We really enjoyed meeting our new first-year and transfer students at our JMC Academic Welcome. We hope you made a connection with at least one professor, staff member or fellow JMC student. If you missed the event or if you want to get in touch with any of the campus media organizations, student clubs, or JMC faculty and staff, please let us know. You can visit the Dean’s office in 200 Stauffer-Flint Hall, stop by the advising office in 117 Stauffer-Flint or email us at jschool@ku.edu. We want you to have a fantastic start to your first semester at KU. Let us know how we can help. 

Welcome back, Jayhawk Journalists! We hope you had a wonderful summer and are excited to start the fall semester. Throughout the semester, the Student Success Spotlight will highlight offices and services to build awareness and understanding of available resources across the university. It will also feature select important dates and deadlines, as well as relevant events within and outside our school that support student success. 

Announcing the Fall 2025 Student Success Series: How do you set yourself up for success? You can start by committing to attend our Fall 2025 Student Success Series. 

For the next several weeks, we will feature topics to help you learn about ways to enhance your learning, master study skills and prepare for an awesome semester. The first session, "College Hacks," is a must-have for any new incoming student or any student wanting to re-orient themselves to KU. We will talk about the ins and outs of college life, expectations, and resources on campus and beyond. Make plans now to attend on Wednesday, August 27, from 4-5 p.m. in the Clarkson Gallery, first floor Stauffer-Flint Hall.

Scott Reinardy, Interim Dean

Reinardy was appointed to this role for the 2025-26 term. He begins his 18th year in the School and has previously served as the Multimedia Track Chair, Associate Dean of Graduate Studies, and the Associate Dean of Student Success.

Lisa McLendon, Interim Associate Dean for Student Success

McLendon was named to this role for the 2025-26 term. She begins her 14th year in the School and has previously served as a Professor of the Practice and Bremner Editing Center Coordinator.

Mugur Geana, Interim Associate Dean for Research & Faculty Development

Geana was appointed to this role for the 2025-26 term. He is a full professor and has previously served as Chair of the Digital Marketing Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations Concentration. 

Elizabeth Cox, Assistant Professor

Cox’s research explores the intersection of public relations and sports communication to evaluate fan-team relationships and the strategic communication that cultivates them. She spent four years as a publicist with entertainment PR agency MPRM Communication in Los Angeles.

Megan Denneny, Assistant Professor

Denneny is an assistant professor in the Digital Marketing Communication concentration. She recently graduated from the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication. She conducts interdisciplinary research at the intersection of health, communication, ethics and technology. 

Michelle Keller, Director of Professional Graduate Studies

Keller oversees students in the Digital Integrated Marketing Communications (DIMC) master’s program. Prior to this role, she contributed to the program as a member of its advisory board and as a longtime instructor. She has more than 30 years of experience across corporate, nonprofit and academic sectors.

Barbara Tholen, KSPA Director

Tholen spent 15 years encouraging her high school journalism students to cover tough stories and breaking news. She will continue supporting young journalists as the executive director of the Kansas Scholastic Press Association while focusing on her passion for reporting and writing as an instructor. 

Professor Teri Finneman was a guest on PBS NewsHour to discuss the need to save local news in light of two dozen newspapers suddenly closing earlier this month.

Lisa McLendon presented “AI Basics for Communicators” on Aug. 14 at the monthly training meeting of a group of local and regional PIOs.

Assistant Professor Sarah Cavanah had a pair of research papers published. The first, “Understanding audience demographics, knowledge and attitudes for science-based social media efforts,” is in a peer-reviewed resource for helping students learn how to conduct research. The second, “The science communication in social media theory of change evaluation framework: a system of establishing goals and assessing efficacy for knowledge brokers, intermediaries and boundary spanners,” presents a framework to help different types of organizations engaged in science communication on social media better choose appropriate evaluation measures.

Assistant Professor Tamar Wilner published a study, with co-authors Gyo Hyun Koo of Howard University and Cameron McCann of the University of Texas, suggesting that efforts to reduce cynicism about the news media may be effective in combating misinformation. The paper, "Defining and Validating News Skepticism: Distinctions from News Trust and Cynicism, and Links to News Literacy and Misinformation Belief,” was published in Mass Communication and Society.

Our tutorial site has tutorials across the Adobe suite and in other technologies you will use in class. Bookmark our site for help with portfolios, video editing and graphic design. Follow our YouTube channel for the latest tutorial releases! 

Stop by the JBar in the Clarkson Gallery if you need help with any tech-based project. Off campus, drop a question in the Virtual JBar. 

Workshops available: New to KU or need an Adobe refresher? Join JSchoolTech at 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 21 OR 11 a.m. on Aug. 29 for an Intro to Adobe Tools at KU.

We are hiring! If you have Adobe skills, consider applying to be our newest associate. 

Technology Committee will meet from 1-2 p.m. the first and third Tuesday of every month beginning Sept. 2 and 16 in Stauffer-Flint 312. 

Alumna to share Deadline Hollywood social media experience: Natalie Sitek, a 2017 JMC graduate, will be on campus on Thursday, Aug. 28, to talk about her role as a social media manager at Deadline Hollywood in Los Angeles. Students are welcome to visit with her at a meet-and-greet between 2-2:30 p.m. in the Clarkson Gallery at Stauffer-Flint Hall.

Internship and student jobs

Job opportunities

Assistant Professor of the Practice Alex Treaster presents in a session last fall. | Photo courtesy of KSPA. 

Volunteer for the KSPA Conference: Hundreds of high school journalists and their teachers will visit KU on Sept. 24 for the Kansas Scholastic Press Association Fall Conference. For high school journalists, this is a lasting memory and a positive introduction to journalism at KU. Please pitch ideas for sessions and detail the times that work best for your schedule here. Session proposals are due Aug. 29. Email KSPA Director Barbara Tholen if you have any questions. 

Cheryl Klug, who died Aug. 6 in Lawrence at age 78, began working as a School of Journalism and Mass Communications office assistant for Dean Del Brinkman in the mid-1980s. For more than 30 years, she was a fixture in the School, working with Professor Susanne Shaw in the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. She retired in 2018.

Calendar

William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications
journalism.ku.edu

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