Accrediting Committee

The members of the Accrediting Committee meet once a year to review the reports of on-site observations submitted by site visit teams. The Committee examines the reports thoroughly and makes recommendations for accrediting actions. The recommendations are forwarded to the Accrediting Council, which makes all final accrediting decisions.

The Accrediting Committee has 15 members. The Accrediting Council President serves as an ex-officio voting member of the Committee.

Marie Hardin, Chair, Accrediting Committee
Dean
Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications
Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA
marie.hardin@acejmc.org

Rafael Lorente, Vice Chair, Accrediting Committee
Dean
Philip Merrill College of Journalism
University of Maryland
College Park, MD
‍rafael.lorente@acejmc.org

Andrew Alexander
Visiting Professional
Scripps College of Communication
Ohio University
Sperryville, VA
andyalexander1@me.com
(Term expires 2025)

Cristina L. Azocar
Professor
Department of Journalism
San Francisco State University
San Francisco, CA
cazocar@sfsu.edu
(Term expires 2027)

Peter Bhatia
CEO, Houston Landing
Houston TX 77006
peterkbhatia@gmail.com
(Term expires 2025)

Laura T. Coffey
President, Society for Features Journalism
Seattle, Washington
laura.coffey@gmail.com
(Term expires 2027)

George L. Daniels
Associate Professor
College of Communication and Information Sciences
The University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa, AL
gdaniels@ua.edu
(Term expires 2025)

Vince Duffy
News Director
Michigan Public
Ann Arbor, MI
vduffy@umich.edu
(Term expires 2027)

Kenn Gaither
Dean
School of Communications
Elon University
Elon, NC
tgaither@elon.edu
(Term expires 2026)

Kristin Gilger
Professor Emerita
Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication
Arizona State University
Phoenix, AZ
kristin.gilger@asu.edu
(Term expires 2027)

Jackie Jones
Dean
School of Global Journalism & Communication
Morgan State University
Baltimore, MD
jacqueline.jones@morgan.edu
(Term expires 2027)

Gracie Lawson-Borders
Professor and Dean Emerita
Cathy Hughes School of Communications
Howard University
Washington, DC
gracie.lawsonborders@howard.edu
(Term expires 2025)

Diana Martinelli
Director
Reed School of Media and Communications
Morgantown, WV
diana.martinelli@mail.wvu.edu
(Term expires 2026)

Cheryl Procter-Rogers
APR, Fellow PRSA, MCC
Executive Coach and Associate Director
Ernst & Young, LLP,
  Americas Coaching Practice
Chicago, IL
Cheryl@cherylprocterrogers.com
(Term expires 2026)

Al Stavitsky
Professor
Donald W. Reynolds School of Journalism
and Center for Advanced Media Studies
University of Nevada, Reno
Reno, NV
ags@unr.edu
(Term expires 2026)