Awards and Work Experience
AWARDS
SW Regional Emmy Award, Spot News Continuing Coverage
Lonestar Emmy Nomination, News Writing
Lonestar Emmy Nomination, News Anchoring
1st Place, New Mexico Associated Press Award, Breaking News
Telly Award Finalist, Best Entertainment Show
5 Factor Media Honoree, Resource Center of Dallas
Society of Professional Journalists President’s Award
Skill highlights
Strategic Organizational Planning
Fundraising
Event Planning
Curriculum Development
Organizational Board Leadership
Media Training
Higher Education Equity Consulting
HIGHER EDUCATION EXPERIENCE
Santa Monica College, Santa Monica, CA 2016-Present
Associate Professor, Journalism (tenured)
Instruct intro to journalism courses, multimedia storytelling courses and freelance writing courses covering news judgment, social responsibility and ethical framework for journalists, effective uses of social media in news coverage and effective storytelling technique.
Developed course curriculum incorporating local media outlets resulting in 30+ students being professionally published
Developed course curriculum focusing on social media and mobile journalism, including a course in Audience Engagement and a complimentary statistics course to help journalism students meet the math requirement
Faculty Advisor for Santa Monica College’s award-winning student-run newspaper (the students have won two ACP Pacemaker awards, the college media equivalent to the Pulitzer Prize under my tenure as faculty advisor)
Created strategic marketing plan for career education programs at SMC as co-chair for marketing committee. Helped implement the college’s first digital marketing campaign that helped increase student enrollments year over year by 3+ percent
Equity Coach for the Communication and Media Studies department, tasked with leading two faculty groups with the goal of closing equity gaps for Black and Brown students
SMC Faculty Excellence Award Nominee
Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA 2014-2016
Assistant Director of Student Media/Adjunct Professor
Supervised university’s undergraduate, student-run media outlets, including ROAR Studios, The Loyolan Newspaper and the Tower Yearbook.
Advised 60+ students, teaching them techniques and best practices for both fiction and news-based content creation. (Students have won 3 national student production awards since 2014).
Developed and taught 4-unit journalism course covering videography, editing, news writing, producing, on-camera performance, social media utilization in news/sports coverage and best practices for using smart phone technology to cover news stories.
Created a bi-weekly moderated Q&A series bringing news and entertainment industry professionals to campus to interact with students, exposing them to various career paths.
Served as a Student Affairs Resource Administrator handling student cases of sexual assault and interpersonal misconduct
USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Los Angeles, CA 2015-2016
Adjunct Instructor
Instruct intro to broadcast newswriting course covering news judgment, social responsibility and ethical framework for broadcast journalists, effective uses of social media in news coverage and effective storytelling technique.
Educate students on how to use smart phone technology to cover news stories, including videography and editing techniques.
UCLA Extension, Los Angeles, CA Summer 2015
Adjunct Instructor
Developed course for UCLA Extension in developing a broadcast news resume reel.
Course covered the fundamentals of broadcast writing, pitching news stories, writing news packages, as well as video editing and shooting technique using smart phone technology.
Richland College, Dallas, TX 2011-2012
Adjunct Professor
Created in-depth and interactive lesson plans for Richland College broadcast journalism courses covering intro news writing, radio and TV news reporting, TV news photography and editing, history of broadcast news and on-camera performance.
Engaged students using anecdotal methods, interactive media and guest speakers.
JOURNALISM/PUBLIC RELATIONS EXPERIENCE
Get Media PR, Los Angeles | Dallas, TX 2012-2014
Co-Founder/Head of Video Production
Coordinated and produced on-location video productions, including budget management, logistics planning, securing permits, talent procurement, field crew management, scriptwriting and story angle creation for purposes of showcasing clients’ services, offerings and brand message. Also served as on-air talent.
Conceptualized and executed communication plans, public relations strategies, social media campaigns and integrated marketing strategies for companies such as CheapCaribbean.com, Downsize Fitness, Robson Ranch and St. Philips Academy positively affecting clients’ bottom lines.
Designed and taught media training curriculum with a specific focus on key message development and targeted response during media crises.
Drafted and pitched news releases and media alerts daily for purposes of securing earned media for client announcements and events with high success in Dallas/Fort Worth media placements and national broadcast and print media outlet placements.
The Harrell Group, Dallas, TX 2012
Media Relations Consultant
Designed and taught media training curriculum and courses with a specific focus on key message development and targeted response during media crises.
Successfully established media/public relations’ plans and Social Media campaigns for clients such as Mary Kay, Sanden International and Sorbee/IHOP that resulted in numerous placements with national traditional and non-traditional news media outlets as well as local Dallas/Fort Worth traditional news media outlets.
Drafted and pitched news releases daily for purposes of securing earned media for client issues, events and product releases with high success in Dallas/Fort Worth media placements, as well as national media placements.
KXAS-TV, Dallas, TX 2007-2011
News Anchor/Reporter
Anchored #1 rated weekend evening edition of NBC 5 News and reported live for multiple editions of NBC 5 news.
Developed sources and contacts leading to exclusive and special assignment reports for NBC 5.
Successful in increasing viewer ratings as the co-anchor of NBC 5 News Weekend Report resulting in two Regional Emmy nominations for anchoring and writing.
Produced daily stories and content, including still photography for nbcdfw.com.
Utilized social media such as Facebook and Twitter to promote content on both NBC 5 News and nbcdfw.com.
KLAS-TV, Las Vegas, NV 2005 - 2007
Weekend News Anchor/General Assignment Reporter
Anchored #1 rated weekend morning editions of Channel 8 Eyewitness News as well as reported for multiple newscasts, covering breaking news and special assignment reports.
Developed sources and contacts in order to generate daily story ideas for KLAS-TV News, resulting in a regional Emmy award for continuing coverage reporting.
Increased viewership for KLAS-TV’s weekend morning news program, making it the top-rated morning news program in the market.
KFOX-TV, El Paso, TX 2003 - 2005
General Assignment Reporter/Fill-in News Anchor
Reported for #1 rated morning newscast, covering late breaking and overnight news stories.
Generated exclusive and enterprise stories daily for KFOX Morning News catapulting the startup newscast to the #1 rated morning show in the market within its first year.
Developed multiple sources and contacts for breaking news coverage leading to an Associated Press award for breaking news coverage.
PUBLICATIONS
2021 Op-Ed: Newsom Must Sign CA Bill to Protect Journalists at Protests, The Sacramento Bee
2017 The News: Producing Campus Media by Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins; Published by Great River Learning (a subsidiary of Kendall Hunt)
ACADEMIC SERVICE
Career Education Committee, Marketing sub-committee Lead Santa Monica College
Center for Media and Design Faculty Advisory Board, Lead Santa Monica College
Equitizing Gateway Courses, Department Equity Coach Santa Monica College
PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists
2023-present Board Member
2022-2023 Board President
2020-2022 Board Vice-President, Chair of Awards Committee, Chair of Communications Committee
2017-2020 Board Member, Chair of Generation J Committee
National Society of Professional Journalists
2023-2024 President, National Board of Directors
2022-present Vice President, National Board of Directors
2021-2022 Chair of Nominations Committee
2021-2022 Delegate Taskforce Member
College Media Association
2014-present Member
Journalism Association of Community Colleges
2017-present Member