June 2015
WestWord
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Coal Wars Published
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M.A. in Media Ministry
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Media-Driven Culture
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Language in Practice
Walla Walla University Department of Communications and Languages
Bullock Publishes Book
Lambda Pi Eta By Glenda Lamas
By Jonathan Hager
From the WestWord Staff WestWord is the annual publication of the Department of Communications and Languages, planned and assembled by the Digital Publishing class each spring. In the last year, our campus has experienced great loss and abundant growth, all the while being drawn closer together and seeking to understand more about our purpose in this world. Our community grieved together over the deaths of a WWU student, a former faculty member and an elementary school student, and as a result became a stronger campus family. We look forward to the growth of our department as we add a master’s program, with the hope that the message of Jesus’ love reaches far and wide as a Editor-in-Chief: Carolyn Green Executive Editor: Carly Yaeger Senior Editors: Glenda Lamas & Heather Ruiz Online Editor: Jonathan Hager Layout Designer: Shelby Seibold Art Director: Sam Mattson Copy Editor: Rebecca Hoppen Faculty Advisor: Nancy Semotiuk
Meet the Team
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Photo by Kai Kopitzke
result. As we close out another year at WWU, our hope is that this edition of WestWord gives you insight into the talents and interests that are fostered in the department. Our vision is that this year’s WestWord would be a vehicle to entertain, inform and inspire, bringing generations of communicators together by celebrating past, present and future members of our department. We have gathered the opinions of our alumni, relayed stories of the accomplishments of our professors and students, and included information about the future of our department. In our efforts to create a well-informed, creative and professional publication, we were able to be in contact with many of our alumni, and we greatly appreciate your addition to our content. Our thanks also go out to our faculty advisor, Nancy Semotiuk, and to the faculty of the Department of Communications and Languages, as they consistantly encourage and push us to achieve better than before. As the staff of this publication, we are grateful for the experience that this process has brought us, and we hope that you enjoy this edition of WestWord. ■
Our department’s faculty is dedicated to scholarship, and recent achievements of our chairman have made us proud. Along with teaching, the life of David Bullock now includes weekend book-signing tours as he promotes his book, Coal Wars. Coal Wars reveals the history behind the violent labor union strikes that occurred in depression-era Washington. The story follows previously peaceful residents from Roslyn, Cle Elum and Ronald, Washington, who turned against each other in a battle for better working conditions. Bullock’s interest in the topic stemmed from discovering a 1934 issue of New Republic magazine that called Roslyn a “little nest of Fascists.” His mother had grown up in Roslyn, so this research had personal ties for him. He felt that it was important to publish research on local history. In his book, Bullock provides a historical reference for this series of labor union conflicts that had previosly been scarcely researched. “I just found the research to be interesting and it took me places I didn’t expect to go,” Bullock said. “I found the whole incident to be incredibly fascinating.” Bullock spent over four years gathering information before drafting Coal Wars and his research took him across the country. He began in three Washington locations: Olympia, Ellensburg and Pullman. He then journeyed to the Northern Pacific Railroad archives in St. Paul, Minnesota and the United Mine Workers of America archives at Penn State University. In addition, Bullock conducted dozens of interviews in Roslyn, talking to people who had first- or second-hand accounts of the labor union strikes. During his extensive research, Bullock overcame several obstacles. He found letters that were helpful for his research, but the letters were stored in different locations. Some potential interviewees didn’t want to talk. And when Bullock registered at one of the archives, each box of information took 30 minutes or more to get to him before he could even decide whether or not it provided useful information. Bullock persevered through all of these challenges and was rewarded for his efforts at the 2015 Alumni Weekend Award Celebration, receiving the President’s Award in Scholarship. “I’ve set little life goals in my career and this was definitely one of them: to publish a book,” Bullock said. “This was an especially personal goal, as it included ties to family history.” ■
