Charles Marsh

First year at KU: 1989

Degrees: B.A., English, University of Kansas; M.A., English, University of Kansas; Ph.D., English, University of Kansas

Classes taught: message development, public relations, editing and media ethics

Contact: 307 Stauffer-Flint

"I admire our intense focus on teaching. We truly are a student-centered school." — Chuck Marsh

- Compiled by Brande N. Aleman

Chuck Marsh began his professional career working in corporate magazines. He said he enjoyed working for these magazines but soon realized that organizations have different communications strategies and tactics for a variety of different groups.

"The diversity of that appealed to me," Marsh said. "I knew that in corporate communications, I'd probably be doing something different every day. That turned out to be true."

Marsh says he believes the most important thing a student can gain from obtaining a degree in journalism is the knowledge that an organization needs good relationships with a variety of groups if it's going to meet its goals. And because each group has a different set of interests, he said, each group requires unique relationship-building strategies and tactics. Beyond that, he hopes students learn that they need to be very good writers.

With so many places to teach journalism, Marsh said one reason he chose KU was the style of teaching.

"I admire our intense focus on teaching," Marsh said. "We truly are a student-centered school."

He said he was also influenced by the school's national reputation for excellence.