The Washington Journalism and Media Conference

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Faculty Advisor Staff

Samantha Shaw

SAMANTHA SHAW

Faculty Advisor

Samantha Shaw earned her BA in English and Comparative Literature and Masters of the Arts in Teaching from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was named Student Teacher of the Year in 2022, and recognized as one of the top 10 student teachers in the state of North Carolina. Now, she teaches English at Carrboro High School. Sam loves discovering the ways she can bring her students’ passions into a project based and equity focused English classroom. She fervently believes that words have the power to change us — whether that’s a potent literary work or the unique power of the press. Her teaching has been inspired by the transformational experiences at WJMC. She is a WJMC 2016 alumna, was an intern in 2017, and worked as a JFA from 2018 – 2020; she’s ecstatic to be back again! When she’s not in the classroom, Sam is managing social media or editing books for the author Katie Cross, listening to audiobooks, or cheering on the Tar Heels with her friends and family.

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Advance Team Staff

Camden Layton

Advance Team Member

Camden Layton is a rising senior at George Mason University studying Public Administration. After first attending the conference in 2016, he then returned as a Conference Intern in 2017, and then again as a Junior Faculty Advisor in 2018. His favorite part about the conference is the friendships he has made and those he has been able to watch form. He is involved in many different things on campus, but when he is free you can normally find him in a Dunkin Donuts with his friends. Camden is super excited to be returning to the program again this summer!

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Junior Faculty Advisor Staff

Olivia Vermane

Junior Faculty Advisor

Olivia is beyond excited to return to her third year of WJMC, this time as a JFA! Coming from Long Island, New York, Liv is a Communication major with a concentration in journalism and a minor in religious studies right here at GMU. Aside from her work with the conference, Olivia is also part of the IV Estate student newspaper at GMU, as well as Cru Christian Fellowship on campus. She also works in the Office of Admissions as a Telecounselor and a member of the Welcome Team. Liv was one of five selected interns at last years conference, and her involvement with the program is one of the main reasons she chose to attend Mason. Liv cannot wait to share all that WJMC has to offer with her correspondents!

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Advisory Board

Dr. Robert Lichter

DR. ROBERT LICHTER

President, Center for Media and Public Affairs

Dr. Licther is a member of the Communications faculty as well as a consultant for Fox News Channel and Voter News Service. He is the President and founder of The Center for Media and Public Affairs. CMPA is a nonpartisan research and educational organization which conducts scientific studies of news and entertainment media. He has also authored two books, Prime Time and Watching America, as well as coauthored several books that examine the media’s coverage of government and election campaigns with Dr. Stephen Farnsworth.

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Advisory Board

Ann Klenk

ANN KLENK

Former Senior Producer, Hardball with Chris Matthews, MSNBC

Ann Klenk is a retired senior producer for MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews.  Ms. Klenk started her career in Washington broadcast journalism in 1976 as a business reporter for WTOP radio and Channel 9. She moved to cable in the 1980s producing financial and political programming, including a nightly investigative magazine show.  In 1991, Ms. Klenk was hired to start the CNBC’s first primetime bureau in Washington and created “Equal Time with Mary Matalin and Jane Wallace” and launched “Russert” and “McLaughlin” on the network.

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Advisory Board

Steve Klein

STEVE KLEIN

Professor Emeritus/Journalism, George Mason University

Mr. Klein specializes in a cross-platform journalism approach and provides workshops for high school programs through his “Journalism for the Rest of Us” initiative and as a Teacher Consultant for the Northern Virginia Writing Project. He has taught classes in Writing Across Media, News Writing and Reporting, Introduction to Journalism, Online Journalism, Sports Writing and Reporting and Political Journalism at George Mason University, American University, Cape Cod Community College and Michigan State University. Mr. Klein will also teach History of Journalism (From Gutenberg to Zuckerberg) at GMU and a Journalism Practicum and Feature Writing at Mary Washington University during fall 2014. Prior to coming to Mason, he served as Online Sports Editor of USA TODAY, and also worked at the Lansing State Journal, Tennis magazine, the Stamford (Conn.) Advocate, Enterprise Radio/The Sports Network, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Akron Beacon Journal, for the Cleveland Crusaders of the World Hockey Association, the South Bend Tribune, the Wisconsin (Madison) State Journal and the Milwaukee Journal.

