Communication Yearbook 2015-2016

CoFA

CONNECTIONS Newsletter

l

Edition #6 l April 2016

Department of

Communication

2015-16 Viewbook

College of Fine Arts Office of the Dean Davis Hall, Station 6663 Montevallo, AL 35115 205.665.6663

October 2015 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

DR. SHERRY FORD DR. SHERRY FORD (COMS) presented a paper at the Alabama Communication Association summer conference held at the University of Alabama in late July. Her presentation was part of a session on “Great Ideas for Teaching”, or GIFTs, and highlighted an assignment she developed to teach interpersonal communication skills using the “Humans of New York” weblog as inspiration to meet fellow UM community members. Sherry also served as respondent to a panel titled Media Effects, Behavior and Society.

DR. JAY COFIELD DR. JAY COFIELD (MC), MR. BROOK PRUITT (MC) and six Mass Communication students attended the Sports Video Group Collegiate Media Summit in Atlanta, May 27-29. This is an industry gathering with various conferences featuring national networks such as ESPN and equipment manufacturers dedicated to college sports broadcasting. Dr. Jay Cofield (MC) completed a new commercial “The Rhythm of the College” using the professional independent filmmaker style Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera. Dr. Cofield used the advanced video-editing program DaVinci Resolve in the production. Dr. Cofield led the creative team with a strong student crew. The commercial was shown at Alabaster City Fest, June 6 and is available on YouTube. Dr. Jay Cofield (MC), Mr. Brook Pruitt (MC), and three Mass Communication students were the TV/media crew for the XTERRA Southeast Championship Triathlon and USA Triathlon Off-Road National Championship at Oak Mountain State Park in May. The Shelby County Reporter ran a news story about the event and a TV video news release was provided to local TV stations and confirmed to have aired on Fox 6. The highlight video edited by the students is available on YouTube and was included as part of the official news release by XTERRA.

DR. BRUCE FINKLEA DR. BRUCE FINKLEA is currently making minor revisions to his invited 6,000-word entry, “Media Effects: Comprehensive Theories,” to the International Encyclopedia of Media Effects. Publication of encyclopedia is slated for 2016. The editor of the encyclopedia praised Dr. Finklea’s entry for its “clear and straightforward narrative and the elegant style.”

Dr. Bruce Finklea’s paper entitled “Nurturing new men and polishing imperfect fathers: A textual analysis of protagonists’ hetero- and homosocial relationships in Pixar Films” is under review by the editor of the forthcoming Broadcast Education Association’s Race and Gender in Electronic Media: Challenges and Opportunities. Dr. Finklea was asked to contribute this entry to the book after he presented the paper it is based on at the BEA convention’s Research Symposium in April 2015.

October 2015 DR. TIFFANY WANG Rebecca B. Leach (COMS Senior) and DR. TIFFANY R. WANG (COMS) published a manuscript entitled “Academic advisee motives for pursuing out of class communication with the faculty academic advisor” in Communication Education. This manuscript was translated into an invited essay for the July 2015 issue of Communication Currents. Tiffany also had a co-authored paper with Dr. Audra Nuru (Fairfield University) entitled “Turning points and communication in first generation students’ family and faculty advisor relationships” and a discussion panel entitled “Lambda Pi Eta undergraduate researchers and their research advisors: Embracing academic opportunities of a lifetime” accepted for presentation at the National Communication Association convention in Las Vegas, NV.

DR. SALLY HARDIG DR. BRUCE FINKLEA (MC) and DR. SALLY HARDIG (COMS) are awaiting publication of their coauthored book chapter entitled “Seen but not heard: Exploring muted group theory in Pixar’s The Incredibles, WALL-E, and Brave” in the forthcoming edited book Communication Basics for Millennials: Essays on Communication Theory and Culture. Their chapter was submitted in the spring with no revisions required by the editor. In fact, the editor praised their chapter, saying, “This is pitch-perfect…. The chapter unpacks MGT [Muted Group Theory] beautifully and is certain to get discussion going among readers.”

The collaboration between Drs. Finklea and Hardig serves as an excellent example to students in the Department of Communication to see how Mass Communication and Communication Studies can and do intertwine in today’s media-saturated society.

