LYNX Spring 2022 Issue

CATHY COX Joins GC&SU as 12th President

C O N T E N T S

Welcome to the Spring 2022 LYNX, the second edition of our alumni magazine.

If you haven’t yet seen the first issue of our magazine, please check it out online at https://issuu.com/gcdepartmentofcommunication/docs/2021_lynx_online.

As clearly stated in the header, I am the new Department of Communication chair. I first visited Georgia College & State University back in 1997, as a forensics (speech and debate) coach who took his team to a tournament here at GC. The GC I visited in 1997 was very different than the GC I visited during my interview last April. I was struck by many things during the interview: the perseverance of students and faculty through the difficult times of the pandemic, the bright and cur ious students I encountered and the myriad campaign signs and chalk for queen a nd duchess all over the campus.

Let me tell you briefly about my academic background. My bachelor’s degree was from a liberal arts college, and since I’ve received my doctorate, my entire academic career has been spent in liberal arts institutions. I believe that more than ever before, our students will need to engage with different disciplines in order to succeed in the world around us. My research centers around the rhetoric of inquiry, which asks how rhetoric and communication function inside and outside of various disciplines. My primary focus has been on the rhetoric of mathematics (I can already imagine some of you cringing.), but I’m also interested in such areas as the rhetoric of religion, disaster rhetoric, political communication and the accessibility of the internet and computers. All of those involve the study of communication along with at least one other discipline.

While I’m a rhetorician by degree, I’m a communication generalist by trade. I teach in both rhetoric and mass communication. We’re better communicators and better people if we understand our world from multiple perspectives.

I recognize that I’m following Professor Mary Jean Land, known by many of you and the GC community as the stalwart of our department. She has left us a valuable legacy, which was repeatedly mentioned during my visit in April 2021. I seek to build on her legacy as we help our students prepare for the world they’ll face after graduation.

I’m finishing this letter on February 25 2022. Today, we’re confronted with stories of the invasion of Ukraine, a potential new variant of Omicron called BA.2 and worries about inflation. Over the past two years, we’ve been co nfronted by a variety of weighty stories.

At the same time, I am also thankful. We’re very fortunate that we’re able to grow while many other institutions of higher education are cutting back. We’re conducting several searches this spring for faculty to join us in the fall. We’re expanding the num ber of courses we’re teaching in the GC 1Y and 2Y program. We’re restarting a speech and debate team. And we’re already renovating our newly renovated Terrell Hall, building a podcast studio down on the first floor that will allow us to do even more with our classes and help us to make connections with other parts of the campus, such as the work our newly formed Podcast Club is doing with the School of Business.

As our discipline changes a result of technology and other new advances, we’ll con tinue to need your insights and wisdom, as you reflect upon how you utilize what you’ve learned in your daily lives. Of course, we’d love to see you when you visit Milledgeville, and I’d love to meet the many alumni I don’t yet know. In the midst of change, some things do remain the same. If you were to come today, you’d see the chalk and signs for this year’s homecoming queen and duchess.

Michael

“More than ever before, our students will need to engage with different disciplines in order to succeed in the world around us.”

25th anniversary GC CELEBRATES LIBERAL ARTS MISSION BORN TO LEAD

By Juliana Dixon

service.”

Georgia College was forever changed to Georgia College & State Uni versity in 1996 when the state’s Board of Regents designated the school as the state’s public liberal arts university.

Throughout the 2021-2022 aca demic year, the university has celebrat ed the 25th anniversary of its liberal arts designation with symposiums and panel discussions.

During the week of April 3-9, GC hosted two panels in celebration of the anniversary -- one that featured current and former faculty and another that welcomed alumni to share their experi ences with the liberal arts.

Both panels captured the spirit of the university’s liberal arts mission to provide an education to students that teaches them how to think critically, communicate effectively and collabo rate with diverse groups.

Alumni and liberal arts

The first panel during the Week of April 3-9 was in the Arts and Sciences Auditorium, and it feature alumni from the College of Arts & Sciences. The panelists were:

•

his University of Georgia graduate program he is able to think differently in his upper-level classes because his liberal arts education provided him with a unique perspective.

“I can put all the pieces together, and I am thankful to have had so many different classes that taught me how to look for different routes to solve prob lems,” Pillay said during the event.

One of the common themes amongst the GC alumni was that without the liberal arts education they would not be the same employees, friends and co-workers they are today.

The panelists were asked to share their stories of how they arrived at GC, their perspectives of how the liberal arts has transformed them as educators and how they view the liberal arts mission impacting students.

Lammon, who also served as moderator for the panel, shared that he arrived at GC in 1997, and over the years, he said, he’s noticed more students further away from GC are choosing to attend because of the liberal arts draw.

Anagha Ramakrishnan is a leader, storyteller, teacher and advocate for causes such as voting rights and civil rights.

“It’s really important to engage the younger generations on topics such as social justice and racism because they see it around them and they are living in it,” Ramakrishnan said. “They need to have a space to talk about. My goal as a teacher is to provide these safe spaces to students and remind them that their voices are important. It’s something I wished I had as a young student.”

Ramakrishnan will graduate from Georgia College & State University in May 2022, and she is dedicated to finding a career path that will allow her to help others.

A first-generation immigrant from India, and now a naturalized U.S. citizen, Ramakrishnan is currently completing her mass communication internship requirement as a freelance writer for the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Upon hearing the news of the fellowship, which is a cam pus-wide honor, Ramakrishnan said she was humbled.

“I received (the award) in the fall, and I represent leader ship programs and the student body through leader ship programs. We try to recognize leaders who better the role of leadership for the public good,” Ramakrishnan said.

One way in which Ramakrishnan helps to bridge cultural gaps between people of diverse backgrounds is through her storytelling skills.

After graduating, Ramakrish nan said she will likely continue as working as a journalist, but she also aspires to become a video journalist or documentarian. She added she wants to travel and see more of the world –documenting her journeys along the way. Ramakrishnan is proud of her Indian heritage and culture, and she visits India an nually to see family. It is in India, she said, where she honed her wildlife photography skills. One of her favorite memories is going on Indian wildlife safaris and using the time to express her creativity.

Sashan Pillay

• Kendall White

• Zack Brown

• Patrick Hamilton

• Christopher Barten

The alumni spoke about their GC experiences and how the liber al arts helped them become more “well-rounded” individuals and “world-ready “students. They spoke about the different classes they took. Some even acknowledged that even classes outside of their majors pro vided them with useful insights into the broader world. Specifically, they said the cross-major classes helped them become more “adept at solving problems in the workplace.”

Sashan Pillay also added that in

Specifically, the panelists said “the attention to detail,” “small class sizes,” “professors with real-world experi ences” and the “ability to try different classes” are just a few of the ways students described what sets GC apart from other academic institutions.

Faculty and liberal arts

To further understand the impact and transition of the liberal arts at GC over the past 25 years, current and former faculty were invited to discuss their experiences.

The panelists were:

• H.L. “Lee” Gillis

• Martin Lammon

• Sunita Manian

• Chavonda J. Mills

• Karen Burman

Additionally, Gillis said he has noticed changes in students, primarily positive, and those changes have made him a better educator.

“Getting to know the students has been so powerful,” Gillis said.

Other faculty spoke about their appreciation of the autonomy they have at GC.

Specifically, Manian spoke about her experiences of support from admin istration when she proposed imple menting more Middle Eastern studies

Mills talked about her trailblazing experience at GC in which she was the second woman of color to serve as a STEM faculty member at GC.

“To be in a place to have a connec tion with students and do research on what I wanted was a dream come true.”

Earlier in the 2021-2022 academic year, she was named the university’s inaugural W.J. Usery, Jr. Fellow. According to information provided by the university, the award is given to a student who has been recognized as being committed to serving the public through leadership endeavors.

In a press release announcing the fellowship, university administrators explained, “The purpose of this fellowship is to recognize leadership that brings people together, bridging divides and spanning boundaries; finds value in diverse new perspectives; and showcases innovations in leadership and

“My love for photography and videography definitely was sparked through these trips to India,” Ramakrishnan said.

Additionally, Ramakrishnan also expresses her creativity through filmmaking, creative writing and reading – skills she said she acquired through her mass communication major and English minor.

“The Georgia College Communication Department definitely set me up for success,” Ramakrishnan said via a Zoom interview earlier this year. “In a smaller environment, you are much more recognized in the classroom. The profes sors not only see your work, but also your potential, and that really made me grow as a person.”

Photos and story by Lucy Hughes

Anagha Ramakrishnan: GC’s First W.J. Usery Jr. Fellow

Photo submitted

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION FACULTY & STAFF

Rhetoric Faculty

Scott Dillard, Ph.D. Professor, Rhetoric Coordinator

Jan Hoffmann, Ph.D.

Professor

Graduated from Florida State University.

Favorite undergrad memory: “Block parties and Spring Breaks.”

Jamie Downing, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Advisor to Lambda Pi Eta

Graduated from Illinois State University in 2008.

Favorite undergrad memory: “My favorite memories involve van rides to and from tournaments with ISU’s Speech Team. We usually left campus on Friday afternoons, competed in tournaments Saturday and Sunday, and returned late Sunday nights. We travelled in 15-passenger vans to competitions throughout the Midwest--anywhere between two and ten hours away.

Smart phones didn’t exist yet and most of us didn’t have laptops, so we spent hours talking, playing van games, singing to CDs burnt specifically for the trip, and just being together.”

Administrative Faculty & Staff

Michael Dreher, Ph.D. Chair/ Professor

Graduated from North Central College in 1989.

Favorite undergrad memory: “There are so many! I’ll say completing my honors thesis, I was the only one in my class to do so. Finishing the thesis allowed me the opportunity to apply for and to attend an undergraduate honors conference that helped lead me to where I am now… as a professor at Georgia College.”

Barbara Fleming Administrative Assistant

Mass Communication Faculty

Amanda Respess Senior Lecturer

Evelina Galova-Iossifov

Media Lab Coordinator, Advisor to WGUR 95.3

Graduated in 2003 from GCSU.

Favorite undergrad memory: “Traveling to tournaments with the tennis team. We had such a wonderful time on and off the courts. Sure, it was physically demanding, but the memories and experi ences are priceless.”

Christina Smith, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Mass Comm Coordinator, Internship Coordinator

Graduated from Simspon College in 2004.

Favorite undergrad memory: “Being a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. My sisters and I made enough memories in those four years to keep us laughing the rest of our lives.”

Mikkel Christensen, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Advisor to PRSSA

Graduated from the Danish School of Media and Journalism in 2010.

Favorite undergrad memory: “When I went on exchange at University of Missouri for a semes ter. I was a little bit skeptical at first but ended up having a great time. In Denmark, college is just a place you go to study, so it was exciting to experience the full American college experience with the beautiful campus as the focal point of the community and school pride everywhere. loved it, so I ended up going back for my master’s and PhD, and now I’m married to an American and we have two awesome little kids.”

JAN HOFFMANN with

By Carissa Rentz

If you could go back in time to your first year at Georgia College, what would you tell yourself?

I would tell myself to be more assertive about compensation, in both terms of time and salary, and in conjunction with when you’re asked to take on extra administrative duties. I think like many, many women in the workplace, I was overworked and undervalued. It doesn’t come from necessarily a pity place, it’s just recognition that the gender pay gap is very real.

do you consider one of your proudest accomplishments as a Georgia College professor?

My first immediate response is thinking about how I have 19 years worth of class photos. I am blessed because of what I get to do, to really develop re lationships with every student. When I look at all those photos, the 3,000 students ago, 19 years ago, I can still remember so many of them because we get to seriously develop a professional relationship in which we really get to know each other. I’m proud that I have never given

What is the happiest memory you have

of Georgia College?

I’ve been the point person for our voter education training since 2002, and I am the coordi nator for the American Democ racy Project. Last November, I found out Georgia College had a 95% student voter registra tion rate — best in the nation for liberal arts universities. Combined with that, our voting rate was 77%, which is 11% over the college student national average. Over the next two days, the Georgia College Officers of Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society, came into my public speaking class. I knew they were coming, but I thought it was to invite students to join their society. To my surprise, they came in to tell me I had won the Flisch-Harris Award, which recognizes leadership in the cause of a liberal arts education. Then, every one of my students stood up in class and individu ally said, ‘You are a good teacher because…” followed by some thing unique. This was truly a mountain top experience for me as a professor.

What is a lifelong lesson you have learned as a Georgia College professor that you would like to share with younger generations?

q&aPROFESSOR 1 2 3 4 5

When you’re in doubt, or when you’re facing a tough dilemma or tough decision, ask yourself: “What would Dolly Parton do?” and then do that. She truly is, I think, a touchstone for all of us. She’s leading with love, and she’s leading with compassion, and she’s leading with humility.

I would tell myself, “Don’t hide your light under a bushel, but instead make sure that your compensation is equal to your peers.”

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

I’m probably on a deck. I’m probably facing the Marshes of Glynn, so I’m somewhere in the St. Simons-Jekyll Island Coast of Georgia. I’m bird watching, so I have binoculars next to me. I’m peeling and eating a pound of fresh Georgia shrimp, and I’m drinking a Rum Smash. That’s an easy one. I have that fantasy at least once a day.

Benjamin “Chad” Whittle, Ph.D. Lecturer Graduated from Valdosta State University in 2009. Favorite undergrad memory: “Valdosta State won a national championship in football.”

Nah Ray Han, Ph.D. Assistant Professor

Angela Criscoe, M.F.A. Interim Executive Director, School of Continuing and Professional Studies

Michael Crews, M.F.A. Lecturer, Advisor to Bobcat Multimedia Network

Bill Burke Lecturer, Advisor to The Colonnade and to Bobcat Multimedia Network

Amanda Williams

Advisor, Rhetoric and Mass Communication Seniors

Janice Pillay

Advisor, Rhetoric and Mass Communication Freshmen

Vonya Miller

Advisor, Mass Communication

What

ANDALUSIA INTERPRETIVE CENTER

SET TO OPEN FALL 2022

Georgia College & State University announced a new building on its historic Andalusia property, home of award-winning writer Flannery O’Connor, is expected to open in fall 2022. The new addition to the property will serve as an interpretive center containing exhibit space, collection space and offices.

MAXWELL STUDENT UNION RECEIVES FACELIFT

Photos and story by Meyers Ezzell

Georgia College & State University’s Maxwell Student Union has long been a place for students to gather for meals, but it really never was a space associated with students congregating for the sake of being together beyond eating.

Life in the MSU has changed.

In the fall of 2021, phase I of renovations began on MSU’s lower level – to create a new welcoming space for students to mingle, study and eat.

By the start of the spring 2022 term, students were invited into the newly renovated space that now features contemporary colors, seating and lighting.

“We were not quite sure how students were going to like the new space, but every time I have walked through MSU since opening, it has been packed,” said Maggie Discher, project manager for the MSU renovation project.

