Blust named School of Journalism undergraduate and associate director

Assistant Professor of Practice Kendal Blust has taken on the positions of associate director and director of undergraduate studies within the University of Arizona School of Journalism. 

Blust, who graduated from the School of Journalism with a master’s degree in 2016, joined the school’s faculty in the fall of 2023. 

With an award-winning past in both print and audio reporting, Blust has helped introduce radio- and podcasting-centered curriculum within the school and is working to further expand it. She has also taught food journalism courses and Bilingual Journalism Program courses in her time as a professor.

“As a former student, it’s an honor to serve on the faculty at the School of Journalism, and I’m excited to take on more leadership as we work to strengthen our curriculum and prepare students for successful careers in journalism,” Blust said. “I have loved working with and learning from students during my first year in this department. They are the reason we do this work, and I’m looking forward to finding ways to better serve them.”

Blust was instrumental in integrating the School of Journalism’s Donald W. Carson Journalism Diversity Workshop into the university’s legacy New Start program with former Associate Director Pate McMichael, and she serves as the advisor to the school’s new Women in Journalism club.

Blust’s journalism career began at the Nogales International, an award-winning community newspaper on the Arizona-Sonora border, where she covered topics including immigration, local politics, business, education and border dynamics.

She then spent five years as a senior field correspondent with NPR member station KJZZ’s Fronteras Desk starting in 2018. During her time at the station’s bureau in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, Blust covered stories from northern Mexico including cross-border business and trade, immigration, education and the environment. Much of her work with KJZZ also focused on women's movements and gender violence in Sonora, and she won several regional and national awards for her reporting.

“Her remarkable career as a reporter, particularly in the Arizona-Sonora borderlands, has equipped her with a unique perspective and expertise that will be invaluable to our students,” School of Journalism Director Jessica Retis said. “I look forward to seeing the positive impact she will have on our undergraduate programs and her continued dedication to advancing the field of journalism.”

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