Five finalists have been named for the position of dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Colorado at Boulder, according to Todd Gleeson, associate vice chancellor for faculty affairs and search committee chair.
The finalists for the position are Del Brinkman, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation; Sharon Murphy, Bradley University; Alexis Tan, Washington State University; John Pavlik, Columbia University; and John Soloski, University of Iowa.
The first candidate expected to visit the campus April 3-4 is Del Brinkman, director of journalism programs at the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, which is known for making national grants in journalism, higher education and the field of arts and culture. It also supports organizations in 26 communities where the Knight brothers were involved in publishing newspapers, but is wholly separate from and independent of those papers.
Prior to his current position, Brinkman held several positions at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, including vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He received his doctorate in mass communications and political science from Indiana University.
All of the candidates will meet with faculty, students, staff and advisory board members from the School of Journalism, faculty from the department of communication, university administrators, the vice chancellor for academic affairs and the search committee. Times and locations for the meetings are still being confirmed and will be distributed shortly by the committee.
Following are the expected campus visits for the remaining finalists:
April 6-7: Sharon Murphy, professor of communication and interim chair in the department of communication, Bradley University, Peoria, Ill. Murphy has also served as provost, vice president for academic affairs and professor of communication at Bradley. She received her doctorate in communication from the University of Iowa. Her research interests include women and minorities in the media, specifically Native Americans.
April 10-11: Alexis Tan, professor and director of the Edward R. Murrow School of Communication at Washington State University. Tan received his doctorate in mass communications from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. His research interests include communication and socialization of cultural minorities, including mass media use, effects and information processing.
April 17-18: John Pavlik, professor at the Graduate School of Journalism and executive director of the Center for New Media, Columbia University, New York. Pavlik received his doctorate in mass communication from the University of Minnesota. Prior to his affiliation with Columbia University, he was professor in the School of Communication at San Diego State University and served as its founding director. Pavlik聮s research interests include digital and multimedia journalism.
April 19-20: John Soloski, director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa, where he also received his doctorate in mass communication. Soloski聮s research interests include libel issues in communication. He has also served as an adjunct professor in law for several years.
CU-Boulder's School of Journalism and Mass Communication provides a variety of degree programs for students interested in journalism careers. Undergraduate program offerings include advertising, broadcast news, broadcast production management, news-editorial and media studies.
Graduate degree programs are offered in mass communication research, newsgathering, integrated marketing communications, environmental journalism and communication. For more information visit the school's Web site at .