STUDENT NEWS CLARKE STACKHOUSE (MC) completed an internship at the Birmingham Museum of Art this summer.

JOHN ENGLE, RACHEL HENDERSON, BRIANNA DAVIS, and ABBY MCNEELY (all MC) assisted Dr. Jay Cofield in the production of “The Rhythm of the College,” which was presented at Alabaster City Fest on June 6.

GERALD CUNNINGHAM, ADAM PETTWAY, CHASE JOHNSTON, MELISSA HERBERT, JOHN ENGLE, and MICHAEL RATCHFORD (all MC) produced the live images for the concert projector screen at Alabaster City Fest, June 6. They operated equipment provided by Fox 6 and were highly praised for their skill and professionalism.

GERALD CUNNINGHAM, ADAM PETTWAY, MICHAEL RATCHFORD, COURTNEY BOYD, MELISSA HERBERT, and RACHEL HENDERSON (all MC) attended the Sports Video Group Collegiate Media Summit in Atlanta, May 27-29 with Dr. Cofield and Mr. Pruitt.

GERALD CUNNINGHAM, AMALIA KORTRIGHT, and JOHN ENGLE worked as the TV/media crew for the XTERRA Southeast Championship Triathlon and USATriathlon Off-Road National Championship at Oak Mountain State Park in May under the supervision of Dr. Cofield and Mr. Pruitt.

AUSTIN CRAFTON is interning at the Talladega Super Speedway this semester.

SYDNEY FIELDS was recently hired by Rush Videos, a Birmingham-based wedding videography company, as a Videographer. She is currently working for them while completing her senior year at UM. Sydney also serves as the President of the UM chapter of the National Broadcasting Society.

ALUMNI NEWS JACOB BOBST (B.A., MC, 2015) is working part-time at Alabama’s 33/40 in Birmingham.

STEPHANIE DOROUGH (BS, COMS & MATH, 2015) is pursuing her Ph.D. in Mathematics at Auburn University.

KENDAL OVERTON (BS, COMS, 2015) is working full-time as an Event Coordinator at the Birmingham Zoo. EMILY DONOVAN (BS, COMS, 2015) is working full-time as a Program Support Specialist at McKean Defense Group in Pascagoula, MS. RYAN KIRKLAND (BS, COMS, 2015) is working full-time as a Youth Pastor at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Jemison.

VICTORIA MCCAIN (BS, COMS, 2015) is pursuing her Masters of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School of Samford University.

RYAN MORIARTY (MC, 2015) is working at TIME Inc.’s Southern Living magazine as a Video Fellow.

DR. SUSAN THOMPSON DR. SUSAN THOMPSON (MC) has been accepted for Marquis’ Who’s Who in America 2016. She is under consideration for Marquis’ Who’s Who in the World 2016.

DEVAN COOLEY (MC, 2015) is working at Hibbett Sports corporate headquarters as their Video Production Coordinator.

SLOAN GIBBY POPPELL (MC, 2014) was promoted from News Content Specialist to News Producer at WSFA 12 in Montgomery, AL. CARLY LAING (MC, 2014) was promoted from News Producer to News Producer/Reporter at KLFY News 10 in Lafayette, LA. JOLYN HANNAH (MC, 2013) is working at WTVM News Leader 9 in Columbus, GA, as an Associate Producer.

KALYN WOLFE (BS, MC, 2010) has ben promoted to columnist at the Pensacola News Journal for PNJ Business.

November 2015 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS BROOK PRUITT DR. BRUCE FINKLEA DR. JAY COFIELD

the book, Race and Gender in Electronic Media: Challenges and Opportunities, will be released in early 2016 in time for the Broadcast Education Association convention in Las Vegas. Finklea executive produced a Falcon Weekly Special Report on campus safety in the wake of the deadly shooting massacre at Umpqua Community College. The newscast featured a live in-studio interview with Dr. Stewart and UMPD Chief Chadd Adams. Finklea also organized two movie marathons co-sponsored by the Department of Communication and the UM chapter of the National Broadcasting Society.

