Instructors

We take great pride in the team that leads Media Now STL. We create the perfect blend of professional journalists, collegiate and scholastic level expertise. We bring in area professionals for large group sessions and one-on-one critiques.

Our 2012 line up is shared below. We are excited to have this staff plus a few additional gems for 2013.

	Chris Snider - @chrissnider
Chris Snider	Chris Snider has spent the past 10 years pushing for innovative and creative ways to tell and present stories in print and online. He’s currently an instructor of practice in multimedia journalism at Drake University in Des Moines. He was previously assistant managing editor for digital innovation at the Des Moines Register, editor of Juice magazine, news design director at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and a designer at the Baltimore Sun. Chris is a strong proponent of simple, clean design. He has taught workshops to students and professionals on social media, multimedia journalism, search engine optimization, writing for the web and basics of web design.
	Rob Schneider
Rob Schneider	Rob Schneider is in charge of design, graphics and illustration for The Dallas Morning News. Rob has led successful redesigns of the DMN, The Providence Journal and various other print and digital products. Previously, he was an editor, designer, writer, photographer, copy editor and sports editor for newspapers in Missouri (St. Joseph News-Press and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) and Nebraska. (Omaha World-Herald) His work has been awarded by The Society of News Design, Malofiej, Communication Arts, Illustrator’s Annual, PRINT magazine and other state and regional journalism competitions. He’s also an exceptional butter carver, although he has long chosen to remain an amateur in this arena. Rob has been faithful and passionate servant of the Society of News Design since 1997. He has been a regular volunteer and a judge at the creative competition in Syracuse and a speaker and volunteer at three national workshops (Houston, Las Vegas and Denver). Rob has organized and hosted several SND Quick Courses in Texas and has been a featured speaker for SND and other organizations at events around the country.
	Gary Hairlson - @fotobro
Gary Hairlson	Gary Hairlson, has been the video director for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch/stltoday.com since 2006 and has overseen newsroom video training and daily video coverage. After joining the Post-Dispatch's photo staff in 1999, he has worked as a picture editor, assignments editor and assistant director of photography. Before joining the Post-Dispatch, he's worked as a photo editor at the Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal and The Jackson (Tenn.) Sun and as the University Photographer at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green. He got his start while in high school working part time for his hometown newspaper The Henderson (Ky.) Gleaner. He has been the Photo Director for the Western Kentucky University Xposure Journalism Workshop and last fall received WKU's top award for his work teaching high school students during the two-week workshop each Summer since 1982.
	Aaron Manfull - @manfull
Aaron Manfull	Aaron Manfull was named the 2011 Dow Jones Teacher of the Year and has spent the last 14 years advising student media in Iowa and Missouri and for more than half of that time his students have been working online with digital media. Aaron currently advises media at Francis Howell North High School in St. Charles, MO. In addition to his teaching and advising duties, Aaron serves as the Journalism Education Association’s Digital Media Chair, heading their site, JEADigitalMedia.org. Aaron has taught numerous web design courses for students and advisers. The Dow Jones Newspaper Fund named him a Distinguished Adviser in 2009 and the National Scholastic Press Assoc. honored him with their Pioneer Award in 2010.
	Jill Falk - @jillfalk
Jill Falk	As an associate professor of communications at Lindenwood University, Jill infuses her passion for new media and storytelling into just about every class discussion. Currently, she teaches Survey of Professional Media, Broadcast Newswriting, Television News Production, Television Reporting and Applied Internet. In addition, she is the department chair for the School of Communications’ Journalism program and LUTV’s News Director. In January, she played an integral role in the school’s launching of The LindenLink, an online website for student journalists and media creators. Prior to joining Lindenwood’s faculty in 2006, Jill worked in television news as a reporter and anchor for stations in Illinois and Michigan. Locally, she serves on the board for Gateway Media Literacy Partners, Inc., a nonprofit group promoting media literacy education in the St. Louis region. Over the last few years, Jill has led workshops and panel discussions on multimedia reporting, media literacy education and social media’s role in higher education. Wordpress and Twitter are two of her favorite things.
	Bethany Mollenkof - bethanymollenkof.tumblr.com @FancyBethany
Bethany Mollenkof	Bethany Mollenkof has spent the last three years at Western Kentucky University where she has studied photojournalism and art history. She will graduate in May 2011. Her passion lies in storytelling by using multiple mediums in creative and interesting ways. Her multimedia and photography has been recognized by the Hearst Foundation, the Associated Collegiate Press, the National Press Photographers Association and The Kentucky News Photographers Association. She has interned at the Palm Beach Post and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Upon graduating she hopes to travel, freelance and work with NGO's and Non-profits.
