Education

B.S. Communication, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville

MBA, The University of Memphis 

 

About Prof.  Kendall Downing

Prof. Kendall Downing is returning as an adjunct JRSM faculty member for the Spring 2023 semester, once again teaching the Intro to PR writing course in the online format.  

Prof. Downing is excited to help students see the value in a communications-related career, and he brings a diverse set of job and life experiences to his online classroom. 

He currently works as a Communications Advisor at FedEx Services, where he supports the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) on both internal and external communications. 

Before his corporate career, Prof. Downing was an award-winning television journalist (on-air reporter/anchor) for roughly ten years. He worked at multiple tv stations in Kentucky, WXIN/WTTV in Indianapolis, and most recently WMC Action News 5, the NBC-affiliate in Memphis. While in Memphis, he specialized in business and political reporting. 

Prof. Downing has a bachelor’s degree in Communication from The University of Tennessee-Knoxville, where he majored in Journalism & Electronic Media and graduated Summa Cum Laude in August 2010. 

In 2020, he graduated from The University of Memphis, where he earned an MBA from the Fogelman College of Business and Economics. 

The best advice Prof. Downing has for students in communications fields is to stay curious! He believes an eagerness in learning and a willingness to get the job done are critical for students charting a communications career.