---
title: Philip Merrill College of Journalism Mourns Passing of Founding Dean
date: 2023-08-08T04:00:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/philip-merrill-college-of-journalism-mourns-passing-of-founding-dean"
section: Articles
---
# Philip Merrill College of Journalism Mourns Passing of Founding Dean

*August 8, 2023* — by [Philip Merrill College of Journalism Staff](/author/philip-merrill-college-of-journalism)


> Ray Hiebert Revamped, Elevated Journalism Education at Maryland

*Hiebert 1920x1080 — Ray Hiebert, first dean of the Philip Merrill College of Journalism, passed away last week. Below, he helps to present a Public Relations Society of America award to then-Merrill College student Connie Chung, center, in 1969.*

Ray Eldon Hiebert M.A. ’61, Ph.D. ’62, founding dean of the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism and an expert on international communication, died Aug. 5 in Carmel, Calif. He was 91.

The university recruited him in 1968 to revamp its journalism department, and after four years of progress, the program was elevated to college status with Hiebert as dean. In the following years, he concentrated on working with graduate students and served as chair or committee member of dozens of master’s theses and doctoral dissertations. He also continued a prolific writing and editing career that included textbooks, biographies and the founding of a prominent academic journal.

Hiebert continued as dean until 1980 and remained on the faculty until his retirement in 1998, teaching for another 10 years on a part-time basis. He was inducted into the Merrill College Hall of Fame in 2023.


*Hiebert and Connie Chung — (Photo courtesy of Philip Merrill College of Journalism)*




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