College of Media Press Releases
April 23, 2009
College of Media names interim dean
Journalism Professor Walt Harrington has been appointed as interim dean, effective August 2009.
URBANA -- The University of Illinois College of Media announces the appointment of Walt Harrington, department head and professor of journalism, to the position of interim dean, effective Aug. 16, pending approval by the university’s board of trustees.
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| Walt Harrington, professor of journalism, has been named interim dean for the College of Media at the University of Illinois. |
Since joining the College of Media faculty in 1996, Harrington has used his experience as a journalist to help guide the next generation of young reporters. He has served as head of the department of journalism since 2004, and as well as associate chancellor for the Urbana-Champaign campus from 2005 to 2007. Before joining the university, Harrington worked as a reporter, editor, and writer for a variety of publications, including The Washington Post Magazine, The Washington Post, and The Morning Call.
"I believe Walt will provide outstanding interim leadership to the College of Media during this transition period," said Linda Katehi, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. "We congratulate professor Harrington on his new position and thank him for assisting our campus in this important role."
Harrington has won numerous journalism awards. His book, "The Everlasting Stream: A True Story of Rabbits, Guns, Friendship, and Family" (2002), was widely praised by reviewers and made into a documentary film that appeared on PBS in 2007, winning a regional Emmy Award for writing and five national documentary film awards. Harrington’s earlier book "Crossings: A White Man’s Journey into Black America" won the Gustavus Myers Award for the Study of Human Rights in the U.S. and was declared a "vital" book on race in America by The New York Times.
Harrington is also author or editor of "American Profiles," "At the Heart of It," "Intimate Journalism: The Art and Craft of Reporting Everyday Life," and "The Beholder's Eye: A Collection of America's Finest Personal Journalism." His articles are included in the prestigious anthologies "Literary Nonfiction" and "Literary Journalism." His work has appeared in Life and Reader’s Digest magazines, as well as in The American Scholar, and it is widely cited in journalism textbooks.
Harrington teaches classes in literary journalism and advanced reporting. He holds master of arts degrees in sociology and journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
The current dean, Ron Yates, will step down Aug. 15 and take a year-long leave to focus on some personal writing projects, including a book based on his experiences as a foreign correspondent in Asia from the early 1970s to the early 1990s, and consulting on a film script about Tokyo Rose. He plans to continue to teach in the journalism department after his leave.
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