In addition to the study and collaborative spaces, MSU is also home to The MAX, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Chic-Fil-A and Subway.

According to information provided by the university, the renovations cost about $1 million, and include:

• Ping pong and pool tables

• Smoothie bar

• Modern design elements such as high-top tables and lighting fixtures

• Collaborative student spaces

“One of the best parts of GCSU,” Emily Paige Lanham, a GC first-year student, said about the renovated space. “It’s such a fun and different place to go with friends in between classes to get coffee or even to just hang out.”

GC first-year student Gracie Howard agreed.

“My friends and I like to go there when we get tired of the library. The lounge has a great vibe, and it’s pretty fun to get work done over bagels and coffee,” Howard said.

Prior to the renovations, Discher said, the university conducted a campus-wide study on space uses. The survey results revealed students, faculty and staff felt there was minimal informal gathering space on campus. And so, school administrators created the plan to create a large space with ample seating for a large number of students to gather.

And so MSU was targeted as a centrally-located place large enough for a large of number students, Discher said.

The plan was to create a space where students could socialize and hang out – informally.

To convert the space, Discher said, builders began in the summer of 2021 removing and relocating offices, the mail room, storage rooms and auxiliary.

“We were pleasantly surprised with how much we were able to open up the space,” said Discher.

And the students are appreciative of the open space.

“It is a change of scenery, and this space is very cozy,” Hope Begashaw, a GC sophomore, said.

Once the space was cleared, builders installed a variety of modern and bright lighting and pieces of furniture and tables to fill the space.

Now that phase I of the MSU renovations is complete, project managers are preparing for phase II, which consists of renovating another section of MSU, specifically Donahoo Lounge and its surroundings.

Overall, students said they were pleased with the new additions and renovations made to the lounge area.

“It is a fun space where you can connect with others, do schoolwork, and just nice scenery change,” David Morris, Jr., a GC sophomore, said.

Students also said they enjoyed the Einstein bagels storefront being available to them on campus.

Jessica Butler, a GC junior, said, “I love that it an open space where I can socialize and still get my homework done. I also love Einstein and eat a bagel every single morning.”

Andalusia

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“Its goal is to increase presence, educational ability and knowledge of Flannery O’Connor and Andalusia,” Cassie Munnell, curator of Andalusia, said in spring 2022.

Andalusia is located on U.S. Highway 441 about four miles north of the GC campus.

Visitors to the interpretive center will be able to:

• Explore the history of Andalusia and Flannery O’Connor’s life

• Gain access to a wealth of O’Connor’s literary collections

• Understand life on a dairy farm

• Attend community events

• Enjoy a welcome from the GC community

“The Andalusia Interpretive Center will be an excellent resource for community members and visitors alike,” GC Provost Costas Spirou, vice president of Academic Affairs, said during the groundbreaking ceremony.

Ground for the interpretive center was broken in 2021. Construction was expected to begin spring of 2022.

According to information provided by the university, funding for the $3.5 million facility is expected to come from grants, private donors and university funding. Moreover, the center marks the first time in Andalusia’s history that all of O’Connor’s collections will be together in one facility, providing opportunities for programming and research related to the famed author and her body of literary work.

“The center will help to promote tourism by providing better facilities for large groups, community events, and visitors from around the world,” Steve Dorman, former GC president who spearheaded the initiative to establish and building an interpretive center at Andalusia, said during the groundbreaking ceremony.

About O’Connor and Andalusia

Andalusia served as the home to American author Flannery O’Connor from 1951-1964. O’Connor died on Aug. 3, 1964, in Milledgeville. While she and her mother lived on the property there were 14 buildings and hundreds of farming acres.

While living at Andalusia, O’Connor wrote some of her most wellknown pieces of literary work, including “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.”

Andalusia now serves as a museum highlighting her life during the 13 years she lived in Milledgeville.

Visit Andalusia’s Instagram by scanning this QR code.

Photos and story by Meyers Ezzell

DANCING THROUGH HOMECOMING

By Lillie Sirmans

During the week of February 21, Georgia College & State University marked Homecoming 2022 through a celebration of music. This year’s Homecoming theme was “Feeling ’22 (Bobcats version) A Celebration of Music.”

In true Bobcat fashion, Homecoming Week was filled with activities for students, pro fessors and staff. Tuesday kicked off the festivities with a bang as students ate tacos on Front Campus to for “Taco Twos-day.”

“It was so fun seeing so many people on the front of campus, watching everyone enjoy ing their tacos and time outside was so nice,” GC student Carolyn Douglas said.

The fun continued Wednesday as staff members participated in an office decorating con test in which the GC Advising Center won first place for “Best Office” and the GC College of Business took first place for “Best Door.” Wednesday night, students were entertained by Sailesh the Hypnotist in Magnolia Ballroom.

“The show was wild. I could not believe how he used his voice to guide (students) into seeing a completely different reality,” GC mass communication major Paige Belconis said.

Thursday featured women’s tennis against Brenau, the GIVE Center hosting a “Free Little Pantry” building competition between campus departments and the Office of Health Promotion providing bingo and food to students in Maxwell Student Union.

Streets around GC were lined with students, faculty and staff Friday afternoon as the community celebrated the Homecoming Parade. In the evening, students filled Centennial Center to see hip-hop artist Flo Rida perform.

“It was my first concert ever, and I’m so glad it was. It just felt like a big dance party,” GC student Katie Eckmann said.

To round out Homecoming 2022, current students and alumni met up at Tent City to build up hype for the GC women’s and men’s basketball team games against Columbus State. The men’s game featured the crowning of GC’s 2022 Homecoming Court. This year’s royalty are:

• Queen: Alyssa Borko of Roswell, Georgia

• King: James Keim of Atlanta, Georgia

• Duchess: Sydney Bates of Cumming, Georgia

• Duke: Samuel Roberson of Augusta, Georgia

NEW DEPARTMENT CHAIR SEEKS COHESION BETWEEN MAJORS

ment chair for communication studies and another six and a half years as the director of its master’s program.

It’s a melting pot. A harmonious mixture of disciplines. Yet, the Department of Communication is bound together by one thing – stories.

“It’s how we go about learning better ways of understand ing people’s stories, being able to tell stories ourselves of ourselves and other people learning about stories,” Micheal Dreher, the chair of the Department of Communication, said. “That is what really binds us together.”

Dreher described the department he envisions as a “family.” His office door at Terrell Hall 202 is purpose fully decorated with two stickers – each displaying his love for the department’s two branches, rhetoric and mass communication.

Dreher joined the Georgia College & State University’s Department of Communicatin in the summer of 2021. His latest academic gig is not his first time leading a combined communication department. Before moving to Middle Geor gia with his wife, son and Labradoodle, Dreher led the com munication studies department at Bethel University – a small Christian liberal arts school located just north of the Twin Cities, Minnesota. He served six and a half years as depart

When Dreher isn’t busy fulfilling his duties as department head, including planning the future of the department, he is teaching. His spring 2022 schedule consists of teaching upper-level communication classes, specifically disaster rhet oric, theory & research and interpersonal communication.

“Dr. Dreher is one of the most intellectual and passionate professors I’ve ever had the pleasure of receiving knowledge from,” India Jackson, a senior mass communication major and current enrollee in two of Dreher’s three spring 2022 classes, said. “His teaching style enables students to not only receive knowledge but instills in us the ability to incorporate those skills into the real world.”

As if he wasn’t busy enough, Dreher also spends his time working on scholarly articles and rhetoric research. Current ly, he is looking at web accessibility and how the internet can be inaccessible to the blind and other disabilities.

Communication classes can be overlapping in content but Dreher relishes in the deliberate combining of communica tion disciplines at GC, especially with the modern-era’s flow of information.

Students Giving Back

By Sam Joiner

.

Evan Christian volunteered with his Alpha Tau Omega fraternity brothers at the Fellowship Home at Meriweather in Milled geville. For Valentine’s Day, the men planned a special dinner and served as the members’ waiters. Evan helped serve dinner and danced with some of the wonderful members.

In December 2021, Jenna Byrd, Maddie Daigle, and Nikki Adler, volun teered through PRSSA for the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Egleston Hospital. The women helped deliver 65 gifts donated by Georgia College students for the hospital’s annual toy drive.

Founded in the fall of 1997, The GIVE Center has provided numerous vol unteer opportunities for Georgia College & State University students. The organization was created by Kendall M. Stiles with the help of student, Kate Van Cantfort, in response to the desire of many GC students to volunteer in their community. Since its creation The GIVE Center has expanded to two full-time professional staff members, over 20 student employees, 30 service organizations and annual volunteer work with 2,000 students.

A look at how mass communication and rhetoric majors give back to the Georgia College & State University campus community and beyond . .

Pictured: Katie Futch, MSCM junior and Kate Bennet, MSCM junior.

Pictured: Evan Christian, MSCM junior.

Pictured top right: Senior Maddie Daigle, MSCM senior.

Pictured bottom left: Jenna Byrd, MSCM senior.

Katie Futch and Kate Bennet volunteered in fall 2021 at the Annual Mock Westminster Dog Show for ARFF. They helped organize the event, which consisted of raffles, adorable dogs in costumes and raising awareness for the Milledgeville Animal Rescue Foundation.

Photo and story by Gabrielle DuChateau

Photos submitted

DESPITE SETBACKS, GREEK LIFE VIABLE

By Sophie Zetzsche

Fraternity and sorority life at Georgia College & State University continues to increase its on-campus presence –from surge in memberships to impact on various area communities – despite unexpected challenges over the past few years due to the ongoing pandemic.

“We reset the chapter totals this year to what they were before COVID. Before COVID, chapter totals for many Greek organizations were at an all-time high,” said Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Stacey Hurt-Milner.

The GC campus is home to 29 different Greek organizations and the Greek population makes up over a fourth of the campus student population, with more than 2,100 members. But Greek life officials acknowledged that fraternity and sorority life has faced on-going minor setbacks since March 2020.

“In the fall of 2020, the first semester back from COVID, all Greek events were suspended out of an abundance of caution, due to the pandemic,” Taylor

Byers, current Phi Mu president, said. “In the spring (2021), we were able to hold more events than the se mester before, but we had lots of regulations to be aware of and events did not look normal,” Sam Howard, cur rent president of Alpha Tau Omega.

Due to the unconventionality of 2021, several Greek chapters were left with members who either had not seen Greek life outside of COVID restrictions or only had a year of lived pre-COVID campus life – creating inexperienced leadership boards for chapters. The 2021-2022 academic year has been a learning curve, fraternity and sorority life officials said.

“We have also seen a lot of young leadership and have had to really go back to the basics,” said Hurt-Milner.

In the fall of 2021, GC students were welcomed back to campus with fewer COVID regulations, which allowed some Greek life to return to “regular” events, much similar to life pre-COVID.

“Coming back to campus from sophomore to junior year was a totally different experience within the Greek commu nity. We started having more events, with different organi zations, without any COVID regulations, like how it used to be,” said Howard.

Just as GC Greek life was again beginning to thrive in the fall of 2021, the campus Greek community faced anoth er setback – the Milledgeville Police Department began to investigate Sigma Alpha Epilson in early December 2021 for hazing and underage drinking. Eight members of the

fraternity were charged for their roles in a hazing incident that occurred earlier in the month and caused an underage student to be hospitalized. On Feb. 25, 2022, the university dissolved the fraternity chapter – citing hazing and student code of conduct infractions that occurred during the fall 2021 term.

“Hearing about SAE was really hard on the commu nity. We are all united under Greek Life, and our hope is to see each chapter on campus thrive, and we are dis appointed to see what happened, happen,” said Taylor Byers, current president of Phi Mu, following the news of SAE’s dissolvement.

In response to the SAE hazing incident and its termina tion from campus, GC fraternity and sorority life members and university administrators worked hard to remind stu dents of responsible Greek members and organizations, including providing email correspondence and informational sessions about university, national and legal policies about behavior – including hazing.

“This situation, while unfortunate gave our chapter the opportunity to remind members of the expectations they are held to,” Howard said in early spring.

Despite the setbacks GC Greek organizations have ex perienced in the past few years, current organization leaders remain optimistic for campus sororities and fraternities. Leaders said chapter membership totals continued to rise in spring 2022 to numbers pre-COVID. And events are re turning, which will allow groups to continue to support their philanthropic causes.

“We raised the most we have ever raised, and we were able put the money raised into our Phi Mu Scholarship fund that goes toward an outstanding member of our sorori ty,” said Byers of the Nov. 10, 2021, “Jammin’ For Julia” fundraiser in which Greek and other campus organizations participate in lip-sync battles.

Hurt-Milner said the GC Greek community is more than controversy; it’s about belonging to a community.

“We have so much potential,” Hurt-Milner said of the future of fraternity and sorority life on GC’s campus. “I think there is so much potential for us to be impactful once we learn the necessary components that drives leadership, com ponents of what it means to be service-orientated and what it means to work and function as one big team.”

Byers, Phi Mu president, agreed.

“Greek life, specifically at Georgia College, holds stu dents to high standards, both academically and in their own character,” Byers said. “I believe Greek life makes students better and allows for the university to see students achieve more and become more involved both in the classroom and around the community.”

To learn more about GC’s Greek life, visit https://www. gcsu.edu/fsl.

Photos submitted

RHETORIC MAJOR TEACHES TRANSFERABLE SKILLS

Photo and story by Grace Williams

From audio drama to public speaking to new faculty, Geor gia College & State University’s Department of Commu nication’s rhetoric program has got a lot going on.

At the start of the 2021-2022 academic year, the rheto ric program was home to numerous GC majors and minors. Throughout their curriculum, students take a variety of rhetoric courses, including persuasive speaking, small group communication and voice of a public speaker.

According to Career Education of Columbia University, rhetoric foundations – public speaking and argumentative writing – are often the most sought-after skills U.S. employ ers seek in current hires. And GC rhetoric faculty are on it.

“The skills that we teach throughout the program are transferrable skills to any kind of job that you might want to do,” Professor Scott Dillard, rhetoric coordinator, said. “Whether you are involved in rhetoric, mass com munication or another area of study, there is something for you in rhetoric.”

In addition to teaching the public speaking and argumen tative writing basics, several rhetoric faculty are also busy

working on “audio dramas.” To-date Dillard and Professor Jan Hoffmann have, with the assistance of others, converted and presented three short stories into radio-type dramas and are working on a fourth. Dillard and Hoffman encourage stu dents and faculty across the entire Department of Commu nication to get involved in the recording projects, including script writers, readers and tech producers, in order to bring the recordings to life.

Furthermore, the major is gearing up to add two new faculty to its roster. By adding more faculty to the rhetoric major, the department plans to expand its number of GC 1Y and GC 2Y course offerings to the broader campus.

Another exciting opportunity for the rhetoric program is the rejuvenation of its speech and debate team. The depart ment anticipates the speech and debate team could begin competing as soon as the 2022-2023 academic year.

