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As I wrap up my undergraduate career at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, I've been reflecting on the professors who’ve had the most outstanding impact on me, whether it be on an interpersonal basis in the classroom or for my future career. Although I can wholeheartedly say my experiences with UMass Amherst faculty across the board has been nothing short of positive ones, there have been several who have stood out to me. One in particular was Jennie Donohue, senior lecturer and director of the public relations (PR) concentration within the journalism department.

Jennie has taught at UMass since the fall of 2018. She designed the PR curriculum, which launched this past fall, and serves as the faculty adviser to the PR Student Club (which I would’ve loved to join, had my schedule allowed me to). Prior to teaching at UMass, she was a senior lecturer and director of the Center for Social Media at Marist College. Also in her repertoire is a long list of industry experience: she spent more than 20 years in the corporate, agency, and non-profit sectors relating to PR and integrated marketing communication, where she held positions in leading organizations. She has received several accolades within the academic and professional realms, including the Excellence in Teaching Award from the National Society of Leadership and a Silver Anvil Award from the Success and Public Relations Society of America.

In the first semester of my junior year, I took Jennie’s Journalism 235: Introduction to Public Relations (my first-ever PR course). A perk of being in the Commonwealth Honors College (CHC) is that students are allowed to request additional work in non-honors level courses to supplement for an honors credit. To do so, you must meet with the professor individually throughout the semester to complete a project (mine was a paper), and in return you will receive honors credit for a class originally not assigned by CHC. This whole process must be approved by your faculty sponsor and CHC. It can make for a really enjoyable experience because you learn, in greater depth, course content that other students in the class are not, while in a one to one environment with the professor. I did this with Jennie’s J235 course.

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J235 class stood as two pivotal parts of my college experience. First, learning about PR on an introductory level sparked my interest in the industry as a potential career path for when I graduate. Secondly, Jennie was the first professor I had that I became close to outside of a classroom setting, which I attribute to taking my +1 honors credit with her. I liked her introductory class so much that in the first semester of my senior year, I took J432: Public Relations and Integrated Communication Cases. This class was held remotely due to COVID, and she handled virtual instructing seamlessly. She made her course expectations clear, and continued to push us to be the best PR novices we could be. By the same token, she made sure we knew we could address her with any problems/stress we had due to the pandemic.

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Jennie demonstrates every characteristic of a caring and intelligent professor. She is knowledgeable, and taught me a lot about what the real world expects by using her own firsthand experiences. Furthermore, she is explicit in her direction which, especially with remote learning due to the pandemic, was extremely helpful to me. Jennie is the first professor I’ve had that uses both a syllabus and addendum to the syllabus (even pre-COVID) to spell out exactly what she wants in her assignments, including: due dates, where to submit your work, and content information. She’s easily accessible, and approaches her students with a level of professionalism and respect that makes it evident that she cares just as much about our success in her class, as we care about our own grades.

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Many of the classes I took with Jennie paired the lectures with discussions about what we learned, and if we enjoyed it. Her classes will not give you an easy A, but she will make sure you learn something about PR (even if you don’t pursue it). She’ll provide you with necessary skills to work in a business environment, including (but not limited to) how to strengthen your writing skills, work in groups, and approach deadlines. Regardless of what career path you choose, these skills are vital for your success.

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From the second you enter (or log on to) Jennie’s class, it is made extremely evident that she wants you to succeed. If there is any professor that I think will influence me even years after taking her courses, it’s Jennie. Although I’m sad to be leaving the place I’ve called home for the past four years, I’m looking forward to real world experiences to come in my career (hopefully in PR) and am confident in my own abilities with the skills I’ve learned through Jennie.