Gambill Alumni Speaker Series to Feature Mississippi Reporter
JONESBORO – Lici Beveridge, a breaking news and growth reporter for the Hattiesburg American newspaper in Mississippi, will be on the Arkansas State University campus as part of the Dr. Joel Gambill Distinguished Alumni Speaker Series, Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 26-27.
Beveridge is a 1997 graduate of Arkansas State, earning two bachelor degrees in photojournalism and French. She was one of the recipients of the university’s Distinguished Service Award. A two-year member of The Herald staff, she served as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper during the final semester of her senior year.
Currently working as a reporter for the Hattiesburg newspaper, Beveridge has spent 15 years in various roles from lifestyle editor to digital and social media editor. She was a pioneer in the development and use of social networking as a vehicle for news organizations and worked with a team at parent company Gannett to improve social engagement for more than 100 news organizations across the country. Before joining Gannett, she worked at The Mississippi Press and Sun Herald on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Beveridge will visit classes throughout her two-day stay, including mass communication in modern society, the Delta Digital News Service special topics, communication research, media writing, and introduction to visual communication. In addition, she will meet with The Herald staff.
She volunteers with several organizations, including the Hattiesburg Arts Council, Waiting for a Cure and Southern Pines Animal Shelter.
Beveridge is a mother of two adult children. She is a San Francisco native and has lived across the U.S. and in several European countries. She enjoys cooking, reading, music, art, ballroom dancing and crocheting in her free time.
About the Dr. Joel Gambill Distinguished Alumni Speaker Series
The endowed Dr. Joel Gambill Distinguished Alumni Speaker Series is named after the 1965 A-State graduate who wanted to bring the media world to A-State students. He spent four decades building the department into a national powerhouse. He served as department chair for 36 years.
His numerous awards and recognitions include being named Outstanding Educator by the Arkansas Press Association as well as the organization's highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award. Along with his dedication to education and journalism, he devoted his time and talent as the official scorekeeper for A-State men's and women's basketball for a quarter century. Equally passionate about tennis, he captained five Jonesboro teams to the state championship.
Though he has many interests, he is most well-known, as one newspaper editor said, as Arkansas' foremost journalism educator. It has been said that editors and publishers looking to fill positions on the staff were accustomed to calling Dr. Gambill first.