This is Dillard’s 20th year at GC, and he said he is grate ful to see the rhetoric program continue to evolve while also maintaining a robust traditional curriculum.

Dillard said, “We’re very fortunate that we’re able to grow while many other institutions of higher education are cutting back.”

“Yeah, we might be talking about the same things in three or four different classes but you’re going to get dif ferent kinds of spins and different kinds of perspectives on it in each class,” Dreher said.

He added, “Our understanding of communica tion is always growing. And it’s not static. How we think about interpersonal communication that’s so different from the way we thought about it even 10 years ago.”

Dreher then pointed to the phone recording the conversation.

“(The cellphone) has certainly changed the way we talk about interpersonal communication and, yet, when we talk about that, we can also talk about it from a media literacy standpoint. And we now talk about how we con sume that information. Now we’re pressing over between media literacy. Now, we’re crossing over with journalism and potentially even strategic communication.”

Dreher’s excitement for communication as a dis cipline radiates to his duty as the department head. He said he plans to restructure the department in a way that will allow communication students to have more than one concentration, but they will be required to complete course requirements under both concentrations.

“I think there are enough people who are interested in what you call that kind of melting pot,” said Dreher. “We’re going to see people realize there are a lot more connections between strategic communication, journal ism and production than people think.”

As for the distant, yet near future, Dreher remains optimistic about the department, which has dealt with faculty shortages in recent years.

“I believe that the department will be in a much better place because we will have a faculty that will have been together for five or more years, and we will have had some new faculty to join us,” he said.

Dreher also emphasized plans in the works for addi tional academic opportunities for students.

“We will hopefully have started several new initia tives that we have in mind, such as a social media certifi cate, and we’ll have seen the fruit of our work in terms of becoming a ‘digital first’ journalism program.”

Dreher also noted that communication students are studying the discipline at an important and inter esting time.

He said, “Whether it’s engaging in critical analysis, learning how to harness the power of one’s voice, creat ing a film script, understanding and shaping messages for audiences or reporting and reflecting on what’s taking place around us, learning about communication is more vital than ever before.”

Lambda Pi Eta held an induction ceremony in April 2022 for its 2022 and 2021 inductees. Lambda Pi Eta is the honors society for the discipline of communication.

Photo submitted

FROM CORPORATE MARKETING TO PRIVATE BUSINESS, CEBRIÁN FINDS SUCCESS IN PUBLIC RELATIONS

brián said she learned to adapt quickly to new places. She recalled living in many differ ent places growing up. She attended high school in Warner Rob ins – about an hour south of Milledgeville. She said she chose to attend GC because of its public relations and advertising pro grams as well as the size of the campus.

Zoom interview.

Cebrián also said the constant support she received from faculty and classmates remains a fond memory.

When talking about her GC profes sor she said they all were, “really wanting everyone to succeed.”

Life after GC

Upon graduation, Cebrián interned at an advertising organization in Chatta nooga, Tennessee. After the six-month internship ended, she was hired as a copywriter for a marketing agency, which she said she loved.

By Lillie Sirmans

From an internship in Chattanooga to marketing positions in corporate America to her current role as the marketing and events manager of the family business, it is evident that An gelina Cebrián is motivated, talented and hardworking.

Cebrián graduated from Georgia College & State University in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in mass com munication. Currently, she is the mar keting and events manager for Panoram Asado, an experiential catering com pany headquartered in Chattanooga. The company was founded in 2017 by Cebrián’s husband, Mariano Cebrián, also a GC graduate.

Choosing GC

Growing up in a military family, Ce

“I was initially interested in public relations because I love the logistics of planning events or campaigns. I also like crafting with intention, scheduling and plan ning, interacting with clients, colleagues and vendors alike,” Cebrián said. “Once I discovered that not only did I enjoy the process, but that it was a field that’s extremely versatile, ever-changing and one I’d never be bored in, I decided to pursue a career in it.”

Remembering GC

Cebrián said she has plenty of mem ories of her time at GC, but one aspect that remains close to home for her is the people.

“All of the students who are a part of the program, many of them are still some of my closest friends to this day, and I would not have met them outside of mass comm,” she said during a

Over time, Cebrián made her way into the flooring industry, where she worked as the marketing communication and events manager. Eventually the com pany she worked for transitioned to Mo hawk Industries and Cebrián advanced to a position where she managed several employees as well as worked with the marketing department.

After nearly a decade working in corporate America, Cebrián said she decided to join Panoram Asado fulltime and work alongside her husband, who started the company in 2017.

“With that (job) I had a lot of amaz ing experiences. I really learned how to be a director. I really learned a lot on how to manage and delegate and see things come to fruition,” Cebrián said of her job with Mohawk Industries.

Today, as manager of marketing and events for Panoram Asado, Cebrián wears several different hats.

Her days consist of running oper ations for the companies, managing social media platforms as well as the company’s websites, working in oper ations sales and working alongside her husband at every Panoram event.

The couple now own three busi nesses – Panoram Asado, Panoram Imports and Panoram Tours.

“In America, we are so go go go. In Argentina, it is not like that,” Cebrián said. “Our experiences are catered to slowing down and connecting with those around you. I just love being able

to really bring that to people, allowing them to have the space and the excuse to slow down for a minute and enjoy life because it goes by fast.”

Cebrián’s and her husband, Mari ano’s, mission is to provide quality service to clients.

Panoram Asado, Cebrián said, is “all about the service and really to trans port you from your backyard and make you feel like you’ve escaped to Argenti na for the evening.”

Every Panoram event features au

Scan the QR code to listen to Angelina Cebrián.

thentic Argentine food cooked right in front of the client over a live fire. These events, Cebrián said, consist of eight to 10 different courses over the span of about 90 minutes. She said it’s not only the food that matters, but it’s the overall experience.

Cebrián said starting and running a family business has its challenges, but there are also plenty of rewards.

She said, “Be prepared to wear many hats. Be committed to hats. Be commit ted to learning many aspects of business and seeking help from other business professionals. Just because you’re good at one thing or have passion for some thing, does not necessarily mean you’ll be good at running a business.”

Photos submitted

Benny Esposito continues to shine his light

LEARNING TO EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

By Tori Gronczewski

Just about as soon as Benedict Esposito stepped onto Georgia College & State University’s campus, he realized life can be unpredictable.

In fact, the future plan he had so meticulously laid out for himself as a teenager, wasn’t at all the plan he would ever carry out.

“I was so certain that radio is what I wanted to do, and it was go ing to work. I had been taught the value of hard work, asking questions, deferring to those who know better, focusing on learn ing, getting good grades, making a commitment and sticking with it, practicing, don’t be a jerk, literally every good piece of advice given to me I followed,” Esposito said.

“Come August 2016, I gave up on that dream of getting into radio, which I don’t regret as everyone I spoke to said it’s a shrinking industry and don’t get into it, and it was clear they were right. I pride myself on being practical, but even before then I applied to other jobs, too, but they all said the same thing: ‘your experience is in radio, you should go there.’ It was awful being between a rock and a hard place. Radio had no openings and other industries said I didn’t have enough experience, not even for an entry-level job.”

Esposito is a 2015 GC graduate – holding a bache lor’s degree in mass communication as well as finishing with two minors: rhetoric and history. Currently, he works as a media specialist for the Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, a position he’s held for about four years. He assists parish leaders by teaching them how to work with their specific focuses like religious education, youth ministry, vocations or evangelization.

Esposito’s early years

Originally from Philadelphia, Esposito and his family moved to Atlanta, Georgia, when he was 13. He attended and graduated from Holy Spirit Prep in Atlanta.

Esposito said when he was younger, he dreamed of becoming an actor and wanted to pursue a degree in theatre.

“Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” was Esposito’s favorite show to perform. Upon realizing how difficult it was to break into larger-than-life showbiz, Esposito said he decided to major in mass communication.

“I didn’t want to bust tables for the rest of my life,” Esposito said.

Early days at GC: Career-path uncertainty

During his time at GC, Esposito said he learned the importance of getting involved in the department’s student organizations, specifically student-run media, which he did within the first two weeks of his freshman year. He wrote for the Colonnade. Through GC360, he helped film the renova tion of the Bobcat Head. Additionally, he produced his own classic rock hour on WGUR.

Hosting that radio show was Esposito’s passion. He interned in the radio business. And he said as an undergrad uate student he dreamed of radio becoming his career path.

As Esposito thought about his GC memories, one memo ry really stood out for him. He recalled he and his best friend making weekly announcement videos for Campus Catholics.

“Overall, my favorite times were when I’d be recording Zahi, he’d do the an nouncement, and then I’d improv by keeping the camera rolling and asking him more ques tions, often insulting, and he didn’t quite know what to do as I’m putting him on the spot. But the results were almost always great. In looking back at the videos, my favorite moment was when I said I’d use the ‘Sweet Victory’ clip from SpongeBob if the CC Intramural Water Polo team made it to the playoffs, which we did and

got to the final game,” Esposito said. Early Career after GC Esposito graduated from GC in May 2015, and for that first year after graduation he tried to pursue a job in radio. Despite having four years of radio show production experience, a demo tape and a radio in ternship, he couldn’t land an interview with any of the stations in the Atlanta area.

Over time, Esposito decided to move on from radio and ended up at The World of Coke as a guest ambassa dor. Eventually, he was promoted to the Polar Bear team, which he was part of for a little over a year. Today, he is the media specialist for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, a Catholic community that serves more than 1.2 million people in the northern half of Georgia.

In the future, though, Esposito said he wants to work as a communication specialist at a for-profit company, possibly doing website editing.

His advice to current communication students is advice he adhered to while a Bobcat on campus – get involved.

“The only way to find out if you are going to like it or not is to try it,” he said.

As for the graduating seniors, Esposito, a die-hard Braves fan, recommended that when they graduate and move away from the GC campus, they should find a young adult community to join.

He also said staying connected to GC helps with tran sitioning from college life to career life.

In his free time, Esposito hangs out with friends and fellow GC alumni. He is the secretary of Communications Alumni Council, one of GC’s Alumni Affinity groups.

“It can be lonely at first when you graduate,” he said. “It’s funny because four years after starting college you find yourself in the same boat as your freshman year self saying, ‘I want friends.’”

For more information about how to get involved in the Communications Alumni Council, email affinity@ gcsu or visit https://www.gcsu.edu/alumni/alumni-affin ity-group.

Scan the QR code to listen to Benedict Esposito.

Photos submitted

HARRISON KONE

By Ben Grunert

When Harrison Kone published his nov el “Saber Down” in December 2020, he achieved a lifelong dream.

“I asked myself, ‘What happens when an elite soldier realizes that they’ve been crossed by their own government,’” Kone said in a Zoom interview earlier this spring. “What happens to this apex predator when the per son holding the leash becomes the enemy?”

According to book reviews, the thrilling war story left an outstanding impression on its readers, many of whom served in the military. However, the author hadn’t always planned on writing a book about war.

Kone is a 2013 Georgia College & State University graduate and rhetoric major. He currently works for Passages, a non-profit organization that arranges leadership retreats for Christian college students in Israel.

Discovering a love for reading Harrison grew up in Douglasville, Georgia, with his parents, Stuart and Tam my, and his two younger brothers, Tyler and Ryan. Throughout their childhood, he and his brothers kept busy with sports and music. They played baseball and soccer while also participating in their school band, but when he was 10 years old, Harrison found an unex pected passion: reading.

“I hated reading growing up,” Harrison

said. “AR lists are the worst thing you can do to get a kid to read. You can read, but only from a certain list.”

That all changed for Harrison when his grandmother gifted his family the first four Harry Potter novels. At first, Harrison wanted no part of them, but his mother met him in the middle and suggested she read them to him before bedtime. Harrison’s love for literature began.

“I didn’t know stories like that existed,” Harrison said. “When ‘Order of the Phoenix’ came out, I read it in a night.”

At age 14, Harrison discovered the best-selling “Eragon” series. After reading the first book, Harrison said, he decided he wanted to become a writer. Throughout high school and college, he primarily wrote fantasy stories full of dragons, elves and other fantas tical creatures.

Discovering a love for rhetoric

Before his rise to authorship, Harrison was a Bobcat. He enrolled at GC in the fall of 2010 to pursue a degree in creative writing, but he eventually shifted gears and declared rhetoric as his major.

“I actually declared rhetoric so I could get into a public speaking class to see if I liked it,” Harrison said. “It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”

During his time in Milledgeville, GC shaped Harrison into the man he is today.

Although he switched majors and put creative writing on the back burner for a while, his time in school changed his life forever.

As a freshman, Harrison met Annelise, whom he would marry. He was also heavily involved in GC Wesley, a popular campus ministry, and he still keeps in touch with several friends from his bible study group. The group even had a nickname: “Wolfpack.”

“The best things about Georgia College were the people,” Harrison said.

When Harrison became a rhetoric major, it was a special professor who ultimately transformed his entire thought process and view of the world. Mark Vail passed away in 2015 following a battle with leukemia, but he left an imprint on Harrison’s life forever.

“He was a truly special guy,” Harrison said. “Before Mark Vail, anything, a book, the news or a professor told me was true; after Mark Vail, everything was subject to scrutiny. Everything demanded and deserved a greater degree of my attention to make sure it was true.” Rediscovering a love for writing

After college, another life-changing experience com pelled Harrison to pursue creative writing again – and to shift genres in the process.

“There was a break-in experience that happened at

my wife’s place before we were married, where a guy tried to break into her house,” Harrison said. “From then on, I wanted to be a protector and a defender. I also began to really appreciate history at the time, so I started learning about the implications of history and the implications of us winning World War II.”

Fascinated by the importance of American history, Harrison turned to his grandfather, a World War II vet eran. He told his grandson stories of humor and hardship on the front lines of battle, setting the stage for Harrison’s eventual release of “Saber Down.”

Harrison also received a master’s degree in 2018 in divinity from Regent University, which led to his work with Passages. He has served as the associate director of strategic Partnerships for Passages since July 2020.

Today, Harrison lives in North Dallas, Texas, with Annelise and their two daughters, Ava, 3 and Eden, 1. He is currently working on a sequel to his debut novel, which he said he hopes to release later this year.

Nearly a decade removed from his final semester in Milledgeville, Harrison still cherishes his time at GC and credits his memories and experiences as a Bobcat for molding him into the man he is today.

“A lot of people go to college just to get a job,” Harri son said. “Georgia College advanced me as a human.”

Photos

SMITH CREDITS FIELD TRIP FOR CAREER

By Sophie Zetzsche

Georgia College & State University alumnus Corey Smith credits a class field trip for his current career success.

It was a senior class job site visit to WMAZ TV in Macon, Georgia. Smith remembered being in awe.

“We took a field trip to WMAZ in my media production class,” Smith said during a phone interview earlier this spring. “We were able to see what working for a news station would look like. This field trip helped me visualize myself in this field, and I even got to see a midday show, which I now work on.”

After graduating from GC with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication, Smith applied for a job at WMAZ TV. In March 2019, he accepted a job with WMAZ as a media specialist.

