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Catch up with our faculty on the program website Reconnect with old classmates and let us know what’s new with you! Visit our alumni Facebook page and join our LinkedIn group. Want to contribute to the next issue of The Scoop? Contact adeekens@uncc.edu.
Inside this issue CCA Kristen Okamoto
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Meet the 4-5 New Cohort Faculty Spotlight
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NCA
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Let’s Keep In Touch!
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Newsletter Staff
The Scoop A Resource for Alumni of UNC Charlotte’s M.A. Program in Communication Studies Volume 1, Issue 2
Spring 2014
Welcome! A Note From the Graduate Program Coordinator ! Dear Alumni, ! I hope this newsletter finds you well! We miss you! The newsletter outlines a great deal of very exciting things going on in the life of our program. Our MA students are conducting and presenting research, and they are graduating and going on to PhD programs and other exciting career opportunities. We’ve graduated our 85th graduate of the program, and our incoming class of 10 students this year included 4 international students. Our faculty is growing (we hired media scholar Dr. Rachel Plotnick from Northwestern University this year and are in the middle of interviewing for a new Organizational Communication scholar).
Dr. Christine S. Davis Communication Studies Graduate Program Director, Associate Professor
For the third time and second year in a row, one of our alumni (Kristen Okamoto) was awarded the Graduate Dean’s Master’s Thesis Award. Our students are receiving recognition for their research at a variety of conferences, including Carolinas Communication Association and Organization for the Study of Communication, Language and Gender. Our students Nicole Sikora Heschong, Heather Sackett, and Nan Wilson, will present their research on LinkedIn and impression management at the 2014 International Communication Association Conference in Seattle. Congratulations to all of our students for their hard work and achievements!
Editor in chief: Dr. Christine Davis
Please keep in touch with us. Send me an email to let me know how you’re doing. If you’re in the area, invite me out for coffee. Subscribe to our alumni LinkedIn page (if you have not yet) by going to UNCC M.A. in Communication Studies – ALUMNI.
Writer and Editor: Anne Deekens
And have a very happy New Year!
Contributing Writer: Jaclyn Marsh
Cordially, Dr. Cris
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CCA 2013 – A Great Success for UNC Charlotte! Our department made a formidable showing at this year’s Carolinas Communication Association Conference (CCA), which was held October 4-5 at Charlotte’s Central Piedmont Community College. Academics, graduate and undergraduate students from across the Carolinas flocked to Charlotte to share their research, network, and celebrate being communication scholars. The conference theme was “Communication and Civility in Technological Contexts”. CCA Reception On Friday night, conference guests were treated to a reception at UNC Charlotte’s Uptown Campus, hosted by UNCC Graduate School. Our Communication Studies Graduate Student Association (CSGSA) planned and coordinated the event with the help of Communication Studies Department Budget and Grant Administrator David Landrum and Chartwells Catering. According to Kenechukwu Onwugbolu, second year masters student, the event allowed students to network with communication scholars. “I saw students swapping business cards with some of the academics that attended, and I’m sure it will lead to something great for those students,” he said. Our reception was a success – to quote Dr. Margaret Quinlan, “It was an excellent way to showcase our program at UNC Charlotte.” Graduate Student Panels Several of our graduate students presented on both the undergraduate and graduate panels on Saturday. James Hooks, first year masters student, presented his paper, “Privacy and Self Disclosure Perspectives in an Increasingly Online World” on the Mary E. Jarrard Undergraduate Award Panel. Our students also did well on this year’s Mary E. Jarrard Graduate Panel! Nicole Sikora Heschong, Heather Sackett, Meghan Snider, Rachael Thomas, and Anne Deekens all gave outstanding presentations and received valuable feedback about their research. Nicole Sikora Heschong and Heather Sackett discussed “Impression management in LinkedIn vs. traditional resumes: A comparison of attitudes and behaviors”, a paper they originally wrote for Dr.
Dr. Christine Davis and graduate students attending the 2013 CCA Conference Reception, hosted by UNCC Graduate School. Jaehee Cho’s Research Methods course. “We felt our research filled a gap in existing literature and CCA gave us a good opportunity to share our ideas with academics,” Sikora Heschong said. Meghan Snider and Rachael Thomas also presented their Research Methods proposal, “A helping tweet: Exploring new forums for abortion social support through social networking sites”. Anne Deekens, second year masters student, won the Mary E. Jarrard Award for her paper “Are apple slices the new Big Mac?: A rhetorical analysis of McDonald’s issues management and identification strategies”. She originally wrote the paper for Dr. Ashli Stokes’ Organizational Rhetoric class and is currently revising it for her thesis. For many students, CCA was their first conference. Sikora Heschong said, “This was a great opportunity to test the waters and see how it felt to participate in such events on a local scale.” Overwhelming, the students agree that CCA was a fantastic experience. Many of them plan to attend next year’s conference. Our representation at CCA symbolizes UNC Charlotte Communication Studies’ commitment to academic achievement. “Student success at this conference provides strong evidence that our Masters program is succeeding at a very high level,” said Dr. Jonathan Crane.
