MA in Communication | Highlight on Faculty

Program Chair
Robert Kargon , PhD, is the Willis K. Shepard Professor of The History of Science at Johns Hopkins and Chair of the Master of Arts in Communication Program. Trained in physics at Duke and Yale, and in history at Cornell, Dr. Kargon is especially interested in the complex role of science in modern societies, in the evolution of method in physical science, in scientific institutions as mediators between society and discipline, and in applying digital technologies to learning. His books include The Rise of Robert Millikan: Portrait of a Life in American Science (1982); Science in Victorian Manchester: Enterprise and Expertise (1977); Atomism in England from Hariot to Newton (1966); Kelvin's Baltimore Lectures and Modern Theoretical Physics (ed. with Peter Achinstein, 1987); and The Maturing of American Science (ed., 1974). Dr. Kargon is helping to develop new ways of involving the public in scientific and technical questions. Toward that end, he currently consults to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. Additionally, he has taught seminars for public administrators, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. He also organized a NATO workshop on science and development, lectured on historical perspectives on policy issues, served on the Scientific Council of the Maryland Science Center, and was a Director of the Baltimore Public Works Museum, where a special concern is outreach to the public.
Program Director
Erika Falk , PhD, runs the Master’s Degree in Communication at Johns Hopkins University. She earned her doctorate in Communication from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. She holds a Master's degree in Speech Communication from San Diego State University and a Bachelor's degree in Politics from the University of California at Santa Cruz. Prior to coming to Johns Hopkins, Falk served as Research Director of the Washington office of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. While there she supervised several research grants and wrote reports on diverse communication issues. She also worked on the data analysis team of the National Annenberg Election Survey. Her reports have been widely cited by the national press and on the floors of Congress. Falk began her career as a public radio reporter and anchor. She is the author of Becoming a New Instructor: A Guide for College Adjuncts and Graduate Students, a step-by-step guide to teaching in person or online for the first time. Falk is also the author of Women for President: Media Bias in Nine Campaigns, a book about how the media cover women candidates. She has published several articles on women and the American presidency and on the history of rhetoric, the effects of sexist language, and civility in the House of Representatives.
Assistant Director
Mary Miscally DrPH, MPH, runs the online portion of the Master's Degree in Communication. She earned her DrPH at The George Washington University and MPH and BS at Tulane University. Miscally has conducted formative, process, and summative evaluations that have informed the strategic planning, implementation, refinement, and dissemination of national and community-based health communication and social marketing efforts sponsored by government and non-profit clients in the public health, substance use, child welfare, and education sectors. Most recently she was Director of Research at JVR Communications. Her research interests include health disparities, racism, acculturation, and social relationships.
Faculty Members
Susan Allen , MA, is a doctoral candidate in the Communication Department at the University of Maryland where she has conducted research in intercultural negotiation, persuasion in terrorist media messages, public relations activities of civil rights organizations, and conflict resolution through communication. She has taught research methods, interpersonal communication, basic communication strategies and negotiation. Allen has studied and taught in Madagascar, Ireland, and Algeria as a way of understanding how people communicate across cultures. In addition to teaching at JHU and Georgetown University, Allen conducts seminars in Leadership Communication for government agencies and, currently, collects data on a nation-wide public relations education research project. She teaches Research and Writing Methods.
Richard Bailey , MCIPR, has been a senior lecturer in public relations at two UK universities - University of Gloucestershire and Leeds Metropolitan University (which has the largest specialist public relations and communications department in Europe). He also teaches and examines on the approved qualifications for the UK's professional body, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations and has been an approved professional trainer (and is often invited to speak on and deliver training in social media and public relations). Before becoming a full-time educator he had a twenty year career in teaching, publishing, business journalism and public relations (working in-house and as a consultant specializing in the technology sector). He has degrees from Cambridge and York universities. He teaches Public Relations and Public Affairs from a European Perspective.
Deborah Beck , MA, is the President of Beck Research, a research and strategic consulting firm. Beck works on domestic and corporate projects, providing strategic advice to political campaigns, issue campaigns, and corporations. Prior to heading her own firm, Beck was a Senior Associate at Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research. Her political clients included Governor Edward Rendell (PA), Senator Christopher Dodd (CT), and Senator Joseph Lieberman (CT), as well as assisting the DCCC on targeted races. Beck also has extensive corporate research experience, working to develop the strategic positioning for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Cooper University Hospital in Camden, NJ. She was the lead analyst for Communities for Quality Education, a national education advocacy organization. Before joining Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, Beck served as a Senior Analyst at Decision Research and as Deputy Research Director at Squier Knapp Ochs, a media and advertising firm, where she contributed to various campaigns including Clinton-Gore '96 and the Democratic National Committee. Beck received a graduate degree from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania and her bachelor's degree from Vassar College. She teaches Polling for Strategic Communication.
