Officers

Officers of the AEJMC Visual Communication Division

Keith Greenwood headshot

DIVISION HEAD

Keith Greenwood is an associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism. He teaches courses in journalism and photojournalism history, photography’s role in society, and research methods. His research interests include photojournalism history and the influences that determine depictions of subjects in photographs. Greenwood has served on the faculty at Michigan State University and the University of Oklahoma. He has received top-paper awards from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. Greenwood is the website administrator of the AEJMC History Division and previously served in that role for the organization’s Visual Communication.

E-mail address: greenwoodk@missouri.edu

Tina Korani headshot

DIVISION VICE-HEAD

Tina Korani is an associate professor at the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, San Jose State University. She holds an MFA from Louisiana State University. She is an award-winning educator and researcher pioneering AI and advanced technology integration for inclusive educational experiences. As an Associate Professor at San José State University, she leads groundbreaking initiatives applying artificial intelligence, AR/VR, and generative AI to create accessible learning environments, with current focus on AI-powered accessibility solutions in K-12 education. In addition to serving as vice head of the Visual Communication Division, she is an Adobe Education Institute Fellow on multiple tech advisory boards. She has also been featured by Meta for innovative use of immersive technologies in student learning. Her excellence in educational innovation has earned the CSU Faculty Innovation and Leadership Award and keynote speaking roles at major conferences.

E-mail address: tina.korani@sjsu.edu

Lei "Tommy" Xie

DIVISION SECOND VICE-HEAD

Dr. Lei "Tommy" Xie earned his doctorate in Journalism from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He is an award-winning documentary photographer and educator who received awards and exhibit opportunities from the Society of Professional Journalists and the LensCulture/Nikonian International Photography Competition. He also served as a judge for the inaugural National Geographic/Fulbright Fellowship. Dr. Xie currently teaches photojournalism, multimedia journalism, and big data storytelling at Fairfield University. In 2020, he was awarded the David Donald Fellowship for Data Journalism by Investigative Reporters and Editors. A social scientist by training, his research focuses on AI-assisted pedagogy, the social construction of climate change, and textual analysis.

E-mail address:lxie@fairfield.edu

Tara Pixley headshot

PF&R CHAIR

Dr. Tara Pixley is an assistant professor of media communication at the Lew Klein College of Media and Communication at Temple University. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California - San Diego and has an MFA in photography from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Tara's research connects journalism studies with visual culture and critical theory to study ethics of care in photojournalism and efforts to re-vision marginalized communities via the new(s) media sphere. She also studies anti-racism in gen-AI/synthetic media, movement journalism and solutions visual journalism. She serves as Vice President of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) Board and is on the Board of stock photo co-op Stocksy United. She is also co-Founder and Executive Director of Authority Collective — an organization dedicated to establishing equity in visual media. 

E-mail address: tara.pixley@temple.edu

Alex Scott headshot

RESEARCH CHAIR

Dr. Alex Scott earned his doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin and holds an MA from the University of Missouri. He previously worked as a photojournalist and photo editor at ABC News and Bloomberg News in New York. His research focuses on the construction of social difference in non-fiction visual practice. He analyzes the patterns and implications of pictorial conventions that distinguish groups of people along axes of race, gender, class, ethnicity, and sexuality. His current research is focused on representations of migration around the U.S. southern border.

E-mail address: alex-scott@uiowa.edu

CONTESTS CO-CHAIR

Dr. Shane Epping is an assistant professor at the University of Wyoming's Communication and Journalism Department where he holds the Model Photojournalism Professorship. Before earning a PhD from the University of Missouri, he worked as a staff photographer at an institution of higher education for more than 10 years, as well as a freelance photojournalist for multiple publications including The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. He has won several photography awards at the national and regional level, and been accepted to art exhibits in multiple states. He teaches courses in photojournalism, introductory photography, creative entrepreneurship, and qualitative methods. With an extensive background as a volunteer photographer at hospitals, he researches the intersection of visual communication and health care. Recent and pending publications have analyzed the documentation of HIV and COVID-19.

E-mail address:sepping@uwyo.edu

Chad Sherman headshot

CONTESTS CO-CHAIR

Chad Sherman is a design professor, web designer, photographer, graphic designer and father. He received his Ph.D. in 2011 from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. At Seton Hill University, he teaches graphic design and animation courses. He has worked professionally graphic designer, web designer and freelance photographer in the Pittsburgh area. In his free time he loves to read, cook, play baseball, and see live music. He is also passionate about service and has led student trips to Concord, NC, Jackson, MS, and Bonaire. He is currently a member of the American Institute of Graphic Arts and the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

E-mail address: csherman2@setonhill.edu

Denise McGill headshot

TEACHING & TEACHING CONTESTS CHAIR

Denise McGill is an associate professor of visual communications at the University of South Carolina. She earned her M.A. at Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication, and her bachelor's in photojournalism at the University of Missouri. She has been to 25 countries on assignment for newspapers and magazines. Currently, she works primarily on documentary films about the southern United States.