For the last 14 years, communication students have been eligible to be part of Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Association’s honor society. This honor society highlights the hard work of students with hopes that they will make an impact in the field of communication. To be inducted into Nu Zeta, the WWU chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, students are nominated by the department’s faculty. These students must be juniors or seniors and must have a GPA of 3.25 within their major courses. Being part of Lambda Pi Eta is an impressive resume feature, and signifies the student’s hard work and accomplishments. When inducted, each student receives a certificate, a gold cord and a pin to wear at graduation. Deborah Silva, the chapter’s sponsor, said, “Lambda Pi Eta is not just a club. When you’re inducted, you’re inducted into a nationwide society of members.” She also said that the society helps boost student confidence. Lambda Pi Eta members also have the chance to publish work in the Lambda Pi Eta Undergraduate Journal, which showcases members’ academic achievements.■
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M.A. Degree in Media Ministry WWU’s newest graduate program connects creative media with faith. By Rebecca Hoppen The Department of Communications and Languages is examine their worldview and share it through compelling offering a Master of Arts degree in Media Ministry starting in stories. “The idea is to give them the foundation that they can the fall of 2015. The graduate program will offer concentrations use to launch out and do something big, to do it well and to be in either media and cinema or web and interactive media. able to measure if it was effective,” Ellis said. In a unique collaboration, communication, theology, The two degree concentrations allow students to explore computer science and technology professors have joined their multiple interests. Students who choose the media and together to brainstorm how to match students’ technical skills cinema concentration will study the intricacies of filmmaking with biblical ministry. These areas of education will soon serve for any type of film project. By learning how to produce films, a unified purpose at Walla Walla University. The degree will they will aquire the skills to create video projects applicable to weave together technical and practical skills allowing students their field, whether their interests lie in making short videos to to pursue their life purpose, whether in biblical ministry introduce sermons, online mini-series, or informational “If or the fields of communication and media arts. clips for the health industry. Christianity The goal is to enable students to grow as Students who choose the web and interactive doesn’t get effective communicators who can successfully media concentration will learn how to design involved in telling and manage websites. They will take classes relay their worldview through media. its story through in data management and learn how to create “Fostering their dreams and giving them tools to pursue their vision for how they can make a media, it’s going applications for smartphones. Numerous difference for God’s kingdom — that is what is organizations are in need of developers and to lose out.” the most exciting,” said Lynelle Ellis (’90), who will content creators, and the degree aims to prepare be returning to her alma mater to serve as both a professor and well-rounded individuals who can fill that void in a church, the director of the Center for Media Ministry. non-profit organization, health organization or a commercial This master’s degree is designed to be manageable for company. employed professionals by presenting a majority of the Whichever concentration students choose, they will coursework online, with some on-campus sessions throughout ultimately learn how to become compelling storytellers. “It the two-year program. all comes down to story,” said Jerry Hartman, film professor. David Bullock, chairman of the Department of “Story is the main theme throughout the whole program.” Communications and Languages, looks forward to seeing the He referenced Jesus’ use of parables to reach people, and graduate degree established. “It will help the undergraduate noted that while Jesus taught principles through stories, program as well as the graduate program, because the two will Christian filmmakers tend to let their principles overwhelm feed off of each other. We can make better use of facilities their stories. “We get so stuck on having strong messages that that we have,” Bullock said. “We can have more faculty it’s a hammer rather than a paintbrush,” Hartman said. He available for undergraduate as well as graduate argues that teaching students how to tell attractive stories will classes and I think that’s all going to be be more compelling than delivering overstated messages. “The an advantage.” strong stories that tend to stick with you are those more subtle Core requirements will ones,” he said. By emphasizing the power of story, the Master take students on a of Arts program will enable students to engage and influence journey to society at large. Dave Thomas, dean of the School of Theology, looks forward to seeing students pursue a new level of excellence while creating films with Christian values. “Movies have
