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

Q: Your Name?
A:  Michelle Kurland

Q: At what school do you work?
A: California State University, Fullerton

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: 6 years

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: I am incredibly proud of how our Daily Titan team pulled together in 2020 and retained our business despite incredibly difficult circumstances. More than that, we were able to maintain a sense of work ethic and positive morale while working remotely for 18 months!

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: I have played soccer almost my entire life and have been playing on the Black Widows (a women’s recreational soccer team) for 16 years. The city motto of Placentia, CA is “A pleasant place to live” (and after living her for more than 20 years, I would have to say it is). The “First Intercollegiate Elephant Race in Human History” was held at CSUF in 1962. This is where our mascot, Tuffy the Titan, derived its name.  

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: I would love to know more about student micro-influencer marketing.

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

Connect with Michelle: mkurland@fullerton.edu

Q: Your Name?
A:  Laura Metcalf

Q: At what school do you work?
A: Louisiana State University

Q: How long have you been in student media?
A: 3 years

Q: What are you most proud of at your current Student Media org?
A: I am most proud of the students that work in my office. It is so rewarding to hear their ideas and see their visions come to life. Each year they continue to get better and better, and I love seeing that growth!

Q: What is a fun fact about you, your town, your University?
A: Every football National Championship game LSU has ever gone to has been played in New Orleans – including the time we went back in 1959! I have attended all of them (except for the one in 1959), as I am a proud graduate of the university. GEAUX TIGERS! LSU is in Louisiana’s capital city of Baton Rouge, which is home to the nation’s tallest state capitol. 

Q: What is a media project you would most like to pick someone’s brain about?
A: Graduation Issues – how do you sell ads to the parents?

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

Connect with Laura: lmetcalf1@lsu.edu