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Interview with Kristen Okamoto Kristen Okamoto, M.A. graduate of 2013 and Graduate Dean’s Master’s Thesis Award Winner, is now a doctoral candidate at Ohio University. We interviewed her about her life as a PhD student and how our program helped prepare her for this exciting stage in her academic career. What is your area of concentration at Ohio University? I am focusing on health communication, with a secondary emphasis in rhetorical studies. My research interests focus on health as it is constructed and understood by the active body.
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What classes do you teach? I am currently teaching two sections of the basic course in public speaking. When did you first decide to pursue your PhD? After graduating with my BS degree, I went to work in the auto insurance industry for about four years. I quickly realized that the 9-5 grind was not for me! The moments that inspired me the most were ones in which I was training other employees. I then realized that I would be better suited for a life rooted in teaching, researching, and service to others. I entered the MA program at UNCC with ambitions of pursuing my PhD so that I would be able to teach and inspire others in the same way that so many professors inspired me in the past. I firmly believe in the power of a liberal arts education and wanted to be in a position to further advance those goals. What made you interested in applying to Ohio? My thesis advisor, Dr. Quinlan, is an alumna of the program. I am extremely thankful for her quiet guidance throughout my application process. I applied to PhD programs while studying abroad. I remember fondly many Skype and e-mail conversations in which we discussed various programs. After visiting Ohio and meeting with the faculty and students, I knew I had found a home in Athens. What do you enjoy most about being a PhD student? My favorite part of being a PhD student is two-fold. The first is the ability to be able to interact with faculty members who inspire and challenge me on a daily basis. I love the collaborative nature of the program. I enjoy collaborating with my fellow
Kristen Okamoto PhD Candidate, Ohio University UNCC Communication Studies Master’s Graduate, Class of 2013 cohort members as well. I also enjoy being in the classroom. My students teach me as much as I teach them. I thrive off of their energy. It keeps me grounded and helps me to realize the importance of education. How has UNCC prepared you for your doctoral program? The communication studies program at UNCC was an invaluable experience for me. As a graduate assistant, I had the opportunity to teach a wide variety of courses. This prepared me for teaching in the future. I also had a very good grasp of theoretical and methodological approaches upon entering my PhD program. These classes equipped me with the necessary vocabulary to converse with others in our field. You’ve earned your doctorate! What’s next? I aspire to obtain at a faculty, tenured-track position at a master’s-granting institution. I hope to partner with non-profit agencies in order to further the promotion of sport engagement and community. I am excited to see what the next chapter of my life will bring! !
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Meet the New Cohort!
Maria Armendariz
Robin Cavin
James Hooks
Jaclyn Marsh
Julia Ochs
Joni Oleson
Jerome Ortmann
Brittany Pailthorpe
Emily Thomas
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Meet the New Cohort! Let’s give a huge welcome to our new master’s candidates! We asked the students to tell us a little about themselves – see below for their responses. If you’d like to pass along any advice, career/networking opportunities, or just want to wish them well, feel free to contact them!
Maria Armendariz
Robin Cavin
marmenda@uncc.edu Universidad San Francisco de Quito- Ecuador
rcavin@uncc.edu Western Carolina University and UNC Charlotte
“I’m interested in Health Communication and Social Responsibility.”
“I’m excited about being part of an academic community again, particularly communication, as it is constantly growing and ever changing.”
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James Hooks
Jaclyn Marsh
jhooks6@uncc.edu UNC Charlotte
jmarsh63@gmail.com Baldwin-Wallace College
“I look forward to developing my research interests and to becoming a scholar.”
“I am most excited about learning different theories and applying them to my writing.”
Julia Ochs
Joni Oleson
jochs@uncc.edu Free University Berlin
jharbott@uncc.edu University of North Florida “What excites me about the program is the opportunity it affords me to advance my career. I am excited about the challenge to take my knowledge and skills to the next level.”
“I am excited about the teaching and research experiences!”
Jerome Ortmann jortmann@uncc.edu Hanze University Groningen, the Netherlands “I'm excited about the opportunity to broaden my horizon further and to refine my skills while being around likeminded and interesting people I get to learn something new with every day.”
Brittany Pailthorpe bpailtho@uncc.edu University of Rhode Island “My research interests are Media and Rhetoric. I’m excited to start thinking critically about new communication phenomenon and finding my voice in academia.”
Emily Thomas Ethoma54@uncc.edu Appalachian State University “I can’t wait to develop my research interests!” !
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Faculty Spotlight We are proud to have so many alumni who are now UNCC Communication Studies faculty members! Our alumni share their experiences about life on the other side of the desk. ! !
