Nationally Accredited
J&PR has been accredited by
ACEJMC since 1996 and was
re-accredited in 2023.
Information on enrollment,
as well as graduation and
retention rates:
Find us
Tehama Hall 207
530-898-4779
jour@csuchico.edu
Regular Hours
8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Monday through Friday
Mailing Address
Journalism & Public Relations
400 W. First St.
Chico, CA 95929–0600
2006 News Hall of Fame Inductees
Richard Ek
Dr. Richard Ek taught journalism at Chico State for 24 years until 1991. As journalism program chief, he managed The Orion's spring 1975 debut. As the paper's faculty adviser in 1987-88, he shepherded The Orion into the desktop publishing era and put it on a firm financial footing, thus setting the stage for the award-winning years that followed. At age 80, Ek continues a successful freelance writing and photo career that spans almost 60 years.
Carri Geer Thevenot
Carri began working as a reporter for the Chico Enterprise-Record in high school and continued working there throughout college. She served as editor in chief of The Orion during the 1988-89 academic year, leading the paper to its first national Pacemaker award. She graduated from Chico State in 1990 with degrees in journalism and French. In 1991, she received a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University. Since then, she has worked as a reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, primarily covering courts.
Matt Olmstead
Matt, who studied English and journalism at Chico State, is an executive producer for the 20th Century Fox television series “Prison Break.” He was co-creator, executive producer and a writer on "Blind Justice," a police drama series from Steven Bochco Productions for ABC. He also was an executive producer on the Emmy award-winning "NYPD Blue." Matt began his affiliation with Steven Bochco Productions as a freelance writer on "Brooklyn South" before rising through the ranks.
Mark Soltau
Mark earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Chico State in 1977. He helped start The Orion in 1975, covering Wildcat athletics. An all-conference golfer, Mark was sports editor of the Gilroy Dispatch and Salinas Californian, then spent 16 years writing for the San Francisco Examiner. He later became a national columnist for CBS Sportsline. Mark is a Golf Digest contributing editor and editor of Tigerwoods.com. He and wife Valerie have a daughter, Shelby.