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Collaboration for this master’s degree began during the summer of 2013, but the initial dream started years before with Ellis. While she attended WWU, Ellis heard Thomas speak in College Place Village Church about why we believe what we believe and how we can inspect the way our beliefs are constructed. It was this sermon that prompted her to dream about how to better combine faith with media. Thomas will teach on the same concepts in the core courses of the graduate degree. This degree will meet a need in various organizations, as well as ministry. “We need people who can help us tell the right story to the right audience at the right time and in the right way,” President John McVay said. “This is all about widening the audience for the Gospel and growing the Kingdom!” By combining filmmaking, theology, computer science and research, the Department of Communications and Languages has a unique program — a program that some have long envisioned. ■
Want more information? Call 509.527.2832 Email commlang@wallawalla.edu Or visit: wwumediaministry.org/#vision
Lynelle Ellis B.A. in Mass Communication/Media Studies WWC (‘90) M.A. in Communication in Ministry, Spring Arbor University (‘09) ABD in Communication, Regent University Lynelle Ellis worked for Blue Mountain Television in Walla Walla for 13 years, was a contract teacher at WWU, and was a professor at Southern Adventist University. In her education, she has taken courses in communicating redemptive themes through media, making her the perfect candidate to spearhead the Media Ministry graduate degree. While it appears that she fine-tuned her education and work experience to prepare her for this role, Ellis gives the credit to God. “It’s one of those things that I feel God has been tailoring. I’ve just been pursuing what’s interesting to me,” she said.
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4. As of 2014, 42 percent of women are on Pinterest in the U.S. What percentage of men are on Pinterest? a. 2 percent b. 13 percent c. 26 percent 5. Rank these sites in order of popularity: a. Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest b. Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest c. Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter 6. Out of the world population of approximately 7.2 billion people, how many have active social media accounts? a. 3 million b. 2 billion c. 6 billion
10. What is the most used hashtag on Instagram? a. #Love b. #Follow c. #Selfie 11. ________ has more users than ________ has people. a. Facebook / United States b. Twitter / China c. Facebook / China 12. If Twitter were a country, it would be the _____ largest country in the world. a. 2nd b. 12th c. 20th
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The film concentration has a Facebook page. You can connect with us at: facebook.com/wwwfilmtv The Drama Program also has a Facebook page. You can connect with us at: facebook.com/wwudrama Our students are constantly on the lookout for experience and job opportunities. If you know of any open positions for jobs, internships or work-study, please email us at commlang@wallawalla.edu, send us a message on Facebook or post it on our CommLang Facebook wall. We want to hear from you! If you have any stories, information, updates, news or just want to say hello, please post to our Facebook page. Our students are inspired and motivated by the success of our alumni, so don’t be a stranger.
Key: 1. b, 2. c, 3. b, 4. b, 5. a, 6. b, 7. a, 8. c, 9. c, 10. a, 11. c, 12. b
become the common language of society. It’s now a form of literature. It used to be a form of entertainment but now it’s telling the cultural story,” Thomas said. “If Christianity doesn’t get involved in telling its story through media, it’s going to lose out. There has to be a story. There has to be a plot. There has to be some good quality stuff.” However, spreading the gospel through captivating storytelling is only one of the objectives of this degree. While some of the classes will teach storytelling through modern technology, others will focus on research as part of the new Center for Media Ministry. “I’m excited about the research aspect,” Bullock said. “We can begin to use tools available to us to understand how our messages are being perceived rather than just putting them out there and thinking that they’re reaching everyone but not really knowing much about what their impact is.” The Center for Media Ministry will make itself available for research with organizations beyond the student body. Jonathan Duncan, chairman of the Department of Computer Science, hopes to see the research center become a reputable resource for churches. “I’m really hoping that this grows into a North American Division-wide resource for any Adventist organization that’s interested in effectively using media,” he said. Students will conduct research to determine target audiences and how to best reach those audiences, whether that research is for outside ministries or entities in the community.
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Words of Wisdom
What advice would you give to your 20-year-old self?
