Shelbie Harris
Staff Writer
When the time comes for people to settle down, get married, and consider starting a family, there’s a mutual understanding that things will be shared between the couple– things like finances, the bathroom and even…a college campus?
In the case of Zac Gershberg and Karen Hartman, finding a solution to the “two-body-problem” came easy with the assistance of Idaho State University.
The “two-body-problem” occurs in many careers but is predominately found to exist within the lives of couples in the field of academia.
The “problem” is essentially trying to employ both individuals at the same location.
Gershberg and Hartman recently found new positions at ISU in the James E. Rogers Department of Communication, Media and Persuasion.
“I enjoy [working with Gershberg] and I think the only way to do it is if you enjoy the other person,” said Hartman.
Gershberg teaches a multi-platform journalism course which is designed to introduce students to the different dimensions of journalism including web based mediums and blogs.
Hartman has been teaching public relations curriculum for seven years now, which when compared to the journalism side of things, can often be referred to as “the dark side.”
“It’s kind of funny because there is this love-hate relationship between public relations and journalism, which makes things interesting,” said Gershberg. “It’s great to have the opportunity to work with my partner on the same campus. Both living in a city such as Pocatello and working together at Idaho State provides a sense of community,” he continued.
The couple met in August of 2004 at Louisiana State University during orientation for their doctorate programs.
After a friendship of three years, the pair began dating toward the end of their program.
Once their programs were completed, Gershberg headed off to the University of Montana while Hartman took a position at Ashland University in Ohio.
From 2009 to 2010 Gershberg worked at Keene State College in New Hampshire before joining Hartman in Ashland from 2010 to 2011.
Before moving to California to teach at California State University Stanislaus, the couple got married in 2011 and honeymooned in Bali.
“A honeymoon anywhere is going to be amazing, but the fact that we were able to travel so far and experience a different culture with different foods, and the beaches was amazing,” Hartman said.
The couple taught together at Stanislaus from 2011 until 2014 before accepting jobs at Idaho State University.
Other than teaching the couple shares a love for travel and sports with a particular interest in basketball.
They spend many hours watching college basketball together and have seen places such as Istanbul Turkey, Laos, and other parts of Asia.
As of right now, the couple is trying to acclimate to the new community after such a busy summer which included moving to Pocatello, having a baby, purchasing a home and finding new jobs all packed into a three-month period.
“We have been really focused on here and now. I think our long term plans are to create roots here,” said Hartman. “We’ve been looking for a place to build a foundation for quite some time now, and I think we see Pocatello and Idaho State as that place.”