John Bell heads up the 360° Digital Influence team - Ogilvy PR’s global, digital word of mouth marketing practice designed to manage brands at a time when anyone can be an influencer, and we are all influenced in new ways. His team has developed and executed social media strategy for clients as diverse as TJMaxx, Lance Armstrong Foundation, Lenovo, Unilever and more. The team’s focus is on engaging through conversations, outreach to new influencers and word of mouth marketing. John is a Web 1.0 graduate. As Creative Director at Discovery Communications, he transformed a single web site into 14 Web communities and services from DiscoveryKids.com to Animalplanet.com and more. In the early nineties, when interactive television was imminent, John headed up the creative studio for the joint ITV venture between Viacom and AT&T. Currently, John serves as the President of the board of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association. He teaches Public Relations in the Age of Digital Influence.
Stephen Bickel , MS, is Director of Market Research at D&R International and has studied and applied social psychology to change behaviors for over 12 years. He has particular expertise in the application of behavioral science to energy efficiency and provides training and strategic consulting services in this area to companies, government agencies, and non-profits. Recent work includes behavioral critiques of new utility consumer engagement communication platforms and strategic consulting to One Change, sponsor of the leading community-based social marketing program for promoting environmentally beneficial behaviors. Previously at D&R, Bickel managed the ENERGY STAR for Windows, Doors, and Skylights Program on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy. Bickel holds a Master of Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He teaches Persuasion.
Jennifer Anne Bishop , ScD, MPH is the Deputy Director of the Legal and Compliance Office for the Bureau that runs the National Health Services Corps within U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). She earned her doctorate of science in Public Health /Health Communication from the Harvard School of Public Health. She holds a Masters of Public Health from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University. Bishop has experience designing and evaluating health promotion materials for the National Cancer Institute, the National Physical Activity Guidelines and HHS' Office of Women's Health. She also served as the Multicultural Program Director for the National Youth Anti-Drug Program at the White House Office of the National Drug Control Policy. Her research explores the role of health communication in the production and elimination of health disparities. She teaches Changing Behavior Through Communication.
Shonali Burke , ABC, was named to PRWeek’s inaugural top “40 Under 40″ list of US-based PR professionals and is considered one of "25 women that rock social media." As Principal, Shonali Burke Consulting, she focuses on “integrated communication to the nth degree” turning your communication conundrums into community cool. Now in the second decade of her career, Shonali's experience includes working with for- and non-profit organizations including the ASPCA where, as the organization's Vice President for Media & Communications, she put in place the organization's award-winning communications measurement program. Her work has been cited several times in industry media including PRWeek and The Measurement Standard, and she speaks frequently on the multi-faceted business of public relations at industry events. An accredited business communicator, she is a former President of IABC/DC Metro and founder of the popular Twitter chat, #measurePR. Shonali blogs at Waxing UnLyrical, tweets as @shonali, and teaches Communication.org: Not-for-profits in the Digital Age.
Adam Burns , MPP, is a Senior Vice President in the Strategic Planning & Research group at Porter Novelli where he leads primary research efforts for clients in the for-profit, nonprofit, and government sectors, with a specific expertise in social marketing. Burns has built an extensive resume of providing strategic guidance for many clients including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the IRS, National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Specifically, his work informed the development of MyPyramd.gov (both child and adult versions) and the 2009 and 2010 Medicare Open Enrollment campaigns. He is a professional focus group moderator and excels in formative research and creative concept/message testing design and implementation among various target audiences. He has also recently published articles in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior and O'Dwyer's PR Report. Prior to joining Porter Novelli, he served as Research Director at Teenage Research Unlimited (TRU), a leading consulting firm specializing in teens and young adults, where he coordinated projects for clients such as Sony, MasterCard, and truth®. Burns received a graduate degree from the Georgetown Public Policy Institute and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He teaches Applied Qualitative Research.
Michael Carney , MA, is a vice president in the public affairs practice at Fleishman-Hillard, where he provides communications counsel to clients in the United States and the Middle East. Prior to joining FH, he spent more than a decade as a journalist, most recently at USA Today, where he wrote the newspaper’s popular On Deadline news blog. In 2005 and 2006, his investigative reporting for Washingtonian magazine earned honors from the Society of Professional Journalists. He was an adjunct journalism professor from 2004 to 2008. Mike has a bachelor's in political science from Stony Brook University and a master’s in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He teaches Media Relations.
Dona Coultice-Christian , MA, has extensive experience in federal government communication. She retired after a 29-year career that spanned enforcement, benefits-granting and senior management. Upon retirement, she was the Director of the California Service Center, the INS's largest adjudicative site with a combined public sector/contractor workforce of 1,000. She spent 5 years as the Associate Regional Director for Legalization and was significantly involved in establishing stakeholder advisory groups, delivering media presentations, speaking at public forums and preparing external and internal messages and documents. She has a BA in Communication Theory and an MA in Organizational Management. She teaches Managerial Communication.
