Marcia Jones Cross

Writer, Author, Communications Professional

United States

I am a seasoned communications professional and manager seeking contractual or management opportunities in a corporate or nonprofit setting. I have worked with nonprofits as well as several colleges and universities across the country as a faculty member, senior-level communication executive, and special assistant to the president.

Currently, I am a clinical instructor and program manager for the Business Communication Program in the Department of Marketing at Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business. Previously, I served as a writer at Georgia State University’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. In this position, I wrote and edited the bi-weekly Dean’s E-News; researched and wrote articles for the school’s website and its magazine, The Briefing; and I also wrote press releases on policy briefs and other research occurring in the School.

My previous positions have included assistant professor of journalism at Florida A&M University’s School of Journalism, Media, and Graphic Arts; special assistant to the president for operations at Clark Atlanta University; assistant to the president/director of public affairs at Chicago State University; director of public relations and marketing for Meharry Medical College; and vice president for college relations at Morris Brown College.

I began my communications career with the University of Pittsburgh’s News and Publications office. I have also worked as a writer in the public relations offices of Dartmouth College and the University of Chicago. My public relations achievements include local, regional, and national media placements in the Chronicle of Higher Education, the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Washington Times as well as broadcast spots on NPR’s All Things Considered, The Today Show and 20/20, to name a few.

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Clark Atlanta University and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I also earned the certified nonprofit professional (CNP) credential from the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance. Additionally, I am the author of the novel, "Survival in a Sea of White."

Portfolio
News Hub
06/27/2017
Georgia State Student Organization Receives $10,000 Gift From State Farm

ATLANTA-Georgia State University's Nonprofit Leadership Alliance (NLA), housed in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, has received a $10,000 gift from State Farm® to expand the organization's marketing, recruitment and program efforts in the south DeKalb area of metro Atlanta.

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
01/11/2017
Georgia State's NLA Student Association Captures Two National Awards - Andrew Young School of...

ATLANTA-The Georgia State University Chapter of the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance (NLA) student association captured two of five national awards at the annual NLA Alliance Management Institute (AMI) conference in Denver on January 5, 2017. The two honors, Student Leader of the Year Award and Mutual of America Nonprofit Partner of the Year Award, were...

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
03/10/2016
From Toy Cars to Transportation Policy - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

As a child, DeRon Jordan (B.S. in Public Policy '14) played with his toy cars, buses and trucks and organized them around transportation stops. Now a transit planner at Capital Area Transit in Harrisburg, Pa., Jordan has navigated a lot of rough patches, never realizing that his childhood interest would be the foundation for...

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
01/15/2016
Alumnus Examines Concept of Philanthropy in New Documentary - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

AYSPS alumnus Salvatore Alaimo was in Atlanta in Nov. 3, 2015, for the screening of his recently produced documentary, "What is Philanthropy?" at the Loudermilk Center in the heart of downtown Atlanta. Alaimo is an associate professor of nonprofit management at Grand Valley State University's School of Public, Nonprofit and Health Administration in Grand Rapids,...

Gsu
Playing for Peace

Ben Spears breaks down barriers with Ultimate Frisbee Ben Spears spent the first half of the year in one of the most fought over and unstable regions on Earth playing a relatively obscure sport with kids. Spears is a leadership development coach with Ultimate Peace, a nonprofit organization that connects youth in areas divided by conflict through the sport of Ultimate Frisbee.

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
09/23/2015
Mitchell is New Assistant Director of Career Services - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Brian Mitchell, a nationally certified counselor with over 10 years of career and workforce development experience, is the new assistant director for employer relations in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies' (AYSPS) Career Services and Student Life Office. Mitchell comes to the AYSPS from North Carolina Central University, where he worked as...

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
09/22/2015
Wallace Named Associate Dean - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Economist Sally Wallace has been named associate dean for research and strategic initiatives, a position formerly held by professor Nancy Kropf, who is now dean of the Byrdine F. Lewis School of Nursing and Health Professions at Georgia State University. "Sally has done a wonderful job as chair of the economics department, and she...

Gsu
09/18/2015
The Andrew Young School Welcomes 11 New Faculty Members

The Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University is pleased to welcome 11 new faculty to its ranks for the 2015-2016 academic year. Among this year's new faculty are Second Century Initiative (2CI) professor and economist Alberto Chong, and public finance and education policy expert Ross Rubenstein, the Dan Sweat Distinguished Chair in Educational and Community Policy.

Gsu
08/12/2015
Undergrad Fighting for the Rights of Others

Jaira Burke is happiest and most at peace when she is lobbying, blogging and volunteering on behalf of human rights and social and economic justice. The International Economics and Modern Languages major says she spends her every waking moment fighting for the rights of others.

