Drs. Tisdale and Lambiase named interim directors for School of Journalism and School of Strategic Communication

Doctors Lambiase and Tisdale

Drs. Lambiase and Tisdale

As the schools prepare to officially separate on June 1, the independent School of Journalism and the School of Strategic Communication have each selected their new interim directors.

John Tisdale, Ph.D., will lead the School of Journalism, while Jacqueline “Jacque” Lambiase, Ph.D., will head the new School of Strategic Communication (formerly known as Advertising and Public Relations). Both schools will remain within the Bob Schieffer College of Communication.

As interim directors, Tisdale and Lambiase will be responsible for overseeing school operations and providing strategic leadership in matters of staffing and course planning.

“We are excited about the opportunities and challenges,” Tisdale said. “We have—because of the generosity and support of the Schieffers and other alumni—the resources to continue down the path of providing our students with the tools they need to succeed in journalism.”

Regarding the new School of Strategic Communication, Lambiase said, “Our advertising and public relations faculty is simply terrific in both their teaching and research—and our students are eager and passionate about the field—so those human elements give us a strong, unbeatable foundation for the new school.”

Tisdale steps into the role this summer from his current position as associate director for the currently combined School of Journalism and Strategic Communication. Part of the TCU faculty since 2002, Tisdale teaches media writing and media history classes. He began his career as a reporter and copy editor, working for several newspapers in Texas and Mississippi. In addition to his experience as a journalist and professor, Tisdale is also a historian, having earned his master’s and a doctorate in American history.

Lambiase is currently an associate professor, teaching writing, principles, ethics, advocacy, cases in strategic communication and diversity courses. She is also a faculty advisor for the new FrogFolio project, a University-wide initiative to have all students build online portfolios, and one of the leaders of the School’s summer study abroad program in London. Her research focuses on public relations ethics, representations of gender and sexuality in media and marketing, as well as on computer-mediated communication and social media.

“Both programs are in excellent hands with John and Jacque,” said David Whillock, Dean of the Bob Schieffer College of Communication. “I think they are exactly the right people to lead these schools during this pivotal developmental stage.”