Career
Bernhardt began his academic career as an assistant professor in the School of Health and Human Performance at the University of Georgia in 1999 before joining the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in 2001. From 2005 to 2010, Bernhardt worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where he directed the National Center for Health Marketing, overseeing and advancing the agency's communication, marketing, partnerships, and new media innovations. In 2010, he joined the School of Health and Human Performance at the University of Florida, where he served as department chair, professor and center director. He joined the University of Texas at Austin in July 2014 as professor in the Department of Communication Studies and the Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relation. Later, he helped establish the Center for Health Communication and served as its director. In 2015, he was named as the interim dean of the Moody College of Communication.
Bernhardt became the sixth dean of the Moody College of Communication on March 1, 2016. Bernhardt's tenure has led to the development of new programs including a four-year honors program, B.A. degree in communication and leadership and a “study away” program in New York City known as UTNY. He was active in recruited more than 50 new faculty members and new research centers, institutes and programs.
The Jay M. Bernhardt Award for Staff Excellence at the University of Texas is named in his honor. In 2023, the Moody College of Communication gave Bernhardt the Robert C. Jeffrey College Benefactor Award honoring people "who have given generously to the college with their time or resources", in recognition of his efforts to strengthen faculty and staff culture.
In June 2023, Bernhardt became the thirteenth president of Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, succeeding M. Lee Pelton. After extensive negotiations, he concluded an agreement with the Emerson College Full-time Faculty Union (ECCAAUP). The agreement, effective from September 1, 2023, to the end of the 2028 academic year, features salary increases aimed at enhancing faculty recruitment and retention.
Bernhardt's investiture ceremony at the Cutler Majestic Theatre on March 22, 2024, coincided with a protest focused on both Palestinian liberation and tuition hikes. A month later, continued protests culminated on April 25, 2024, when Boston Police cleared an encampment in Boylston Place Alley, resulting in the arrest of 118 people, including many Emerson students, as part of the nationwide campus protests related to the Israel–Hamas War. The following day, the Student Government Association called for the resignation of President Bernhardt, citing concerns within the Emerson community regarding support and safety.
Emerson's five-year strategic plan, announced by Bernhardt in 2025, prioritizes academics, collaboration, community engagement, and operational excellence. This has included adding community spaces on the campus for students, faculty, and staff. During Bernhardt's tenure, Emerson also established its Department of Visual Media Arts as a new school within the college, the School of Film, Television, and Media Arts, and appointed the first dean for the Emerson Los Angeles campus on Sunset Boulevard.