As a media specialist, Smith said he is “in control of master control duties, which include importing files into TV playlists as well as segmenting files for weekend showings and program ming.” He added, he also “runs cameras and the audio console for weekly morning news casts, and (he) makes sure something is always on the air and put in clock times to make sure commer cials run at specific times at several times.”

Smith grew up in Macon and attended GC with the intent to major in music and the dream of becoming a music composer. But with time, he said he changed his major to mass communica tion. His goal, he said, evolved to producing “film and audio and compose music for some of my projects.”

Throughout his mass communication course work, Smith learned the skills that would go on to help him in the many dif ferent aspects of his life, including helping him establish his own videography business and creating his “Success Reveled with Corey Smith” podcast.

“I didn’t even like video editing at first, but over time, I began to love it. My favorite class I ever took was multimedia storytell ing,” said Smith.

And of course, his course work led him to his future career.

“I went on that field trip (to WMAZ) without realizing I would be working there in the future. News was not my target, but it was awesome being able to get a better understanding of what I was hearing about in the classroom, and I got to see a midday show, which I now work on,” said Smith.

When he’s not busy with podcasting or videography or help ing to run the news desk at WMAZ, Smith spends time with his wife, Teaera, whom he married in October 2020.

To view one of Smith’s works during his time at Georgia College, scan the QR code.

While his career goals have changed over the years, Smith said he still loves music and incorporates it as much as he can into his professional endeavors. He added he might yet one day become a radio personality.

“Part of my mantra is that there is always room to grow,” Smith said. “That is why I always try to set big goals. I can always work to be better or do more.”

Part of my mantra is that there is always room to grow. That is why I always try to set big goals.

“ ”

From

ROBERTSON ENCOURAGES STUDENTS TO TAKE RISKS, STAY OPEN TO CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

By Carissa Rentz

Sophie Robertson initially enrolled at Georgia College & State University with a lot of uncertainty, specifically not knowing her chosen career path.

But the motivated woman took a leap of faith and Became a Bobcat, and that leap gave her a lifetime of memorable experiences and personal transformations.

“Something about (GC) just changed me as a person in a positive way,” Robertson said via Zoom earlier this spring. “(GC) helped define me in a way, and who I wanted to be in life.”

Robertson graduated from GC in 2012 with a B.A. in mass communication. The classes and faculty, specifically Professor Amanda Respess, she said, were viable to her success as a student.

“I really liked how, especially at the time, it was kind of like a smaller college with smaller classrooms compared to the big universities, so that really drew me in — the more intimate learning environment,” Robertson said.

Now, Robertson is the social and digital communications manager of Serta Simmons Bedding, one of North America’s largest bedding manufacturers. Her responsibilities include managing and overseeing internal and external channels for the company. Internally, she works with the head of internal communications to manage internet and employee communications. Externally, she focuses on overseeing the LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and corporate websites.

Taking the leap from Marietta to Milledgeville

Robertson grew up in Marietta, Georgia, and

graduated from Pope High School. After touring GC and Milledgeville, Robertson had her mind set on where she wanted to attend college.

“I did a campus tour and fell in love with it — front campus, the town, just everything,” she said.

Robertson attended GC’s Bridge Program in summer 2008, which allowed her to make memories and lifelong friendships. Finding passion in mass communication

Despite entering college undecided on a career path, Robertson said she knew she had some interest in event planning. After someone suggested to her to major in mass communication, Robertson decided to try it out and soon fell in love with the major.

“The opportunities that were given, really that hands-on experience, was and is so valuable and so important,” she said.

As a devoted member of Spectrum PR, the new student-run PR agency at the time, Robertson gained valuable experiences through event planning and working with clients.

Through Spectrum PR, she and a colleague created a breast cancer awareness event for the community.

“I think that experience, whether you get it from something like (Spectrum PR) or projects you get to work on, are really valuable,” she said.

Landing early career milestones –freelancer to manager to owner

After graduation, Robertson started at Golin, a PR agency in Atlanta, Georgia, where she started as a full-time intern. She worked at the agency for around six and a half years until joining Serta Simmons Bedding in 2019, where serves as the social and digital communications manager.

She said she admires the mid-size business aspect of the company because leadership values the employees, and if someone has a recommendation, the leadership team wants to hear it. Robertson also said she enjoys the autonomy employees have at Serta Simmons Bedding.

“I really like being in the digital communications space, so thinking about where I take that and how to make it more than what I’m currently doing could potentially be the next role up or maybe me being somewhere else in the organization,” she said.

Robertson said a bedding manufacturer company was the last place she ever thought she would be working for, but she said she is thankful she took that leap when she was offered a position at Serta Simmons Bedding.

“There’s so much opportunity out there, and I think it’s important to be open to what’s out there and maybe give something a try that you may not have thought of,” Robertson said.

In addition to her career, Robertson has a

family – her husband, their son and the family dog. She also has her own company.

For years, Robertson has had a passion for interior styling and decorating on a budget. Eventually, she channeled that passion into her own business: House to Home Design Co., based out of Roswell, Georgia.

No matter where life takes a person, Robertson strongly suggests to others that it is important to make connections, however possible, whether via LinkedIn, with former alumni or with people from niche organizations.

She said, “Always be open to what’s out there. You never want to settle for the first thing that comes your way but be mindful about where you want to go and what you want to do. Know that you have the power to really set and create your journey.”

“

” Something about (Georgia College) just changed me as a person in a positive way.

Photos submitted

SIOBHAN ALVAREZ

By Meyers Ezzell

mother, wife & entrepreneur

Siobhán Alvarez is a hardworking, mother of two who continuously strives to help her communities. Her motivation to succeed is her family.

“My children are the reason I want to do good in my career. They are why I wanted to start my own business,” Alvarez said in a virtual interview earlier this spring. And succeeding is what Alvarez does.

Alvarez graduated in 2008 from Georgia College & State University with a double major in psychology and rhetoric. During her time in college, she was involved in Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and volunteered with The Give Center, Big Buddies and Circle K International.

In a Zoom interview, Alvarez reflected on her time at GC as well as shared her life post-graduation. She said she remembered the rhetoric program, then housed in the English Department, felt like a “real community and a real family.” She said she particularly enjoyed getting to know instructors and students across the department because those relationships made her feel connected and not simply another face in a classroom.

Alvarez said she decided to enroll in GC for multiple reasons. First, she said she fell in love with Front Campus, describing it as “incredibly gorgeous.” Second, she said, a small school was very appealing to her. Lastly, she said, she wanted to go to a college where she did not know many people from her hometown of Marietta, Georgia.

GC, she said, was “exactly what she needed.”

Alvarez started at GC as a psychology major. She took a public speaking class as an elective, and she fell in love.

“Taking that rhetoric class was one of the best decisions I could have made because so much of my career has involved public speaking,” Alvarez said.

Eventually, rhetoric became her second major – something she’s never regretted.

Everything I learned at Georgia College gave me a strong platform to grow from in my career,” she said.

Since graduating, Alvarez has worked in the non-profit sector by working with the American Diabetes Association, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta and the Atlanta Autism Consortium, her current employer.

Early on in her career, she focused on special event fundraising but has since transitioned to the corporate side of non-profits.

Like millions of other college graduates, Alvarez graduated at a challenging time – the height of The Great Recession of 2007-2009.

She described the era as a very difficult time to leave the “bubble” of college because very few jobs were available to anyone let alone new graduates.

During college, Alvarez thought she wanted to go into international aid work but when she could not find a job after graduation, she completely changed her plans.

“It has been a really wonderful challenge because it led me down the path of what I do now,” she said.

She added, “There is no such thing as the right time, there is just time and what you choose to do with

it. I don’t think there has ever been a perfect time in anything I have taken a leap to do. You have to put yourself out there and be brave enough to fail. And if you fail, it’s an opportunity to learn how to do it better the next time.”

Alvarez presents an optimistic personality. Upon graduation, she set a career goal for herself of sitting in the “sweet seat” by the age of 35. She accomplished the goal when she was 32 when she became an executive director of Atlanta Autism Consortium. That year she was also recognized by Georgia Trend as a “Top 40 Under 40” in Georgia.

Despite the external accolades, Alvarez said her greatest successes have been marrying her husband and being the mother to two little boys, Archer and Gray, who are “crazy, mini versions of [herself].”

“I want to show (her sons) that when you put your mind to something and have a goal you want to achieve, you can always reach it, it just might not be linear. There will be ups, downs, detours, but you can achieve it,” Alvarez said.

Additionally, Alvarez said she is blessed to have a flexible job with an organization that she loves and believes in. She is the executive director of the Atlanta Autism Consortium, a non-profit that provides free programs and services to the Atlanta autism community. The organization provides programming for researchers, clinicians, educators, family members and parents of individuals with autism. Alvarez’s primary role is to run the entire organization. She described herself as the “public face” of the Atlanta Autism Consortium.

“I love my career, and I feel so lucky that this is what I get to do every day, but I also recognize that there is so much more to who you are than who you are in your career,” she said.

In additional to serving as a non-profit executive, Alvarez is the CEO and founder of a company called Mimosas and Motherhood, an outlet that teaches moms how to start their own successful blogs. Being a mommy blogger is personal for Alvarez. She started blogging as a hobby, but during COVID, she said, she was fearful of losing her job and decided to turn blogging into a business. She said the company is a way in which she can give other mothers the opportunity to create a sustainable income during tough times.

In her free time, Alvarez said she loves to be with her family, whether it be staying in their beach house in Florida or hiking or traveling or simply spending quality quiet time together at home.

She also remains involved with her sorority, Zeta Tau Alpha, working with other collegiate chapters and other GC alumni women.

“My number one goal is to be a good person and to raise good humans,” Alvarez said. “No matter what, I want to make sure I am doing something meaningful, something that helps other people.”

Scan the QR code for a Q&A with Siobhan Alvarez.

Photos submitted

CAROLINE OLESEN MAINTAINS A LIFE WITH MEANING

By Reagan Monson

Life is given meaning through lived experiences, both mundane and extraordinary. Caroline Oleson lives her life with the intention of being engaged in its entirety, and she is motivated by her passions to communicate and understand the world around her.

Olesen finds fulfillment in the company of her friends, venturing to farmers markets, exploring museums and antique bookshops as well as unwinding with TV. However, traveling is one of her favorite ways to feel engaged in life and with the world.

“Traveling provides context to my own reality and broadens my understanding of what ‘normal’ is. It in spires me to be more open-minded and acknowledge that different doesn’t necessarily mean better or worse, it is simply different. It combats judgment and promotes humility. As the saying goes, ‘traveling is the greatest teacher,’” Olesen said earlier this spring via Zoom. Australia. France. Greece. Indonesia. Thailand. These are just a few of the many places that have contributed to Olesen’s experiences and developing perspectives. She credited her travels for her immense compassion and empathy for others.

At 16, Olesen traveled from her home country of Denmark to the United States for a 10-month study abroad program in North Caro lina, where she was exposed to peers’ developing eagerness and expectations for college.

Compelled by a desire to study creative writ ing at a university level and a curiosity for what the American college experience had to offer, Olesen said she began looking at universities in the United States.

Georgia College & State University’s creative writing program and scenic campus brought Olesen to Milledgeville, and it was the campus’s unique sense of community that made Milled geville feel like home for four years.

“Georgia College and Milledgeville taught me a lot about community and were places where I got to explore myself,” Olesen said. “I think I came to think of Milledgeville as home because I found a chosen family there.”

Olesen remembered Milledgeville as being “small enough to be intimate but just big enough to have all the good stuff – theater, concerts, art shows, comedy – all the cultural things (she) love(s) that gather people.”

Moreover, she said she valued how at home she felt in down town Milledgeville where she was on a first name basis with most of the bartenders and wait staff. Metropolis Café was a personal haven for Olesen and her friends. She said it was a place they would spend many evenings and grew close with Deepak, the owner.

Since graduation, Olesen has remained close with her GC friends. In May, after planned trips to Milan, Amsterdam and New York, Olesen was expected to travel to Atlanta to attend a wedding with a bridal party entirely made of GC friends.

This sense of community, she said, was also apparent in Olesen’s academic life. At GC, she said, she established relation

ships with many of her professors and classmates.

“I was really lucky to have professors like Dr. Jan Hoffmann, Dr. Scott Dillard, Dr. Kerry Nev ille, and many more, who showed up with passion and kindness in their classrooms,” Olesen said. “These are all experts in their field, and they’re in credible teachers, but more than that, they are kind and funny and compassionate humans who created space for me to learn and grow. For that, I’ll always be grateful.”

Olesen maintains a strong appreciation for GC’s liberal arts education. She said she believes it is “crucial to look at what the purpose of education is in the 21st century.”

She added, “Today, the skills you need to be a good member of society are different. This is what liberal arts education considers.”

Additionally, she said, she appreciated that GC’s approach focused less on specialization and more on “teaching you things like critical thinking and how to keep learning, and it fosters curiosity, which is a very core thing to keep developing as a person and as a citizen in a world that is facing some really big issues.”

Since graduating from GC in 2018 with a dou ble major in English-creative writing and rhetoric, Olesen moved back to Denmark. Along with being the founder of Amatorem, a company focused on communication across platforms, Olesen is a PR and communications manager at Outfit Interna tional, a hunting and outdoor apparel company, and is looking forward to the future of Outfit In ternational as it transitions into a more progressive chapter of its public relations strategies.

Olesen said she aspires to see her personal work in a major publication one day, even pub lished in a book – a book, she said, that would give her audience a meaningful experience they would be eager to share with others.

“I think each of us can find our own way of contributing to the world, of giving something back, and I feel like my way is through writing, creating art that connects people to themselves, makes them see things in a new way or feel seen in their struggle,” she said. “Books, stories, articles –these things have had a huge impact on my life, and they bring me wisdom and community and joy and understanding. I want to do the same for others.”

Scan the QR code to view photos and writ ten work done by Caroline via her website.

Photos submitted

BURKETT

Rhetoric alum reflects on time as a Bobcat

By Lucy Hughes

For years, it’s a been tradition for Clint Burkett and his friends to travel with their families and catch up. They meet up every year with their young families, and they take a group vacation to the lake. They enjoy fun in the sun, and they reminisce on their days at Georgia College & State University.

As the years go by and their families evolve – the one con stant remains: Burkett and his friends will always be Bobcats.

“I joke with people that I went to college to get a degree,

and I have the piece of paper, but really what I got out of col lege was the friendships that will last me a lifetime,” Burkett said during a virtual interview earlier this year.

The Georgia native met his friends through GC’s Cam pus Outreach. It was in that program that he and his friends fostered their faiths and their friendships.

Burkett is a 2015 GC rhetoric graduate. For the past three years, Burkett, a proud husband to Alaina Burkett and father to Joy, who turned 1 this year, has served as the associate pastor and student director at The Bridge Church in Blackshear, Georgia.

