Faculty/Staff Directory

Robin

Spring

springro@gvsu.edu

Associate Professor

127 LSH

616-331-8197

Advertising & Public Relations

     Professor Spring’s professional work in radio, television, print and agency provide her with multi-faceted experiences in advertising, public relations and strategic communications. With 20+ years of industry experience, Robin’s work in the field has taken her from Michigan, to the U.S. Virgin Islands, Texas and back. Practical knowledge of client relations, strategic planning, creative campaigns, copywriting, sponsorships, partnerships, special events, celebrity promotions, media relations, sales, on-air work in radio and television, fundraising, and integrated marketing communications in various cultures and professional teams translate well in the Advertising/Public Relations and Communication courses she teaches.
     Robin is the recipient of the Grand Valley State University Pew Teaching Excellence Award (2019-2020.)  Her case study on Team Based Learning is featured on the College Star Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an open resource for educators around the world. She earned a top 25 Great Ideas for Teaching (GIFT) featured at the Association of Educators in Journalism and Mass Communications (AEJMC) national conference. Her creative ideation teaching tips appear in the current edition of Advertising Creative: Strategy, Copy, and Design.
     Professor Spring’s research centers around advertising education; pedagogy; diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and creativity in the advertising industry.  Her work has been published in the Journal of Professional Communication, Journal of Advertising Education and in the proceedings of the American Academy of Advertising and the Lilly Conference on Evidence Based Teaching and Learning.    She earned an AEJMC Advertising Division Top Paper Award and has presented her work in multiple presentations and panels at a variety of conferences.
     Under her advisory, the GVSU National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) Teams have earned six first-place district wins and landed in the top 10 teams nationally five times in the past eight years.  Over 100 teams compete in this American Advertising Federation (AAF) contest nationwide.  Robin also serves as the GVSU Student Advertising Club Advisor and works with the American Advertising Federation of West Michigan (AAF-WMI) to connect students and professionals.    
     Serving as the Teaching and Pedagogy Chair for the Advertising Division of the Association of Educators in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) Professor Spring chaired the Teaching Paper Competition, the Teaching Awards Committee (2018-2021) and the Advertising Division Pre-Conference Teaching Workshop (2020-2024.)
     Professor Spring launched the GVSU Advertising/Public Relations Biometric Lab with eye tracking, facial expression analysis and galvanic skin response (GSR) capabilities and is iMotions certified.   She also spearheaded the Advertising/Public Relations Innovation Lab space.  Robin served as Co-Director of the GVSU Design Thinking Academy (2020-2021) and continues to work with a community of Design Thinkers.
     Robin has two extraordinary kids, plays music in an acoustic classic rock trio and spends her free time with an award-winning photographer, musician and artist.  Her Manx known as “Kitty Pants," and rescue pup, "Riley", make her laugh daily, reminding her to live in the moment.

Office Hours

Fall 2024:  Wednesdays 10:30 am - noon   Wednesdays 1 - 2:30 pm via Zoom.

 Currently: Advertising Copywriting, Advertising/Public Relations Campaign, Advertising/Public Relations Agency Experience (NSAC.)

Previously: Fundamentals of Advertising, Research Basics for Advertising and Public Relations, Concepts of Communication, Critical Interpretation, Interpersonal Communication, Nonverbal Communication, Speech, Story Making and Writing Corporate Communication.

M.S., Communication, Grand Valley State University

B.S., Advertising & Public Relations, Grand Valley State University

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