I've worked in every sector as a lawyer -- government, private practice, nonprofit, education -- after a career as an investigative reporter and political columnist. My work combines my lifelong dedication to informed citizenship and transparent, accountable government. I run the Brechner Center at the University of Florida, a think-tank developing public-policy solutions to facilitate prompt, affordable access to the information essential for informed, participatory citizenship. My areas of research interest include the First Amendment, student speech rights, social media law, and freedom-of-information and open government law.I joined the Brechner Center after a decade at the Student Press Law Center, a nonprofit with the mission of promoting youth civic engagement through the vehicle of journalism. At the SPLC, I taught hundreds of workshops on intellectual-property law, freedom-of-information law and the First Amendment in the campus setting. The SPLC protects the rights of young journalists to use digital media to gather information and share ideas without fear. At the SPLC, I launched the "New Voices" reform movement that has restored freedom of the press for more than 1.1 million students through state legislation, and the "Active Voice" fellowship that taps the creative energy of young women to develop "press freedom service projects" amplifying the silenced voices of teen girls. At the SPLC, I managed a nationwide network of 220 pro-bono attorneys and published regularly in the scholarly and popular press about cutting-edge media-law issues, including articles in Slate, Education Week, the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Houston Chronicle and many more. As a lecturer and visiting professor, I've taught University of Georgia law students and undergraduates about the law of social media and newsgathering, and I've guest lectured at Harvard University, Yale Law School and more than 100 campuses across the country.