From Bacon County to Baldwin County

Burkett is from Bacon County, Georgia, and he graduated from Bacon County High School. He grew up in, Alma, a town about two and a half hours south of Milledgeville, located near Vidalia. “Small town U.S.A” is how he affectionately described his hometown.

In high school, Burkett played football, baseball and was active in church life. As high school came to a close, Burkett said he knew he wanted to go to college, but he needed to go to a place that helped him academically while also serve as a place to make new friends. GC was the answer.

His days as a

to give rhetoric a try. He recalled enjoying his rhetoric class es. Specifically, he said, he liked how rhetoric helped define his people skills as well as how it made him a more confident speaker, whether it be in a small setting or a large one.

Life beyond GC

Since graduating in 2015, Burkett has worked in ministry, with the most recent position being pastor at The Bridge Church. Before becoming the pastor, he worked as an associate pastor and student director at the church.

Burkett said his rhetoric courses and faculty allowed him to be his authentic self. He developed career skills and acquired lifelong friendships.

“Most of the time in other degree paths you do the work and you complete assignments, but in the rhetoric department you are the assignment,” he said. “You are only as good as how much you are willing to change and learn about others.”

Burkett now spends his days working in ministry and enjoys being with his family. He also is very excited for the next chapter in his life.

He said,

Bobcat

In his early days as a Bobcat, Burkett was an early childhood education major. Quickly, though, he decided he wanted to do something different.

After talking with academic advisors and weighing his options, Burkett said he decided

“

We are all a work in progress, no one is perfect. We are always growing and moving. GC and the rhetoric department helped me learn and be okay with that.

”

Photos submitted

Scan the QR code for a conversation on rhetoric with Clint Burkett.

DEMETRIUS NELSON: CREATING HIS OWN PATH

By Gabrielle DuChateau

Stereotypes can lead people to believe that communication students tend to stay away from math and numbers, but rhetoric alumnus Demetrius Nelson found his career and passion in elementary education and mathematics.

But that journey to finding his passion wasn’t simple. Before graduating with a bachelor of arts in rhetoric in 2012 from Georgia College & State University, Nel son dabbled in music at GC and was an early childhood education major who failed the math class requirement needed for graduation.

“It’s funny. That’s really my testimony and my story,” Nelson said earlier this spring during a virtual interview. “There’s not just one way to reach your goal. It’s the Georgia College mission: To think independently, lead creatively, but part of that creativity is, what is another way?”

Nelson found another way. He became a rhetoric major and, in 2006, he graduated from GC. Currently, he works as a math intervention specialist at Montclair Elementary School in Brookhaven, Georgia.

Thinking creatively from the get-go Before rhetoric, before early childhood education and before GC, Nelson was always thinking creatively.

Nelson grew up in a military family, frequently moving until his family settled in Warner Robins, Georgia. There, Nelson began to grow his roots.

“I came down loving music and singing. I was in talent shows at my high school and even won First Place by sing ing an original song I wrote for a girl,” Nelson said proudly. “I felt very accom plished at the time for that.”

Nelson was accomplished. He was also in the choir and won the Best Actor Award for the AAAAA region. This accomplished period was when he decided to pursue a career in music, as well as apply for colleges.

Thinking independently at GC

After applying and auditioning for GC’s musical programs and scholarships, Nelson was awarded the Max Noah Scholarship and thus decided to become a Bobcat.

“I really embarked on professional music and a music training journey, and so that was definitely an eye-opener. It was definitely challenging, and

it was definitely thought-provoking, vocally- provoking,” Nelson said. “It definitely grew me as a musician, as a singer and as a person.”

After two years with GC’s music department, Nelson decided to use his credits toward a minor in music and take the knowledge he learned back home to Warner Robins.

“I went to give back to my high school alma mater, Northside High School and helped do some performance coaching for some of the plays that they were doing,” said Nelson.

His vocal coaching helped earn his high school a win in its acting competitions, but eventually, he said, he heard his calling elsewhere.

“It was from my experience teaching vacation bible school at the church that I was attending in Warner Robins that I felt really inspired and led to change my major to early

His journey embarked again at GC, this time with the Lounsberry College of Education.

“It was great, even though I was the only male student in the cohort, surrounded by girls, the only Black student, I still built great relationships with the other students,”

His time with the cohort was going great, he said, until he was up against a math class for education majors.

“I willfully just chose not to do well in that class,”

At the time, he said, he believed the class didn’t have

“I was in the mindset that every class I’m taking I should be able to have a real-world application. And

I just really did not put in any effort. So, I did fail that

Nelson remembered being presented two choices: continue with the cohort and graduate a year late or find

“I really did some reflecting on myself and just my skill inventory, my passion inventory, just to see if something was there at Georgia College for me,” he said.

Through self-reflection is where Nelson stumbled upon

“After reviewing it and really looking at it, I thought this might be something that connects with me,” he said.

Thinking independently beyond GC

Today, Nelson works as a mathematics intervention specialist for Dekalb County Schools. He said his rheto ric education helps him in the classroom.

“Rhetoric is all about knowing your audience. You have to appeal to the students, know who those students

are, know what their interests are, know how they think and how they learn best,” said Nelson.

He added, “I have no regrets about getting a bachelor’s degree in public rhetoric.”

Nelson acknowledged he was able to interact with more GC majors than most students. But it was through that journey, he said, that helped him reach his goal and purpose of becoming an educator.

His experience, he said, with rhetoric helps him every where he goes.

He said, “Rhetoric is the art of speech and public speaking, and it’s something that I love. I’ve done it in church, for 13 years in education, community activities and social justice. I have seen myself use this degree everywhere.”

Photos submitted

NEW LEADER ON CAMPUS

of Law in Macon, Georgia.

Despite her long list of accomplishments – journalist, law yer, university dean, state politician – Georgia College & State University’s President Cathy Cox’s rise to leadership began with humble beginnings.

“I grew up down in South Georgia, which is easy to tell when I open my mouth that I am a true South Georgian,” Cox said in an interview last fall.

GC’s newest leader grew up in Bainbridge, the heart of South Georgia. She grew up loving spending time with friends and family. She grew up loving the outdoors, in par ticular the plants. At one point, she thought horticulture was her future. Upon high school graduation, Cox studied horti culture at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC), a public college in Tifton, Georgia.

“I thought horticulture would be my career path until I spent a summer pulling weeds at Callaway Gardens in 100-degree weather,” Cox said during one of her early offi cial campus interviews in October of 2021. “Then I decided that having a job in the air conditioning might not be so bad.”

Cox was appointed to serve as GC’s 12th president in October of 2021. Her official start date at the public liberal arts institution was October 1. As the case with just about any job, Cox took time to acclimate herself to the GC campus and culture. For weeks, she traveled from one college and school and department to the next – learning more about staff and faculty wants, needs, concerns and likes as they pertained to their jobs and perspectives of the university.

In an interview in March, well into the first half of the spring 2022 term, Cox said her transition in the presidency has been smooth.

“I had such good people around me to help me, and I had a great transition team that was already in place to organize my schedule. I had unbelievably fabulous help here,” Cox said in an interview following her State of the University Address.

As is the case with just about any academic leadership position, becoming a university president is no easy feat – for decades, Cox worked to build an impressive dossier. Early career in journalism and beyond

After a summer of pulling weeds in the Georgia heat, Cox transferred her undergraduate college enrollment to the University of Georgia. She changed her major to journalism.

After graduating, she landed a job as a reporter for The Gainesville Times in Gainesville, Georgia. She remembered the job well.

“The new kid on the block at a newspaper always got the job nobody else wanted, which was the crime beat,” Cox said. “I had to do sort of the CSI beat. I went to murder scenes, car wrecks and had to write about all of those things.”

Eventually, Cox covered a crime story that led her into the courtroom. The experience propelled her interest in law, and ultimately, she said, her enrollment into Mercer School

Cox earned a law degree, and she went on to become the first woman lawyer in the state to practice law in more than 10 counties in South Georgia.

“People would come to the courthouse and say, ‘Let’s go watch the lady lawyer and see if the judge is going to make her cry,’” Cox said. “But it provided me a lot of opportunities to change some perspectives that women could be lawyers just like men. It gave me an opportunity to pursue an interest in politics.”

Cox worked as a lawyer in a law firm in Atlanta for several years until she decided to pursue a career in politics. In 1993, she was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives, where she served two terms. Cox then was elected Georgia’s first female Secretary of State. And then in 2006 she unsuccessfully made a gubernatorial run against Sonny Perdue.

“I really see (the 2006 loss) as a win because that opened the avenue I had to go into higher education,” Cox said.

Cox said she received a call from a trustee at Young Harris College a few days after losing governor’s race. She was named president in 2007 at Young Harris College, where she served 10 years. It was there, she said, she de veloped a lifelong passion for the philosophical nature of a liberal art education.

“With a liberal arts education, you are going to have the critical thinking skills, the problem-solving skills, the contin uous learning skills to be able to learn and adapt,” Cox said. “You can be the leaders and the people at the forefront of innovation in jobs.”

After serving as president at YHC for 10 years, Cox returned to her alma mater, Mercer University. She served as the dean of the law school for four years – until an opportuni ty became available to be president of GC.

“I felt like I had the right experiences to serve GC well, and I was excited to get this opportunity and to be a part of a campus that is doing so well as GC is today,” Cox said. Since joining GC

Cox gave her first State of the University Address in early February 2022. A focal point of her address was her “listen ing tours.” She said the tour was done in an effort for her to understand the campus culture.

“I wanted to make sure that I had ample opportunities to meet students, faculty and staff and gather your ideas, thoughts and observations about this special place,” Cox said during her address. “I learned a lot about our strengths, chal lenges and opportunities ,and I have considered the many suggestions that you offered.”

In a follow-up interview with Cox after the address, the president said she was impressed with the determination and pride of GC’s faculty and staff.

“There’s a lot of pride in what people are doing here,” Cox said. “That was exciting for me, as president, to hear because I don’t

motivating people here;

Photo and story by Katherine Futch

have to worry about

they’re very motivated to do good work.”

There’s a lot of pride in what people are doing (at Georgia College). That was very exciting for me, as president, to hear because I don’t have to worry about motivating people here; they’re very motivated to do good work.

-President Cathy Cox

“ ”

FITZGERALD FINDS MSCM SKILLS BENEFICIAL IN VARIOUS CAREERS

By Mady Holtz

Whether it be reporting groundbreaking news, creating content for clothing brands or vlogging about trendy brunch spots, Jai Fitzgerald does it all.

Fitzgerald said studying mass communication at Georgia College & State University gave her the tools to do it all.

“At GC, I was able to experience a little bit of everything, which makes me success ful now and has opened so many doors, not only in my career but as well all the side hustles I have and the dif ferent business ventures I’m going to get into,” Fitzger ald said earlier this Spring via phone.

Fitzgerald is a 2018 GC mass communication graduate with a broadcast journalism concentration. Currently, the alumna is a project coordinator for Progress Residential, a national rental home company.

Fitzgerald said she first learned of the evolving world of mass media was when she joined her metro Atlanta’s high school’s MSCM academy. There, Fitzgerald was introduced to the journalism industry and video production. Through the academy, she felt the the thrill and excitement of the broadcasting industry on a trip to the “Good Morning America” set in New York City, where she was part of the live show audience and was inspired by legendary morning show host Robin Roberts.

“Seeing someone report groundbreaking news to Amer ica in front of millions of viewers, and she’s just like me; it felt crazy meeting someone who is so normal and down to earth and, then, they have this different persona on air,” said Fitzgerald about her “Good Morning America” trip.

After the trip, Fitzgerald said she was inspired to pursue a bachelor of arts degree in mass communication at GC.

Upon arriving to GC’s campus, she already had it in mind she wanted to be in front of the camera, interviewing people and making an impact – just like Robin Roberts.

Fitzgerald’s determination never wavered. She started her mass communication journey as the on-air talent for the

entertainment segment for GC’s news station GC360. She declared a journalism concentration and remained involved with GC360 for many years.

Through the major, Fitzgerald said she was able to step out of her comfort zone and dabble in other communication industries, learning additional skills.

“After I ventured into GC360, I took a couple of PR and marketing classes. Then, I did the radio show,” she said. “I felt more well-rounded.”

The radio work pushed Fitzgerald to team up with a longtime friend to produce a radio show called “Teatime with Cedri & Jai”. The duo continued the show up until recently.

From the moment Fitzgerald stepped on GC’s front cam pus, she fell in love with the university, despite the fact that she didn’t see a lot of students who looked like her.

“When I first toured GCSU, I realized that it was majority White, but I felt comfortable,” Fitzgerald said.

Coming from a predominantly White high school, Fitzgerald said she already knew what it was like to be in the minority.

“I wasn’t intimidated because, unfortunately, I was already used to it and what the dynamic was going to be, and I was cool with it,” Fitzgerald said. “It made me excited. I knew that I would be able to make a different type of impact because I would stand out as one of the few African-Ameri can women.”

And that she did. On and off camera

“My motivation stems from me wanting to be the best version of myself at whatever capacity that I can, regardless if I’m having a bad day or something isn’t going right,” she said.

Working from sun up to sun down in computer labs or broadcast studios was not uncommon for Fitzgerald while completing her degree. Her successes and pictures were constantly featured by the university and the mass communi cation department in magazines and articles.

“I feel like the reason that different organizations would ask me to come to stuff, feature me in their stuff or use my picture was because I have the type of personality where I can talk to everybody, and I am cool with every one. People say, ‘I’m bubbly.’ I’m also a comedian, not Kevin Hart, but I do make people laugh, but then I also look good,” Fitzgerald said.

A natural born leader, Fitzgerald built a resume outside of the mass communication department. She served as vice president of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, president of GC’s National Pan-Hellenic Council, PR chair of Resident Student Association and a member of the Black Student Alliance.

Entering the MSCM major, Fitzgerald was determined to build a career in broadcast. Upon graduating, she stuck to her plan. She landed an internship with Seacrest Studies, and she thought she was living her dream.

Eventually, though, the Georgia native realized something she once loved no longer was her passion.

For personal reasons, Fitzgerald said her career pathway changed course. In true Fitzgerald style, though, she found energy and enthusi asm in other career options.

“I think one of the hardest things is realizing what you actually want to do, not what your parents want you to do, not what you went to school for, but realizing what you are passionate about,” said Fitzgerald.

Since graduating from GC, Fitzgerald has worked for PR and property leasing companies as well as social media for companies. Currently, she works as a leading consultant for a national rental property company and focuses her time on being successful in her career and personal life. Despite not working fulltime in broadcasting, Fitzgeral still uses her mass communication skills and knowledge to create content for her YouTube channel, which hones in on lifestyle, entertainment and beauty trends and has reached thousands of subscribers.

“People love to see how other people are living because we are all a little nosy, but I really love my YouTube channel because it is authentic,” Fitzgerald said. “I don’t really try to fake anything. I try to be intentional with my content and with the various kinds of videos I post so that everyone feels like they are welcome to be included or that they can watch.”

