Jess Zafarris

Adjunct Instructor

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Jess Zafarris is an editor, author, content strategist, and educator with extensive experience in publishing, journalism, and digital media. At the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, she teaches graduate courses in multimedia editing while drawing on her broader experience teaching writing, editorial practice, journalism, and media business.

Jess has held editorial and content leadership roles with Ragan Communications and PR Daily, Adweek, and Writer’s Digest. She has also developed educational content for Dictionary.com and has been a featured speaker, panelist, and emcee at industry events including SXSW EDU, the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference, and Rising Phoenix.

She is the author of several books exploring the history and evolution of language, including Once Upon a Word (2020), Words from Hell (2023), and Useless Etymology (2025). Her expertise has been featured in The New York Times, NPR, The Guardian, The Boston Globe, Reader’s Digest, and Harper’s Magazine, and she has appeared on BBC World Service Radio, NPR, and Boston Public Radio.

Beyond the classroom, Jess creates educational content for a global audience through TikTok, Instagram, and the YouTube podcast Words Unravelled, where she makes language, storytelling, and etymology engaging and accessible. She also writes the long-running blog UselessEtymology.com, which has inspired curious word lovers for more than a decade.