Ole Miss Professor Earns National Honor for Scholastic Journalism Leadership

R.J. Morgan built his journalism career from the ground up in Mississippi classrooms, and on March 19, a national organization recognized what that investment has compounded across the state.

Morgan, Instructional Associate Professor in Ole Miss's School of Journalism and New Media and Executive Director of the Mississippi Scholastic Press Association, received the James F. Paschal Award at the Columbia Scholastic Press Association's annual awards luncheon in New York City. CSPA president Jenny Creech presented the honor, which the Columbia Scholastic Press Advisers Association awards to state or regional school press officials who have distinguished themselves in scholastic journalism. The award requires at least three letters of recommendation and is named for the late James Frederick Paschal, former director of the Oklahoma Interscholastic Press Association.

For students in Lafayette County and across Mississippi, Morgan's work produces tangible results. Since becoming MSPA director in 2013, he has connected more than 100 publications statewide, curating speakers for fall and spring conventions held on the Ole Miss campus, organizing summer adviser retreats, and building an endowment that funds professional development for Mississippi journalism teachers. Lafayette County's own students have advanced through that pipeline: Lafayette's Maddie Klepzig earned MSPA Yearbook Staff Member of the Year honors, and Oxford's Drew Baker was named Broadcast Editor of the Year, both products of the statewide competitive infrastructure Morgan runs from Oxford. D'Iberville adviser Mandy Mahan put it plainly: "Because of the opportunities that R.J. creates through MSPA, my students have built impressive resumes filled with speaking engagements and awards."

Morgan was nominated by Larry Steinmetz, the Journalism Education Association's state director for Kentucky, who worked alongside him through national and regional initiatives. "R.J. is someone who just gets it," Steinmetz said. "From the very beginning, he understood how to build programs, support educators and make organizations stronger." Steinmetz credited Morgan for transforming MSPA into a "powerhouse" and consistently finding new ways to connect advisers and students.

Morgan's path to the Paschal mirrors the pipeline he now runs. He started as a student reporter at Pearl High School, moved to The Reflector at Mississippi State, then advised Starkville High School's newspaper, yearbook, and broadcast programs, where he was thrice named MSPA Adviser of the Year and earned the school's STAR Teacher recognition, Third Congressional District Teacher of the Year honors, and the Paul Cuicchi Innovative Educator Award. He joined Ole Miss and took over the MSPA directorship simultaneously in 2013, crediting mentor Beth Fitts, herself a Paschal Award recipient, as the guiding influence behind that path.

Beyond MSPA, Morgan founded the Integrated Marketing Communication Association, a national high school media and marketing organization housed at Ole Miss. He serves on the JEA national certification committee, teaches certification courses for educators nationwide, and chairs the Scholastic Media division's awards for the Association for Educators of Journalism and Mass Communication. Earlier honors include the Elizabeth Dickey Distinguished Service Award from SIPA in 2018 and Master Journalism Educator status from JEA in 2020. Before academia, he spent 16 years covering college sports for The Associated Press, with bylines in Sporting News, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, and the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

"Learning is in the doing," Morgan said. "Journalism gives students ownership, responsibility and a voice. When you create those environments, whether in a classroom or across a state, you're not just teaching journalism. You're helping shape more thoughtful, engaged citizens."

Mississippi schools with a newspaper, yearbook, literary magazine, online publication, or broadcast program can join MSPA through the organization's website at the Ole Miss School of Journalism and New Media. MSPA provides every student media teacher in the state with free JEA membership and curriculum resources, hosts the free three-day Overby Adviser Institute each summer in Oxford, and connects students to state, regional, and national competitions. Schools and advisers can reach Morgan directly through the Ole Miss School of Journalism and New Media.