Esta de Fossard-Nelson , MA, MEd, was employed for 10 years at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Communication Programs as a Senior Advisor in Entertainment-Education (E-E). Prior to that she was an independent international contractor in the field of education and Entertainment-Education. She recently returned to independent contracting and teaches E-E at the Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences Communication program in Washington DC. She has more than 20 years experience in E-E programming in the developing world, having worked in more than 50 countries. She is widely experienced in radio and television writing and production and has been a consultant to Discovery Channel, NPR, and Barney programs. She is the author of more than 50 published books, including training manuals for E-E; school and college text books in Literature, Writing, Grammar, Logical Thinking; and children's books. She is a prize winner in the Australian Children's Book Awards. De Fossard teaches Behavior Change and Education through Entertainment and Intercultural Communication.
Margaret Edmunds , PhD, is a Washington, DC-based policy analyst who specializes in information and communications technology in health care and public health. She has taught health policy and health communication at Johns Hopkins University since 1999, including online and field training in risk communication for the Johns Hopkins Center for Public Health Preparedness. Dr. Edmunds has launched, managed, and evaluated policy initiatives and campaigns in hospitals and clinics, communities, non-profit organizations, and small businesses. She has held senior research and management positions at the University of California, San Francisco; Children's Defense Fund; The Lewin Group; and Booz Allen Hamilton, where her work focused on the role of health information technology in health care transformation. She is currently directing an Institute of Medicine study on Medicare and health care reform. Dr. Edmunds teaches Emergency and Risk Communication.
Jill Egeth , PhD, is a Lead Behavioral Scientist with the MITRE Corporation, within the Social, Behavioral, and Linguistic Sciences department. Her current research interests include: 1) understanding and modeling the human/social/ cultural/behavioral terrain and 2) assessing the nations' pandemic influenza health cognitions and the impact of these cognitions on emergency preparedness and response activities. Jill received her doctorate in Health and Social Psychology from Rutgers University. She teaches both Persuasion and Health Psychology and Behavior Change.
Wendy Feliz Sefsaf , MA, is the Communications Director at the American Immigration Council, an education, law and policy group in Washington D.C. She manages a highly-effective communications team working to drive a rational conversation about immigration in America, with the goal of advancing comprehensive immigration reform. Her experience in public policy/advocacy communications spans her career in the communications field which has included positions with New America Media, the Open Society Institute, and WAMU 88.5 FM. Earlier in her career she provided direct service to clients through programs at The California Hispanic Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and the Young Adult Institute. Ms. Sefsaf received her M.A. in Public Communication from the American University in Washington D.C. and she holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts from the New School University in New York. She teaches Public Policy Management and Advocacy.
Charles Fulwood co-founder and Partner of MediaVision USA, is a veteran communications strategist with more than 20 years of national and international experience in crisis management, risk and emergency communications, litigation communications, and public media campaigns. Fulwood is the former Communications Director for Amnesty International USA, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Children's Defense Fund. He currently works with clients on crisis communications, reputation management, and brand strategies. Fulwood's writing has been published in the St. Petersburg Times, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, PR Quarterly, and other publications. He has given invited lectures at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, DePaul University College of Law, and Morehouse School of Medicine and has spoken at a variety of national and international conferences. He teaches Emergency and Risk Communication.
Shala Graham is the Principal and Creative Director of SW Creatives, a strategy-minded graphic and web design firm with offices in the Washington, DC, area and in Colorado Springs, CO. She has built a firm dedicated to excellence, honesty, and compassion. With a passion for nonprofit organizations and other organizations committed to helping improve our communities, her team has designed national campaigns, events, websites and marketing materials for clients such as the National Urban League, the Center for Housing Policy, Fannie Mae and the World Bank. Shala's areas of interest and experience include brand identity, presentation design, web design and front-end web coding. In her spare time, Shala serves on the board of Local First Wheaton, and conducts quarterly workshops for the Small Business Development Center around branding principles and websites for small businesses.
David Helfert , MA, brings 40 years in the practice of political and governmental communication to the classroom. He began as a newspaper, radio and television news reporter and anchor, and became public information director for the Texas House of Representatives. He was managing partner of a marketing/advertising agency for nine years and a political/governmental media consultant for seven. Helfert wrote and produced print, television and radio advertising for more than 200 political campaigns, as well as retail, corporate, association and public service clients. He was recruited to the Clinton Administration in 1994. After six years as a Communication and Public Affairs Director, he moved to Hill, serving as Communication Director for two House subcommittee chairmen and Democratic spokesperson for the House Appropriations Committee over nine years. Dave did his undergraduate work in Journalism at the University of Texas and earned a Master's degree in Public Communication from American University in Washington, DC, where he has taught upper division and graduate courses in the School of Communication. He teaches Press Secretary: Theory and Practice and Political Communication Campaigns.
Una Hildebrandt , MLS, serves as a Communications Consultant with Accenture, supporting a client in the federal government. She is an expert in the identification and use of specialized information resources to inform fact-based decision-making in audience selection, analysis, and understanding. She has more than 10 years of experience gathering and synthesizing information to support the development, implementation, and evaluation of communication programs for firms including Booz Allen Hamilton, Fleishman Hillard, and Porter Novelli. She holds a BS from Cornell University and a MLS from the University of Maryland. She teaches Understanding Markets and Audiences.
