Meng

About: Dr. Juan (pronounced as “Dren”) Meng is the Head of the Department of Advertising and Public Relations in the College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia. Dr. Meng is UGA Athletic Association Endowed Professor and professor of public relations. She was the founder and director of UGA's Go Global Choose China study abroad program. She also founded the College’s Cooperative Education 3+1+1 programs with Shanghai Normal University and Shanghai International Studies University and serves as the programs’ academic advisor. She currently directs Grady’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity Study Abroad Program.

View Curriculum Vitae

Education

Ph.D., University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
M.S., University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
M.A., Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH
B.S., Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Research Interests and Activities

Dr. Meng’s research specialization includes public relations leadership, leadership development, diversity and leadership in PR, measurement in PR, reputation management and global communication. Meng has published more than 75 refereed journal articles, scholarly book chapters and research reports on leadership-related topics. She has published four scholarly books, including Strategic Communication and the Global Pandemic (Routledge, 2025), Strategic Communication in a Global Crisis (Routledge, 2023), PR Women with Influence: Breaking through the Ethical and Leadership Challenges (Peter Lange International, 2021), and Public Relations Leaders as Sensemakers: A Global Study of Leadership in Public Relations and Communication Management (Routledge, 2014).

Meng serves on the national and international editorial advisory board for leading scholarly journals in public relations, including Journal of Public Relations Research, Public Relations Review, International Journal of Strategic Communication, Corporate Communications: An International Journal, and Corporate Communication Review. She has received numerous research awards and recognitions nationally and internationally. Most recently, she was the recipient of the 2023 Institute of Public Relations Pathfinder Award for her significant and sustainable contributions to the body of knowledge and practice of public relations.

Meng serves on the Board of Trust at the Institute for Public Relations and the national advisory board at The Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations. She was the research vice chair on the executive leadership committee of the Educators Academy at Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) in 2021-2022. She also served on the national advisory board for Ragan Communications and PR Daily from 2021 to 2024. She is a fellow at UGA Women’s Leadership Fellows Program, the Office of Service-Learning, and UGA Teaching Academy. She is an elected member of the Arthur W. Page Society. She recently was named a Fellow of the 2025-2026 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Academic Leadership Development Program.

Teaching Specialties

Dr. Meng’s teaching areas include public relations campaigns, integrated advertising and public relations campaigns, AdPR project course, global advertising and public relations, and PR ethics, diversity and leadership. Dr. Meng currently directs Grady’s Cannes Lions Study Abroad Program and takes students to Cannes, France, to attend the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in June. To learn more about the program, please visit the Cannes Lions Study Abroad webpage.

Experience

Prior to moving to the United States, she practiced communication in Shanghai for a few years, including being a journalist and editor at the Shanghai TV Network, correspondent in Xinhua News Agency (Shanghai Bureau), media relations specialist in Shanghai Media Group (SMG), and other strategic communication & marketing consulting service for various organizations. Before joining the faculty at Georgia, she was faculty at the University of Dayton and Oklahoma State University.

Awards and Fellowships

Dr. Meng has received multiple awards for teaching and research in public relations, including the Wilcox Award for Best Teaching Paper from AEJMC, the Red Raider Award from the Institute for Public Relations (IPR), and several top research paper awards from AEJMC, ICA and IPR.

• Fellow, Southeastern Conference (SEC) Academic Leadership Development Fellows Program, 2025-2026
• Board of Trustees, Institute for Public Relations, since 2024
• Member, The Arthur W. Page Society, since 2019
• Fellow, UGA Women's Leadership Fellows Program, 2019-2020
• Advisory Board, The Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations, since 2018
• Member, The Page Up Society, since 2016
• Fellow, 2015-2016 UGA Service-Learning Fellowship Program
• Fellow, 2013-2014 UGA Teaching Academy Fellowship Program