6 Missouri Journalism Professors Awarded Hearst Faculty Fellowships

Elizabeth W. Frogge, Holly Higginbotham, Sara Shipley Hiles, Ron Stodghill, Amy Simons and Cristina Mislan

Missouri Journalism faculty receiving a William Randolph Hearst Faculty Fellowship grant for the 2019-20 academic year are (clockwise from top-left) Elizabeth W. Frogge, Holly Higginbotham, Sara Shipley Hiles, Ron Stodghill, Amy Simons and Cristina Mislán.

The Competitive Grants Will Advance the School’s Strategic Plan

Columbia, Mo. (March 22, 2019) — Six Missouri School of Journalism faculty have been selected to receive a William Randolph Hearst Faculty Fellowship grant for the 2019-20 academic year.

The fellowships are part of a two-year, $150,000 grant awarded to the School to help support initiatives stemming from the School’s strategic plan, which was updated in January 2017. The funds will help address critical areas to ensure Missouri’s status as the gold standard in journalism education, said Dean David Kurpius.

“New technologies, new perspectives and new opportunities will allow Missouri to better prepare tomorrow’s leaders and to ensure a bright future for journalism and strategic communication,” he said. “We thank the Hearst Foundation and the recipients of these grants for investing their time and talents in the School’s tradition of excellence.”

The William Randolph Hearst Faculty Fellowships were established in 2017 at the Missouri School of Journalism by the William Randolph Hearst Foundation.

The six fellows are:

Associate Professor Elizabeth Frogge
Frogge will focus on building a new, fully-converged newsroom at the School, combining the resources that currently exist at the digital-first Columbia Missourian, NBC affiliate KOMU-TV 8, NPR affiliate KBIA-FM, Vox Magazine, and the Missouri Business Alert.
Associate Professor Holly Higginbotham
Higginbotham will research social listening strategies currently used by brands and news organizations, with the goal of creating a guidebook of best practices for use in the School’s newsrooms and agencies.
Associate Professor Sara Shipley Hiles
Hiles will develop a plan to create a science communication center, one that will enhance research on relevant topics, provide collaborative opportunities with scientists and communicators, and build bridges with the National Science Foundation-funded National Alliance for Broader Impacts program.
Assistant Professor Cristina Mislán
Mislán will develop a training program for faculty to better infuse diversity and inclusion principles into their classrooms. She is also helping develop a National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) chapter for the School.
Associate Professor Amy Simons
Simons will explore ways to ensure more opportunities for women – in classrooms, professional newsrooms and agencies – in the School’s ongoing efforts to maintain workplaces free of harassment, discrimination and incivility.
Associate Professor Ron Stodghill
Stodghill will explore uncelebrated, hidden and revisionist histories of American cities and towns. He plans to utilize cross-platform storytelling techniques to document and tell these stories.

About Hearst Foundations

The Hearst Foundations are national philanthropic resources for organizations working in the fields of culture, education, health and social services. The Hearst Foundation, Inc., was founded by William Randolph Hearst in 1945. In 1948, Hearst established the California Charities Foundations, later renamed The William Randolph Hearst Foundation. Both foundations are guided by the same charitable mission, which reflects the philanthropic interests of their founder.

Updated: November 6, 2020