Jeff Ranta is an assistant professor of communications, media, & culture at Coastal Carolina University. Prior to his teaching debut 16 years ago, he was a Naval officer and marketing communications executive. His career highlights include vice president for RBB/Weber Shandwick Miami; executive positions in Atlanta and Columbia, SC boutique agencies; service as a division officer/public affairs officer for a U.S. Navy destroyer, Yokosuka Japan; public affairs officer for the aircraft carrier USS Constellation; assistant public affairs officer for Naval Base Philadelphia; acting director for the Navy Office of Information in Atlanta; and founder/principal for two, full service, marketing communications agencies. Some of his clients include Coca-Cola, BellSouth, Chick-fil-A, NewellRubbermaid, Shoney’s, Golden Corral, and various automobile dealerships. He established The Carolina Agency at the University of South Carolina in 2005 and turned it into a PRSSA nationally affiliated agency with more than 20 award-winning campaigns and four Bateman national championships. He recently established Coastal Carolina’s student agency, Teal Nation Communications. Ranta has a Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina, where his dissertation examined the interface between student-run agencies and the current shift from public relations to strategic communications.