STUDENT NEWS

made a proposal for a Green Fund entitled, “LIGHTS, CAMERAS, ACTION: Converting a Red Hot, Energy Consuming TV Studio into a Money Saving Green Machine” and the proposal was granted.The Mass Communication TV Studio will replace six Tungsten-Halogen instruments with 6 LED Lighting instruments. The total grant is for $6474.

DR. TIFFANY WANG COMS 310 Social Media & PR students are halfway through a nine week Facebook Story Series feature on the Department of Communication’s Facebook page.COMS 310 students developed a series of stories centered on a common theme that would relate well to the people who like the departmental Facebook page. They competed to achieve the highest total reach on their weekly posts by promoting the virality of their posts using Social Media & PR principles to encourage their social networks to like, share, and comment on each week’s posts. In four and a half weeks, COMS 310 posts have drawn a total reach of 27,108 with many individual posts topping 1,000 total reach. Dr. Tiffany R. Wang’s COMS 310 Social Media & PR students are also working on a service learning project with University of Montevallo Upward Bound. Four student social media campaign teams conducted four focus groups with Upward Bound students on October 5th, pitched potential foci areas during presentations for Upward Bound staff on October 15th, and will create social media handbooks that will be presented to Upward Bound staff and community members on December 10th.

DR. BRUCE FINKLEA submitted the final version of his invited entry, “Media Effects: Comprehensive Theories,” for the forthcoming International Encyclopedia of Media Effects. Finklea also received revisions from the editor of his paper on male friendships in Pixar films. His publisher says

Junior COMS Major/PR Minor ALLIE ODOM was selected as a COPLAC Social Media Ambassador (SMA). As a COPLAC SMA, Allie will help raise the online profile of the North American consortium of higher education by providing updates on important news and events at UM.

Fourteen students were inducted into the Lambda Pi Eta Lambda Nu Chapter on October 15th. Lambda Pi Eta is the national honorary society for COMS students. Membership is reserved for junior and senior undergraduate students who have declared an interest in the field of communication and have achieved a high level of academic excellence (3.0+ cumulative GPA, 3.25+ COMS GPA). Fall 2015 inductees included RACHEL ANDERSON (COMS), ZAC BROWN (COMS), GISELLE CASADABAN (COMS), OLIVIA COURSEY (COMS), BRIANNA DAVIS (PR Minor), SYDNEY FIELDS (COMS/PR Minor), ERIN HALL (COMS Minor), LAUREN HEADRICK (COMS), KIRSTEN HILL (COMS), KIERA HOOD (PR Minor), BRINKLEY JONES (COMS), JESSICA SPRADLIN (COMS), TIARRA STEVENSON (COMS), and SABRINA ZIZO (COMS).

November 2015 ALUMNI NEWS

MC alumna CARLY LAING (2014) reported from the sidelines of a LSU football game against the University of South Carolina for her TV station, KLFY. MATT SANDERLIN released his new single, “Breath Into The Room” on iTunes. The song is on his upcoming album, Reconstructor.

MC alumna SAVANNAH (KIDD) DAILY (2014) was promoted from New Producer to Producer/Reporter at WRBL in Columbus, GA.

GREG FUNDERBERG (2006) is working as the morning/midday coanchor at NewsChannel 9 in Chattanooga, TN. He recently wrapped up a trip to New York City where he visited ABC’s “Good Morning America,” “The View,” “Live with Kelly and Michael,” and NBC’s “TODAY” Show.

BRETT BELL (2015) works as the Audio Board Operator at Scott Communications in Selma, AL. AMOS HOLLINHEAD (2014) is working at WAFF-TV in Huntsville, AL, and is also a video freelancer.

MC alumna KALYN WOLFE was tapped as the new regular Business Columnist for the Pensacola News Journal. Kalyn is also an adjunct instructor for the Mass Communication program this semester.

ALEXIS (HARRELL) FULLER, (Mass Communication 2002): The Internet is a great place for finding things. For example, MC faculty came across alumnus Alexis Fuller who stars in an ad for the Apple Watch. You can catch her and her daughters here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=1&v=jwdkXZVLVjE JORDON SEMIEN (2014) is working as a stringer for the Shelby County Reporter, covering high school sports this fall.

NEAL EMBRY is working as a freelancer for the Shelby County Reporter covering high school sports.

