Heather Epkins

At Johns Hopkins, Heather Davis Epkins is a lecturer for the MA in Communication program.

Epkins currently serves as an Internal Communications Strategist for the Science Applications International Corporation, supporting the strategic communications for 25,000 SAIC employees. Previously, she directed communications for the Governor’s Coordinating Offices and Maryland Environmental Services within the administration of Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and for the United States Naval Academy Alumni Association and Foundation.

With more than 20 years of professional experience, Epkins has served as strategic communications lead for corporations, associations, and nonprofits, as well as local, state, and federal government entities—including as a press secretary on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

She has experience as a print/broadcast journalist, and has taught for the University of Maryland, Towson University, and other local institutions. Epkins’ award-winning peer-reviewed research on national security journalists’ coverage of terrorism has international reach. Most recently, she published a book chapter detailing how the Hogan Administration utilized social media during the COVID-19 pandemic within the Governor’s Coordinating Offices. Epkins serves as a board member for the Public Relations Society of America Chesapeake Chapter, a volunteer with American Heritage Girls Troop MD1789, and is the proud mom of two children and a Yorkipoo named Samson.