Expertise
- Public relations strategy
- Social media
- The creator economy
Education
- M.Ed.: Penn State, 2016
- Bachelor's: Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 2003
Details
Biography
With a career spent communicating through various mediums, Bill Zimmerman is fascinated with how messages are delivered and new ideas take hold in our hyper-connected world. A member of the faculty since 2017, Zimmerman teaches COMM 372: Digital PR, COMM 473: PR Campaigns, COMM 428e: Social Media Strategies (online) and COMM 471: PR Media & Methods. He is the faculty supervisor for CommAgency's social media division and runs the Bellisario College's social media/content creator camp for high schoolers in the summer.
He’s also presented at various conferences such as eduWeb Summit, HighEdWeb, Social Media Strategies Summit: Higher Ed and The One Club for Creativity Educator Summit.
For four years and 100+ episodes, he produced a podcast, “Happy Valley Hustle,” telling stories of entrepreneurship and digital age ingenuity. Before transitioning to the faculty, Zimmerman worked in Penn State's Office of Strategic Communications since 2012. Prior to that, he spent nearly a decade as a journalist at a daily newspaper in western Pennsylvania. He lives in State College with his wife, son and three cats.
In the News
- First Opportunity Grants awarded to faculty
- Trump campaign used alternative media to gain the young vote
- CommAgency honored for social media efforts on behalf of Penn State clients
- Faculty member's first book offers students keys to success in creator economy
- PSU Social Media and Content Creator Camp
- PODCAST: Hustlin' with Bill Z
- Brokaw: Social media is exceptional but potentially dangerous
- Lessons from a Mindful Journey: Suggestions for Educators by Bill Zimmerman
- How social media helped fuel indie wrestling’s resurgence
- Dissecting Conor McGregor’s steep odds in boxing showdown
Publications
Contact
Bill Zimmerman
108A Willard Building
wfz1@psu.edu