E-mail address:mcgilld@mailbox.sc.edu

Elizabeth Spencer headshot

TEACHING CO-CHAIR

Elizabeth A. Spencer, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Integrated Strategic Communication (ISC) in the College of Communication and Information (CI) at the University of Kentucky. Elizabeth holds degrees in communication, public relations, mass communication, and photography. She has taught communication and media courses since 2014. She currently teaches creative strategic communication, multimedia, and ethics courses for ISC. She advises and mentors ISC undergraduate and CI graduate students. Dr. Spencer’s research and creative scholarship examines visual communication, digital media, and communication of health issues and contexts. In addition to her teaching and scholarship, Elizabeth has almost a decade of professional experience in creative media production as well as leadership roles and public relations in healthcare and community organizations.

E-mail Address: liz.spencer@uky.edu

Matthew Martin headshot

LOGO CONTEST CHAIR

Matthew Martin is a doctoral student in the School of Media and Communication at the University of Southern Mississippi, where he also received an MA in creative writing. He has more than 30 years of experience in public relations and is recognized as a senior practitioner by the Southern Public Relations Federation. His research interests include the development of image identity exchange theory, risk and crisis communication in baseball, and analysis of 2024 election coverage. He is the owner and creative director of MightyPenguin Design, an imaginative experiment in advertising and public relations serving clients throughout the Southeast with odd, but highly functional, creative solutions.

E-mail address: m.e.martin@usm.edu

Dr. Xu "James" Zhang headshot

SOCIAL MEDIA CHAIR

Dr. Xu "James" Zhang is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Austin Peay State University. He holds a PhD from the University of Tennessee and an MA from Texas Tech University. His research has included examinations of practices  in international reporting. His research has appeared in Journalism Practice, Journalism Studies, Visual Communication, International Communication Gazette, the International Journal of Communication, and Media, War and Conflict.

E-mail address: zhangx1@apsu.edu

Michale Vosburg headshot

NEWSLETTER EDITOR

Dr. Michael Vosburg is an assistant professor of Mass Communication at Benedict College. He has had a 33-year career in photojournalism and managed visual departments for 25 years at The Missourian (Columbia), The San Angelo (TX) Standard-Times, and The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead (ND). He holds a B.S. in mass communication, an M.A. in journalism from the Missouri School of Journalism, and a Ph.D. in communication from North Dakota State University. He teaches five photography courses, from web and social media photography to photojournalism. His primary research interest is in the media effects of photographs, a subject on which he also theorizes.

E-Mail address: michael.vosburg@benedict.edu

Joe Gosen headshot

WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR

Joe Gosen is an associate professor in the Department of Journalism at the Western Washington University. He holds an MA in journalism from the University of Nevada-Reno and a BA in photojournalism from San Jose State University. Joe teaches courses in photojournalism, video, graphics and design. He previously taught visual journalism for more than 12 years at Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara and Ventura, California. He worked professionally as a photojournalist for newspapers and wire services and as a graphic artist. A film he worked on about press freedom with colleague, Dr. Brian J. Bowe, garnered the 2023 creative research award in the Visual Communication Division of the Association of Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).

E-mail address: gosenj@wwu.edu

GRADUATE STUDENT LIAISON

Taylor Sheridan is a Ph.D. student at the Missouri School of Journalism. She also holds an MA from the University of Texas at Austin. Her research interests focus on investigating how photos and photojournalism can foster empowerment and empathy, particularly in the context of covering traumatic events. Her work delves into the nuanced ways visual media influences public perception and community resilience. She aims to contribute to the field of photojournalism by promoting more empathetic and empowering representations in media coverage.

E-mail address: tsgvn@missouri.edu

Russell Chun headshot

Editor in Chief, Visual Communication Quarterly

Russell Chun is an associate professor of Journalism, Media Studies and Public Relations at Hofstra University. He holds an MA from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Russell teaches multimedia storytelling, design, and data journalism. His research in visual communication has been published in Proceedings of the New York State Communication Association, The Journal of Visual Literacy, and Visual Studies. He is co-editor of the compendium, Fake News: Real Issues in Modern Communication published in 2020 by Peter Lang. He is the author of books on Adobe multimedia software for Adobe Press. He previously was an associate editor of VCQ. His term as editor in chief runs through 2028.

E-mail address: russell.s.chun@hofstra.edu

PAST DIVISION HEADS

2023-2024 Shannon Zenner

2022-2023 Michael Fagans

2021-2022 Tara Mortensen

2019-2021 Gabriel Tait

2018-2019 Matt Haught

2017-2018 Julian Kilker

2015-2016 Bob Britten

2014-2015 Seth Gitner

2013-2014 Byung S. Lee

2012-2013 Bruce Thorson

2011-2012 Jeremy Gilbert

2010-2011 Jennifer George-Palilonis