Penn State announced Lisa Powers as its new public relations director last week, replacing current director Bill Mahon.

Powers, whose appointment will be effective on July 1, was chosen to replace Mahon, who was both assistant vice president for university relations and the director of public relations.

Mahon was recently promoted to vice president for university relations, replacing Stephen MacCarthy, who accepted a position as the external relations vice president at the University of Arizona in February.

Powers began her career in 1991 in the department of public relations, where she managed internal communications and was the editor of Intercom, a faculty staff newspaper that was replaced by Penn State Live. She moved to the Office of the President in 2000, and worked as a writer, researcher and coordinator of special projects.

Before her 16 years at Penn State, she was a marketing coordinator and technical writer for a civil engineering firm and a reporter for The Altoona Mirror.

"She has experience working in the news business and has a very strong overview of Penn State and the important role higher education plays in society," Mahon wrote in an e-mail message. "Having her come back this summer to lead the department is great news for Penn State."

Powers said her move back to the public relations department is a "great opportunity."

"It's like a homecoming," she said. "It feels good to go back."

Penn State spokeswoman Annemarie Mountz said Powers' experience in the Office of the President will help in her new position, and Powers agreed.

"Moving into the President's office, I got to see a broader context of how decisions are made and the reasons decisions are made," Powers said. "I think that anyone who has experiences in various areas of the university brings those experiences with them to their new position."

Although Powers said she doesn't anticipate any particular challenges, she added that Penn State faces the same issues all universities face, such as access, affordability and changing demographics.

"This is exciting," she said. "I really look forward to being able to forward Penn State's agenda."