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Advisory Board

Dr. T. Mills Kelly

DR. T. MILLS KELLY

Professor, Global Affairs Program, George Mason University

Dr. Kelly is currently a professor with the Global Affairs Program at George Mason University as well as an associate professor in the Department of History and Art History, and an associate director of the Center for History and New Media.

CHNM uses digital media and technology to preserve and present history online, transform scholarship across the humanities, and advance historical education and understanding. Each year CHNM’s many project websites receive over 16 million visitors, and over a million people rely on its digital tools to teach, learn, and conduct research.

Dr. Kelly is also a Georgetown University Research Fellow on the influence of digital media on student learning in history.

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Advisory Board

Andrew Flagel

ANDREW FLAGEL

President and CEO, Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area

Andrew Flagel is President and CEO of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area. He received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Consortium member George Washington University, where he served as a regional director of admissions before being appointed as director of admissions for the Congressional Youth Leadership Council. He later received his PhD from Michigan State University’s prestigious program in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education while serving as a director in Flint for the University of Michigan, focusing his research on access and inclusion.

As Dean of Enrollment for over a decade at another Consortium member, George Mason University, Flagel created ground-breaking new programs for members of the military, veterans, international, and transfer students, founded and led the Washington Youth Summit on the Environment and the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, and spearheaded the Pathways partnership with Northern Virginia Community College and Fairfax County Public Schools. He left Mason to become Senior Vice President at Brandeis University, serving as both their chief student affairs and chief enrollment officer. Just prior to joining the Consortium, he served as Vice President for Advancement at the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) where he successfully developed a broad range of innovative partnerships with non-profit organizations, foundations, and private companies to support quality and equity throughout higher education.

Flagel is a Visiting Senior Scholar at The George Washington University, and serves on the Board of Trustees for ConnctedDMV.org and the DC College Access Program, on the Board of Directors for the Greater Washington Board of Trade, and as the State Executive for the District of Columbia for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. He is also a member of the Presidents’ Trust for the American Association of Colleges and Universities, the Washington Higher Education Secretariat, the Millennium Campus Network Global Education Council, the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning, the Washington Journalism and Media Conference Advisory Board, and the Sewanee Summer Music Festival Board of Advisors. He previously served as a Senior Scholar for the National Research Center for College and University Admissions, and on the Board of Trustees for the Tremont School. His wife, Jennifer, is Assistant Vice President and Director of Graduate Admissions at Bentley University, and their son is a student at Denison University.

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Advisory Board

Sam Feist

SAM FEIST

Senior Vice President, CNN/U.S. and Washington, D.C. Bureau Chief

Sam Feist is senior vice president for CNN/U.S. and Washington, D.C. bureau chief.  Since January 2009, Feist has served CNN’s political director and vice president of Washington-based programming, overseeing Washington programming, including John King, USAThe Situation Room with Wolf BlitzerState of the Union with Candy Crowley, and Reliable Sources. As political director, he also coordinated all facets of CNN’s daily political coverage including the production of political specials such as primary nights, conventions, and election nights.

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Advisory Board

Jennifer Carroll

JENNIFER CARROLL

Editor, Mission Point Press

Jennifer Carroll has a lifelong passion for helping others write, find personal connections, tell stories.

She worked at three Michigan newspapers in reporting, writing, coaching and top editing/management roles, including as managing editor of the Lansing State Journal and then at The Detroit News. She joined the Burlington (VT) Free Press as executive editor.

She also served as a digital content vice president for Gannett in Washington, D.C.

She collaborated with writers, videographers, web designers and editors across Gannett, leading extensive training on digital storytelling tools including video and mobile design. She won several awards for her work on innovation in digital publishing, and for launching a series of print entertainment publications and related niche products.

She enjoys editing, writing coaching, ghost writing and helping others synthesize thoughts into words. She has edited several books for authors with Mission Point Press.

She retired from Gannett and returned to Michigan in 2015. She also is a glass artist with displays in Charlevoix area art galleries.