Bio

Hello. My name is Todd R. Vogts, Ph.D. I am an educator, researcher, journalist, and writer from Kansas, the heartland of America, and I am proud of that.

I am currently an assistant professor of media at Sterling College in Sterling, Kansas.

In 2023, I earned my doctoral degree in Leadership Communication from Kansas State University.

Prior to that, I earned my Master of Arts in Media Management degree from the University of Missouri in Spring 2018, and I earned my Master of Science in Education degree from Fort Hays State University in Spring 2012.

My undergraduate degree in Communication is from Wichita State University, which I completed in 2008, and I earned my associate’s degree in Journalism from Hutchinson Community College before that.

Before deciding to embark on my journey into education, I ran a weekly newspaper in Moundridge, Kansas. I was also a weekly columnist for the McPherson (Kan.) Sentinel and an intern at The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle. I have worked in radio and for other publications.

When asked why I got into journalism, I always explain that it probably started because of smoking.

I helped deliver a weekly advertising publication when I was younger, and one night my friend and I finished with extra copies. We couldn’t return them, so we decided to burn them.

As we did so, I pretended to smoke one like a cigar, and I accidentally inhaled. In my naiveté, I panicked because I thought I would become addicted to smoking.

Obviously, that is not how the habit works, but I like to tell people I am addicted to journalism because of that night.

Of course, I really got hooked on the magic drug of journalism due to the adrenaline rush one gets when beating the ambulance to the scene of a helicopter crash or getting that story no one else has and just barely beating the press deadline.

Rock climbing is for wusses.

This addiction has led to my love affair with online journalism, and I have been pursuing such multimedia ventures in the media world since my freshman year of college.

During this time, I have honed my reporting abilities and developed many Web-related skills. These include site design, video and audio production, photography, graphic creation, and writing for the Web.

I’m a journalist, and I’m thriving in the digital age. Ink runs through my veins, but I’m powered by a laptop and digital camera. Where news happens, I’m there. I live by a simple, yet all-encompassing motto: “Comfort the afflicted, afflict the comfortable.”

I have a wide range of journalism experience, and I am a self-starter. I operate several business ventures as an entrepreneur, such as being a publisher, a disk jockey, and a web designer. For my full work experience, you can check out my CV or my historical resume.

I also enjoy creative writing.

I wrote my first short story when I was in the fourth grade. It was less than one hand-written page in my trusty, spiral-bound notebook. It was a tale of a quarterback who threw the ball so hard his arm was torn from its socket. Then the arm came to life and began to attack people before the cops showed up and put the arm to sleep.

It was a weird story, but it was the start of my writing career, which is a career I love. While I continue to write fiction (I’m a published author with my debut novel being “Murder at St. Alfanus“), my energies focus on journalism, specifically online and multimedia journalism.

I am so thankful for all the opportunities I have had, and I attribute my successes to the loving support of my family and friends. I got married to my lovely, smart, and talented wife in July 2015. We had our first child, a daughter, in September 2017. Our second child, a son, debuted in February 2020. Family and friends are very important to me. They always come first. Without them, none of this would possible.

I like to lead a busier life. I hate being bored. Of course, I do enjoy a little downtime when I get to ride my motorcycle around the state. It’s even better when my wife rides along. When I’m not on my motorcycle, I like to volunteer for different events and organizations.

I grew up in Canton, Kansas, and I attended Canton-Galva High School. I got bit by the teaching bug while in college, though.

I had some great educators, and they made me want to become a teacher at some point in my career.

Those teachers that have had the largest impact on me are Canton-Galva teachers Kathy Becker and Karen Schrag; HCC teachers Alan Montgomery and Janet Hallford; and WSU teachers Amy DeVault, Les Anderson, and Jeffrey Jarman.

I thank you for visiting this site and checking out my work and life. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

— Todd R. Vogts