taken a leave of absence from the nation's 11th-largest paper to become the first Harte Information Graphics Teaching Fellow at the Missouri School of Journalism. The Harte Teaching Fellowship was established to give information graphics professionals a taste of teaching while still working in a busy newsroom. [More]

Feb. 12, 2007: Missouri Journalism Announces Big Plans for Twin Celebration in 2008 The Missouri School of Journalism today announced plans to celebrate the centennial of the School and the dedication of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. The festivities on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus are scheduled for Wednesday through Friday, Sept. 10-12, 2008. It was on Sept. 14, 1908, that the world's first school of journalism held its first day of classes, and the faculty-run, student-staffed Columbia Missourian published its first issue. [More]

Nov. 15, 2006: New Grant Connects Journalism to the Arts A new grant awarded to the University of Missouri-Columbia will now connect the School of Journalism with the College of Arts and Science to provide journalism students with rare opportunities to study the fine arts. The $250,000 grant, which will be received from Carnegie Corporation of New York over the next two years, will provide funding for specialized courses in theater, music and art for journalism students, beginning next semester. [More]

Oct. 24, 2006: Strategic Planning for Strategic Communication Education For one day, five decades-worth of advertising and public relations professionals gathered at the Missouri School of Journalism with a common mission. The recent Strategic Communication Summit held in Gannett Hall's Tucker Forum may have been only one day, but it represents an ongoing dialogue among the alumni, faculty and students of the School that will shape the future of strategic communication education. [More]

Sept. 6, 2006: Knight Center in Editing Excellence Creates New Leadership Role to Guide Journalism's Future The Knight Center in Editing Excellence at the Missouri School of Journalism is expanding efforts to face the journalistic challenges of the 21st century with the creation of an exciting new leadership role: Executive Editor for Innovation. [More]

April 21, 2006: Mojo Ad Launches Web Site Mojo Ad, the new student-staffed agency of the Missouri School of Journalism's advertising sequence, has launched its Web site. The site features staff profiles, a history of the organization, information about how industry professionals can hire Mojo Ad and how students can apply to become members. Additionally, the site details Mojo Ad's capabilities, agency partnerships and case studies. [More]

Oct. 6, 2005: Three Knight Editing Fellows Named for 2005-2006 Academic Year Rania Adwan, Traci Angel and Rob Weir were named Knight Editing fellows at the Missouri School of Journalism for the 2005-2006 academic year. The Knight Editing Fellowship program was started in 2002 as an opportunity for experienced journalists to serve in a teaching capacity as an editor at the Columbia Missourian. [More]

Aug. 30, 2005: New Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute to Focus on the Future of Journalism On Sept. 1, the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute will hold its groundbreaking ceremony at 2 p.m. near the Institute's new home on the northeast corner of Francis Quadrangle on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus. The Reynolds Journalism Institute is a new center that will be a nucleus of collaborative innovation, research and demonstration of new technologies and processes that improve journalism. [More]