Larry Parnell

Lawrence (Larry) Parnell is a Professorial Fellow in Public Relations and Communications in the College of Professional Studies. He was appointed to this position after serving as an Associate Professor and Director of the Strategic Public Relations program at The Graduate School of Political Management for 16 years. Over a 30-year career prior to coming to GWU, Parnell held senior communications positions in consulting, on the client side, and in politics. He served as Group Leader of the Corporate Communications practice at Hill and Knowlton Canada; Senior Vice President, Corporate Relations at Barrick Gold Corporation (Toronto); and Director of Global Public Relations at Ernst & Young LLP. While at Ernst & Young, he was named PR Professional of the Year (2003) by PR Week magazine.

Parnell’s previous corporate experience includes senior positions at GTE Corporation, People’s Bank of Connecticut, and The Stop & Shop Companies, Inc. His consulting experience includes senior roles at Ketchum Public Relations, Gavin Andersen & Co. Inc., and Manning Selvage & Lee. Early in his career, Parnell served as a speechwriter for the Mayor of Atlanta (Maynard Jackson), press aide for Jimmy Carter’s presidential campaign, public information officer for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, and speechwriter for the Attorney General of Massachusetts.

Parnell holds an MBA from the University of New Haven and a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Boston University. While at GW, he completed a Graduate Certificate in Strategic Management and Public Policy at the GW School of Business and became certified as an Executive Coach by completing a training program at the Center for Excellence in Public Leadership (CEPL).

He is a co-author of an award-winning textbook, “Introduction to Public Relations,” published by Sage, now in its third edition. The book, titled Introduction to Public Relations: Strategic, Digital, and Socially Responsible Communication, is used at over 40 undergraduate schools of Mass Communications and PR in the US and Canada. Parnell is a frequent speaker on communications topics and a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), the National Association of Government Communicators (NAGC), and the Page Society.