Mark Pitsch has joined the UW System’s Office of University Relations as its strategic communications manager after 12 years as an editor and reporter at the (Madison) Wisconsin State Journal. The office serves as the primary point of contact for reporters, manages the System’s website and produces a variety of print and digital publications.

Pitsch, a La Crosse native and UW-Madison graduate, also worked at newspapers in Washington, D.C. and Kentucky. He was on two teams named finalists for the Pulitzer Prize. He also served as president of the SPJ-Madison and as a member of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council.