Travis Lyles ’15

When Travis Lyles graduated from Longwood with a degree in communication studies in 2015, the top five social media platforms included Facebook Messenger, TimeHop and Periscope. There was no TikTok or Instagram Reels. Fast forward almost a decade, and Lyles, the deputy director of social and off platform curation at the Washington Post, now oversees a social media team of about 10 people responsible for producing and distributing news across a panoply of platforms.

"Ten years ago social media was obviously a thing, but it wasn't even close to what it is now," Lyles said. "Most of the platforms that I work with were either nonexistent or in their infancy back then."

He credits his Longwood education with preparing him to not only survive but thrive in the rapidly evolving field of news media and journalism-and for giving him a strong foundation in leadership that has helped him climb the ladder in his career.

"Citizen leadership was always at the forefront, and that's something that I have taken with me throughout my career," he said. "I lead a large team now, and they look to me every day to be their leader and to point them in the right direction. That leadership muscle was first developed at Longwood."

Since graduating, Lyles has returned to campus to speak to comm studies classes and pay forward the mentorship he received as a student from faculty, including Jeff Halliday, current department chair. "[He] invested in me from day one and really saw something in me," Lyles said.