Our professors bring their real world experience into the virtual classroom. The faculty members at the Dyson College of Arts and Sciences are both scholars and expert practitioners in fields including communication, media, and film production and direction. Their expertise in the industry allows them to integrate real-world case studies and recent trends into the coursework, giving students exposure to the things they will work on in their career.


Kate Fink, PhD
Kate Fink, PhD
Program Director and Associate Professor

Kate Fink, PhD

Program Director and Associate Professor
Media, Communications, and Visual Arts

Kate Fink is a journalism studies scholar and former journalist, specializing in audio storytelling. Her research interests relate to news business models, community engagement, and technology adoption among journalists. Prior to joining Pace, Fink worked as a radio journalist and host at WDUQ, an NPR member station in Pittsburgh, as well as WINA, a commercial news station in central Virginia. Fink serves as a faculty in residence on the Pace-Pleasantville campus and advises the student newspaper, the Pace Chronicle. Fink is also an affiliated fellow of the Information Society Project at Yale University Law School and a former fellow of the Brown Institute for Media Innovation at Columbia University.

Education
PhD, Columbia University, New York, NY, 2014
Communications

MPhil, Columbia University, New York, NY, 2012
Communications

MBA, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, 2009

BA, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 1998
Slavic Languages and Literatures

Recent Publications
Fink, K. (2020). Freedom of information in college: How student journalists learn to file public records requests. College Media Review 58.

Fink, K., & Palmer, R. (2020). “We Have to Stand Out to Blend In”: Ordinary Transgender People Speak About Being Subjects of News Stories. Journalism Studies 21(8), 1109-1126.

Fink, K. (2019). Freedom of information in community journalism. Community Journalism 7(1), 17-37.

Fink, K., Finewood, M. H., & Molnar, L. (2018). Framing Pier 55: Negotiated resilience and contested waterfronts. Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences 9(3), 364-370.

Awards and Honors

  • College Media Association Ingelhart Grant, 2019
  • Top paper in Applied Communication, Eastern Communication Association, 2019
  • First-place paper award, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication Small Programs Interest Group, 2017
  • Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication History Division, August 8, 2015—Covert Award
  • Journalist’s Resource, Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, Harvard University, December 19, 2014—top academic paper

Licensures and Memberships

  • FAA Part 107 license (for commercial drone pilots), 2016-present
  • Editorial Board Member, Journalism: Theory, Practice, and Criticism, 2017-present
  • Editorial Board Member, Digital Journalism, 2016-present
Louis Guarneri
Louis Guarneri
Clinical Assistant Professor

Louis Guarneri

Clinical Assistant Professor
Media, Communications, and Visual Arts

Lou Guarneri is an award-winning filmmaker with a background in broadcast and television post production. After graduating from the Pace MCVA undergrad and graduate programs, Lou worked at A&E Networks in post production. He went on to work as an associate producer for the History Channel. On the side, Lou continued to work on a variety of independent projects, including short films, sketch comedy, documentaries, weddings, music videos, podcasts, and more. Lou has always remained close to Pace. After teaching adjunct for several years, he became a full time professor and now teaches filmmaking in the MCVA department.

Mirjana Mira Pantic, PhD
Mirjana Mira Pantic, PhD
Assistant Professor

Mirjana Mira Pantic, PhD

Assistant Professor
Media, Communications, and Visual Arts

Mirjana Pantic has a PhD in Communication and Information earned from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She is originally from Serbia where she received her bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in European Union studies. Pantic has more than 12 years of professional experience in the media industry.

Education
PhD, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2017
Communication and Information

MA, Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Belgrade, Serbia, 2013
European Studies

BS, Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Belgrade, Serbia, 2004
Journalism and Communication Studies

Awards and Honors
College of Communications and Information, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, April 16, 2018–outstanding dissertation award.

The Participatory Journalism Interest Group of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, August 2017–Top student paper (second place).

US Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, 2016–Certificate of appreciation for contribution to the research report “The Belgrade Police: Refugee coping strategy and public diplomacy.”

The Annual Research Symposium of the University of Tennessee College of Communication and Information, 2016–First prize proposal poster.

Five Best News Sites in Serbia Award given to the Novi Magazin website when she served as co-editor-in-chief of the website, 2014.

The Best Report Award granted by the Serbian EU Integration Office and the Delegation of the EU in Serbia for the best article published in print media on the EU integration process, 2011.

Certificate for participating in a journalism program of study during the academic year 2009-2010 at the Department of Communication, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois, 2010.

Certificate for distinguished performance in a Professional Development Year Program sponsored by the Voice of America’s International Media Training Center and Bradley University (2010).

Certificate of successful completion of the program Economic and Political Reporting from Southeast Europe granted by Thomson Reuters Foundation and a German foundation Robert Bosh Stiftung, 2009).

The Best Report Award granted by the Serbian EU Integration Office and the Delegation of the EU in Serbia for the best article published in print media on the EU integration process, 2009.

Award for Excellence in Investigative Journalism granted by the Independent Journalist Association of Serbia and the US Embassy in Belgrade, 2009.

Award for Reporting on European Regions granted by the European Movement in Serbia, 2006.

Research Interests
Digital media, journalism tenets, participatory journalism, active audiences, media sustainability, intercultural communication, and international communication.

Michelle Pulaski Behling, PhD
Michelle Pulaski Behling, PhD
Assistant Chair and Associate Professor

Michelle Pulaski Behling, PhD

Assistant Chair and Associate Professor
Media, Communications, and Visual Arts

Education
PhD, University of Connecticut

MA, University of Connecticut

BA, Villanova University

Awards and Honors
Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, April 2012–Dyson Technology Award
CTLT, August 2009—Teaching Online Certification

Licensures and Certificates
CTLT, August—Teaching Online Certification
First member of the university to become certified to teach online. The three part certification process includes completing online workshops and mentoring other faculty.

Research Interests
Media effects and pedagogy

Paul Ziek, PhD
Paul Ziek, PhD
Department Chair and Associate Professor

Paul Ziek, PhD

Department Chair and Associate Professor
Media, Communications, and Visual Arts

Before joining Pace, Paul worked as a project management professional for a SDVOSB that held a Mobis Contract. Over his 15 years, he executed a wide range of capital operations projects for media organizations. He worked with organizations of all sizes on ways to seize opportunities for business success. His expertise was helping companies during times of change, such as mergers and acquisitions, downsizing, consolidation and expansion. Some of his clients included the New York Post, Chicago Sun-Times, Tribune Education, and Barking Dog Productions, to name just a few.

Education
PhD, Rutgers, The State University
Communication

MA, New York University
Media Ecology

BA, Rutgers, The State University
Communication

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