Elizabeth Hill , MFA, is an educator, graphic/interactive designer, and fine artist, whose numerous honors include awards from Communication Arts, The Art Directors Club of New York, the American Advertising Federation (Addys), and Print Regional Design Annuals. She is the Assistant Dean for Communication Design at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), Alexandria campus, and teaches both print and interactive design. She has also taught at the Corcoran College of Art + Design. Prior to teaching full-time, Hill was a Vice President/Creative Director at Ten United, one of the country’s top 100 independent advertising agencies. She was also a founding partner of Altman Meder Lawrence Hill, a Florida-based agency whose national reputation for creative design attracted clients such as GTE, Johnson & Johnson Medical, the St. Petersburg Times, the State of Florida, Busch Gardens and numerous public service firms. Hill’s fine art work is represented nationally in many private collections and has been part of numerous group shows and invitationals, including, ARTPrize, From Sketchbook to Suspension at St. Johns College Mitchell Gallery, the Adkins Arboretum Outdoor Sculpture Invitational, and Articulation at Pyramid Atlantic Arts Center. A recipient of a Montgomery County Public Arts Trust Project Grant, Hill received her B.A. in Fine Arts / Graphic Design from the University of Florida and her M.F.A. in studio art at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). She teaches Interactive Marketing/Advertising.
Margaret Holtz , MS, has more than 30 years of public relations and communication experience and is a consultant in strategic communication with both national and international clients. She was the senior civilian public affairs specialist in the Department of Navy for 18 years. She has extensive experience developing and managing strategic communication policy and programs and working with national media. She planned and led major events involving heads of state and was a key figure in DOD public affairs activities worldwide. Holtz began her career by writing for a number of publications and supervised a number of award-winning publications and programs. She holds an MS in Public Relations Management from The American University. She is accredited by the Public Relations Society of America and teaches Introduction to Public Relations.
Anya Karavanov , PhD, has extensive experience in designing, conducting, and analyzing consumer market research and developing comprehensive strategic marketing plans and communication materials. She has led several social marketing campaigns and initiatives for the Federal Government and nonprofit organizations such as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, American Diabetes Association, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the GE Foundation. Recently, for Corporation for Public Broadcasting and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Dr. Karavanov spearheaded a number of data collection efforts and message development for low-income populations and minority groups. Dr. Karavanov has also led a number of communication and research activities for private sector clients encompassing brand positioning and image studies. She has overseen creative processes to develop brand identity and various communication materials. Dr. Karavanov is currently an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University. She teaches Communicating for Social Change.
Robert Lehrman was the first Chief Speechwriter for Vice President Al Gore in the White House and has spent much of his career writing speeches for politicians, corporate and non-profit CEOs, and celebrities—as well as award-winning novels. Lehrman's new book, The Political Speechwriter's Companion: A Guide for Speakers and Writers, has won praise from Democrats, Republicans, and a wide variety of journalists, and academics, for its even-handed approach, and the way it fuses Lehrman's story telling ability with his political insight. Lehrman, who appears frequently on radio and TV to talk about speech, writes op-eds and articles on politics under his own name, and has spoken about the subject on many campuses. He has presented speechwriting clinics at the University of Southern California, the National Education Association, and the Ragan National Speechwriters Conference, among others, and coaches professional writers, as well. In the 2004 Presidential campaign, Lehrman was Chief Speechwriter for the Democratic National Committee and in 2006, wrote actor Bradley Whitford's narration for the award-winning Alliance for Justice documentary, Quiet Revolution. A graduate of Tufts University and the famed University of Iowa Writer's Workshop, where he studied with Kurt Vonnegut and Revolutionary Road author Richard Yates, Lehrman began his career as a community college teacher, before his Illinois and New York experience, then wrote for the CEOs and other officers of Texaco and Fannie Mae, before returning to politics in 1987. After writing for Bentsen (D-TX) and Democratic Majority Whips Bill Gray (D-PA) and David Bonior (D-MI), Lehrman wrote over 250 speeches for Vice President Gore, and supervised 250 more speeches before leaving to launch Lehrman Communications in 1996. He teaches Speech Writing.
Ann Lion Coleman , DrPh, has 30 years of experience as a leader and manager of behavior change efforts at the global, regional, and country-level health programs both internationally and domestically. She presently also works at Abt Associates, where she is the project director for the USAID flagship health systems strengthening project which seeks to support local governments in strengthening components of their health systems to more effectively deliver disease specific services. Before Abt, Lion worked at the USG Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator, where she managed a $30 million/yr portfolio of USG Global Fund technical support contracts and grants with UNAIDS, Roll Back Malaria, Stop TB, Green Light Committee, and Management Sciences for Health. Previously Lion worked as Senior Health Advisor for USAID's office of Population and Reproductive Health. She managed the Agency's bureau-wide Capacity Project; oversaw the $250 million portfolio focusing on the strengthening and integration of health systems at a global level; and directed project staffing, strategic planning, and linkages with other global efforts including those at WHO and the World Bank. She also managed USAID's YouthNet project, guiding global activities to improve the reproductive health and HIV/AIDS prevention behaviors of youth. Earlier as Senior Management Advisor at the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), she spent seven years as the regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean where she led efforts to improve performance of health care providers in a number of LAC countries. Lion has her DrPH from George Washington University, her MSPH from University of Illinois, and her BA from Grinnell College. She teaches Changing Behavior through Communication.