DEVAN COOLEY’s (2015) softball documentary, “Lead Off- A First Team,” earned an honorable mention in the Collegiate Student Special Feature category.

December 2015 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS DR. RAY OZLEY

DR. BRUCE FINKLEA was recently awarded an Illuminate Grant of $2,497 to promote information literacy across the Mass Communication curriculum. Dr. Finklea was able to purchase three Smart TVs with rolling stands, along with cables and adaptors that will allow MC students and faculty to better utilize mobile technology in the Mass Communication Building classrooms. This is the third grant awarded to Dr. Finklea in 2015, bringing his grant award total to $10,868 for the year.

On October 29, 2015, students enrolled in Dr. Ozley’s senior capstone COMS 499 hosted the 5th annual COMS Day in the Anna Irvin Dining Hall. The theme the students chose was “One Message, Many Voices.”

Over the course of the event, a diverse group speakers addressed the audience both individually and as a panel, discussing several different aspects of communication and its importance in their lives, both professional and personal. Every single detail of this event was handled by the COMS 499 students, from booking the venue and the speakers down to the flower arrangements and the refreshments. They were even in charge of securing funds to handle any costs involved. The chairs of the various committees worked together with other members of the executive committee under senior COMS major Becky Leach, who served as Team Leader. Before the planning officially began, Dr. Ozley delivered a series of presentations on the importance of clear external and internal group communication. He also met with the several committees and facilitated communication outside of regular classroom and office hours, devoting above and beyond the allotted time to make COMS Day a success.

DR. JAY COFIELD & MR. BROOK PRUITT facilitated a session at the Future Falcon Day on October 30 entitled “Lights, Cell Phone, Action!” They discussed mass communication careers and how cell phones can be used to make videos.

DR. TIFFANY WANG Dr. Wang and COMS majors Giselle Casadaban, Emme Long, Kyle McDonald, Tanya Hoang, Sabrina Zizo, Jessica Spradlin, and Rachel Anderson taught a 25 minute college class to 35 Montevallo Middle School 8th graders during the final session of Future Falcon Day on October 30, 2015. The college class focused on introducing 8th graders to public speaking and the Communication Studies discipline. In the first part of the class, Dr. Wang discussed Aristotle’s four modes of proof, public speaking tips, and essential elements of an effective speech. In the second part of the class, the 8th graders worked with a COMS major mentor to outline, develop, and present a tag team informative speech on a fall/Halloween topic. Topics included favorite fall food or drink, fall family traditions, Halloween candy, Halloween costumes, and scary movies. The 8th graders were enthusiastic about presenting their speeches and left knowing more about public speaking and the Communication Studies discipline.

Hopefully, we will see some of these Montevallo Middle School 8th graders return to campus as University of Montevallo COMS majors in 2020!

DR. SALLY HARDIG In Dr. Hardig’s Environmental Communication class, environmental artist, photographer, and essayist Michelle Reynolds presented a guest lecture.

She spoke about her work which combines her talents as an artist, writer, and naturalist into work that advocates for environmental education and sustainability. Students toured the Ebenezer swamp, led by Dr. Mike Hardig. He provided an informative summary of the history behind UM, his own, and others’ successful advocacy and attempts to protect the swamp from a proposed rock quarry.

Administrative Assistant OLIVIA ARD participated in Montevallo’s ArtStalk to promote her new book The Marshall Plan.

December 2015 STUDENT NEWS

BECKY LEACH was honored as the Senior Elite for COMS at Elite Night. Senior MC Major/COMS & PR Minor SYDNEY FIELDS was honored as the Senior Elite for MC at Elite Night.

Senior COMS Major/PR Minor BECKY LEACH was featured in the Fall 2015 issue Simply Speaking, The Official Newsletter for Lambda Pi Eta (the national honorary society for COMS students).

Sophomore COMS Major/PR Minor PARIS NELSON (Faculty Mentor, Dr. Tiffany R. Wang) was selected as a McNair Scholar for Summer 2016. She will work on a research project focused on Smith Scholars’ college and family experiences.

Communication Studies majors, CRYSTAL ROSKAMP, ZACHARY BROWN, AMANDA FAYE CURRIE, and EMME LONG, have been selected as representatives for this year’s Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.

