About

About Me

Health communication researcher Jay M. Bernhardt is the 13th president of Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Bernhardt previously served as dean of the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. He also established the school’s Center for Health Communication during his tenure at the top-ranked Travis County-based institution.

Elsewhere, he has performed high-level roles at the University of Florida, the University of Georgia, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The New Jersey native enjoys memberships to numerous honor societies and serves on the boards of several high-profile organizations.

Bernhardt has received various awards for his leadership and scholarship work. The 13th president of Emerson College is also a long-time mental health advocate and proudly supports a wide range of charities, nonprofits, and good causes. Beyond his professional work and other commitments, he enjoys art, theater, and experiencing new cuisines.

Current Role & Duties

Emerson College

Jay Bernhardt is the 13th president of Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Bernhardt joined the easternmost Massachusetts-based college in 2023, previously serving as the University of Texas at Austin’s Moody College of Communication dean since March 2016. Boston-based Emerson College also has campuses in California and the Netherlands.

Bernhardt is committed to serving the school’s faculty and students with steady and caring direction and guidance from its Boston campus. The esteemed health communication researcher took over as the school’s 13th president from interim principal Bill Gilligan. Gilligan had previously served as interim president at Emerson College since 2021.

Career History

Moody College of Communication

Bernhardt is the former dean of the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. He joined the Austin-based University of Texas’s Communication College in March 2016. While serving as its dean, he became the founding director of its Center for Health Communication.

Before becoming dean, Bernhardt served as the school’s interim dean from August 2015 until February 2016. He also spent the prior 20 months as a professor at the institution, where his primary appointment was in the Department of Communication Studies. Bernhardt further maintained a secondary appointment in the Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relations.

Other Notable Roles

Digital Health Impact, Inc.

Jay Bernhardt founded Digital Health Impact, Inc. in Gainesville, Florida, in 2011. As Digital Health Impact’s founder and president, he led operations dedicated to consulting on wide-ranging scientific and strategic applications and innovations.

He and his team also focused on digital health technologies, health communication, and social marketing for academic, governmental, nonprofit, and private-sector clients.

University of Florida

Between 2010 and 2014, Bernhardt served as a University of Florida professor, chair, and center director. For four years, he led students, faculty, and other staff while also developing a number of digital health-focused academic training programs and initiatives designed to increase all-important research opportunities at the school.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The current 13th president of Emerson College, Jay M. Bernhardt, is a former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention department director. In 2005, he became the first permanent director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Marketing. As director, he oversaw a 500-strong team of federal employees and contractors with an annual budget of over $100 million.

Academic Background

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Bernhardt studied at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between 1994 and 1999. While studying at the University of North Carolina, he became the school’s student union board chair and subsequently enjoyed induction into the Order of the Grail Valkyries. It’s from the Chapel Hill-based institution that he holds his Ph.D. in public health.

Rutgers University

A then-18-year-old Jay Bernhardt joined Rutgers University—the State University of New Jersey—as a student in 1987. Between 1987 and 1992, Bernhardt studied sociology and computer science at Rutgers. He later became the president of Phi Delta Theta and enjoyed induction into the Order of Omega and the Cap and Skull Honor Society.

Bernhardt also spent 12 months studying at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in 1993 and 1994, where he became the student government association’s president. It’s from Rutgers University that he holds his M.P.H. and B.A. degrees in health education and sociology from Rutgers University.

Awards

New Jersey-born Jay Bernhardt is a multi-award-winning educator, professor, researcher, and board director. Among the many high-profile professional accolades earned by Bernhardt during his career are the following:

• John T. McGovern Health Communication Award
• Charles Atkin Outstanding Translational Health Communication Scholar Award
• Everett M. Rogers Award for Excellence in Health Communication
• American Public Health Association Excellence in Leadership Award
• Jay S. Drotman Memorial Award for Creative Leadership

Bernhardt also has a national award named in his honor in the shape of the Bernhardt Student Leadership Award for Excellence. Established in 2011, the American Public Health Association presents the Bernhardt Student Leadership Award for Excellence annually through its health informatics and information technology section.

Personal Life & Interests

Jay M. Bernhardt lives and works in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He resides happily with his wife, Cassandra, in Boston. The award-winning educator and mental health advocate is a keen philanthropist and proudly supports numerous all-important charities, nonprofit organizations, and other good causes.

Away from his professional and philanthropic work, he enjoys art, theater, travel, and trying new restaurants with different cuisines. He and his wife also revel in time spent with their family and close friends in Massachusetts and elsewhere.