1970s 1940s Elwood Mabley Modern Languages (‘48) College Place, WA; Teaching “Try to get as much out of it as you can, but still have fun. Don’t have your nose in your book all the time! The friends that you make will last a lifetime.”
1950s Norman Severance Spanish (‘53) Chloride, AZ and Dallas, OR; Retired Spanish Teacher “Be more serious about being completely dedicated to serving God.”
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Renate Krause Modern Languages (‘71) Loma Linda, CA; Teacher “Humility. There are many qualities that a student should have as he or she is applying for work. One thing that employees are looking for very strongly is the ability to take directional advice, and if someone is too arrogant, thinking, ‘I just graduated from college, they’re lucky to get me’ he will lose opportunities in his pride.”
2010s 1980s Patti (Thompson) Green Communications Media (‘83) Beaverton, OR; Healthcare Communications “Take a basic business class. Sooner or later, you’re going to be expected to develop a budget or to read and approve financial reports. The pages will be nothing more than black-andwhite columns of numbers unless you get some basic knowledge about finance and accounting.”
Eden Kietponglert Speech Communication (‘12) Walla Walla, WA; Church Ministry “Life can be whatever you want it to be. If you’re dedicated enough, you can do whatever career path you want to. Have fun. Don’t take yourself too seriously. For goodness sake, do your homework!”
1960s
2000s
John Henriques
Allison (Carey) Klein
Spanish (‘65) Pasco, WA; Pediatrics “Teach a Sabbath School class to keep grounded in what’s really of value, present and eternal. What I was taught works, trust the process. Being of useful service to humankind with Divine cooperation has ever served me with purpose, value and eternal safety.”
1990s Ben Juhl Drama minor (‘98) Salem, OR; Project Manager/IT “People really will pay you to do something you are passionate about, assuming your passion leads to doing it well. There is much more freedom and opportunity to try something new or different when you are starting from a position of strength as opposed to want.”
Spanish (‘02) Redlands, CA; Family Physician “Use this time to travel and have experiences that won’t be feasible after you’re locked into a career, family, etc. Live abroad, volunteer, get out of your comfort zone. It will forever change your perspective on life. Find ways to use your learned languages often, both speaking and listening. What you don’t use, you’ll lose.”
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Alumni Opinion
Photo by Chandler Jordana, taken in Baalbek, Lebanon in the Beqaa Valley.
Incomplete Reporting Harms a Media-Driven Culture By Chandler Jordana Make no mistake about it, the Middle East has a lot of problems. There are approximately 10 million refugees and internally-displaced individuals in the region1, which is more than 15 times the population of the Northwest’s largest city, Seattle. One out of every four people in Lebanon is a refugee from either Syria, Iraq or Palestine2. Terrorist and extremist groups are ransacking villages and killing people. I have personally witnessed foreign workers from Northeast Africa and Southeast Asia being disturbingly mistreated. Palestinian men, women and children are being oppressed and denied basic human rights on a daily basis. The distribution of wealth and lack of an equal pay scale are appalling. The region is wrought with issues. Yet, among the copious problems facing this historically-troubled region, religion is not one of them. Islam is not, was not and has never been the problem. For years, a debate has raged as to whether Islam is a violent or peaceful religion. As University of California Riverside professor and prolific author Reza Aslan was quick to point out in an interview with CNN, a religion is inherently neither violent nor peaceful. It is what a person contributes to a religion that shapes one’s religious ideology. There are countless examples of Aslan’s theory throughout history and modern times, from the Crusades, to the Spanish Inquisition, to the current violent Buddhism that is spreading its way throughout Myanmar and Sri Lanka. What