Sayde J. Brais Brais, M.A. graduate of 2012, currently teaches Research Methods. Her experiences as a teaching assistant for Melody Dixon Brown’s Business Communication course shaped her decision to become an instructor. “When I got in front of the class for the first time, it made sense to me”, Brais said. “I felt like I had found my calling and could use my talents to help others.”
Tim Horne A 2005 graduate, Horne now teaches Argumentation and Debate and Advanced Public Speaking. He is also the head of the Forensics Debate Team. Teaching is his passion – one that he owes “100 percent” to our M.A. program. “I would not be here had I not had the opportunity to practice getting in front of the class and teaching as a graduate assistant,” he said.
Henrique Viana Viana, who graduated in 2010, currently teaches Business Communication and Public Speaking. For him, teaching is a fulfilling experience. “Knowing that I am contributing to someone's future, even if just in the tiniest way, is extremely rewarding,” he said. “Aside from all of that, being able to work with folks I had become close to as friends, professors, advisors, etc, when I was a M.A. student made the transition into faculty that much easier. “
Sherri Walker Walker, M.A. graduate of 2012, teaches Public Speaking and End of Life Communication. Her volunteer experiences teaching at her church and children’s schools convinced her to go into teaching as a profession. “I love passing on my passion for the subject matter,” she said. “It's incredibly fulfilling to watch the students become as excited about the topics we're covering as I am.”
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NCA First-Timer Reflection Article By Jaclyn Marsh, Class of 2015 Jaclyn Marsh, first-year master’s candidate, attended the 2013 National Communication Association Conference in Washington, D.C along with many of our faculty and students. Here, she describes her experiences as a “first-timer” at the conference. NCA was more than I could have imagined. I had been to communication conferences before, but this was different. This was at our nation’s capital, not just a downtown college atmosphere, but where politicians and press secretaries decide what to communicate to the public. The event took place in one of the largest hotels in Washington D.C. and you could tell it was a very prominent hotel in the area. It had such wonderful decorations and was full of people. Over the course of the weekend, I truly enjoyed the location choice for this years’ event. It was just a short cab ride away to visit memorials and monuments or a walk to local restaurants. Not only was the hotel amazing, but the people were all so wonderful. I was a little nervous as to what to expect at such a large venue, but everyone that helped my husband and I settle in were great! My husband came along for the ride because I am thinking of pursing a doctorate in communication studies, and do not want to make such an important choice without him. He was also surprised by how many people were in attendance. Aside from the venue, the sessions were very informative and enlightening! I attended a “death” session, a session on what to do with your doctorate if you do not want to go the traditional way, ethnographic research being conducted in the field and a mini-class session. I learned a lot from the “death” session, that the pain we go through can actually help our work. Through their experiences with death these scholars wrote memorable pieces that contributed to the field. The session on what to do with a doctorate was very eye opening for a person like me who never thought about the different ways to use one’s doctorate before. I enjoyed getting to know one of our professors more during that session and truly appreciated the honestly that came from the panel. The ethnographic research conducted in the field was another eye-opening experience, because there were so many different ways of!! !
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Jaclyn Marsh UNCC Master’s Candidate Class of 2015 studying communication. The scholars in this panel all studied something different and were working on publishing their findings, in most cases. Lastly, I attended a great workshop/mini-class session on how to incorporate narratives into health communication classes. I enjoyed this course because it struck a chord within me about how communication can make such a large impact on our community, if done well. The parties were a great way to get to know people as well. Our UNCC party was packed with people excited to learn more about what UNCC had to over. It was a great turn out. Being surrounded by our very own UNCC scholars was a great experience. I had the privilege of listening to Dr. Davis, Dr. Crane, and Dr. Quinlan voice their project ideas as well as countless others at the party. For me the best part about NCA was getting to know the other attendees and listening to scholars in the field talk about their research. I have made some strong connections that I look forward to continuing throughout the years to come.!!
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Let’s Keep in Touch!
Would you like to be a class representative? We are in the process of choosing class representatives for each of our past cohorts. Responsibilities will include:
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Suggesting article topics for the next issue of The Scoop
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Keeping us up-to-date on the latest news and successes of our former classmates
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Encouraging informal gatherings with fellow alumni
This would be an excellent opportunity for you to maintain close ties with the program and to reap the benefits of being an active alumnus! Please contact Anne Deekens at adeekens@uncc.edu if interested.
Want to see what your peers have been up to? Here’s how: o
Visit our alumni Facebook page
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Join our LinkedIn group
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Check your email for the next issue of The Scoop
Email Anne Deekens at adeekens@uncc.edu with any career/personal updates, article ideas, networking events, and any other news you would like to share. Also, feel free to post updates, questions, and discussion topics on the alumni Facebook page and LinkedIn group. We look forward to hearing from you!!