NEW YORK (November 25, 2025) — The Dow Jones News Fund today announced veteran journalist and educator Dr. Dorothy M. Bland as the recipient of the 2025 Richard J. Levine Journalism Champion Award.

Bland is a journalism professor at the University of North Texas Mayborn School of Journalism and the school’s former dean. She is an award-winning journalist who has served as a reporter, editor and news executive. Before joining academia, she held a variety of roles at USA Today and was the publisher of Gannett Co.’s Fort Collins Coloradoan for 11 years.

In his letter nominating Bland for the Levine Award, Mayborn Dean James E. Mueller said, “Dorothy has had a tremendously varied and impactful career in journalism and academia, including serving as the Mayborn School of Journalism dean.”

Under her leadership at Mayborn, the Denton, Texas, school set enrollment records, raised more than $2 million and launched a master’s degree program in digital communication analytics. “During her career, she has taught more than 1,000 college students but also helps aspiring students in high school,” Mueller said. As founder of the Mayborn’s Multimedia High School Journalism Workshop, Bland has helped place more than 100 students in internships over the years at a variety of news outlets ranging from KERA and the Dallas Morning News to CBS and USA Today, he said.

Shirley Carswell, executive director of the News Fund, said, “We are proud to recognize Dorothy, who is a prime example of the huge impact one person can have. She has been an editor, teacher, mentor and cheerleader to countless young journalists, many of whom have gone on to make their own impact on the industry.”

Before her appointment at UNT, Bland was a professor and director of the journalism division at Florida A&M University. She is a recipient of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication’s 2024 Lionel C. Barrow Jr. Award for Distinguished Achievement in Diversity Research and Education and the 2022 recipient of the Society of Professional Journalists Distinguished Teaching in Journalism Award.

Laura J. Downey, a former colleague of Bland’s who is now executive editor at WebMD Magazine, said: “Her efforts have strengthened the pathway for students from historically underrepresented groups to enter the profession.”

Bland, who was a Dow Jones News Fund summer intern in 1978, earned a PhD in communication from Florida State University, an MBA from George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Arkansas State University.

She has served on more than 20 accrediting site teams across the world. She also serves on the board of the Maynard Institute and the leadership council for the Lillian Lodge Kopenhaver Center for the Advancement of Women in Communication at Florida International University. Bland is active in a variety of professional organizations, including AEJMC, the Broadcast Education Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Online News Association and the National Association of Black Journalists.

The Dow Jones News Fund Richard J. Levine Journalism Champion Award was established in 2022 to honor those whose work supports the perpetuation of a strong and diverse free press. The award also pays tribute to the late News Fund president and longtime Dow Jones news executive Richard Levine and his journalism service.

The recognition includes a cash award of $2,500 and honorees participate in the speaker series for the News Fund’s intern class. The annual award is funded by contributions from the News Fund, the Dow Jones Foundation, The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones & Company. Individuals and other organizations may also contribute by earmarking DJNF donations for the Richard J. Levine Journalism Champion Award.