Dr. Lisa M. Burns is a Professor of Communications and Chair of the Media Studies department. She holds a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Maryland at College Park, as well as an M.A. in rhetoric and B.A. in broadcast journalism from Duquesne University. Professor Burns teaches courses including Media History; Media Analysis & Critique; Sports, Media & Society; Political Communication; and Media Industries & Trends. Her book, "First Ladies and the Fourth Estate: Press Framing of Presidential Wives" was published by Northern Illinois University Press in August 2008. She has also published several journal articles and book chapters on first ladies. Her research interests include media history, political communication (particularly media coverage of U.S. first ladies and presidents), public/collective memory, and media criticism. She is currently working on a book on presidential museums and public memory. Dr. Burns is co-director of the Sports Studies interdisciplinary minor. She is also a member of the Faculty Senate and the Academic Policies Committee. At the national level, she is the Immediate Past Head of the History Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC). A former broadcast journalist, Dr. Burns won several awards for her work as a news and sports reporter and producer in her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. She is a self-professed “media junkie” and a die-hard hockey fan.