Welcome to the Grady Fellows update
A note from Dean Davis
Dear Fellows:
What a joy it has been to welcome students, faculty and staff back to the building full-time this semester. Things are beginning to feel a little more traditional and I find myself reflecting on the traditions we have built as a College. One of the most important is the Grady Fellowship. More than 100 members strong, this accomplished group is part of our fabric and I am grateful to each one of you for your involvement and commitment.
By now, I’m sure you heard the sad news of the passing of Fellow Carrol Dadisman. Carrol was a beloved member of the Fellows family, a great friend of the college and a loyal Red and Black supporter. He was one of the kindest people I have ever encountered. Carrol reminds me of what a special group the Fellows has become, full of so many wonderful people. He was so proud of this place and its students.
In that spirit, I want to give you a quick update on some exciting things happening in Athens.
Our journalism department has developed important partnerships that will provide opportunities for our students. We are partnering with The Bitter Southerner to support great storytelling. Undergraduate students will team with Bitter Southerner staff on podcast productions and exclusive internships while stories from our MFA students will be shared online and in print editions. Meanwhile students in our Health and Medical Journalism graduate program will work with Kaiser Health News on a new initiative to boost health care coverage in the south. Additionally our Cox Institute will offer expanded skills development and training opportunities programs for students and professionals through the newly-restructured Journalism Innovation Lab and Journalism Writing Lab.
As many of you know, we have been working for several years now to garner support for a full-time manager for Talking Dog, the college’s integrated AD/PR agency. The dream has been to turn TD into a curricular offering, and build a book of business for the agency to make it self-sustaining. The first search for the manager resulted in the hiring of Mary Ellen Barto, who will join us later this fall. She is currently Director of Media Strategy, Optimization, and Integration at Luckie & Co. in Duluth.
Our MFA program in Film, Television, and Digital Media welcomed 19 new students – the second cohort in the program’s history – and the send-year MFA students are now fully immersed in their residences at Trilith Studios south of Atlanta (formerly Pinewood Studios). We also had a strong low-residency MFA cohort. We’ve opened our new film and television production space on the ground floor of the college for these students. We’re beginning construction on classroom and editing bays at Trilith – and will soon open our first-ever academic space beyond the UGA campus. Five years ago, we had not a single MFA student – and no programs. Today we have three programs and 80+ students.
Much is happening here, pandemic or not.
Thank you for your support of our work and feel free to reach out to me with questions.
Charles
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Fellows updates
It's hard to keep up with all of the great things our Fellows accomplish, so we are just sharing a few below. Feel free to email Diane Murray, murrayd@uga.edu, with your latest news.
- Cathy Cox (ABJ '80, Fellows Class '15) has been named President of Georgia College and State University, effective Oct. 1.
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Chris Dixon (ABJ ’89, MA ’92, Fellows Class '15) recently released “The Ocean: The Ultimate Handbook of Nautical Knowledge.”
- Bill Hartman (ABJ '70, Fellows Class '08) and Chris Holcomb (ABJ '85, Fellows Class '19) have been named to the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Southeast Chapter 2020-21 Silver Circle, representing news and television professionals with 25 or more years of experience leading and innovating in service of their communities.
- In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Atlanta Olympic Games, Dick Yarbrough (ABJ '59, Fellows Class '08) re-released his book "And they Call Them Games", detailing his experience.
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Fellow highlight: Carolyn Tieger (ABJ '69, Fellows Class '08)
Carolyn Tieger is a philanthropic champion of our AdPR department, providing a generous endowment for our Public Affairs Communications program and supporting Talking Dog, the College’s in-house AdPR agency.
In addition to her record of giving, Carolyn’s impact has been felt through service to the Board of Trust and Public Affairs Communications Advisory Board and guidance and mentoring she provides to students, young professionals and faculty.
We are grateful for all she does for the College. Grady students and faculty for generations to come will benefit from what Carolyn boldly envisioned and supports.
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