Two School of Journalism and Media faculty have received the Athletics Professor of Excellence Award for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Six faculty members from across the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, were selected for this award. School of Journalism and Media Professors Amber Roessner and Nick Geidner were among this year’s honorees. Last year, Professor Erin Whiteside was among the inaugural recipients of the award.
“To have not just one, but two of our faculty named to this elite group within a single year speaks to the level of Roessner’s and Geidner’s contributions to the University of Tennessee,” said Amy Jo Coffey, director of the School of Journalism and Media. “This, on top of Dr. Whiteside being honored last year, is a testament to the caliber of faculty who call the School of Journalism and Media their home.”
Roessner teaches and studies media history and its relationship to cultural phenomena and practices, including the operation of politics, the negotiation of public images and collective memories, and the construction of race, gender, and class.
She has published three books: Inventing Baseball Heroes: Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson and the Sporting Press in America, Jimmy Carter and the Birth of the Marathon Media Campaign and co-edited Political Pioneer of the Press: Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Her Transnational Crusade for Social Justice. She is presently under contract with LSU Press for a book about Carter’s presidency and post-presidency.
She has been recognized for her teaching and research with several awards from prestigious national associations as well as various entities at UT.
“Since arriving on Rocky Top in 2010, I have always tried to give ‘my all for Tennessee’ each day,” Roessner said. “I am truly honored to receive the prestigious Athletics Professor of Excellence award and am truly grateful to work with such amazing students, faculty, and staff on this campus.”
Geidner is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker in the School of Journalism and Media who teaches documentary production and reporting courses. In addition, Geidner is the director of The Media Center at the College of Communication and Information, supporting hands-on experiences in print, broadcasting, radio, commercial video, and documentary production through the various student media outlets that comprise the center.
Geidner also created and directed the Emmy-nominated and Telly Award-winning documentary production program, Land Grant Films. Geidner has produced and directed numerous films, including The Library that Dolly Built and Baker for America. He has also supported many student-led documentaries, including The Tennessee Circle Drill and Hunter.
“While I am honored to receive the Athletics Professor of Excellence Award, getting to work with our amazing students and see them grow as journalists and media producers is the greatest honor,” Geidner said.
The UT Faculty Senate, in partnership with the Tennessee Athletics Department, advocated for the Athletics Professor of Excellence awards and stated the purpose is to recognize faculty excelling both in the classroom and beyond that highlights UT’s commitment to being the “Everything School.”
Honorees will receive a $15,000 honorarium and hold the title for one academic year.