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Michael Spikes, Ph.D. has been teaching, writing about, and developing curriculum on the subject of News Media Literacy and its production for more than 15 years. 

Currently, he is a lecturer and the director of the Teach for Chicago Journalism project in the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University. His research focuses on the current practices of educators when engaging using media literacy and news media literacy  pedagogy. 

Before joining Northwestern, Michael was a project manager for the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University where he led the build of its Digital Resource Center, an online repository of news literacy teaching and learning material. Michael also headed up a branch of the Center in the state of Illinois, where he developed teacher training materials and curriculum as part of a new Civics course mandate in the state. Michael continues his work with the center’s curriculum as a speaker, trainer, and consultant, most recently with the American Library Association.

Michael has also held positions as a Media Studies instructor in both public and public charter schools in Washington DC, and was a member of the educational advisory team at the Newseum. He has also held roles as a media producer, primarily in radio as a producer and youth trainer for NPR, and as a freelance producer for Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.