Professor Howard Schneider Appointed as the Dean of the School of Journalism

STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Howard Schneider, former Editor and Managing Editor of Newsday, has been appointed Founding Dean of the Stony Brook School of Journalism which is New York State's first undergraduate School of Journalism at a public university.

For over a year, Professor Schneider worked with Dr. Kenny, Stony Brook's Provost Robert McGrath, and faculty committees on campus to shape the new School's mission and develop its curriculum. On its establishment, Schneider explained that the time was ideal for the new School. “The media world is in the midst of a revolution. Digital technology is disseminating a flood of information – and disinformation – every day,” he said. “Never before has there been a greater need for independent-minded, thoughtful, and well-trained journalism graduates. This is the School's mission.”

Prof. Schneider specializes in Media Ethics and also teaches other topics relating to journalism and media literacy. During his 35-year career at Newsday , the paper won seven Pulitzer Prizes for local, national, and investigative reporting. He was also responsible for spearheading the paper's award-winning 273-part series " Long Island : Our History." He headed the paper's Pulitzer-winning coverage of the "Baby Jane Doe" controversy in 1984, which revolved around parental right issues and the refusal of treatment for severely handicapped infants. U nder his leadership, Newsday was among the first newspapers in the country to create news Web sites; he also led efforts to introduce TV and radio into what had been an all-print newsroom.

He began his teaching career at Stony Brook as an Adjunct Professor of Journalism from 1980-1982. He serves on the Science Journalism Advisory Board of the Woods Hole Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts and has been a member of the Pulitzer Prize judging panel thrice. He has also been the recipient of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism Alumnus Award.

The Stony Brook School of Journalism, which has started offering a Bachelor's this Fall, will offer one of the nation's first courses in News Literacy, designed to help students use their critical thinking skills to judge the credibility and reliability of the news. The students study reporting, writing, producing, editing, and ethics and will be prepared for an evolving multi-media future. All students take courses in broadcast, print, and online journalism, as well as the unique News Literacy course. They also are required to participate in a special Writing Immersion laboratory before advancing in the program.