Moravian University Cuts Ribbon on Zinczenko New Media Center

December fifth will forever be a Moravian University Homecoming for David Zinczenko ’91. Instead of waving foam fingers and tailgating, the author of 14 New York Times Bestsellers, including the Eat This, Not That! series, cut the ribbon on the Zinczenko New Media Center: a state-of-the-art media lab and creative space for Moravian University students across all majors—including the new Media Studies program—to create audio, visual, digital, and print projects using the industry’s latest technology.

You can’t miss it—the library’s white walls and historic, ever collegiate-looking wood detail give way to floor-to-ceiling glass windows, expertly etched to reveal the eight 27” Apple desktop computers and impressive 4K camera behind the room’s namesake. Also inside: a green screen, top-notch audio/visual equipment, fixed lighting, a soundproof recording room, a whiteboard wall, and plenty of space to spread out and be creative, all in a space that appears to be pulled out of a Nate Berkus catalog.

The Zinczenko New Media Center is the next step in a greater partnership with his alma mater, one that begun just a few years ago when President Bryon Grigsby ’90 connected with his former classmate. “He was one of the first alumni I reached out to when I became president; I thought he might offer some help to students moving from the liberal arts into the professional publishing and marketing world,” Grigsby said, addressing the crowd of faculty and staff, current students, Zinczenko’s colleagues and family, and former Moravian University professors. Even representatives from Pat Toomey’s office and former Bethlehem mayor John Callahan descended into the basement of Reeves Library, where Zinczenko’s legacy now takes physical form.

In the few short years since their first meeting, Zinczenko has offered more than help to Moravian University’s students. He moved part of his own media company, Galvanized, into half of a house just off campus on Greenwich Street so that current students could get pivotal, hands-on marketing and journalism internship experience without ever needing a MetroCard. Sara Weidner ’18 took the podium at the ceremony to speak about her one-of-a-kind experience working with Galvanized.

"Contrary to popular belief, English is not a dead-end job," she told the crowd. "There are hundreds of different career opportunities for an English major. From journalism and promotional writing to screenwriting and public relations, English is the branch from which they all stem. And having the Zinczenko Center for New Media on campus will serve as a catalyst for people who wish to pursue their passion and not hesitate to do what they love to do."

All this real-world experience accompanies a developing Media Studies program at the University. “We’ve noticed students wanting a program like this for a while,” said Joyce Hinnefeld, chair of the English department and leader of the new effort. The College offers a 200-level intro to journalism class and 300-level news and feature writing class, both taught by a former Morning Call editor Mary Ellen Alu, and Hinnefeld believes the addition of this physical manifestation makes the new program that much more real. “It’s very timely. The role of journalism, as we’ve seen in this election year, is growing. To have this space be front and center and this equipment makes so many things possible.”

The space is not just reserved for Media Studies students—in true interdisciplinary form, students from all majors have access to the equipment to create videos, podcasts, publications, and more. Hinnefeld’s poetry class will use the space to create recordings of their poems, and the student newspaper The Comenian (formerly run by Zinczenko, with no surprise) will also set up shop there.

“Moravian University is where my love of media began,” said Zinczenko, called up to the podium by his classmate. “The instructors challenged me and trained me to listen to the readership and not get bogged down in the ‘rules.’ They trained me to think about the next big thing. My hope is this space provides the inspiration and the resources for current students to do the same.”

During his time at Moravian University, he put that training to work as the editor of The Comenian, an experience he later recounted to us like a Hall of Famer talks about throwing the winning touchdown. The grueling weekly print schedule, picking up the papers from the printer, throwing them in the back of his own car and dumping them in tall heaps outside the academic buildings—those are his glory days. Our students may not deliver physical papers anymore, but the tradition will live on with every click of the publish button.

“My foundation is my family and the Moravian University community; they helped set me on this path,” he said. “Of all the magazines and books and brands I’ve had my name on, this one I am most proud of.”