Durham assumes expanded role at ECU

East Carolina University’s spokesman John Durham will assume an expanded role as interim executive director of university relations and chief public affairs officer for the university, Chancellor Steve Ballard announced Tuesday.

“John is well-known and respected across the ECU campus, and I am delighted that he has agreed to join my leadership team in this critical role,” Ballard said.

Durham has been the director of public affairs and head of the News Bureau since joining ECU in 1993 and for the last year has also served as interim director of the Health Sciences Office of News & Information.

In his new role, he will be the chief communications officer for the university, and serve as the university’s spokesperson. He will oversee ECU’s central communications, public relations, media relations, marketing, and publications offices, and he will be a member of the Executive Council.

“This responsibility will promote an improved and consolidated approach to university communications, provide for improved performance, and serve as an important measure of administrative efficiency,” Ballard said. “We intend to realize a significant cost savings to the university with this consolidation.”

Before coming to East Carolina, Durham was director of the News Service at the University of Texas at Austin and previously worked for nearly two decades as a reporter and editor for newspapers including the Houston Chronicle and the Austin American-Statesman. He holds a B.A. in anthropology from Rice University and an M.A. in communication from Stanford University and he has frequently taught courses in the ECU School of Communication.