Luther College Update - 2024-25 Academic Year
DRC Sponsor: Phil Iversen
Dr. Bill Smith, Luther College Vice President for Communications, will be visiting our club to share updates and insights from Luther for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Dr. Smith came to Decorah from Arkansas State University (ASU) where he served since 2013 and most recently as Chief Communications Officer. At ASU, he led external and internal communications efforts. He initiated a visual branding program, served as primary university spokesperson and managed crisis communications. For his work in university communications, he has won multiple regional awards from the Council for the Support and Advancement of Education (CASE).
He is a historian as well as a communications expert. Dr. Smith holds a Ph.D. in History from the University of Arkansas, as well as an M.A. in History and a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He has taught history at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, and at Northwest Arkansas Community College. For the regional National Public Radio affiliate in Northwest Arkansas, he created and co-hosted a monthly “We’re History” radio program reflecting on the use of history in popular culture. His scholarly areas of expertise are in U.S. diplomatic and military history as well as 20th-century U.S. and European history.
As a crisis communications expert, he holds certifications in public information and the incident command system from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He achieved the National Weather Service’s StormReady Campus certification for Arkansas State in 2017 and 2022.
An avid cyclist, Dr. Smith holds a certification as a safety course instructor from the League of American Bicyclists, and he has served as board president of the Northeast Arkansas Bicycle Coalition. His cycling interests brought him to Iowa in 2018 to complete RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa).
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**Please complete your meal sign-up prior to the meeting, preferably not later than close of business Monday. Our face-to-face meeting will be hosted at the VFW. The meal sign-up, meeting announcment, and any other logistical information will be distributed in advace to all members by email.