Biography
I was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1960. Other than a few vacations with my family, I spent all of my time growing up in that working class town. No one in my family had graduated from college so I had no interest in continuing my education beyond high school.
After graduating I started a full-time job as a car parking valet. On some weekends I would visit friends who were attending the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Comparing their experiences to my own (as a parking valet), it became painfully obvious that a college education would be the path for me if I wanted succeed in the future. I enrolled at Jefferson Community College (JCC) in Louisville in the spring semester after I graduated from high school.
I had a deep interest in art - mostly drawing. My goal was to teach art in high school. After two semesters at JCC I decided to move to Lexington and enroll at the University of Kentucky. Once there, a friend asked me to help them with a project for a video production class. I loved it! I decided to major in radio, television and film.
Upon graduation I started a lengthy and diverse career in media production. I had a passion for creating good stories utilizing video technology. After working in video production, then as a television sports reporter and anchor and then as a documentary filmmaker, I decided that I wanted to return to school with the goal of teaching.
I was living in Austin at the time and was fortunate to be accepted in the graduate program in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State in San Marcos. My experience in the program was outstanding!
At the beginning of my second year I decided that I wanted to continue my education and applied to two doctoral programs. I was accepted to join the program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of the most respected journalism graduate programs in the country.
It was a rigorous program. About a third of those who start it do not complete it. I was determined to finish. In addition to coursework, I worked as a teaching assistant nearly every semester that I was in the program. Unlike my classmates, I also taught as an adjunct at three schools while in my coursework and working as a teaching assistant. I commuted to Marquette University, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and to Beloit College. Along with my experience as a TA at UW, I gained tremendously valuable teaching experience working at those three schools.
After completing my coursework but before defending my dissertation, I was offered a job at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa. I commuted 165 miles round trip every day. I taught a four three load and completed and defended my 300 page dissertation during that first year that I taught full-time.
I have had people tell me that they were tired just hearing about my story of getting my advanced degrees and my early experience as a faculty member. There were certainly moments that I was exhausted but I never considered giving up. I enjoyed nearly every single moment of this experience. My hope was that it would eventually payoff with a job at an institution that I loved in a city that I could enjoy. That dream came true when I was offered a position at Texas State. This is a dream come true for me!
After graduating I started a full-time job as a car parking valet. On some weekends I would visit friends who were attending the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Comparing their experiences to my own (as a parking valet), it became painfully obvious that a college education would be the path for me if I wanted succeed in the future. I enrolled at Jefferson Community College (JCC) in Louisville in the spring semester after I graduated from high school.
I had a deep interest in art - mostly drawing. My goal was to teach art in high school. After two semesters at JCC I decided to move to Lexington and enroll at the University of Kentucky. Once there, a friend asked me to help them with a project for a video production class. I loved it! I decided to major in radio, television and film.
Upon graduation I started a lengthy and diverse career in media production. I had a passion for creating good stories utilizing video technology. After working in video production, then as a television sports reporter and anchor and then as a documentary filmmaker, I decided that I wanted to return to school with the goal of teaching.
I was living in Austin at the time and was fortunate to be accepted in the graduate program in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State in San Marcos. My experience in the program was outstanding!
At the beginning of my second year I decided that I wanted to continue my education and applied to two doctoral programs. I was accepted to join the program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of the most respected journalism graduate programs in the country.
It was a rigorous program. About a third of those who start it do not complete it. I was determined to finish. In addition to coursework, I worked as a teaching assistant nearly every semester that I was in the program. Unlike my classmates, I also taught as an adjunct at three schools while in my coursework and working as a teaching assistant. I commuted to Marquette University, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and to Beloit College. Along with my experience as a TA at UW, I gained tremendously valuable teaching experience working at those three schools.
After completing my coursework but before defending my dissertation, I was offered a job at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa. I commuted 165 miles round trip every day. I taught a four three load and completed and defended my 300 page dissertation during that first year that I taught full-time.
I have had people tell me that they were tired just hearing about my story of getting my advanced degrees and my early experience as a faculty member. There were certainly moments that I was exhausted but I never considered giving up. I enjoyed nearly every single moment of this experience. My hope was that it would eventually payoff with a job at an institution that I loved in a city that I could enjoy. That dream came true when I was offered a position at Texas State. This is a dream come true for me!
Research Interests
My research interests also tend to follow my teaching and professional interests. The majority of my research focuses on media coverage of sports and athletes. I enjoy analyzing media texts to determine how media producers have chosen to frame stories. Much of my work has focused on media portrayals of athletes and race.
Teaching Interests
I thoroughly enjoy teaching video production and sports broadcasting. I have taught a general education course in media and society and love teaching students, particularly those who are not in journalism and mass communication majors, about the role media have played in shaping our society. I would also love to teach a course in race, gender, sexuality and media, particularly in sports media. So many important events in our history have been associated with a sporting event or athlete (e.g., USA Olympic hockey in 1980 or Muhammad Ali).