Jill Jess rejoined WGU in January 2023 after serving as the first public relations manager for WGU Ohio from 2018 to 2020. She has more than 15 years’ experience in strategic communications, focusing on higher education and public service. She also is a FEMA-certified crisis communicator. Jess began her career in newspapers and worked as a reporter, editor and designer for 18 years, primarily in California. She is a graduate of the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas. She also earned certification in marketing strategy from the Yale School of Management. Jess has two adult children and three rescue dogs and lives in Lawrence, Kan.