Faculty
Conference Chair
Emma Leech
Emma is Director of Marketing and Communications at Nottingham Trent University and sits on the University Executive Team. She was previously Director of Marketing and Advancement at Loughborough University.
She started her career in fashion and consumer PR in 1988, working in tourism and destination marketing before settling in higher education in 1997.
A Founding Chartered PR Practitioner, Chartered Marketer and Chartered Manager, she has won a string of awards over more than two decades spanning PR, marketing, innovation, fundraising, digital, and web.
Emma holds an MBA and various PR, marketing and management qualifications. She was the Chartered Institute of Public Relations President 2019.
Email: emma.leech@ntu.ac.uk
Twitter: @EmmaJ70
LinkedIn: /emmajaneleech
Faculty
Ashley Budd
Ashley Budd is senior marketing director at Cornell University. She is based in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., working remotely for the university as a content strategist and campaign project manager for the division. Known for her creative and innovative marketing campaigns, Budd is one of the most influential voices in education marketing and fundraising.
Prior to joining the digital team at Cornell, Budd spent more than five years at her alma mater, Rochester Institute of Technology, where she led social media strategy for undergraduate admissions. She is author of the popular newsletter Ashley in Your Inbox and speaks regularly before international nonprofit groups.
Social:
Twitter: @ashley_budd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleybudd/
Tony Dobies
As the Senior Director of Marketing at West Virginia University, Tony Dobies has positioned the University as a leader in creative marketing and social media. He is a vocal advocate for new and innovative approaches to marketing in higher education and has spoken at numerous national conferences on the importance of social media in marketing and communications. At WVU, he leads a team of talented social media managers, market researchers, advertisers, marketing strategists, brand and trademark licensing experts. Together with his team, he designs and manages marketing projects and initiatives to help reach the University's highest goals, especially in regard to recruitment. In 2015, he was named a "30 under 30 Rising PR Star" by PR News. He graduated from WVU in 2009 with a bachelor's degree in journalism and again in 2017 with a master's degree in integrated marketing communications.
AJ Lopez III
A J Lopez III is the manager of digital marketing and social media at MSU Texas. His day-to-day responsibilities involve creating content for social media through photography and video, and educating the faculty and staff of MSU Texas about the best approach to their social media strategy. He strongly believes that social media has to do something and not just add to the noise. For more than 13 years, Lopez has used a camera to tell the story of the companies he's worked for including published work in national magazines, books and newspapers. Having a keen eye and bold style, his importance to detail and bright colors can be found throughout his photos. Originally from South Texas, Lopez is also an award-winning marketer and photographer.
