Young Alumni Award: Briana Pressey Ellerbe ’07, Ph.D. Studies Children’s Media – Representation and Impact

Briana Pressey Ellerbe ’07 accepted the Young Alumni Award virtually on Alumni Weekend for her scholarly work focusing on children’s media as a potential tool for education and social justice, racial representations in media, and community engaged research. Her parents Myles and Linda Pressey accepted the award in person. This summer she earned her Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism. She also earned an M.A. from USC in Communication.

After taking several MFS Upper School electives such as “Diversity in Media,” “Children’s Literature,” and “Diversity & Justice,” Briana completed her B.A. at the University of Pennsylvania in Communication and Cinema Studies with a minor in Africana Studies. From Penn, Briana went on to Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she earned her Ed.M. with a concentration in Technology, Innovation, and Education.

She launched her career in children’s media studies at the Joan Ganz Cooney Center in New York City, the Sesame Street Workshop’s independent research and innovation lab, advancing from Research Assistant, to Coordinator, to Manager. She worked primarily on the Families and Media Project, doing research with families in East Harlem to highlight the innovative ways that they incorporate technology into their lives and learning arrangements, and helping to translate those findings for media producers and educators. She moved to Los Angeles in 2016 to pursue her doctorate, dedicating herself to understanding the role of media within the larger contexts of children and their families – particularly in marginalized groups.

In her acceptance remarks, she cited a number of MFS influences and connections, specifically Science Teacher Tina Corsey and retired Director of Diversity and Inclusion and Spanish Teacher Karen Washington. “I am thankful to so many MFS teachers for your dedication to your students.”

She then relayed to the audience a poignant story that cites how she values her MFS education:
“Recently, when I was doing some research for an article I was writing, I opened up a book by James C. Scott – a professor and a scholar (Yale University Sterling Professor of Political Science and Professor of Anthropology) whom I embarrassingly had no idea was also an MFS alum (Class of 1954). I found out when I read the dedication in the first pages of his book that simply said, ‘For Moorestown Friends School.’ I felt honored reading this dedication, as I felt I had insider knowledge as to why he would dedicate his work to the school that I’m sure had an indelible impact on his life. Namely, one of the beautiful things about MFS – something that impacted me so strongly in my time there – is that it is a community that instills in you a care and love for others…To see the best in others, and to use whatever has been placed in your hands – whether that is an education, a resource, or an interest in something – to help others.”

She lives in Los Angeles with her husband Keith Ellerbe and their two children.

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