Lesley Stevenson is a freelance writer, producer, and editor and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Within her program, Media and Cultural Studies, she focuses on the intersection of identity and labor in media and entertainment industries, particularly at the entry and early-career levels. As a lecturer and teaching assistant, she has taught five different courses, including one she designed herself. She has received numerous awards both for pedagogy and scholarship. Professionally, she specializes in brand development, campaign strategy, social media management, and public relations.

Before graduate school, Lesley worked in New York City for the theatre department at United Talent Agency (UTA) and for NBCUniversal Corporate Events as Guest Communications Coordinator for the Olympics, Super Bowl, FIFA World Cup, and NBCU Upfront. In August 2017, she completed the historic NBCU Page Program, an elite yearlong rotational management training program, having held assignments at “Saturday Night Live,” “Morning Joe,” USA Brand Marketing, and corporate events.

In 2016, Lesley graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame and its Glynn Family Honors Program with a degree in Film, Television & Theatre (FTT) and American Studies. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, she earned two Honors designations for her thesis, “‘Accio, Author!’: The Dispersal and Convergence of Authorships in the Harry Potter Franchise,” as well as the FTT department’s top film studies award.

Lesley has directed marketing for the NBCU Page Program, the Orpheum Theatre’s High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Pasquerilla East Musical Company (PEMCo), and The Shirt Project. For detailed work samples, please see the Portfolio pages. Her writing has appeared in multiple scholarly journals, and she has edited five full-length books.

Lesley previously studied at St. Mary’s Episcopal School, a prestigious all-girls preparatory school in Memphis, Tennessee, where she graduated summa cum laude as a member of the Cum Laude Society and the National Honor Society. Her family has lived in Memphis for 27 years.

Outside of her work, Lesley spends the majority of her time around food, art, and sports (fun facts: she has run four marathons, and in high school she was co-captain of the varsity bowling team, ranking for two years in a row among the top 20 bowlers in the state). When home, she enjoys the company of her family and the comfort of Memphis barbecue.

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