Student Introductions: Bill Zimmerman, Higher Education M.Ed. candidate

Immediately after coming to Penn State in 2012, I was hooked on working at a university. The energy created by tens of thousands of people bettering themselves is like nothing I’ve ever experience. The optimism among students sweeps you up and gives your work purpose. Shortly after starting in Penn State’s Office of Strategic Communications, I began pursuing a master’s degree in higher education. Not really a means to a particular job, I see it as a way to insure that I continue working in such a vibrant work environment.

I’m currently working as social media manager, overseeing daily planning and administration of Penn State's official social media accounts as well as content production and curation. I'm also a contributor to Penn State News as a writer and photographer, and host of "This is Penn State,"​ a monthly Web series that looks at the expertise, commitment and creativity of Penn Staters.

A journalism graduate from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, I worked nearly a decade as a newspaper reporter in western Pennsylvania. In Fall 2015, I taught News Writing and Reporting in the College of Communications and have been focusing the remainder of my master’s studies toward teaching. I’m excited to begin AEE 530, and I’m confident that I’ll emerge a much more effective and empathetic instructor.

To learn more about my work, go to http://sites.psu.edu/billzimmerman/ and give me a follow at https://twitter.com/ThisIs_BillZ.