Interim Vice Chancellor, Provost and Chief Academic Officer Lois Agnew has announced the reappointment of Mark J. Lodato as dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications for a five-year term. The reappointment follows a comprehensive review process that included feedback from key stakeholders, including Newhouse faculty, staff and advisory board members.
“Dean Lodato took the helm of an already strong school and managed to make it even stronger,” Provost Agnew says. “His energetic and collaborative leadership and his emphasis on innovation, industry partnerships and an exemplary student experience have marked his five years as dean and led to many wins for Newhouse.”
Mark Lodato
Lodato became dean in July 2020, and his tenure has been marked by dynamic forward motion, expansion and success in several key areas for the school.
He was one of the driving forces behind the establishment of the Syracuse University Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship (IDJC) in Washington, D.C., to create new knowledge, foster a more informed and engaged citizenry and better equip students for success in media, communications, policy, governance and citizenship. He also established the undergraduate Newhouse DC program, which dovetails with the work of IDJC and further strengthens Newhouse’s robust study away offerings, which also include Newhouse LA and Newhouse NYC.
Under Lodato’s leadership, the school launched a fully online bachelor’s degree program in strategic communications, making a Newhouse education more accessible to new populations and serving as a model for other Syracuse schools and colleges looking to expand online undergraduate education.
Lodato also spearheaded the creation and renovation of several learning spaces at the school. These include the Startup Garage, which provides co-working and co-location space to media and tech startups who want to work with talented Newhouse students, and the new Sports Media Center, a hub for undergraduate and graduate students interested in a career in sports communications.
He has increased investment in research and creative activity, which has resulted in more than $7.3 million in sponsored research funding, and articulated the goal of strengthening the connection between communications and technology, particularly through faculty scholarship in emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.
Early in his time at Newhouse, Lodato implemented salary equity across Newhouse professional and support staff and faculty. He also has overseen a 17% growth in the faculty, representing a more diverse population.
“Working with the stellar faculty and staff of the Newhouse School has been an incredibly rewarding experience, and it has been my honor and privilege to serve as dean for the past five years,” Lodato says. “I am excited to continue our work together as we expand and realize our shared vision for the future of the school as a place that provides students with the best possible education and training for careers in communications. And I know that collective work is what makes Newhouse the top communications school in the country!”
Lodato joined the Newhouse School after more than 14 years at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, where he served as associate dean and associate general manager at Arizona PBS. He previously spent 16 years as an award-winning television reporter and anchor for network affiliate television stations in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Phoenix and Fort Myers, Florida.
