Decision approaches in search for new media director

The search for a new director of media relations has been underway for some time, but it is now reaching its final stages. \nBill Stephan, vice president for University Relations and Corporate Partnerships, has whittled down the applicants from the original 40 to a handful.\n"I'm hopeful we are reaching a point to announce someone by early September," he said.\nStephan is conducting the search in the wake of the resignation of former IU Media Director Jane Jankowski, who left IU May 24 to work at a sports publishing company, according to a May 17 article in the Indiana Daily Student.\nBut the decision is not Stephan's alone. He must coordinate not only with IU President Adam W. Herbert, because the Media Director is a spokesperson for him and the University, but also with Perry Metz, executive director of Radio and Television Services for IU.\n"The person acts as the official spokesperson and oversees the media relations staff who work with reports from around the state and the nation," Metz said.\n"Ideally we wanted someone with strong media experience in newspaper and television; and either with experience in a university or with a good understanding of what makes a university tick,"\n -- Contact senior writer Mike Malik at mjmalik@indiana.edu.