Lorraine Branham, director of the School of Journalism and the G.B. Dealey Regents Professor at The University of Texas at Austin since 2002, has been named dean of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, effective July 1. The appointment was announced today by Syracuse University Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric F. Spina.
“During her six years at the helm of the School of Journalism, Lorraine has led the school’s response to the enormous changes taking place in the journalism industry by making key faculty hires,” said Roderick P. Hart, dean of the College of Communication. “Her legacy will be felt for some time and we will miss her sprightly, but steady, demeanor.”
Hart will appoint an interim director of the school for the 2008-9 academic year, giving the School of Journalism time to plan for its long-term leadership.
Branham joined The University of Texas at Austin faculty after a 25-year career as a newspaper editor, editorial writer and reporter. She holds a bachelor’s degree in television, radio and film from Temple University.
Established in 1914, the School of Journalism at The University of Texas at Austin has long been recognized as a leader in journalism education. The school offers programs in print, broadcast, photojournalism and multimedia, and is home to the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas. Among its former students are 18 Pulitzer Prize winners and notable journalists including Walter Cronkite; Karen Elliott House, former publisher of “The Wall Street Journal”; Bill Moyers; and Liz Smith, syndicated celebrity news columnist, among many others.
