Faculty

The leader of this Study Abroad program is Dr. Dani Madrid-Morales, an Assistant Professor of Journalism at the Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, who worked for over a decade as a broadcast journalist in Spain. The pre-departure component of the program will be taught by Dr. Sahar Hamzah, also an Assistant Professor at the Valenti School. During our trip in Kenya, we will be joined by Dr. Brian Ekdale, an Associate Professor at The University of Iowa, who is also an award-winning filmmaker. You will also meet and work with faculty and students at the School of Communication, Cinematic and Creative Arts at the United States International University-Africa in Kenya (USIU).

Dani Madrid-Morales, Assistant Professor, Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston

Dani studies global media, particularly exchanges between countries in the Global South, including China and African countries. He has lived in half a dozen cities, including Nairobi and Cape Town, in four continents: Asia, Europe, America and Africa. Before pursuing an academic in 2013, Dani was an award-wining journalist, and worked for different media organizations in Barcelona (Spain), first covering sports, and later world affairs. You can check some of Dani’s work as a broadcast journalist on his personal website.

Sahar Hamzah, Instructional Assistant Professor, Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, University of Houston

Sahar specializes in adaptation studies. Her primary focus of research was the films of Sir Kenneth Branagh in his post-Shakespeare era and his status as auteur. She did her undergraduate work in Film Production and has directed three short films and a feature-length documentary film entitled “Hope in the Darkness: The Sinking of the Seistan.” Sahar is also a Blackmagic Design Trainer and Ambassador and a Certified DaVinci Resolve colorist and trainer.

Brian Ekdale, Associate Professor, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, The University of Iowa

Brian studies media work within global digital cultures. His research looks at how and why people create media content in the digital era. He has a particular interest in media produced within and about Africa. Brian has professional experience as a software trainer, instructional technologist, and video producer. His documentary “10 Days in Malawi”” was screened at 11 film festivals and won 8 awards. Since joining the UI faculty, Brian now teaches several courses that prepare students to be better consumers and producers of digital and social media.

• learning