Dr. Mimi Perreault is an innovative thinker and motivator. She seeks to empower future communicators with writing and editing skills. She encourages those she trains to see beyond the bounds of current communication practices while grounding themselves in the rich history of the industry. She is a self-motivated problem solver and team player. Her expertise is in community-media relations, brand journalism, and helping local non-profits develop strategic communication plans.
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Perreault has researched local journalists, public relations practitioners, and citizen scientists as both stakeholders and disaster communicators. After working as a journalist and public relations professional in Washington, DC, and South Florida she sees the role of the local journalist during a natural disaster as one that can engage community response and build community resilience. Perreault has been published in American Behavioral Scientist, Journalism Practice, Games and Culture, Disasters, Communication Studies, and Journalism Education.
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Her research program examines the complex web of professions involved in the maintenance and development of natural disaster information, climate communication, and community resilience. Perreault is an assistant professor of Public Relations at the and Mass Communication in the Zimmerman School of Advertising and Mass Communications at the University of South Florida. She is a former assistant professor of media and communication in the Department of Media and Communication at East Tennessee State University. She was formerly a research assistant professor in the Research Institute for Environment, Energy, and Economics (RIEEE), in the Appalachian Energy Center, and a lecturer in the department of communication at Appalachian State University. She holds a doctorate of philosophy from the University of Missouri School of Journalism, a master's of arts from the Department of Communication, Culture and Technology at Georgetown University, and a bachelor’s of arts in journalism from Baylor University. She enjoys travel, working with the Girl Scouts, hiking, cooking and baking. You can see her Tedx Talk from 2023 here​.
