Jeremy McCool, Ph.D.

Jeremy McCool Headshot

Associate Professor

E-mail: Jeremy McCool, Ph.D.

Office: Wayne Hall, 214

Office Hours: Mon/Wed 2:15-3:15pm on Zoom; Thu 8:30-10:00am on Zoom

 

Courses Taught:

  • Digital Storytelling; Podcasting, Vlogs, and Media
  • "Fight the Power!”: Music and Marketing Social Protest Movements
  • Intro to Communication, Media, and Culture
  • Intro to Public Speaking
  • Media Field Studies: Podcasting
  • Media Technology
  • Radio Production
  • Rap & Reason: Socially Conscious Hip-Hop

Recent Publications:

  • McCool, J. C. & Hopkins, E. (2026). Raps of Resistance: How Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole Reignited a Hip-Hop Tradition. Bloomsbury Publishing.
  • McCool, J. C., & Mehlman-Brightwell, D. (2024). Value & Relevance of Enhancing Gen-Z’s Digital Footprints in an AI-Driven Industry: Tips & Strategies for Students and Instructors. Journal of Media Education, 15(4).
  • Mehlman-Brightwell, D.R. & McCool, J. C. (2023). A Shift in the Norms: The Impact of Covid-19 on Class, Access to Technology, and Social Inequalities in Higher Education. In The Impacts of COVID-19 on Political Dynamics, Social Inequality, and the Wellbeing of Americans. Lexington Books.
  • Rine, P. J., Hilton, A. A., & McCool, J. C. (2021). Current Trends, Future Directions: Promoting the Long-Term Survival and Success of HBCUs. In Reimagining Historically Black Colleges and Universities (pp. 121-134). Emerald Publishing Limited.
  • McCool, J. C. (2021). The Miseducation of Hip-Hop: Exploring the Relationship between Race and the Perception of Socially Conscious Rap Music (Doctoral dissertation, Indiana University of Pennsylvania).
  • McCool, J. C., & McBride, A. (2021). The Adventures of Darrius: The Hall Monitor.
  • McCool, J. C., & McBride, A. (2018). Princess and The Power of Melanin.

Recent Grants:

  • 2025 Provost Research Grant

Education:

  • Ph.D. - Indiana University of Pennsylvania
  • M.A. - Western Illinois University
  • B.A. - Western Illinois University

Jeremy C. McCool is an Associate Professor of Digital/Global Media in the Department of Communication and Media at West Chester University, where he joined the faculty in 2021 after previously teaching at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. An Emmy Award-winning producer, author, and media scholar, McCool explores media technology, socially conscious hip-hop, cultural studies, and media's role in advancing social change through his research and creative work.


McCool is the co-author of Raps of Resistance: How Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole Reignited a Hip-Hop Tradition (Bloomsbury Academic, 2026), recipient of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Outstanding Book Award. His scholarly publications also examine artificial intelligence, digital identity, educational inequality, and historically Black colleges and universities, with contributions appearing in the Journal of Media Education and academic volumes published by Lexington Books and Emerald Publishing. He is also the co-author of the children's book series McCool & McBride Books, including Princess and the Power of Melanin, which promotes positive Black representation and youth empowerment.


McCool served as co-executive producer of the Emmy Award-winning documentary The Hands That Shape Tomorrow (2026), which examines the economic challenges facing early childhood educators and explores guaranteed income as a pathway toward economic justice. His academic distinctions also include serving as West Liberty University's 2022 Hughes Lecturer, where he delivered a lecture on socially conscious hip-hop.