Benjamin Lozare , PhD, is the Director for Training and Capacity Building of The Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs. Dr. Lozare has more than 25 years of experience in research, teaching, and practice in international and development communication. He has served as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the Health Sciences Campus of the University of the Philippines, as the first Director-General of the Philippine Information Agency, and as Deputy Secretary-General of the Asian Mass Communication Research and Information Center Foundation. He has consulted with UN agencies such as the World Health Organization, the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East, and the UNFPA. At Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, he has led the development of SCOPE (Strategic Communication Planning and Evaluation), a computer-aided communication planning software used in training workshops. Dr. Lozare was an Eisenhower Fellow and recipient of the first Newsweek International Communication Grant. He obtained his Ph.D. in mass communication from the University of Wisconsin. He teaches Strategic Communication Program Management.
Monte Lutz , MBA, is a Senior Vice President of Digital for Edelman, where he leads Edelman's digital teams in LA and Seattle in support of a variety of corporate and consumer clients, including Microsoft, Nestle and Qualcomm. Monte has been developing marketing, PR and influencer campaigns for 14 years for wide range of organizations, including McDonald's, Disney, Red Cross, OSHA and NASA. Monte launched his first blog - Voter's Block - in 1998. He's also the founder of Reelsoundtrack.com. Monte started his career in traditional media, working at CBS News and C-SPAN. As Vice President of The Public Forum Institute, he produced Congressional forums on health, education, and technology issues. He previously served as a speechwriter for the U.S. Secretary of Labor and the publisher of Fortune magazine. Monte helped to produce an award-winning Super Bowl ad for Monster.com, which was ranked by USA TODAY as one of the Top 10 TV ads of all time. His work has been recognized by PR Week as one of the top crisis communication campaigns. He also has received the Public Affairs Council's Innovation Award and a Bronze Anvil from the Public Relations Society of America. Monte has bachelor's degrees in Government and Religious Studies from Claremont McKenna College and an MBA from the University of Florida. He is frequently featured as a guest speaker at social media and industry conferences. His work on social media and politics has been profiled in Fast Company and at the National Press Club. You can find him at @montelutz. He teaches Using Social and Digital Media.
Jad Melki , PhD, the research director of the International Center for Media and the Public Agenda and a faculty member at the Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change, is a professor of journalism and media studies at the American University of Beirut. Melki was a broadcast and online journalist for over 10 years working with American and Arabic media. He was part of the Webby award and Press Club award winning Hot Zone team (Yahoo! News), covering the Hezbollah-Israel war of summer 2006. Melki’s research focuses on journalism and media education and curricular development, global media literacy, media development, coverage of war and terrorism, trauma journalism, and new and digital media. Melki received his Ph.D. in Journalism and Media Studies from the University of Maryland, College Park. He teaches Research and Writing Methods, Essential Skills in Digital Media Literacy, and Thesis.
Monica Moore , MEd, has completed doctoral course work in Education, Policy Planning and Leadership at the University of Maryland College Park and is the Executive Director of Academic Services in the Advanced Academic Programs at Johns Hopkins University. She has taught at College of Notre Dame, the University of Maryland and Florida International University in Miami. Moore is the owner of High Aspirations, LLC, an educational and management consulting service and possesses extensive experience in marketing and communication in higher education. She has served as a Senior Director at Georgetown University, Assistant Dean for Marketing & Outreach at American University and the Vice President for Enrollment Management at College of Notre Dame of Maryland. Moore holds a bachelor's degree in Communication Arts from Salisbury University and a Master of Education degree from the University of Maryland College Park. She teaches Organizational Communication.
Susan Morris , PhD, received her BA degree in Economics (with Honors) from Columbia University and her MA and Ph.D. degrees in the History of Science, Medicine, and Technology from Johns Hopkins. She has several years' experience in the fields of publishing, economic research, the marketing of consumer and industrial products, and as an entrepreneur. She has also been an advisor and consulting editor in producing science documentaries for public broadcasting. Her published work examines how 19th-century scientists crafted their scientific writing to persuade and appeal to a lay public. Her current research includes scientific communication, entrepreneurship in science and technology, university-industry-government partnerships, and the evolution of communications technology. She teaches Introduction to Graduate Work, Journalism & Publishing in the Digital Age, Media Effects, Persuasion, and The Rise of Communications Technologies.