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differentiates how certain regions and different religions are viewed is one single and simple element — the media. To say the persuasive power of the media is significant would be a colossal understatement. The media has an absurd amount of power, influence and sway over public opinion in topics from the guilt or innocence of an accused celebrity, to various health epidemics such as Ebola, to what places and religions in the world are considered dangerous. Often, the media has such power because people don’t have the time or money to collect first-hand accounts of newsworthy events. Just as we learned from Uncle Ben in the movie “Spiderman,” “With great power, comes great responsibility.” Unfortunately, this power is often abused by various media outlets, and few news corporations are exempt from the blame. Media conglomerates, both liberal and conservative, are the sole most important entity that shapes the opinion of the average American citizen. This is the case because whatever version of events is reported by the news is taken as 100 percent truth. It is rarely fact-checked or questioned by the American public. What many fail to realize is that the media, much like any other business, is out to make money. If news is boring or fails to incite a strong emotion, then people will lose interest. Arguably, there is no stronger human emotion than fear. Fear is the primary motivator that keeps us watching the news. The news gives us hot topics to discuss with those in
whom we come in contact. It lets us know how we can protect ourselves from certain outbreaks, epidemics and pandemonium. Human interest and feel-good stories will only grow viewership and ratings so much. Only a few mainstream examples need to be looked at to illustrate the aforementioned point. In 2014, how many weeks of broadcasting on CNN and Fox News were dedicated to the Ebola epidemic? How many deaths were there in the United States caused by Ebola? Less than five. You are actually more likely to die of leprosy than Ebola. However, that didn’t stop the media from constantly reporting on it. Why? Because it incited viewers to watch their networks to get the latest updates, which motivated companies to pay for advertisements on their various networks, and so on and so forth. Today, I make a plea to the media to acknowledge how farreaching their impact and power is. This is a power that we, as media and communication professionals, must do our part to help neutralize. The three largest problems that are being propagated by the media are misinformation or erroneous reporting, fear-inciting rhetoric and rampant ethnocentrism. We can do our part to stop that. The primary job of the media should be to report the information that is taking place in all parts of the world in order of relevance. Secondly, the American people must take a step in the right direction by boycotting networks that have a history of reporting misinformation. Lastly, we as the powerful and dominant country that we are must realize that we are not the only relevant continent on Earth. There is a great big world out there that we should be informed
about, adapting to and ultimately providing relief and aid for. Globalization is not going anywhere, and if the United States doesn’t want to initiate change, we must adapt to see the truth about what our media does. ■ 1. UNHCR.org 2. middleeasteye.net
Chandler
Jordana
graduated
in
2013
with
International
Communication and Spanish degrees. Since then, he has been working for Middle East University, an ACA school in Beirut, Lebanon as the writing and communication coordinator. For more information about MEU visit: meu.edu.lb.
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Language in Practice
Oh, the Places You’ll Go
Learning a second language gives students from all areas of study the opportunity to grow and learn. This knowledge often extends beyond language into their other areas of study or pre-professional plans. After returning from their year with Adventist Colleges Abroad, many foreign language majors find that their experiences are applicable across a variety of classes and professions.
ACA offers the opportunity to experience a new language, culture and lifestyle in just one school year. School year programs are available in France (French), Brazil (Portuguese), Spain (Spanish), Italy (Italian), Lebanon (Arabic), United Kingdom (English), Austria (German), Germany (German) and Argentina (Spanish). For more information, visit: aca-noborders.com.
Reed Nerness French, Pre-Medicine “Studying a language forces you to think abstractly. I like using that approach with science. French provided me with a new vocabulary and a different mindset to use when looking at medicine. Learning a language while taking science classes is hard, but it’s forced me to work on my one-on-one communication skills. That’s how you learn languages, by sitting down and having a conversation. Those interpersonal skills are an important quality in a doctor that a science class won’t teach you.”
Rena Sackett Spanish, Pre-Pharmacy “I think my year in Spain will end up helping me in my career. Not only have I fulfilled all of the science prerequisites, I also took classes that expanded my education within language and culture. Pharmacy is a career that is going to require excellent communication skills as well as attention to detail. Yes, it’s important to understand chemistry, biology and physics, but it’s also important to be able to connect with people and make them feel comfortable and understood.”