In addition to her career, Fitzgerald said she has been remarkably successful with her adventures with “adulting,” from getting her own apartment to becoming a dog mom. So, what does Fitzgerald’s future goals look like?

“I definitely want YouTube to be one of the main sources of income. My short-term goal is to save money to be able to invest or save up for a wedding, stuff like that. I also really want to build my own home. I just want to be married and happy and raise a family and be able to still do the creative things I do now,” she said.

Her advice for future MSCM students is to get involved.

“Being able to just experience a little bit of everything like that, that was the best thing that I could have done because it opened up so many doors,” Fitzgerald said. “Enjoy these college years while you can because these bills are no joke.”

Photos submitted

Scan the QR code to visit Jai Fitzgerald’s YouTube page.

ALUMNA FINDS HERSELF AT HOME IN MILLEDGEVILLE

By Samantha Joiner

Most traditional U. S. college graduates often consider their undergraduate years as some of the most memo rable in their lives. For them, it is a time of gaining indepen dence, self-discovery and knowledge collecting. The under graduate years are formidable to the rest of young peoples’ lives, including their future careers.

Evelina Galova- Iossifov was not the traditional undergraduate student, especially at Georgia College & State University.

Galova- Iossifov graduated in 1995 with a degree in sports management and sports marketing from the National Sports Academy in Bulgaria. She worked for about four years in sports broadcasting – producing packages for national television and her own sports talk show. She grew up in the business as her father was a sports journalist in Bulgaria.

“I just grew up with that stuff, and it was a natural transi tion into work,” said Galova- Iossifov.

When she and her husband, Chris, moved to Milled geville in the late 90s, Galova- Iossifov said she found it hard to continue broadcasting.

“I know it’s hard to believe, but I have an accent,” Galova- Iossifov, who has a charismatic personality that fills any-size room, said. “It was pretty much impossible to start and to do any type of radio and TV, especially in a small town in Georgia with an accent as thick as mine,” Galova-Iossifov continued.

So, she had to pivot. At the time, Galova- Iossifov said she

wasn’t planning on going back to school, but life isn’t always predictable. She said she was approached by the GC tennis coach and asked to play for the school.

At first, Galova- Iossifov said she was unsure. She said she knew she wasn’t the traditional college student – she was older.

But in true Galova- Iossifov fashion – with spunk and positivity – the Bulgarian native went back to college.

“Georgia College proved absolutely the best choice I could’ve made,” said Galova- Iossifov. “If I didn’t have this degree from here, no way could I have gotten a job in a U.S. university or college.”

Galova- Iossifov graduated in 2002 with a B.A. in mass communication. During that time she not only covered sporting events for GC but she also began working at a local radio station. In 1998 she was hired by WMVG Inc., a local radio company, and worked for their two stations, WMVG and WKZR. There, she wrote news, covered sporting events and concerts and created commercials for the stations, among other tasks.

“I went to concerts with backstage passes, and I even met Keith Urban,” Galova- Iossifov said about one of her many experiences working for WMVG. “It was a great, great 20 years, and I got to work with people who were absolutely awesome.”

She worked for WMVG until she was hired in 2017 as the media lab coordinator for GC’s Department of Commu

nication, which now houses the rhetoric and mass commu nication majors and is formerly known as the Department of Mass Communication.

As the media lab coordinator, Galova- Iossifov is respon sible for nearly $200,000 worth of technology, including cameras, microphones and studios. She also hosts equipment workshops throughout the academic year. Most recently, in 2017, she became the advisor to WGUR 95.3, GC’s stu dent-operated radio station.

“I love my job. I am in love with my job,” said GalovaIossifov. “I don’t come to work; I come to do what I like.”

She continued, “It’s like a paid hobby for me. I love it.”

She goes on to talk about how much she loves the cam pus, Terrell Hall, the students and the faculty, who have become some of her great friends.

Looking toward the future, Galova- Iossifov said she has no plans of leaving Milledgeville. She and her husband have chosen to raise their daughter in this small community of about 20,000 people. And while she misses her home coun try, especially its people, Galova- Iossifov said Milledgeville is where she is supposed to be.

Galova-Iossifov serves as Department of Communication’s media lab coordinator

“Georgia College proved absolutely the best choice I could’ve made,” - Galova-Iossifov

Photos submitted

Scan the QR code for a conversation with Eva.

“I have two homes, and I’ll always have two homes,” she said, “but Milledgeville is home.”

SMALL-TOWN SWEETHEART TURNED SOCIAL MEDIA STORYTELLER

By Skylar Rembisz

Mary Henderson loves the art of storytelling. Not the “read a fairytale to a group of kindergarteners” kind of storytelling. Henderson’s storytelling is unique – and her talents make people money.

“I love storytelling,” Henderson said via a Zoom interview in February. “I think storytelling is at the heart of everything, and that’s what makes me passionate about it. If you want someone to buy a product, you have to tell them why and how.”

That’s exactly what Henderson does. Her love for storytelling h as guided her toward career success, but it didn’t happen overnight.

As a young girl growing up in Richmond Hill, Georgia, Henderson told stories through the art of singing and playing the piano. Her storytelling was molded by her childhood growing up on a farm, her family vacations to Tybee Island and her passion for her small hometown.

When it came time to decide where to attend college, Henderson said she knew she had to find her little slice of heaven that was her home away from home – it had to fit, just like everything else had.

Georgia College & State University welcomed Henderson with open arms, and she went in for the warm embrace.

“I remember getting in the car after my tour and knew it was the place for me,” Henderson said.

While at GC, Henderson pursued a degree in mass communication with a rhetoric minor – earning her diploma in 2016. Like everything else along the way, GC helped Henderson continue to develop her storytelling voice. She credits GC for her writing and public speaking success.

“I had Dr. (Christina) Smith her first year at Georgia College. I’ve never had someone edit my work so in-depth. It really challenged me to be a better writer and be more thorough in proofing my own work. Her classes also pushed me outside my comfort zone and helped me improve my interviewing skills,” Henderson said.

After graduating from GC, Henderson took time off for personal reasons. Within a year, she decided it was time to get back into the game, and she did so by taking on graduate school at Georgia Southern University. In 2020, she earned a

master’s degree in professional communication and leadership. She said her time at GSU continued to help her hone her communication skills and gave her additional professional experience.

“Grad school made me more confident,” she said. “It improved my grammar, pushed me outside my comfort zone and prepared me for the future through realworld simulations.”

Today, Henderson is a social media specialist at RobMark, an advertising, marketing and public relations agency in Savannah, Georgia. Henderson said she has a hybrid role in which she works three days inside the office and two days at home, which includes a plantfilled office and a desk she shares with her cat. In her role at RobMark, Henderson is required to be a jack-of-all-trades – she writes blogs, reports, crafts social media posts and creates social media calendars to fit the advertising needs of the agency’s clients.

“My title does not confine me to just social media; I step in where it’s needed to get a task done,” Henderson said.

And she loves her job. She said she enjoys being able to be creative each day. Additionally, she loves getting to be a storyteller.

She said, “I don’t see myself leaving this company for the next few years. I love my work family, and I am eager to see how I can grow here.”

By Grace Williams

Sarah Bergin was born in upstate New York, raised in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and is the middle child between two brothers.

She is also a 2019 Georgia College & State Universi ty graduate with a double-major in rhetoric and studio art. She currently is a law student at CUNY Law in Queens, New York, with an expected graduation date of 2024.

“I am loving what I’m doing; some days I’m real ly tired, but I love it,” Bergin said via Zoom earlier this spring.

Bergin credits her undergraduate years at GC for helping her adapt to being a law school student. She said GC helped her improve her communication skills and motivated her.

“When I was at Georgia College, I was a double major of both studio art and rhetoric,” Bergin said.

She continued, “I’m in law school now . . . when I made that connection (to go to law school) I was really, really grateful, especially that I had studied rhetoric.”

Begin said she was on the hunt for a small- to midsized college outside of where she grew up in South Car olina when she was searching for the right undergraduate

school, and GC fit the bill.

Specifically, Bergin said, said she is able to apply the skills she learned while studying at GC – persuasion, speech writing and rhetorical criticism -- to the New York classrooms she now sits in.

“Having kind of the creative thinking undertone that Georgia College kind of pushed through and through was super helpful for me,” she said.

Bergin said she is interested in investigating criminal justice reform – a passion that stemmed from work she did upon graduating from GC.

After graduating fron GC in December of 2019, Bergin said she went into non-profit management at Ken nesaw State University with the CARE (Campus Aware ness Resources and Empowerment) network, handling the outreach and communications areas.

“(The network) worked with fostered and homeless youth who were transitioning out of foster care and trying to access higher education,” Bergin said.

She said that experience was a pivotal point for her, realizing the limitations of law. Thus, she applied to law school and is now at CUNY.

Bergin said she is predominantly interested in edu cational equity, with a particular passion for making sure there is equitable access to resources in lower-income areas. Secondly, she said she is interested in criminal justice reform.

ALUMNA’S LOVE FOR LAW

WITH SARAH BERGIN

“Mass incarceration is a huge issue . . . I am just so fundamentally against it that I want to, whether it’s in policy or defense work, fight back against that,” she said.

Begin’s plan for summer 2022 is to remain in New York and intern with an organization in the city, teaching criminal law and “know-your-rights” lessons to under

served, low-income 9th graders.

“This feels like the perfect step for me into juvenile justice and education equity,” she said.

In additional to attending law classes, Bergin cur rently works as a debate coach for low-income students and immigrants through an organization called Legal Oureach. Bergin said she helps students work on com mnication skills as well as helps them prepare for a debate at the end of the semester.

“

I am loving what I’m doing; some days I’m really tired, but I love it.”

Photos submitted

Scan the QR code for a Q&A with Sarah Bergin.

Bethan Mingle

PASSIONATE ABOUT NON-PROFITS

Bethan Mingle uses writing skills to help non-profit businesses

By Katherine Futch

As a child, Bethan Mingle dreamed of becoming a writer.

She and her best friend, Ray, produced news papers and shared them with each other. The sto ries mainly consisted of fictional narratives about people in their families. They also wrote columns. Bethan wrote the “Global Gazette.” Ray’s column was the “Atlanta Satirical Constitution.”

For Bethan, those childhood memories remain close to her heart.

“Looking back, it is cool to see that I always loved to write and communicate and tell stories,” Mingle said earlier this spring via Zoom.

Today, Mingle is the director of content at Haggai International, a nonprofit organization in Houston, Texas, that specializes in equipping leaders tools and techniques to effectively demon strate and present the Gospel in fields of influ ence, like CEOs, educators and doctors.

For Mingle, this is the perfect career, but the path to her dream job was anything but straight.

Mingle arrived at Georgia College & State University in 2009 as a pre-nursing major. Her dad encouraged her to pursue a nursing career path because she was a people person and enjoyed the company of others. But after studying pre-nursing during her freshman

and sophomore year, she realized that he might need to change her major.

“I did nursing freshman and sophomore year, but I had to go home after that to save up. I’d lost my HOPE scholarship because I was so bad at nursing,” Mingle said. “I saved up and came back and decided communications.”

When she returned to GC, she dove head first into different communication organizations. She had a morning show on WGUR, “Campus News with Betty.”

“It was cool,” Mingle said. “I don’t know, I’ve never dealt with that side of things before. I was always focused on writing, but this definitely expanded my resume.”

However, Mingle’s primary focus was being the sports editor for The Colonnade, the stu dent-run newspaper. She said the experience taught her to work hard and to be a good writer. She added, Doug Monroe, faculty advisor for The Colonnade, gave her the tough love approach she needed in order to improve her writing.

“He never made me feel like I didn’t have the skills to meet his expectations,” Min gle said, “but he made things really difficult. It’s so hard to be a good writer. So many people just write so long and flirty, but he taught me how to get to the point and target my

audience.”

Mingle graduated in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication. She said through her GC liberal arts experience, she gained practical tools and skills for her career. She took classes like Spanish, economics and statistics.

“GC really hones in on the fact that you need to have a well-rounded education,” Mingle said. “That comes up at the most random times. It makes me feel more prepared in meetings or in the workplace.”

Today, Mingle said she is forever grateful for her education at GC. She said that she is confident that her college experienced prepared her for her career.

“GC gave me this awesome background to know what oth er people are talking about and to understand it and to engage in it,” Mingle said. “It widened my worldview.”

While Mingle is now a few years out from gradua tion, she said she remains tied to GC through her friendships. Col lege friends were at her wedding to her husband, Eric, and were expected to attend the baby shower for baby Mingle, who was expected to arrive in May 2022.

“GC is the best-kept secret. It is like this hidden gem,” Mingle said. “The classroom sizes are perfect for what I wanted. It seems like a lot of people go there just so they can get into UGA, but once you are there and you let it capture your heart, it just creates the best memories.”

As for her childhood dream of writing, Mingle said she’s incorporated efficient and effective storytelling techniques into her strategic commu nication job.

“I’ve pretty much been in the nonprofit marketing world for seven years now, and I love it so much,” Mingle said. “I love the fact that I can write stories while also helping a cause and getting paid for it.”

Scan the QR code for more on how Bethan met her husband.

Photos submitted

MIKE KING FINDS SUCCESS IN HOTEL BUSINESS

By Juliana Dixon

Mike King dreamed of being a sports broadcaster for much of his life, but eventually he learned life can be unpredictable and take a person in unforeseen directions.

King had a windy path to Georgia College & State University. He started his college career as a student athlete – playing baseball – in Rome, Georgia, at Shorter Universi ty. After about a year and a half, he transferred between his sophomore and junior year to GC.

King is a 2009 GC mass communication graduate. His primary area of focus was broadcast journalism. But as life does so often, his career path swerved from broad cast to sales.

Currently, King works as the associate director of sales for the Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Orleans.

“In mass communication, whether it’s print or digital, it doesn’t matter what your career is, you learn how to commu nicate and learn how to message. It’s an extremely important skill that is sadly fading right now,’ King said via Zoom.

In his role with Hyatt Regency, King handles day-to-day sales operations for the hotel. He attributes his education in GC’s mass communication program for a lot of the skills he uses, including being able to effectively and efficiently craft messages to large audiences, create video and audio content

and generate relevant marketing and advertising products.

“The communication department helped me figure out that a message can be given a bunch of different ways de pending on your audience,” King said earlier this spring.

King said he enjoyed his GC experiences, which included completing an internship at the local radio station and work ing part-time as a valet at the Ritz Carlton Lake Oconee.

After graduating, King married his college sweet heart and they moved to Atlanta. They now reside in Amelia Island, Florida, with their three children.

Since the on-set of the COVID-19 pandemic, King has worked remotely, which he said has allowed him to be home with his family.

King grew up aspiring to be an ESPN sports broad caster. He said working in the hotel business never crossed his mind. But then again, he said, he is familiar with unpredictability in life.