Joan Mower , MA, is the director of development and international media training at the Voice of America (VOA), the largest U.S. international broadcaster. She develops special broadcasting and training projects around the world, focusing primarily on Africa and Southeast Asia. She previously headed public affairs at the VOA and at the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), its parent agency. In 2007-2008, she worked at the Department of State, handling public affairs on Sudan and Darfur. She joined the U.S. international broadcasting agency in 2002 after serving as the director of international programs/Africa and Latin America at The Freedom Forum/Newseum. At the foundation, she promoted press freedom, working with journalists, governments and the private sector. She is also a former Foreign Service Officer. Mower began her career as a journalist with UPI. In Washington, she worked for the Associated Press, covering the State Department, Congress and the White House. She graduated from the University of California/Berkeley with a degree in political science, and she holds an M.A. in African Studies from Johns Hopkins SAIS. She teaches International Public Relations and Public Diplomacy.
David Nichols currently serves as Chairman of CounterPoint Strategies, a high-stakes communications firm with offices in New York City and Washington, D.C. He is the founder and retired Chairman and CEO of Nichols • Dezenhall Communications Management Group, Ltd., where he specialized in crisis management, risk communications and spokesperson training. Before forming Nichols • Dezenhall, he was senior vice president and account group manager at Needham Porter Novelli (Omnicom). Nichols began his career as an investigative news correspondent. He left the news business to become a campaign press secretary for New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay. He later served as Chief of Staff for the Wisconsin Legislature's Joint Committee on Finance, and was subsequently appointed Deputy Secretary of Revenue, a state cabinet-level position. He relocated to Washington, D.C., to become senior media spokesperson for the Cuban-Haitian Task Force under the Carter and Reagan administrations, where he managed crisis communication following the controversial 1980 Mariel boatlift. He has appeared as a spokesperson on numerous television network news programs. He is the author of Rules for Corporate Warriors (2001), a primer on crisis management. In addition to developing a unique crisis management formula, Nichols has written a series of articles and publications that define and examine crisis management strategies and media relations tactics. He teaches Crisis and Issue Communication and Spokesperson Development and Training.
Randall Packer , PhD, is an internationally acclaimed multimedia artist and composer, creating works that have pioneered the integration of interactive media, installation, and liveperformance. His work has been performed and exhibited at galleries, museums, theaters, and festivals throughout the world. In 2001, he founded the US Department of Art & Technology in Washington, DC and was appointed as its first Secretary. Most recently, he received a commission to debut his multimedia theater work, A Season in Hell, at the ZER01/01SJ Biennial in San Jose, California. Packer holds an MFA and PhD in music composition and has taught multimedia at the University of California, Berkeley, Maryland Institute College of Art, and American University in Washington, DC. He is currently on the faculty of the Advanced Academic Programs at Johns Hopkins University where he teaches the history, theory and practice of multimedia. Packer is a writer and scholar in the field of new media, most notably the co-editor of Multimedia: From Wagner to Virtual Reality.
Grant Perry , JD, is a new media consultant, journalist and lawyer. Perry heads Evolution Strategies, a consulting firm specializing in media training, new media strategies and content development. Perry was an award-winning journalist at CNN, where he was a New York-based correspondent and then anchor of CNN International's London-based business program, World Business Today. Perry went on to work as a new media executive and consultant in Europe, the Silicon Valley and New York. He has produced live Webcasts, Web video, TV segments and marketing promotions for Yahoo, Salon.com, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and Francis Ford Coppola. Early in his career, he was chief political correspondent for two network affiliates in the Midwest. Perry has taught journalism at American University and is a member of the Washington, DC, Bar. Perry teaches Journalism in the Digital Age and Spokesperson Development and Training.
Ronald Phillips , MS, is President and CEO of REPUBLIC CONSULTANTS, LLC, which specializes in working with national security, technology, aerospace, and aviation organizations and corporations to help advance their federal policy objectives in Washington. Phillips started his lobbying career at Cassidy & Associates in the beginning of 2005 after serving as Senior Policy Advisor and Professional Staff member on the House Armed Services Committee. Prior to his time with the Armed Services Committee, Phillips worked for Representative Hunter in the GOP Leadership for five years at the House Republican Research Committee. While with Congressman Hunter, Phillips coordinated the activities of over fifty Republican Leadership Task Forces and handled all external communication and political development for the Research Committee. Additionally, he has held several other positions related to governmental and legislative affairs in both Washington, D.C. and in Florida, representing a total of 25 years of experience in all facets of federal government relations. Phillips has a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Science degree, both in Political Science from Florida State University. He teaches Government Relations and Lobbying.
William Pierce , MA, is a senior vice president of APCO Worldwide where he specializes in providing strategic advice and counsel, tactical execution and representation to a wide range of clients facing challenging circumstances as well as great opportunity. He helps clients develop strategies and tactics that combine media relations, policy, advocacy and alliances in campaigns to achieve definable objectives.. Prior to joining APCO in 2005, Pierce served as the deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). At HHS Pierce was senior spokesperson for the department and the secretary and provided public affairs counsel to HHS and its agencies including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Office of Global Health Affairs. Prior to joining HHS, Pierce served as the director of public affairs for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and before that worked first as a press secretary for Congresswoman Olympia Snowe (R-ME) then Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA). He teaches Spokesperson Development and Training.
