Deborah Witham earned an A.B. in English from Douglass College (Rutgers University), where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees are also in English, from Indiana University. She joined the faculty of the University of Kentucky as an Assistant Professor of Agricultural Communications in 1981, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2000. In July 2002 she moved from Agricultural Communications Services to the Department of Community and Leadership Development, where she is Director of Undergraduate Studies in Community Communications and Leadership Development.

Dr. Witham’s undergraduate courses include communications campaigns, reading and writing skills for communications and leadership students, and the senior seminar in Community Communications and Leadership Development. She supervises undergraduate internship experiences and field work, advises ag communications students, and is co-advisor of the Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow. She is a member of the Graduate Faculty and teaches a graduate course in Applied Community Communications.

In addition, Dr. Witham provides training for Extension and other groups in communications, writing, marketing, and branding. A skilled editor, Dr. Witham earned 30 communications awards for her publications work during her tenure in Agricultural Communications Services.