Sports Journalism Faculty

Each of the four core courses in the Center features an instructor with years of experience to share with undergraduate students. The group comprises:

Malcolm Moran, sports journalism: Malcolm Moran brings nearly 30 years of experience as an award-winning and respected sports journalist at USA Today, The New York Times, Newsday and the Chicago Tribune to his position as the inaugural Knight Chair in Sports Journalism and Society. In his distinguished and diversified career as a sports journalist, Moran has covered 26 bowl games with national championship implications, 26 men’s basketball Final Fours, 16 World Series, 11 Super Bowls, several NCAA conventions and two Olympic Games. He launched his daily newspaper career as a sports reporter at Newsday in 1977, where he covered high school, college and professional sports. He worked at The New York Times from 1979 to 1998 as a reporter and columnist before joining the Chicago Tribune in 1998, where he worked as the Notre Dame football beat reporter while also writing commentaries and providing event and feature coverage on professional and college sports. In 2000, he moved to USA Today where, in addition to his coverage of college basketball and football, he wrote feature articles on professional and college sports. Course Syllabus

Dave Baker, sports information: As an assistant athletic director at Penn State, Baker focuses on operations for the department. He has worked at Penn State for 29 years, all in the Deptartment of Athletics with 13 in media relations and seven as sports information director. During that time his publications received six Best-in-Nation awards. Course Syllabus

Marie Hardin, sports media and society: An assistant professor in the College of Communications, Hardin provides a combination of academic credentials and athletic experience and interest. She has taught writing, reporting, editing and mass-media law courses, among others. She has authored a book and produced numerous book chapters, with much of her work focusing on the role of sports media, and sports, in society. Course Syllabus

Steve Jones, sports broadcasting: Steve Jones is entering his fourth season as the play-by-play voice of the Penn State football radio network and his 22nd season as the play-by-play voice of the Penn State basketball radio network. He is the sports director at 3WZ radio in State College and also works at WPSX-TV and WJAC-TV.

Mike Poorman, sports writing: A former sports writer and editor, and long-time senior vice president for The Barash Group in State College, Poorman co-founded and has edited the Penn State Football Annual for the past 18 years. He joined the College as manager of alumni relations in 2004. His sports writing experience includes—associate sports editor, Centre Daily Times, State College; sportswriter, Lebanon (Pa.) Daily News; postgraduate internship, U.S. Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, Colo.; part-time correspondent, Associated Press and United Press International; and sports editor, The Daily Collegian, when the paper was named the nation's No. 1 student newspaper. Course Syllabus

Admission, Center Requirements

Applications are now being accepted for the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism.  Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis with a deadline date of Nov. 20, 2009. Juniors and seniors are encouraged to submit the application as soon as possible. All majors are welcome to apply. Students who have not completed the prerequisite courses of COMM 160 or COMM 260W are welcome to apply and may be accepted into the program on a contingency basis. Students will not be permitted to take the sports journalism courses until the successful completion of COMM 160 and 260W.
 
To apply, review the materials and submit the application including the cover page and materials needed under application instructions. If you have questions about the application, email Jamey Perry.

Student Support, Scholarships

Thanks to support provided by the Ridge Riley Journalism Scholarship in Sports Writing and the George E. Paterno Memorial Scholarship Fund, top students who choose to specialize in sports journalism may earn support for their studies. The Center also provides opportunities for mentoring from working professionals and full-time faculty members.