Mike brings a wide variety of professional expertise to the classroom, online in CSU’s graduate MCMM program and in-person in undergraduate journalism courses on CSU’s Fort Collins campus. He is a veteran journalist and experienced leader in communications strategy, public affairs, issues management and crisis communications, community affairs and institutional partnerships.

Mike focuses on helping students develop practical skills, explore new ideas, and create authentic stories that resonate with audiences. His instruction emphasizes contemporary communication priorities, including audience-centered storytelling, ethical integration of emerging communications platforms and evolving tools such as AI, and the relationship between media, civic engagement, and local community-building.

In a journalism career spanning more than two decades, Mike worked for 18 years in Denver television as an Emmy winning news reporter, also filling-in on the anchor desk in news and sports. His first job as a “one-man-band” reporter/videographer in Joplin, Missouri (KSNF), led to reporter positions in Chattanooga (WRCB) and Nashville (WSMV), Tennessee, before landing back home in Colorado at CBS4 in Denver (KCNC).

In 2012, Mike joined CSU as the university’s primary spokesperson and Executive Director of Public Affairs and Communication, leading teams in public relations and video production for more than a decade. Today, Mike splits time between teaching at CSU and his consulting practice, tying together varied experiences to help student journalists, business professionals, and complex organizations communicate and connect.