Eddith Dashiell has been named the next director of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism in the Scripps College of Communication at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. When she takes office in May, Dr. Dashieli will be the first woman and the first African American to hold the position.
Dashiell joined the Ohio University faculty in 1992 and currently serves as an associate professor and associate director of undergraduate programs for the journalism school. She has previously held positions as the college’s associate dean for graduate programs and the university’s assistant provost for multicultural graduate affairs in the Office of Graduate Studies.
“I see my role as the next director as just an extension of what I am already doing as associate director: providing my colleagues and our students with the support they need to be successful,” Dr. Dashiell said.
Dr. Dashiell taught journalism at Middle Tennessee State University and Indiana University before joining the faculty at Ohio University. She also has extensive experience as a professional journalist.
“I am honored to know that my colleagues in the School of Journalism had such confidence in me to recommend that I be their next director,” Dr. Dashiell added. “I promise to continue to work closely with them as I shift roles from associate director to director over the summer. I still will need the faculty’s guidance and wisdom to continue to meet the School of Journalism’s mission of providing our students with a quality journalism education that emphasizes professional excellence, critical thinking, and social responsibility in order to maintain and enhance our democratic society and the free exchange of ideas.”
Dr. Dashiell holds a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications and a master’s degree in history from Middle Tennessee State University. She earned a Ph.D. in mass communication from Indiana University in Bloomington.