Alumna Transitions to Fred Hartman Chair
By Kate Nelson
Sommer Ingram Dean, J.D., joined the Baylor Department of Journalism, Public Relations & New Media in the fall as the Fred Hartman Distinguished Professor and Baylor University.
The Baylor JPR&NM alumna is new to the position, but not Baylor.
“We are extremely excited to have someone of Sommer’s caliber on our faculty,” Professor and Chair Mia Moody-Ramirez. “She embodies the excellence we strive for in our department.”
Dean graduated from Baylor in 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science. During her time at Baylor, she was a reporter for the Baylor Lariat. She went on to receive her law degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 2015.
Baylor’s department of journalism, public relations and new media prepared Dean for the fast-paced lifestyle of journalism, increased her interest in storytelling and shaped her desire to work in journalism and law. She embraces her life changing experience as a Baylor student and the positive impacts it had on her career.
“Baylor journalism definitely grew my love and interest in wanting to tell people’s stories,” Dean said. “Also, the aspect of journalism that really calls us to hold people in power accountable. I took that enthusiasm and experience and let it guide me both after college and also when I decided to go to law school.”
The Lariat had a significant impact on Dean’s experience at Baylor, equipping her with the necessary skills to stand out during her time as a reporter.
“Coming to Baylor and working at the Baylor Lariat and getting to know so many of the professors in the journalism department really was just invaluable work experience,” she said.
“Right after college, I worked for the Associated Press,” Dean said. “There was really no better training for that than Baylor's journalism department and working at the Lariat, having to write a story every single day. A lot of my colleagues at the AP were impressed that I could whip out stories like that right out of college.”
Despite the late nights at the Lariat, Dean made many memories and developed a family-like bond with her fellow staff members. She looks back fondly on that time.
“I feel like so many of my memories from Baylor were at the Lariat. Some of my best friends today are still people that I met at the Lariat, including my husband,” Dean said.
Her love for the field of journalism didn’t end after she graduated or started her law career. In fact, her experience in the journalism field and as a student journalist has consistently shaped her work.
Dean’s past work includes reporting for the Associated Press and serving as a staff attorney at the Student Press Law Center, a nonprofit supporting and defending the First Amendment rights of student journalists. Based in Washington, D.C., the SPLC trains and provides legal assistance to student journalists and educators for no fee.
“I just always had a special spot in my heart for student journalists,” Dean explained. “I think it's so important to empower the younger generation of journalists to let them know that this doesn't have to be a dying field, that what you do is important.”
Her desire to help student journalists translates into her current job as a professor in Baylor’s department of journalism, public relations and new media.
“I just see so much potential and eagerness to learn and willingness to accept advice and wisdom,” Dean said. “That's really my favorite part, getting to know all the wonderful students we have, having one-on-one talks in my office or after class and helping people figure out what they want to do.”