Three COMS majors were recognized at the Honors Program’s Fall 2015 Recognition Luncheon. KIRSTEN HILL (Junior COMS Major/ Spanish Minor) and GISELLE CASADABAN (Junior COMS Major/ Theatre & PR Minor) received the Honors Certificate. BECKY LEACH (Senior COMS Major/PR Minor) received the Honors Diploma.

Four Mass Comm majors—KALEY BLANKENSHIP, GERALD CUNNINGHAM, BRITNEY WILLIAMS, and MORGAN EVANS—were guests at a special dinner held for Kirk Saduski during his visit to campus on Veteran’s Day. The UM National Broadcasting Society chapter, in conjunction with Falcon Weekly, provided a live Periscope stream of Mr. Saduski’s presentation on documentary film making and the Q & A with Saduski, moderated by CoFA Dean Steve Peters with the attendees. There were over 50 virtual audience members on Periscope and over 150 “live” audience members.

February 2016 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

DR. TIFFANY WANG has a book chapter entitled “Social Perspectives on Student Learning� in the forthcoming edited book Communication and Learning. Dr. Tiffany R. Wang (COMS) starts several new regional and national association leadership positions in 2016. At the regional level, she serves as Central States Communication Association Communication Education Interest Group Chair/Program Planner and serves on the Federation Prize Committee. At the national level, she serve as National Communication Association Basic Course Division Immediate Past Chair/Instructional Development Division Vice-Chair Elect and serves on the Committee on Committees, Nominating Committee, and Legislative Assembly.

STUDENT NEWS EMME LONG (COMS Senior) was elected to one of the three National Student Representative positions for Lambda Pi Eta COMS Honor Society at the 2015 National Communication Association (NCA) Convention held in Las Vegas, NV. As a National Student Representative, she will plan the annual business meeting and awards ceremony at the 2016 NCA Convention held in Philadelphia, PA in conjunction with the National Faculty Advisory Board and national office staff.

March 2016 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

DRS. BRUCE FINKLEA & SALLY HARDIG have announced the publication of their chapter, “Seen but Not Heard - Exploring Muted Group Theory in Pixar’s The Incredibles, WALL-E, and Brave,” in the new book, “Communication and Millennial Popular Culture: Essays and Applications.”

BROOK PRUITT recently installed eight energy-efficient LED lights in the Mass Communication Building TV studio. The lights were purchased through a UM Green Fund Grant that he co-wrote last year with Dr. Jay Cofield and Dr. Bruce Finklea. Mr. Pruitt also shot and edited a video about the new lights in the studio. It can be viewed on the MontevalloForYou YouTube channel.

New lights in the MC TV Studio

March 2016 DRS. COFIELD, FINKLEA & MR. PRUITT

exemplify high scholarship, devotion to their chapters, and outstanding leadership on campus and in the community.

Received news that their video projects were selected as finalists in the National Broadcasting Society professional production competition. Dr. Finklea’s and Mr. Pruitt’s Falcon Weekly Special Report on the Umpqua Community College shooting massacre is a finalist in the Video News category. That newscast featured live in-studio interviews with UM President Dr. John Stewart and UMPD Chief Chadd Adams. Dr. Finklea is also a finalist in the Video News category for his story about UM’s attempt to knit the world’s longest scarf and in the “Other” category for his Falcon Weekly special report on college campus safety. Dr. Cofield is a finalist in the Video Commercial/PSA category of the National Broadcasting Society’s professional production competition for his commercial, “The Rhythm of the University of Montevallo College of Fine Arts.”

DR. BRUCE FINKLEA wrote, shot, and edited a new commercial for the student-produced newscast, Falcon Weekly. The commercial was viewed more than 1,100 times in the first 24 hours it was online. You can watch the commercial by searching for “UM Falcon Weekly” on Facebook.

KALEY BLANKENSHIP (MC senior) is a national finalist in two student production competition categories at the upcoming National Broadcasting Society convention in Los Angeles. Her videos were selected for the Video Comedy Segment and Video Commercial categories.

ALUMNI NEWS

STUDENT NEWS

EMME LONG (COMS Senior) won the Dorothy Shaw Leadership Award.

