Q: Your Name?

A:  Ellen Hernandez

Q: At what school do you work?
A: Brigham Young University (GO COUGARS!!!)

Q: How long have you been in student media?

A: I have worked at the Daily Universe for 25 years.

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?

A: I am most proud of my students, past and present and the accomplishments they have made in their lives and the impact they have been on the world around them. 

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: Fun fact about me is that I love cooking and baking and have owned a restaurant and a hotel before.

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: The media project I am currently picking brains about is our Housing Guide. BYU just changed the housing rules and I’m trying to figure out how to navigate these new waters. As an academically driven program, I am always interested in seeing how others manage the constant changing landscape of academia and the impact that has on advertising.

Q: What is your favorite snack on a road trip?
A: Favorite snack has to be salty and sweet. I’m a sucker for sea salt caramels (chocolate covered of course). My go to, always have in the house, can’t be without, is chips and guacamole. 

Connect with Ellen: Ellen_Hernandez@byu.edu

Q: Your Name?
A:  Jon Schlitt

Q: At what school do you work?
A: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: This is my 15th year in student media (11 at KU, 1 at Michigan and starting my 3rd here at Cal Poly). 

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: I’m most proud that my students found a way to do INCREDIBLE work during the first 18 months of the pandemic. We had the toughest COVID-19 regulations in the nation here in California but found a way to get a paper out once a month (including hanging it on 1500 doors each month), to get radio broadcasts done daily literally from their bedrooms, report the news, grow our audience through great, targeted marketing campaigns and have a pretty great year from both an awards and revenue standpoint when all was said and done. Probably the greatest effort I’ve ever seen in my 15 years in student media. 

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: When i was 14 years old and in high school I wanted to try acting so I tried out for “A Christmas Carol”. I was 5’3″ so of course I got cast as Tiny Tim. I was so bitter about it that I joined the high school paper and eventually starting selling ads for them which eventually led me here. 

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: Now that we are back in person I’d love to pick another school’s brain on monetizing video production and services.

Q: What is your favorite snack on a road trip?
A: I could give you a noble answer but it’s chocolate M&Ms. The red ones are the best!

Connect with Jon: jschlitt@calpoly.edu

Q: Your Name?
A:  Dominique Lee

Q: At what school do you work?
A: Virginia Commonwealth University

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: 2 years

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: How easy our students made transitioning back and forth between virtual and in-person.

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: I am a professional model in Richmond and actually met a lot of students on the runway before I began working here.  

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty runway show

Q: What is your favorite snack on a road trip?
A: potato chips

Connect with Dominique: leeds3@vcu.edu

Q : Your Name?
A:  Will Parchman

Q: At what school do you work?
A: UT Arlington

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: 1 year

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: In 2021, we were named finalists for 16 College Media Association awards, including 5 for sales and marketing success in the midst of the pandemic.

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: Me: I interned with the Dallas Cowboys in college and got to share office space with legendary Cowboys broadcaster Brad Sham. 

Town: Arlington just broke ground on the inaugural Medal of Honor Museum, which will honor America’s Medal of Honor recipients.

University: After a 12-year journey, UT Arlington was just named a Texas Tier One institution for research excellence. 

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: A periodic culture and entertainment-focused feature magazine.

Q: What is your favorite snack on a road trip?
A: Combos

Connect with Will: will.parchman@uta.edu

Q: Your Name?
A:  Kelly Merges

Q: At what school do you work?
A: UNC Charlotte

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: 17 years at UNC Charlotte. 15 years as the assistant director, one year as the interim director, and this is my first year as the director. 

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: I am most proud of the growth and development my students are able to experience here in our program. It’s exciting to watch them gain media skills, but it’s even more rewarding to watch them mature and develop their leadership skills.

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: I recently earned my master’s degree in Educational Leadership with a focus on Higher Education from UNC Charlotte. Quite a few years ago, I earned my bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication with a concentration in Public Relations from Nicholls State university in Thibodaux, Louisiana. Nicholls is affectionately known to Louisianians as “Harvard on the Bayou”. I still can’t believe I earned another degree at this point in my career.  

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: I’d like to know more about shifting to a less-revenue focused funding model. Revenue has been on the decline here, so i would like to know how we can become less dependent on that revenue while maintaining our current offerings to students. 

Q: What is your favorite snack on a road trip?
A: Pecan Divinity from the Cracker Barrel Country Store

Connect with Michelle: klmerges@uncc.edu