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Preparing professionals: PR Professor Brigitta Brunner recognized for excellence in real-world teaching

Brigitta Brunner, public relations professor in the School of Communication & Journalism, prepares her students to stand out in the competitive public relations field, which has earned her numerous recognitions for her teaching.

Her latest recognition, the Gerald and Emily Leischuck Endowed Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching from Auburn University, recognizes her innovation and leadership in public relations education.

Brunner said she’s honored by each recognition, but the real award is the success of her students.

“It’s the validation that I'm doing something good, but more than that, it's a reflection that I'm providing something important for my students,” Brunner said. “I'm helping them to be the best that they can be. I'm helping them to connect concepts to the workplace, helping them to be prepared for careers and for doing great things.”

With each class, Brunner encourages students to connect what they’re learning in the classroom with their professional interests. She’s proved that it motivates students to learn concepts and better prepares them for the real world.

Brunner emphasizes engaging students with activities, setting expectations similar to what’s found in a professional setting and working efficiently in groups. The creative freedom to find something they’re passionate about helps drive class participation.

She said it’s about making connections between their ideas and professional work to hone their skills before graduating, such as in her Foundations of PR class, where a group plans to freely share their work with a humane society.

“I'm always excited to get to know my students and to see what they're working on and also to learn from them,” Brunner said. “Seeing their excitement when they’re making those connections and they see that, ‘Oh, this is interesting, this is what I could be doing,’ that’s their creativity spark. That’s always something exciting to see, that they have that creativity and they’re not afraid to put it down and play with it.”

Overall, Brunner tries to depart from the traditional, note-taking heavy way of teaching to create a more active learning environment.

Brunner earned her bachelor’s degree from Juniata College, a master’s from Auburn and her doctorate from the University of Florida. She’s been a faculty member in the School of Communication & Journalism since 2002, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses.

For 23 years, she has shaped countless classes with her forward-thinking philosophy, influenced the public relations field with her research and collected several awards for excellence in teaching.

At the end of the day, the latest award from Auburn inspires her to keep cultivating transformative experiences.

“Although I grew up in the Northeast, Auburn always felt like home to me. I really did get that sense of family from being here as a graduate student. I felt very accepted and very much a part of the life of the department,” Brunner said. “As a faculty member, I've been able to give back to that. I hope that culture continues with those of us who are still here and are part of the school, that we still make new people feel like it's family when they join us.”

Learn more about the 2025 Faculty Awards.

Tags: Communication and Journalism Faculty