Joel Ranck , MBA, is the director of Continuing Education in the Health Professions at George Washington University Medical Center. He provides leadership, instructional design, new product development, meeting planning and marketing services for educational products directed a health care practitioners. Ranck is the founder of Lincoln Park Communications, a communications consultancy that serves healthcare, biotechnology, technology, market research organizations and economic development agencies. Over his 19 years as a communicator, Ranck has executed a variety of projects for companies such as Children's National Medical Center, Pfizer, McCaw International, Ford Motor Company, First Union, Current Analysis, Pepco, and AIG, to name a few. He has worked for Eklektik Communications (Prague, CZ), Golin/Harris International and Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide. Ranck has been recognized by both PRSA and IABC for excellence in communications. He teaches Integrated Marketing Communication.
Andrea Rojchin is founder and creative director of SUMO Creative, a branding and marketing agency since 2002. Whether shaping creative direction and strategic marketing or guiding print and new media projects, Gabby has spent nearly two decades earning her stripes—not to mention over 500 design and marketing awards along the way. Before launching SUMO Creative in 2002, Gabby was a heavyweight at the internationally acclaimed Supon Design Group. There she developed thoughtful creative, integrated marketing plans and promotional strategies for clients in sundry media and disciplines. Prior to Supon, Gabby honed her skills working for graphic design studios and ad agencies known for producing nationally recognized creative. Working on projects of various scopes and sizes, Gabby bolstered her clients' market presence through creative and strategic planning. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Gabby holds degrees in Communications Arts and Business and is a member of the AIGA and the Art Director's Club of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. She teaches Branding and Advertising.
Alan Rosenblatt , PhD, is the Associate Director for Online Advocacy at the Center for American Progress Action Fund. He is a long-time and frequent speaker and author on digital media, advocacy, and politics, including social networking, blogging, grassroots, and mobile advocacy strategies. He is the founder of the Internet Advocacy Center; a Fellow at George Washington University’s Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet; and a blogger at the award-winning TechPresident.com and DrDigiPol.com. He is also a founding team member of Media Bureau Networks (MBN), a pioneer in streaming media services; a contributing editor to Politics Online; serves on the editorial boards of several scholarly journals dedicated to the study of the internet, politics, and government; and is a member of the Board of Directors for E-Democracy.org. With MBN, he webcasted live coverage of the 2000 Presidential Conventions. In 2001, he served as Vice President for Online Advocacy Services division at Stateside Associates. From 2003 to 2005 he served as Director of Training Programs at e-advocates. Alan Rosenblatt has a PhD in Political Science from American University, an MA in Political Science from Boston College, and a BA in Political Science and Philosophy from Tufts University. He teaches Digital Political Strategy.
Beth Ruoff a member of Ogilvy PR’s Strategy and Planning Group, shapes corporate social responsibility (CSR), branding and social marketing communications strategies and programs for diverse clients, including Kimberly-Clark, National Institutes of Health, Unilever, Capital Area Food Bank and more. She has particular expertise in developing CSR programs, working closely with brands and corporations such as Huggies, Quaker, Jones New York and Nestlé to develop CSR strategies that are integral to business operations rather than purely a tool for building public goodwill. Previously, Beth headed Ogilvy PR’s Creative Studio, where she led the development of award-winning campaigns that raised awareness, educated, and prompted action on challenging and complex issues, including HIV/AIDS, heart disease, cancer, nutrition, sustainability and reproductive health. Beth was the creative force behind the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s campaign, The Heart Truth, also known as “The Red Dress Campaign,” which made that garment an iconic symbol for women and heart disease. Outside of Ogilvy, Beth is active in the non-profit community. She serves on the Board of Directors of Fauna & Flora International, works closely with Girls, Inc. and is a member of the Phillips Collection where she served on the Contemporaries Steering Committee. She teaches Corporate Social Responsibility Campaigns.
Andrew Schwartzman , JD, is the Senior Vice-President and Policy Director of Media Access Project. He also serves on the International Advisory Board of Southwestern Law School's National Entertainment & Media Law Institute and on the Board of Directors of the Minority Media Telecommunications Council. His work has been published in major legal and general journals, including Variety, Electronic Media, The Washington Post, COMM/ENT Law Journal and The ABA Journal. He has also been a frequent guest on television and radio programs. In recognition of his service as chief counsel in the public interest community's challenge to the FCC's June, 2003 media ownership deregulation decision, Scientific American honored Schwartzman as one of the nation's 50 leaders in technology for 2004. He teaches Communications Law and Policy Making.