He said, “Go and chase the dream you have as hard as you can until you accomplish it or

Photos submitted

SENIORS CAP OFF THEIR COMMUNICATION DEGREES

By Mady Holtz

The Department of Communication is home to two majors – mass communication and rhetoric. Within each major, students receive unique opportunities and experiences, unlike other majors, that combine various aspects of the field of communications that allows for a diverse and versatile curriculum.

Faculty in both majors have developed comprehensive programs to help further each student’s success. As students reach the end of their degrees, they are required to complete a capstone course based on their chosen pathway to help better prepare them for a professional industry.

“Capstone is a transformative experience. It takes a student and transforms them into practitioners. Along with your internship, it is that last stop of going from being a student and learning all the theories to really practicing them and seeing the implementation in the real world,” said Amanda Respess, a strategic communications professor.

Capstones are part of rigorous curriculum designed to give students experiential learning opportunities that help add depth to the resume, making the student marketable.

“More kids need experience working with people outside of their comfort zone. A lot of the networking we do in college is on campus, but (in capstone), an opportunity

to branch out is presented. We are working with a real company, not another club or student organization. This content will potentially impact business development and sales for a family-owned and operated company. Pretty awesome, no? We will be able to leave (Georgia College & State University) confident in our abilities to work with real partners and real numbers,” said mass communication student Jenna Byrd.

The mass communication major offers three capstones: film, television and audio production; multimedia journalism and strategic communication; while rhetoric also has a capstone that helps students learn more about oral communication competence by providing theoretical and practical instruction.

Film, TV & audio production capstone

The film, television and audio production capstone teaches students the study and application of digital media concepts and theories through courses like writing for digital media, film and TV production, electronic editing and audio production.

Throughout the capstone, students produce several projects that incorporate various stages of video production including research, scripting, shooting, editing and distribution of the production.

“This capstone functions like a media production

network where the students are employees and work in a professional manner on shows/video projects to produce for a select audience. By the end of the semester, each student will have a minimum of two projects to use as evidence in a recommendation for future work opportunities,” said Michael Crews, instructor of the film, television and audio production capstone during the 20212022 academic year.

Over the course of the semester, students create a web series as a group, a ChamberTV video for the MilledgevilleBaldwin Chamber of Commerce and produce a short film.

“I really enjoyed directing the short film for my capstone,” Anagha Ramkrishnan, a film, television and audio production capstone student, said. “It was the first time I directed such a large project and worked with such a large cast and crew. I learned a lot about myself during that project and learned how to adapt to unforeseen circumstances, manage my cast and crew and lead everyone to success on the team.”

In fall 2021, the film, television and audio production capstone students created a short horror film based on a college murder. In spring 2022, students created a short action film about Bigfoot.

“My previous classes fine-tuned my skills, and I learned

about all the roles and components behind putting together a video project. When it came to my capstone, I felt like I had all the necessary skills I needed to create a successful project,” said Addie Duke, a film, television and audio production capstone student.

Enterprise journalism capstone

The multimedia journalism capstone provides students with the necessary knowledge and skills to be successful in the world of multi-platform journalism. In this pathway, students take courses like newscast production and investigative journalism to prepare them for the capstoneenterprise journalism. Students learn to analyze, evaluate and communicate media and its rapidly converging and ever evolving forms.

This spring, capstone students worked with local newspapers to produce weekly relevant content for the Baldwin County community.

“Being in the enterprise journalism capstone, I was assigned to work with Baldwin2K Media. Currently, we attend school board meetings and report the discussions in the meetings via articles, and we also produce feature human interest stories,” said mass communication senior India

Photos submitted

Jackson.

Jackson said she believes that GC and her professors have given her the necessary skills and knowledge to be successful in her future career.

“My capstone is incorporating the necessary attending of meetings and other activities that may be required to gain knowledge and information needed to create a story; walking up to complete strangers while engaging the stranger as if you have known them your whole life to interviewing on the spot or scheduling an interview; also, following up, because everyone is busy, this teaches us to stay on top of our subjects and get the job done. It also teaches us to network and create new contacts,” said Jackson.

Rhetoric capstone

The rhetoric capstone for rhetoric majors provides students with knowledge and skills to communicate in any career field effectively and accurately. Rhetoric is suited for students who plan to pursue leadership positions or further academic study in the fields of law, religion, public affairs, government, business or higher education. Students develop flexible and cross-functional skills, including leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, analytical thinking, written and oral skills.

“The idea of capstone is to bring all the students’ knowledge together in one place. This semester particularly, I tried to focus on something the students could take with them into a workplace or the next step in education,” said Scott Dillard, rhetoric professor.

Rhetoric capstone students research, write and present a substantial scholarly/creative project developed in conjunction with a faculty advisor or group of faculty advisors. They then present their research to the school.

“The rhetoric capstone is unique in the fact that our students have to present their work in public. This semester I have a student who is writing on human trafficking, one who is doing a narrative analysis of a fairy-tale, one who is looking at the relevance of rhetoric in slam poetry,” said Dillard.

Strategic communication capstone

The strategic communication pathway prepares students for careers in the world of public relations and advertising. Classes in this category include principles of public relations & advertising, advertising planning and buying and public relations planning.

The capstone course is called strategic campaigns, and it is designed for students to apply strategic communication principles to a real-world client outside of the campus setting.

“Throughout this semester, we are working with Primero Games to build campaigns and media content for

them. I love being able to have the opportunity to work with real clients,” Grace Kearney, a strategic communication capstone student, said. “I know I will be prepared after I graduate from GC.”

Students in the strategic communication pathway have a lot of tools at their disposal to help them be valuable and marketable in their careers. Students can focus on advertising or public relations or both.

“My classes have helped me excel in an unimaginable number of ways and prepared me for proper communication, writing/copywriting, and even photography skills. With having the knowledge from my prior classes, I am essentially invincible,” said Bryd, a mass communication senior.

Like many of the other capstones, this capstone compiles all the knowledge students learned in the pathway to develop a campaign from conception through implementation.

“Throughout the course students go from the research process of situation analysis to developing objectives and then coming up with tactics, creative executions and then providing those all to the client by the end of the course. They provide clients with things like social media content, calendar, strategy, short videos, corporate videos, update websites, come up with events for fundraisers and a lot more that is really beneficial to our clients,” said Respess.

The capstone, Respess said, works with clients in the community, usually nonprofits or small businesses.

She said, “It is really gratifying to have students be able to work with some of the same client’s semester after semester. The Museum of Arts and Sciences in Macon, Habitat for Humanity in Milledgeville and Putnam have been our partners for years, it is just so great to have those relationships.”

STUDENT MEDIA LAUNCHES NEW WEBSITE

By Skylar Rembisz

The Department of Communication launched a new website to serve as the news hub for student media organizations at Georgia College & State University. The name of the site is Bobcat Multimedia.

“Bobcat Multimedia is a platform that not only allows each of the media outlets to demonstrate what they do, but it is also a way for students to showcase their strengths. It emphasizes the need for students to start thinking like multimedia journalists and distribute news content across different channels,” said Bill Burke, lecturer and advisor to The Colonnade and Bobcat Multimedia Network, the department’s digital-first news organization.

Maddie Daigle, PRSSA president, agreed.

“It’s a great additional resource for communication organizations to have all of their events and information in one place,” said Daigle, a senior mass communication student.

Bobcat Multimedia, the umbrella of student media organizations

Bobcat Media Productions, GC360, PRSSA, The Colonnade and WGUR 95.3 FM – are the department’s five student-led media organizations that huddle beneath the Bobcat Multimedia umbrella brand.

Each of the three traditional news media outlets – The Colonnade, GC360 and WGUR – have long provided the GC community with news, whether in the form of newspaper, broadcast or radio. But in fall 2020, department faculty and staff agreed it was time to create one easily accessible digital space for all the content produced by student media outlets to be presented. And so, Bobcat Multimedia emerged.

Bobcat Multimedia, however, was not built overnight.

“It was founded with 17 senior mass communication

students in search of a school-credit internship to graduate,” said Angela Criscoe, former advisor to WGUR and current interim executive director of GC’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in spring 2020, Criscoe said, the department used the site as a platform for seniors to create content for in order to earn credits that they then needed to aquire in order to complete degree requirements.

The website has evolved since its original inception to become a home base for each of the separate studentrun media organizations. The homepage features news articles and local events written by student journalists. It also has organization-specific tabs to the different student media groups.

“As an advisor to WGUR I see us using BMN to share the news our reporters gather as well as us being a source of information from the other student media organizations,” Eva Galova- Iossifov, advisor to WGUR 95.3. and media lab coordinator for the department, said.

While the website offers a unified platform for which all media organizations present their news via their specific platforms and collaborate on storytelling for specific news stories, each media organization will continue to have its own social media presence that is specific to its mission and overall branding.

To access Bobcat Mul timedia, visit https:// bobcatmultimedia.com or scan the QR code.

Photo submitted

STUDENTS GENERATE BASKETBALL BUZZ

By Ben Grunert

The Georgia College & State University’s men’s basketball team put together an outstanding spring season, rattling off a 16-5 overall record and an 8-4 mark in conference play. Superstar Jordan Thomas broke records and made history during the season, but his individual excellence wasn’t the only thing lighting a fire beneath the Bobcats.

At the start of 2022, a group of passionate students formed their own student section known on social media as the GCSU Student Section. Since the first post on Jan. 11, the group on social media gained hundreds of followers on Instagram in less than a month.

The owner of the account told this reporter that he spearheaded the student section because he wanted to mash up his passion for sports with his passion for his home-campus team.

“At first, the attendance wasn’t really looking hopeful,” the GC freshman said. “Going into the USC Aiken game, we only had 24 followers, but after we played the game and had a decent

turnout in the student section, our account got out to a lot of people. We gained over 100 followers in a day, which was really cool to see.”

Attendance at GC sporting events, specifically in Centennial Center, has taken a dip in recent memory, and the COVID-19 pandemic only made it harder, and at times impossible, for students to attend basketball games.

The last time attendance at GC basketball games was notable was in spring 2016 when GC legend Terrell Harris averaged 24.6 points per game before heading overseas to play profes sional basketball after college. Students packed the stadium to watch Harris and his team mates perform every week. Since then, attendance at conference matchups had not cracked 1,000 students per game.

During the 2019-2020 sea son, GC men’s basketball saw an average of about 597 students in attendance per conference game at home in Centennial Center. The year before that, 775 students attended each of the games.

Attendance was different this season, specifically in the latter half. This season, a whopping

average of 1,065 students per game flocked in for conference matchups at home with an impres sive average of about 853 of them attending non-conference home matchups, according to statistics provided by the university.

“The end goal of the student section is to start packing the place with students who are con stantly engaged in the game,” the account owner of GCSU Student Section on Instagram said. “As a former athlete, I know what a good crowd that brings good energy can do for a team.”

Many players on the basket ball team embraced the increase in attendance. Players said they enjoyed the atmosphere of the student section, especially after playing in front of empty bleach ers for the majority of the previ ous season.

“They have helped a ton,” said All-PBC guard Wesley Simpson. “Playing in front of no fans last year in empty gyms just didn’t bring the same culture to our games that this year has. Having the student section there brings an energy to the game that is unmatched.”

Simpson, a GC senior, also shouted out the fans for bringing “by far” the highest turnout he has ever played for since his first year as a Bobcat.

Thomas echoed his team mate’s sentiments and praised the account and its presence.

“I follow the account,” Thom as said. “I feel like the energy and publicity they are bringing to the games is huge.”

During the 2021-2022 season, Thomas broke the all-time school scoring record and became

just the fourth player in Peach Belt Conference history to crack 2,000 career points. Both of the mile stones came at home games in front of a supportive Bobcat crowd.

A team-first player and leader for his squad, Thomas reflected in early spring on the year he and his teammates were having.

“I think our biggest key has been togetherness,” Thomas said. “I’m kind of past the points record and all, to be honest. I’m just trying to win as many games as possible. That’s the only thing I’m focused on.”

With the lifting of some COVID-19 safety protocols, GC’s Student Athletic Advisory Com mittee (SAAC) also worked during the 2021-2022 sports seasons to promote fan attendance and en gagement. Vice president Sebastian Nunez said SAAC regularly provides incentives to draw in more students to student sporting events.

“We have a really good MakeA-Wish program that we donate the money we raise to,” Nunez said. “Our team came up with the idea of doing a ‘50-50 raffle’ where people can buy tickets for a few dollars, and if their ticket is pulled from the pile at the end, they win half of the money we raised.”

To follow GC sports, visit www. gcbobcats.com. In the fall, the Bob cats compete in the following sports:

• Men’s Cross Country

• Women’s Cross Country

• Women’s Soccer

• Men’s Golf

• Men’s Tennis

• Women’s Tennis

• Women’s Volleyball

In the spring, athletes compete in:

• Men’s Basketball

• Women’s Basketball

• Baseball

• Softball

• Men’s Tennis

• Women’s Tennis

• Men’s Golf

Scan the QR code or visit https://m.sound cloud.com/user-499618594/us-441-n2?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium= text&utm_campaign=social_sharing for an interview with SAAC vice president Sebastian Nunez regarding GC athletics and overall attendance.

WHAT GOES AROUND COMES BACK AROUND

By Tori Gronczewski

As students get dressed in the morning, most of them seem to choose to put on their favorite pair of jeans, a simple shirt and the white Airforces. As they dash out the door they become immediate walking fashion billboards.

During the 2021-2022 school year, it’s not uncommon to see Lululemon leggings on the women and guys wearing flannel shirts. White sneakers are everywhere. Frankly, stepping onto Georgia College & State Universi ty’s campus this year is like taking a trip back in time.

Vintage clothes are spotted all around campus, and thrift shopping is popular among members of Gen Z. So, this reporter decided to take a look back at old GC yearbooks to see what current fashion trends and brands are a blast from the past.

The yearbooks compared to today reveal that “mom jeans,” Adidas, stripes, leather jackets, Nike, jean jackets –remain fashionable.

Check out how today’s GC fashion compares to that of students’ wardrobes in the 70’s and 80’s.

Photos submitted

Photos by Tori Gronczewski and Lillie

OH, THE PLACES IN MILLY

Your guide to making the most of your visit to town

Saturday or Sunday.

Though much of Milledgeville’s appeal stems from its historic atmosphere, there are engaging experiences to be found outside of the town’s antiquity. As Milled geville’s popularity continues to increase and businesses emerge daily, the community constantly has plenty to offer locals and visitors.

Food & drink

Healthier food establishments are finding their way to Milledgeville.

In March 2020, McAllister’s Café opened for business along Highway 441. Not only does this restaurant produce nutritional meals, but it also offers a large selection of foods including many unique soups, salads and sandwiches. Four months after McAllister’s opened, Surcheros, a fresh Tex Mex restaurant, opened next door.