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Bryce Bower French, International Communication “My passion is languages. I want to be fluent in at least five. Language gives way to countless opportunities, and though I haven’t set up any plans yet, there are at least 10 different things I already know I want to do. I feel as though learning languages has made me able to see my own culture through another perspective. I don’t hold my homeland with such high esteem anymore. Learning and traveling has made it easier for me to empathize and place myself on the same level as other people, and it has humbled me.”
Rikita Patel Spanish, Pre-Occupational Therapy “After taking a Spanish literature class, I realized that there is so much skill and diversity in unique styles of writing. Learning Spanish makes me want to learn about even more languages, cultures and different points of view. Had I chosen a biology major, I would not have been able to look into humanities and communications. I feel like I have the best of both worlds by learning science and math, but also art, literature and history. It’s been diversifying to explore these subjects.”
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Communications and Languages
Rachel Blake
Serena Dickerson
Alexander Enriquez
Carolyn Green
Spanish Secondary Education
International Communication
Spanish Pre-Physical Therapy
Mass Communications Public Relations
Class of 2015 Graduates
Shelby Seibold Spanish Communication: Journalism/PR
Savannah Weaver
Eric Weber
Karli Will
Spanish Social Work
International Communication
French Pre-Dental
Not Pictured: Kelsey Brenton
Zachary Santos
Spanish, Nursing
Spanish, Business Pre-Law
Vanessa Gow-Lee Spanish Pre-Medicine
Bryce Hill Spanish, Mechanical Engineering
Jonathan Hager
Tyler Jacobson
Glenda Lamas
Jonathan Mack
Mass Communications Journalism
Spanish English
Mass Communications Public Relations
Spanish Pre-Medicine
Amanda Hughes
Rebecca Williams Spanish, Secondary Education
Jasmine Zuppan French, Secondary Education
Students Graduating With Honors Summa Cum Laude Vanessa Gow-Lee Reed Nerness Shelby Seibold
Pre-Speech Pathology
Magna Cum Laude
Jessica Montoya
Kelsey Brenton Alexander Enriquez Jonathan Hager Amanda Hughes
Mass Communications Media
Emily Rogers Mass Communications Public Relations
Rebecca Williams Jasmine Zuppan
Tyler Jacobson Jonathan Mack Rikita Patel Rena Sackett
Cum Laude Rachel Blake Carolyn Green Glenda Lamas
Zachary Santos Savannah Weaver Karli Will
Lambda Pi Eta Graduates
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Reed Nerness
Rikita Patel
Grant Perdew
Rena Sackett
French Pre-Medicine
Spanish Pre-Occupational Therapy
International Communication
Spanish Pre-Pharmacy
Carolyn Green Jonathan Hager Glenda Lamas Jessica Montoya Alma Alfaro, professor of Spanish
Grant Perdew Emily Rogers Shelby Seibold
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Thoughts From the Chairman From left: Brigitte Davis, Alma Alfaro, Jerry Hartman, Deborah Silva, David Crawford, Nancy Semotiuk, Jean-Paul Grimaud, David Bullock, Serena Dewey
From time to time, I have a chance to step back to appreciate the students and faculty around me. What an amazing group of smart, talented people. I see students engaged in projects and assignments that reach across the divide from class to profession. I see students writing and selling feature articles to commercial publications. I see students editing publications, showing films at festivals, posting news on social media, interning in the community. I see them completing projects that build relationships and promote public awareness of key spiritual, social and environmental issues. Then there is a group I don’t see of nearly 40 students each year who study abroad, building a positive learning environment at each of our nine Adventist Colleges Abroad affiliate institutions. Working alongside students, I see faculty members offering practical advice in edit bays, stages, classrooms, offices and hallways. Their primary reward comes in witnessing successful transitions from student to professional. It has been gratifying to take a meaningful look around and to say a quick word of thanks — to the students, faculty and staff who are doing some pretty remarkable work around this department. You’re amazing. One and all.
— David Bullock Walla Walla University 204 South College Avenue College Place, WA 99324