This award is the highest individual honor given to collegiate members of Alpha Delta Pi. Women chosen to receive this esteemed honor

ERIC SANINOCENCIO (2003 MC) received the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Young Achiever’s Award from the University of Montevallo during homecoming festivities. Eric is the Director of Digital Media for the Houston Texans.

March 2016 necessary for successful storytelling through his new book, A Slice of Life, a collection of life stories and fictional tales that also mirror some of his own experiences.

HAYLEY SUGG (MC 2015) has recently been hired as a recipe editor for MyRecipes.com.

APRIL STONE (MC 1988) was featured in an article for the publication, 280 Living, which recognized her for her work as executive director of the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce.

LAURA POYTHRESS (MC 2015) has recently taken a job with Time Inc. Food Studios. Her new position entails editing and developing recipes, writing about food, scheduling and coordinating events, launching the company’s social media life, blogging, and overseeing accounting and budgeting.

BILLY ATCHISON (2004) and his wife CHASIDY CROSS ATCHISON (2003) have started a cold brew coffee business in Atlanta. Their products can be found at farmers’ markets, events, and in stores such as Whole Foods. Their company, Banjo Cold Brew Coffee, is part of the sustainable and local food-focused scene in Atlanta.

THOM GOSSOM, JR., (1981) fulfills the department mission of developing and applying functional knowledge of relevant theory

April 2016 FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

STUDENT NEWS

KIERA HOOD will participate in a summer internship with WVTM 13.

DRS. COFIELD, FINKLEA & MR. PRUITT Awards received at the 2015-2016 NBS-AERho Professional and Alumni Production Competition: Dr. Jay Cofield, First Place in the Video Commercial/PSA Category Dr. Bruce Finklea, First Place in Website/Other Category Mr. Brook Pruitt, Honorable Mention in the Video News Category Dr. Bruce Finklea, Honorable Mention in the Video News Category

DR. BRUCE FINKLEA along with Dr. Susan Thompson (retired), and their co-author, Dr. Jennings Bryant (retired, University of Alabama) received notification that their textbook, Fundamentals of Media Effects, has sold more than 5,000 copies.

The Lambda Nu Chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, the honor society of the National Communication Association, held their induction ceremony on March 8. Dr. Myron Beasley, the Spring 2016 UM Vacca Professor, was the guest speaker. Inductees included LILLIE MARIE CHILDERS, ORVA KYLE MCDONALD III, KATHERINE SHELBY NALLY, and MOLLIE MARIE WYATT.

Dr. Bruce Finklea participated in Read Across America week. He read two books from the “Pout-Pout Fish” series to five kindergarten classes at Elvin Hill Elementary School in Columbiana on March 4.

MR. BROOKE PRUITT is the Executive Producer of “UMmm It’s Music,” a local band music show that records original songs in the TV Studio. Mass Communication is recording four “UMmm It’s Music” shows in April. Production dates are: April 7, 14, 21, and 28.

NATIONAL BROADCASTING SOCIETY CONVENTION Members of the UM NBS chapter Courtney Boyd, Gerald Cunningham, B.J. Edwards, Haley Myers, Adam Pettway, Elizabeth Rhinehart, Charmella Williams, and Jennifer Williams attended the organization’s convention in Los Angeles, California, March 10-17. While in Los Angeles, students were able to connect with several UM Mass Comm alumni who are now successful professionals in the LA area.

April 2016

KIERA HOOD and HANNAH BELL are producing weekly episodes of Falcon Weekly and The Buzz. One of our recent episodes of The Buzz had a total reach of more than 36,000 Facebook users and was watched almost 500 times.

ALUMNI NEWS

BECKY LEACH, Communication Alumna ’15, accepted an assistantship and fellowship to pursue her Masters degree at Texas Christian University.

MICHAEL BREWER, class of 1979, writes that he has worked at Martin Retail Group in Birmingham as a producer/director for the past 33 years.

Before that he worked at Channel 6, and at Channel 42 right after graduation.

PRESTON CALHOUN, Communication Alumnus ’15, accepted an Account Manager position with Mspark.

AMELIA BENNETT, MC Alumna ’14, is now a Videographer/Graphic Designer at Fill Freelance and a Brand Ambassador at Shades Valley Family YMCA.