Sharyn Sutton , PhD is a nationally recognized innovator in the field of social marketing. Sutton is co-developer of the Consumer-based Health Communication process, which creates science-based, consumer-oriented marketing programs for social change. Applying strategy, audience research and marketing to government and nonprofit programs, Sutton helped achieve measurable success in areas including cancer prevention & early detection, palliative care, consumer fraud, Medicare & Medicaid benefits and nutrition. Sutton currently consults with leaders of social enterprise initiatives that cross sectors. Building on her experience with public/private partnerships, Sutton works to create the social and economic value needed for large scale, sustainable social change. As Vice President for Strategy & Communication at AARP Foundation Sutton led the repositioning and branding of the Foundation as the nation’s primary charitable organization helping low-income, vulnerable older people meet their basic needs. Sutton was Managing Director for Health Communication and Social Marketing at AIR after it acquired Sutton Group, the social marketing firm she founded in 1996. Clients included Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Pew Charitable Trusts, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Center to Advance Palliative Care, National Campaign for Tobacco-Free-Kids and AARP. Sutton served in the government as Director of Nutrition Marketing for USDA designing Team Nutrition a children’s nutrition campaign in partnership with Disney and Scholastic. Sutton was also branch chief with NCI’s Office of Cancer Communication directing a number of its award-winning campaigns. These included the first national mammography campaign, creating partnerships with Avon, Revlon, NBC, the Susan B. Komen Foundation and the YWCA; launching the national 5-A-Day program; and creating its multicultural cancer communication efforts. Sutton was Executive Vice President at Porter Novelli, one of the country’s leading public relations companies. She has served as faculty at the American University’s School of Communication and School of Public Policy, was an adjunct faculty member for George Washington University’s MBA program and was a lecturer for the Brookings Institution Executive Training series. She speaks to national organizations on social marketing and change and currently serves as an adjunct faculty member at Johns Hopkins University. She teaches Communicating for Social Change.
Chan Le Thai , MPH, is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara where her research interests include media literacy, media effects, and health communication. Prior to joining UCSB, she received her Master of Public Health at the UCLA School of Public Health from the Department of Community Health Sciences where she focused on health promotion, evaluation, and school-based nutrition education programs. Thai has extensive experience conducting large-scale evaluations and has worked extensively with Los Angeles Unified School District on their nutrition education messaging and interventions. She is currently working on developing a media literacy scale for use across a broad range of intervention settings, with the long-term intent of applying media literacy interventions to dietary outcomes. She teaches Introduction to the Digital Age.
Jane Twomey , PhD, is Program Coordinator for the MA in Communication. She received her PhD in Mass Communication from the University of Maryland at College Park. She holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication and a Bachelor's degree in Honors English from California State University at Northridge. Before coming to Hopkins, Twomey taught for 10 years in the School of Communication at American University. Twomey began her career in public relations and communication management. While at the University of Maryland she served as assistant editor for the Journal of Communication. Her research areas include race, hegemony and the media; and collective memory and media representation. Her work has appeared in Journal of Communication, Journalism History, Race, Gender & Class, the Baltimore Sun and the Houston Chronicle. Twomey teaches Research and Writing Methods, Media Effects, Persuasion, and Thesis.
Jill Underhill , MA, is a fourth-year doctoral student at the University of Maryland, where she received her MA degree in 2006. She is currently pursuing a PhD with an emphasis in Persuasion & Social Influence. Underhill’s research program takes an empirical approach to studying the intersection of persuasion, emotion, and cognition in order to better understand the processes mediating and moderating message reception, acceptance, and behavior change. Specifically, her research focuses on how emotional appeals can elicit attitude and behavior change within political, social, and health communication contexts. Underhill is also the Assistant Director of the Center for Risk Communication Research at the University of Maryland, which specializes in state-of-the-art research on risk prevention, risk perception, and emotion, cognition, and decision making. She teaches Research and Writing Methods.
Paula Weissman , MA, is Program Coordinator for the MA in Communication. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Communication at the University of Maryland at College Park. She earned her Master’s degree in Communication from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania in 1998. Weissman has extensive experience working with a variety of private and public sector organizations working to improve health. She has conducted research for several national health communication campaigns, including campaigns to encourage physical activity, improve nutrition, and increase cancer screening behaviors. Her research areas include health and risk communication with an emphasis on mass media messages and effects. Weissman teaches Applied Quantitative Methods, Research and Writing Methods, Changing Behavior Through Communication, and Thesis.
Xu Wu , PhD, is a Professor of Strategic Media and Public Relations at Arizona State University and the author of Chinese Cyber Nationalism: Evolution, Characteristics, and Implications (April 2007). Before his career as a professor, Wu worked as a national correspondent and news editor at the Xinhua (New China) News Agency in Beijing for six years. He was the co-founder of the media consulting agency Unicorn Culture and the director of Beijing's first soccer weekly: 11 Players (1998-2000). He received both his doctoral degree and master degree from University of Florida, with specializations in the Chinese media system, crisis management, political communication and international public relations. His work has been published by Journal of Communication, Public Relations Quarterly, Public Relations Review, Asian Journal of Communication, International Communication Gazette, and Journal of Public Relations Research. As an expert on Chinese cyber nationalism and international public relations, he was interviewed and quoted by major media outlets such as AP, AFP, Reuters, BBC, Al Jazeera, New Yorker, Chicago Tribune, the Guardian, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, CCTV, Strait Times, etc. He teaches Communication in China.

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