CMA Headquarters Staff
CHRIS CARROLL (Executive Director)
Chris Carroll is the Director of Student Media for Vanderbilt Student Communications, Inc., where since 1996 he has served as the corporation’s chief operational officer responsible for strategic planning, fical, legal and logistical operations, professional staff supervisor, and principal journalism educator and adviser. Carroll served previously as director of student media at the University of South Carolina, Tulane University, and on the journalism faculty at Arkansas Tech University. He also worked as a reporter and photojournalist at a daily newspaper in Fayetteville, Ark. He holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism. For more than 20 years, Carroll has been active nationally in college media and journalism education. He is a past president of College Media Advisers, past president of the Southeast Journalism Conference, a member of the Student Press Law Center Board of Directors, founder of the Middle Tennessee Scholastic Press Association, a co-founder of the Center for Innovation in College Media, and a frequent presenter, judge and consultant for media associations and schools. He has been presented three national CMA advising awards (newspapers, broadcast and multimedia); the Collegiate Broadcasters, Inc. Distinguished Service Award; the Gold Key from Columbia Scholastic Press Association; the Student Press Law Center Distinguished Service Award; and in 2009 he was inducted as the 27th member of the national College Media Advisers Hall of Fame.
LORI BROOKS (Associate Executive Director)
With a background in both PR and newspapers, Lori Brooks has seen both sides of the line. Her resume includes stints on the copy desks of The Albuquerque Tribune and The Seattle Times, director of communications for a college at the University of Oklahoma and work with collegiate journalists and media professionals nationwide. Brooks served as associate director and features adviser at OU Student Media, where she oversaw features publications and students. Her staffs created the top-ranked Sooner yearbook and multiple niche products for a variety of audiences, and she advised, coached and mentored every step of the way. She also handled recruiting, outreach and communication for Student Media and managed strategic planning for projects such as circulation of The Oklahoma Daily. As associate executive director for the College Media Association, Brooks provides professional development and training for college advisers, editors and staffs, including overseeing programming for more than 3,500 attendees of two national conventions. Her ideal job, though, would be copy editor of the world. Hand her a green pen and the once ubiquitous bottle of "correction fluid" (Wite-Out is trademarked, folks), and she'd save the day. From grammar villains, at least. Her 11-year-old daughter, Emma, is a worthy sidekick, as annoyed by rogue quotation marks and bad syntax as her mom.
JEFF BREAUX (Business Director)
Breaux has served as Assistant Director of Student Media at Vanderbilt University since January 1998. Prior to working with Vanderbilt Student Media, Breaux served as Director of Student Media and Publications at Tulane University and Art Director for Student Media at The University of South Carolina. He received a Master of Media Arts from The University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Science (Advertising Design) from Northwestern State University (LA). He also works as a freelance graphic designer and served as the graphic designer for the band Hootie and the Blowfish (1994-96). Breaux has served as Editor/Designer of College Media Advisers’ Best of Collegiate Design (1998-2000), Art Director for College Media Review (1999-2000), Vice President of Southern University Newspapers (2000-01), Designer of The Journal of College Orientation and Transition for the National Orientation Directors Association (1998-current) and the College Media Advisers’ New York Spring Convention Publicity/Services Coordinator (2002-05). Breaux has received the following collegiate media advising honors from College Media Advisers (CMA):
CMA Presidential Citation 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
CMA Board of Director’s Citation 2000, 2002, 2004
CMA Distinguished Four-year Business Adviser 2001
CMA Ronald E. Spielberger Service to CMA Award 2004 (first recipient of award)
JIM HAYES (Technology & Broadcast Director)
Jim Hayes is the Electronic Media Adviser at Vanderbilt University, where he advises WRVU radio and Vanderbilt Television. He also serves as multimedia & video production adviser to InsideVandy.com, assists student media groups with development and maintenance of their websites, and also maintains all student media group computers. Before arriving at Vanderbilt in 2004 he was Coordinator of Student Media at Washington University in St. Louis for three years. Jim is active in many professional organizations including College Broadcasters, Inc. (Vice Chairman of the Board 2005-2007), Broadcast Educators Association, National Association of Broadcasters, Center for Innovation in College Media (Broadcast Fellow), and College Media Advisers (Broadcast Committee Chairperson 2005-2007). He received a CMA Presidential citation for service in 2006 and 2007. Jim received his undergraduate degree in mass communications/radio & television production at Southeast Missouri State University and performed his graduate work in media studies at Middle Tennessee State University. Prior to entering higher education he was employed in the field of professional broadcasting for more than 12 years. Among his professional experiences are nine years spent at the national cable network Country Music Television. Jim has also served as a digital media specialist for Charter Communications and as a talk radio host for Emmis Communications.