More recently in October 2021, Tropical Smooth ie Café opened along Highway 441 and has quickly gained popularity. At Tropical Smoothie customers can choose items ranging from toasted flatbreads to sandwiches to fresh smoothies.

Although there is excitement surrounding the new restaurants that opened Milledgeville, classics such as Bollywood Tacos and Metropolis Café still have their loyal customer following.

Formerly known as Gringos, Bollywood Tacos remains popular among students and locals through out the week, especially on Wednesdays when the restaurant hosts live trivia. Right around the corner of Bollywood is Metropolis Café, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar that is home-away-from-home for many Milledgeville residents, especially GC faculty.

Shopping & entertainment

Don’t let Milledgeville’s small-town appearance fool you into thinking there’s nothing to do on a

Students have grown especially fond of Lake Country Bowling Lanes which was recently renovated and now offers pool tables, TVs and food.

Not too far from the bowling alley is Roll Call Roller Skate Rink, where the business hosts specialty nights such as Throwback Thursday, Freestyle Friday and Disco Saturday – perfect for rainy day or late-night fun.

For sunny days, Milledgeville provides plenty of op portunities for enjoyment outside. Lockerly Arboretum and the Selma Erwin Nature Preserve are places where people can immerse themselves in nature on winding trails surrounded by various plants and wildlife.

If the Milledgeville heat is too much for a hike, Lake Sinclair is always a great place to cool down and relax. Jere-Shai Lakeside Rentals and Sinclair Marina are neighborhood staples that offer access to the lake by pontoon boat or jet ski for families and friends.

Scenery & locations

Don’t let an empty wallet convince you there is no opportunity for fun; some of the most quality experiences to be had in Milledgeville are free to the public.

Rocky Creek Park is in a quiet public cove off Lake Sinclair. The park offers visitor access to the lake via a white-sanded beach and swimming area and a large dock. There are also picnic tables and restrooms available for visitors’ convenience.

If the time for tanning begins to pass but you aren’t yet done soaking up Milledgeville scenery, make your way to Sunset Fields where students and locals go to enjoy the breath-taking landscape as the sun begins its journey below the horizon. Public soccer fields, running tracks and bathrooms are available at this location.

For more information and ideas for what to do in Milledgeville, check out visitmilledgeville.org or scan the QR code shown.

Photos and story by Reagan Monson

MILESTONES from GC ALUMNI

Jena

Simonds Dunham (MSCM, 2007) is the VP of Marketing at EarthLink. For 10 years, she worked in the marketing and web development agency world— the last two of those years spent as the agency’s managing partner. In 2018, Dunham married her husband, Billy, in 2018. She returned to the corporate world in 2020 where she joined Earthlink’s Marketing Team as the Vice President of Brand. In 2021, Dunham was promoted to Earthlink’s VP of Marketing.

Jacob Widener (MSCM, 2013) serves as the Director of Film Studies at Woodward Academy. Widener started the film (cinema) program at his high school alma mater 3 years ago. He released his first monograph about his family’s genealogy in May 2021, Both Sides of the Old Road, which is co-authored by his brother, Andrew. Widener also became the head cross country coach this year.

Benedict Esposito (MSCM, 2015) is the Media Specialist at Archdiocese of Atlanta. He is approaching his fifth year at the Archdiocese. He loves the position and the fact that he gets paid to work for Jesus. Esposito is on the leadership team of the Cathedral of Christ the King’s young adult group where he is in charge of the website. He is also the secretary on the Executive Committee of the GC Alumni Communications Affinity Group.

Niki Norby (Vanden Hoek) (MSCM, 2016) is the Elementary School Media Specialist for Gwinnett County Public Schools, the school she went to as a child! After graduating in 2016, she continued her education with Georgia College and went on to receive her M.Ed. in Library Media in 2021. As her current position as the Elementary School Media Specialist, she has opportunity to get books into her students’ hands and teach her students about broadcast news.

Hebert Elliott (MSCM, 2011) serves as the Account Manager at Crabb Radermacher, and Ben, her husband, is a Senior Multimedia Developer at Emory Healthcare. In 2021, they welcomed the birth of their daughter Daphne. Their son Archer is 3.

Luke Paul (MSCM, 2017) is a graduate student at the University of Georgia. Luke began the Master of Public Administration and Policy degree program in August of 2021.

Design by Carissa Rentz

Nicholas

Sarah (Treleven) Buckley (MSCM, 2007) is the Director of Development at Amana Academy, a K-8 public charter school in metro Atlanta. She started this position in July of 2021.

Marlee Thomas (MSCM, 2019) was recently promoted to the Marketing Coordinator position at Reynolds Lake Oconee. She serves as the managing editor of the quarterly magazine publication, Reynolds Living Magazine, that is sent to all members and prospects. She also continues to work in graphic design for the company.

Katelyn

Heather

Jason

(MSCM,

ADVANCE YOUR CAREER, SHARE YOUR PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE

Opportunities available for alumni to return to alma matter

If you are looking for ways to upskill or reskill in an area to advance your career, Georgia College & State University’s Department of Continuing and Professional Education has a plethora of accessible, affordable and accelerated education al programs. Alumni can earn continuing education units (CEUs) through online courses or onsite workforce profes sional development programs.

Alumni can also advance his/her/their knowledge through one of GC’s Online Graduate Certificates. These “for-credit” programs are typically a sequence of four to six courses that center on key skills. Some certificates are “stackable,” allowing students to continue their education toward a master’s degree should they have a desire to do so. The university’s graduate programs are nationally-accredit ed and are recognized for their academic merit and afford able cost.

Share your professional knowledge

It’s known that GC’s alumni earned a degree through programs that are rigorous, engaging and combine classroom knowledge with real-world experi ence. But it’s also known that continuing education is required in 21st century careers.

Now that alumni are in the workforce, GC invites them to return to campus to teach or contribute to a continuing education program. Instructors must have credible expe rience such as work-related experience, training and/or certification in the program being proposed. So, propose a “Communication 101” or “Design on Dime” course to the continuing education program. This is a great opportunity to help your fellow Bobcats remain relevant in their careers in the modern era.

Need to offer a program at your place of business?

Continuing Education staff will work with you or your employer to offer a customized professional development program that can be offered online, on-site, on-campus or a hybrid of available options.

To learn more or to register to participate in any GC Con tinuing and Professional Education program, email Angela Criscoe, interim executive director for the School of Continu ing and Professional Studies, at angela.criscoe@gcsu.edu or call her at 478-445-2759.

(MSCM,

Design by Katherine Futch

Carolyn McDuffie Gibson (MSCM, 2018) serves Habersham County as its first Public Information Officer. She currently lives in her hometown of Carnesville, Georgia with her husband and dog. She is proud to own historic property in her town’s downtown district including a historic corn mill.

Miya Banks (MSCM, 2020) is the Stringer at The Hickory Daily Record. Banks worked for the AP during the 2020 election season, as well as the Eatonton Messenger for 7 months in 2021 before moving to North Carolina in January of this year. After getting in touch with the Hickory Daily Record, she became the stringer and will hold that position until they have a full time opening.

Long

2008) is living and loving his life in Jupiter, Florida where he currently works remote for Gannett Newspaper’s (USA Today) digital agency, LOCALiQ, as the Client Success Manager.

Daniel

2003) became the President and CEO of Explore Newnan-Coweta, a new destination marketing organization for Coweta County. Daniel is charged with the development and promotion of the community through marketing and sales strategies, product development and collaborative partnerships.

Kathryn Stanley (MSCM, 2014) recently departed her role as Vice President, Atlanta Marketplace Lead, at Ketchum to pursue a role leading International PR and Communications for Virgin Atlantic. She joins a strong team based in the UK, forging continued excitement for our collective and anticipated return to travel with more routes and open borders in the near future.

CONTRIBUTORS

1. Juliana Dixon

Dream Job?: U.S. Press Secretary

Why Georgia College?: I loved the feel of the campus.

2. Gabrielle DuChateau

Dream Job?: CBS Sunday Morning reporter

Why Georgia College?: I love that it’s a public liberal arts school.

3. Meyers Ezzell

Dream Job?: Account executive at a sick marketing agency in a sick city

Why Georgia College?: It felt like home.

4. Tori Gronczewski

Dream Job?: Working on creating content for a nonprofit

Why Georgia College?: Jesus made it super clear he wanted me here.

5. Katherine Futch

Dream Job?: Corporate lawyer

Why Georgia College?: Because of the opportu nities to get to know faculty and staff, and be cause of the different activities and organizations I could get involved in on campus.

6. Benjamin Grunert

Dream Job?: NBA beat writer/reporter

Why Georgia College?: To play tennis.

7. Madison Holtz

Dream Job?: Video editor

Why Georgia College?: Because of the envi ronment and the small classes. I love that all my professors know me by name.

8. Lucy Hughes

Dream Job?: NPR audio production

Why Georgia College?: Great mass communica tion department.

CONTRIBUTORS

9.

Samantha Joiner

Dream Job?: To work as a PR rep in the music industry

Why Georgia College?: I honestly don’t know why I chose Georgia College. I didn’t get into UGA and, for whatever reason, Georgia College was just the only other school I even considered applying to.

10. Reagan Monson

Dream Job?: Entrepreneur

Why Georgia College?: The campus and sense of community.

11. Skylar Rembisz

Dream Job?: Digital account manager

Why Georgia College?: I love the small town. I love how the campus feels like we are all a big family, and I love seeing similar faces where I go. Georgia College has given me so many amazing opportunities.

12. Carissa Rentz

Dream Job?: Fashion communications specialist

Why Georgia College?: Because it felt like a home away from home with the small class sizes, intimate learning environment and beautiful campus.

13. Lillie Sirmans

Dream Job?: To run a nonprofit that serves under-privileged families

Why Georgia College?: It is the perfect size. I loved the community and the environment.

14. Grace Williams

Dream Job?: To work in internal affairs/commu nications for a company after college

Why Georgia College?: Georgia College felt like home when I visited the first time. I had a gut feeling that I should go here.

15. Sophie Zetzsche

Dream Job?: I wish I knew

Why Georgia College?: I love the community, and Milledgeville is the best city in the world.

Top HitS 2021-2022

Department of Communication graduating seniors

GC COMMUNICATIONS ALUMNI COUNCIL

ESTABLISHED

What is CAC?

Mass Communication

FALL 2021

Ballard, Bailey Elizabeth Brooks, Bethany Paige

Bruen, Isabella Tai Shan

Bugg, Christina Nicole

Olson, Merritt Katherine Santana, Natalie Elise

Shallenberger, Reilly Grace

Sheley, Jacob Andrew

Skipper, Sally

Wagner, Anna Elizabeth

SPRING 2022

Adler, Nikki Shea

Belconis, Paige Maddison

Borel, Sarah Grace

Boyd, Eric Taylor

Brems, Emsley Kathlene

Byrd, Jenna Marie

Casey, Jackson Ryan

Christian, Evan Stuart

Christian, Reese Elizabeth

Clark, Bailey Shea

Clarke, Preston Daniel

Corwin, Emily Brooke

Cravey, Wendy Joyce

Daigle, Maddie Michelle

Daly, Catherine Elizabeth

Dechen, Keelynn Emily

Dickerson, Sarah Hendon Doran, Kaitlyn Anne DuChateau, Gabrielle Jean Duke, Adrienne West Eastin, Kaitlin Leigh Frankel, Abbie Marissa Gardner, Grace Eversole Gerberding, Grant David Goggin, Margaret Catherine Grant, Lauren Ann Grunert, Benjamin William Hardin, Nina Victoria Hartnett, Matthew Edward Hayes, Donald James Hayes, Shelby Nicole Hipps, Anna Michelle Hoates, Curry Sinclair Holtz, Madison Grace Hoover-Moreira, Caroline Howell, Lonnie Clay Hunt, Chancely Keach Hutchison, Kathryn R. Irwin, Carolyn Grace Jackson, India Clineece Jennings, Jordan Lynn Johnson, Amber Kate Kearney, Grace Kathryn Lowe, Emma Jane McIntyre, Abbey Kate McNew, Madison Tate Nelson, Brick O’Brien, Jonathan O’Day, Caitlin Elizabeth Oller, Julia Max Oor, Kelley Carolyn

Peters, Benjamin Charles

Ramakrishnan, Anagha Rembisz, Skylar Nicole Rentz, Carissa Whitney Richardson, Tierra Alexus Roberge, Jolie Monique Robichaud, Ryan Cameron Rogers, Anna Renee Samples, Isabell G. Sampson, Sophia Shaw, Davis Michael Smith, Margaret Bess Sposato, Gabriella Maria Walker, Anthea Stanton White,Joel Davis Williams, Milligan Ruth Wren, William Yeater, Brantley Clark Rhetoric

The Georgia College Alumni Association established the Communications Alumni Council, an affinity group of mass communication and rhetoric alumni, in 2020. The council’s goals are to engage with alumni as well as create opportunities such as scholarships, mentorships and internships for current GC communication-related students. The group is comprised of four board members: president, vice president, secretary and event coordinator.

What is a Georgia College affinity group?

According to Georgia College’s Affinity Group Handbook, “An affinity group offers opportunities for alumni of shared interests and common bonds to connect on meaningful levels beyond the traditional regional structure, whether that connection is based on identity, experiences, or personal interests. The Georgia College Alumni Association fosters opportunities for alumni to connect to the university and each other in ways that address these special interests and common bonds.”

Benedict Esposito - Secretary

Esposito is responsible for scheduling executive board meetings, recording meeting minutes and maintaining the council’s email and social media accounts. The secretary oversees the chapter’s membership list and updates GC’s Alumni Office of any changes.

- President

Rawlins is the liaison between the council and the university. She assumes the responsibility of coordinating activities sponsored by the council. Additionally, the president ensures that all events and council decisions adhere to the guidelines of the GC Alumni Association.

Lowe - Vice President

Lowe serves as the scholarship coordinator and also serves as an assistant to the president. She supports current scholarships and researches and develops new scholarship opportunities. Additionally, the vice president oversees the scholarship committee and is well-versed in the scholarship creation process.

Cline, Caitlin Ann Cobb, Hollins Bradwell Grosevenor, Kyleigh Elizabeth Stanley, Samantha Katherine Velasquez, Rebecca Ann

Jessee is in charge of the events committee as well as facilitates events to engage alumni. The event coordinator generates the event calendar and communicates with the council’s president about event logistics. “When I was a student at Georgia College, I never really knew what alumni were up to since graduation. Mass Communication is a broad industry that impacts every other industry in that you see communications specialists in almost every field, so it’s fascinating to see what people are doing now. I feel that the council is a great way to give back to the school and also strengthen that connection between students and alumni.” - Elizabeth Rawlins, president

If you would like to know more about the Communications Alumni Council, email affinity@gcsu.edu.

FALL 2021

Rogers, Walter SPRING 2022

Elizabeth Rawlins

Haley

Abigail Jessee - Event Coordinator

Design by Skylar Rembisz

Design by Mady Holtz