Gsu
06/22/2015
AYSPS Faculty and Staff Honored for Excellence and Years of Service

Three members of the Andrew Young School faculty and staff were celebrated at a recent luncheon for their excellence as servant-leaders who go beyond the call of duty in the classroom, in their research and through their caring spirit to serve and go the extra mile.

Gsu
05/31/2015
MPA Alumnus Exemplifies the AYSPS Brand

Take a stroll around downtown Atlanta on any given day and you will see a neatly uniformed Downtown Ambassador pointing a conventioneer in the right direction, another steam cleaning the sidewalks, and others doing any number of activities. They work around the clock to foster a safe and inviting downtown for the area's visitors, workers and residents.

Gsu
05/26/2015
MSW Community Projects Provide Tools Nonprofits Can Use

Every summer finds Fred Brooks distributing Requests for Proposals to several Atlanta social work agencies, nonprofits and other community agencies. The RFP asks for projects that can be completed by teams of second-year Master of Social Work students and will provide a tangible return to the agency or nonprofit.

Gsu
03/02/2015
Criminal Symptoms? Research Examines Arrests

In the United States more than 1.2 million people with mental illness are in jails or prisons, in contrast to the approximately 70,000 people in psychiatric hospitals, according to the Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics and the Department of Justice.

Gsu
12/18/2014
ARC Transportation Exec Credits AYSPS for His Success

When it comes to living and working in the Atlanta metropolitan area, the issue of transportation brings about lively discussions. From MARTA to the new downtown streetcar system to the Beltline, Atlantans always have an opinion about transportation and its impact on our community.

Gsu
11/20/2014
Public Budgeting and Finance Expert, Bart Hildreth, Named New NTA Executive Director

Georgia State University professor W. Bartley Hildreth was named the new executive director of the National Tax Association (NTA) during its annual Conference on Taxation in Santa Fe, New Mexico, November 13-15, 2014. An expert in public budgeting and finance, particularly in tax policy and municipal securities, Hildreth serves on the faculty in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies' Department of Public Management and Policy.

Gsu
10/09/2014
Research Supports Advances in Gender Diversity Policies

When Sebastian Beckham Nix graduates in December, he hopes that the diploma for his B.S. in Public Policy-Nonprofit Studies will have the correct name on it. Nix, a transgender man known as Becks, entered Georgia State University in 2010. While Becks is comfortable talking candidly about his past, he's the exception rather than the rule.

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
08/22/2014
Bride New School of Social Work Director - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Professor Brian E. Bride, an expert in the field of secondary traumatic stress and compassion fatigue, joined Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies on August 1 to direct its School of Social Work. Bride comes to the Andrew Young School from the University of Georgia (UGA), where he directed the School of...

Gsu
06/17/2014
Government Accountability Offices Selects AYSPS Trainees

Graduate students Caroline Neidhold, Andrew Brown and Angela Smith are spending the summer as student trainees in the U.S. Government Accountability Office's Atlanta regional location. GAO is an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress. Often called the "congressional watchdog," the agency investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars.

Gsu
12/20/2013
NLA Chapter Awarded No. 1

CHICAGO - The Georgia State University Chapter of the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance has been recognized as the best chapter in the United States at the organization's national conference in Chicago. The 2014 Sprint Campus Program Excellence Award was presented to chapter members attending the conference in a presentation on January 7.

Gsu
12/11/2013
Georgia State Was There For Me

Alumnus John Avery is a modest gentleman whose spirit of generosity and humility is evident as he speaks fondly of a life spent working and giving back to his church, family and friends. The Hiawassee, Georgia, resident enjoys the quietness of his beautiful mountain environment, just minutes from the Helen Alpine Village tourist area.

Gsu
09/13/2013
Do HOPE Scholars remain in Georgia when they graduate?

Students who attend college in Georgia rather than out-of-state because of the HOPE scholarship award appear to be more likely to leave the state after college, according to Professor David L. Sjoquist, the Dan E. Sweat Distinguished Chair in Educational and Community Policy, and alumnus John V.

Gsu
09/06/2013
Taking a stand against child trafficking

Christian Izco is passionate about fighting against the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) and human trafficking in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The public management and policy graduate fellow has taken her platform to the classroom, the community and the Georgia Legislature.

Gsu
07/30/2013
Students Compare/Contrast U.S. and European Union Policies During Study Abroad

Imagine going to a city where bike riding or public transit are the only forms of transportation. Picture living where wind turbine energy is the rule rather than the exception. Or envision an economic utopia that is 44 percent forest and boasts low unemployment, high wages, cutting edge technology and the corporate headquarters of Siemen's, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche.