Board of Advisors
Faris Yakob
Co-Founder and Principal, Genius Steals
MA, English, University of Oxford
Described as ‘the advertising philosopher’, Faris Yakob is an award winning strategist, creative director, speaker and writer. After working at numerous agencies in London, Sydney and New York, Faris launched Genius Steals, an itinerant agency for Strategic and Innovative Consulting.
Author, Paid Attention
Beth Knobel, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Communication and Media Studies, Fordham University
Dr. Knobel is an Emmy award winning multimedia journalist, and former CBS Moscow Bureau Chief, bringing over 20 years of experience in all major areas of journalism to her classes. She continues to work with CBS News as a freelance reporter, focusing on Russian Affairs.
Author, The Watchdog Still Barks: How Accountability Journalism Evolved for the Digital Age.
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David Freedman, Ph.D.
Professor of Neurobiology, University of Chicago
Dr. Freedman is the Chair of the graduate program in Computational Neuroscience and Director of Freedman Lab, a neuroscience laboratory exploring mechanisms by which brains process and adapt to their environments. His work has been recognized by the National Science Foundation, the National Academy of Sciences, the Sloan Foundation and the McKnight Foundation.
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Brian Rose, Ph.D.
Professor, Emeritus, Communication and Media Studies, Fordham University
Dr. Rose teaches courses on the history of film, television and media economics, He has also conducted numerous interviews with leading directors, actors, and writers for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Screen Actors Guild, and the Directors Guild of America.
Author, Thinking Outside the Box: A Contemporary Television Reader
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James Jennewein
Artist in Residence, Department of Communication &Media Studies, Fordham University
Professor Jennewein teaches courses in writing for film and television, and provides mentoring for students developing their craft as creative writers. He joined the Fordham faculty after a long career in Hollywood. Film credits include: The Flinstones, Richie Rich, Major League, and Stay Tuned.
Author, Rune Warriors Trilogy
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Julie Dobrow, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies at Tufts University
Dr. Dobrow holds faculty appointments in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development and the Film & Media Studies Program at Tufts, as well as the Department of Public Health & Community Medicine at the Tufts Medical School.
Author, After Emily: Two Remarkable Women and the Legacy of America’s Greatest Poet.
Thomas Droge
Founder: Pathfinder Institute and The Droge Clinic
Thomas Droge has been practicing traditional Chinese medicine for over 25 years. He has studied at the University of Colorado, the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, Harvard’s Mind-Body Medicine program, and Jiang Xi College in mainland China. The Pathfinder Institute makes the ancient Daoist paths of Qi Gong, clarity, and stillness accessible to all.
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