	Matt Rasgorshek – @matt_raz
Matt Rasgorshek	Matt Rasgorshek is the broadcast and online adviser at Westside High School in Omaha, NE. His publications have received state, regional and national recognition. Westside Wired has been honored as Nebraska's top high school online publication. Warrior Television has been recognized as one of the nation's top broadcast programs. He is a district representative for the Nebraska High School Press Association (NHSPA) and is actively involved on the JEA's Digital Media committee. He was also awarded the NHSPA's Distinguished Adviser Award for 2011-2012. Prior to teaching, Matt worked behind the camera as a newscast director, producer, videographer and editor in local affiliates in Omaha and Phoenix.
	Judy Babb
Judy Babb	Judy Babb, MJE, has been involved in scholastic journalism for more decades than she wants to count. As a high school adviser, her students nabbed Tops in Texas, CSPA's Gold Crowns and NSPA's Pacemakers. Individually staff members won literally hundreds of awards in every category on both the state and national level. A number of them have been on Pulitzer writing teams. Babb has been recognized with Texas Journalism Teacher of the Year, CSPA's Gold Key, NSPA's Pioneer Award and JEA's Distinguished Yearbook Adviser of the Year among others. Babb is now a print specialist with Friesen Yearbooks where she uses her expertise to work with staffs in the Dallas/Fort Worth area as well as teaching workshops for Friesens when needed.
	Don Goble - @dgoble2001
	Don is in his 8th year teaching full-time at Ladue Horton Watkins High School in St. Louis, MO. Don serves as the Broadcast Technology, Film & Multimedia Instructor, Co-Director of LHS-TV, and a Ladue School District Video Producer. He coaches the Varsity Rams Baseball team and in 2012, was named the Missouri Assistant Baseball Coach of the Year by the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association. He serves as an Executive Board Member in charge of Media Relations for the Save A Life Campaign, and sits on the Board of Directors for the Megan Meier Foundation, which serves to end cyberbullying. Don is a dedicated Apple user, and was recognized as an Apple Distinguished Educator in 2011. He was also named as the 2011 Charles Klotzer Media Literacy Educator of the Year by the Gateway Media Literacy Partners. And in 2012, Don was named as an award winner for S'Park Scholar Media Mentor through Ithaca College in New York. Don recently was the Keynote speaker at the 2012 SPUN Special Education Technology Conference discussing Media Literacy. Don was also recently announced as a Spotlight Speaker for the 2013 Midwest Education Technology Conference METC.
	Jim Streisel - @CarmelJim
Jim Streisel	Jim Streisel is the adviser of the award-winning HiLite newspaper and website (www.hilite.org) from Carmel (IN) High School. Streisel was named the 2011 Indiana Journalism Adviser of the Year and the 2011 Carmel Clay Schools Teacher of the Year. Before advising the HiLite, Streisel served for six years as the adviser of the CHS newsmagazine, the Prerogative. He has written two books, High School Journalism: A Practical Guide (2007) and Scholastic Web Journalism: Connecting with Readers in a Digital Age (2009, eBook format).
	Mitch Eden
Mitch Eden	Mitch Eden, MJE, advises The Kirkwood Call newspaper, Pioneer yearbook and thekirkwoodcall.com website at Kirkwood High School in Kirkwood, MO. He was most recently named Society of Professional Journalists 2011-12 Distinguished Teaching in Journalism Award winner. His students’ work has earned Pacemakers, Gold Crowns, and multiple national and state awards. Eden is co-president of the Sponsors of St. Louis School Publications. He has been teaching scholastic journalism 15 years and loves working with passionate young people to help them become better people and better journalists while creating the best publications possible.
	Stephanie Cope - @sncopew
Stephanie Cope Wilson	Stephanie Cope Wilson is currently a page designer for The Indianapolis Star working mostly in features and on branding and prototyping new sections and content ideas, in addition to holding a role as their Pinterest guru. A St. Louis native, Stephanie left her family and beloved toasted raviolis for Indiana, and more specifically, Ball State University in 2006. After graduating in 2010 with a visual journalism degree, she held a page and graphics designer position for a short time at The St. Louis Post-Dispatch before starting her current job at The Star. Stephanie's design philosophy is more than just about aesthetics (although, she has a sparkle brush in her brush presets … and she knows how to use it.) She believes in telling stories and explaining information visually and she believes design needs to have purpose behind it.
	Kate Manfull - @k8manfull
Kate Manfull	Kate Manfull has been a marketing consultant and graphic designer of her own company, Odessa Communications (www.odessacomm.com) for nearly five years now. She serves up strategy and executes essential communication elements for clients including MasterCard, Tropicana, Daisy Cottage Cheese, Mazola Corn Oil, Verizon, GM and HP. Campaign work includes social networking, mobile marketing, video scripting and production, building micro sites and copy writing. Prior to running her own business, Kate worked at Weber Shandwick where she successfully lead public relations programs to include emerging media. She knew she’d really “made it” in her career when she wore the Energizer Bunny suit on MTV. She can only hope that Media Now STL comes up with an equally clever mascot. She is the one with the details on camp and the emails to keep you informed.