David Wheeler
Faculty Advisor
David R. Wheeler, Ph.D., is the adviser of The Minaret as well as a journalism professor at The University of Tampa. One of the greatest experiences of his life was working on his college newspaper, and since then, he always knew he wanted to come back to a student newsroom and advise a college paper. Since he began advising The Minaret, the verdict is … guilty as charged! Working with the Minaret has been everything he dreamed it would be.
In addition to being a professor and adviser, David has written freelance articles for outlets such as CNN, The Atlantic, The New York Times, Newsweek, NBC News, and Columbia Journalism Review.
Some other things he’s proud of: His Atlantic article “Do Students Still Have Free Speech in School?” is required reading for a class at Harvard called “Between First and Fourth: Privacy and Speech on the Frontier of Technology” (week five on the syllabus). It’s also cited in the Yale University Press book Free Speech on Campus by law professors Erwin Chemerinsky and Howard Gillman.
Another one of his Atlantic articles, “The Plot Against Student Newspapers,” was used in an amicus brief before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, just one step below the Supreme Court. In a victory for student press rights, the Ninth Circuit ruled in Koala v. Khosla that a student newspaper’s First Amendment rights were violated when its funding was revoked by a University.
David could not be more proud of the work and professionalism of The Minaret staff. He hopes to advise the paper for many years to come.
WheelerWorkshop
