Nan Fairley

About Me

Nan Fairley is an associate professor of the School of Communication & Journalism at Auburn University. She was the recipient of the 2011 AU Award for Excellence in Faculty Outreach and was named a College of Liberal Arts Engaged Scholar. She is working with Mark Wilson on the CLA Living Democracy project, which takes students and citizens on a journey of collaboration on issues that matter to Alabama communities.

She teaches a variety of courses ranging from feature writing to community journalism in the Auburn journalism program, where she has been teaching since 1992. She received her master’s degree in journalism from the University of Alabama in 1988 and completed her undergraduate education at Mississippi University for Women.

Fairley worked for a variety of newspapers from Boca Raton, Florida, to Meridian, Mississippi. Her most valuable professional experiences include work for community newspapers. She encourages her students to recognize the vital role of community journalism through a wide range of civic projects.

Founder of the AU Summer Journalism Workshop, Fairley is chair of the school's diversity committee, a member the College of Liberal diversity team and serves on the advisory board for the CLA Community and Civic Engagement Initiative.

Research Interests

community journalism