MSU Department of Communication 2022-2023 Annual Report

MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION

FALL 2022 & SPRING 2023

ANNUAL REPORT

A LETTER FROM DR. LIKES

TO CO FACuLTy, STudENTS, AdmiNiSTrATOrS, ALumNi & FriENdS,

Commuication students reached new heights this year and, in some cases, set records. In the areas of speech & debate, theatre, and media, students saw a record number of awards and honors, over 400 in all. In addition, the Department awarded 35 students $46,000 in scholarship money. Faculty accolades include two faculty published books, one earned the MS Humanities Teacher of the Year, several won professional and research awards, one earned a legacy award while another received a lifetime achievement honor (see much more in the coming pages).

Major initiatives were achieved including the launch of our graduate program. MSU approved new ranks for non-tenure track faculty and, thus, seven long-serving CO faculty earned promotion to the rank of Instructor II. A pre-site team visit was completed to seek ACEJMC accreditation while theatre seeks NAST accreditation. A new interdisciplinary degree between CO and Industrial Education was approved.

ThEATrE students earned 23 Kennedy Center American College

Theatre Festival honors. Two theatre faculty earned honors from the MS Theatre Association while others earned KCACTF recognition. Theatre produced its annual children’s production The Light Princess, along with It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play during the fall semester with Macbeth in the spring. Four faculty and 15 students attended the Southeast Theatre Conference where 12 students received job offers, eight of these in the technical theatre areas. Theatre also has its additional offerings for students including The Scene, Lab Rats, and Blackfriars Drama Society.

PuBLiC rELATiONS for the last six years, has had a student win the PR Student of the Year from the Public Relations Association of Mississippi. We also won Outstanding PR Student. Students earned 24 regional, state, and local awards stemming from work in the capstone class and PRISM, the student agency. PR maintains its regular chapter meetings of PRSSA, hosting various speakers. PR also rolled out its online degree last year and now has 15 students enrolled.

COmmuNiCATiON ANd mEdiA STudiES welcomed two additional faculty this year. Dr. Jessica Collier, assistant professor, (Ph.D. UT-Austin) is teaching courses in Communication Leadership and Elements of Persuasion. She specializes in political communication with research in the areas of fake news, news trust, scandal, and political efficacy. CO welcomes Carrie McCormick, instructor, back to MSU. Carrie has MA and law degrees and teaches Intro to Communication and Intro to Comm Theory, among many. CMST offered its online degree beginning this past year

with ten students enrolled. For MSU Speech and Debate, Debate finished 3rd place overall out of 156 schools nationally while Speech had six students qualify for Speech Nationals with seven total entries, previously only one qualified.

BrOAdCAST ANd digiTAL JOurNALiSm and PriNT & digiTAL JOurNALiSm welcome Rex Jones as a new faculty member in multimedia specializing in documentary production. Rex will start August 2023. Rex will teach a section of TV Production along with PR Multimedia. Marcus Hunter has accepted our offer to start Aug. 2023 as an associate professor of practice. Marcus has roughly 20 years of media experience. He is currently an anchor/reporter for the #1 TV station in Memphis. Marcus is a graduate of this program and is thrilled to come back to his alma mater. These concentrations held another successful MS Association of Broadcaster’s event for students. Students won 100 awards, a record number including fourteen from the National Electronic Media Association, twenty-three from the Southeast Journalism Conference, twenty-six from the MS Press Association, and twenty-two from the MS Association of Broadcasters (see more in the pages ahead).

I hope you will enjoy reading about our success stories. I am proud of our faculty and students for their significant achievements. We greatly appreciate your support.

miSSiON STATEmENT

The mission of The DeparTmenT of CommuniCaTion is to prepare students to be effective and ethical consumers and producers of personal and public communication. To that end, the department serves all students in the development of basic communication skills and of an appreciation for mass media, public communication, and theatre.

divErSiTy STATEmENT

The DeparTmenT of CommuniCaTion is committed to fostering an environment that values and affirms diversity, equity, and inclusion. The department is committed to removing barriers that have been traditionally encountered by individuals from underrepresented groups and makes every attempt to support faculty members’ academic, professional, and personal success. The department values diversity in experience, background and research perspectives and is dedicated to creating an inclusive environment for teaching and learning.

Degrees Awarded

Enrollment Numbers

First-Time Freshmen

STOry STATE, the Department of Communication’s annual virtual storytelling event, launched on February 23, 2023. The event hosted a series of Mississippi professionals who served as speakers. To view each storyteller’s presentation, click on their names below.

STOry STATE 2022 PrESENTErS:

RORY DOYLE is a working photographer based in Cleveland, Mississippi in the rural Mississippi Delta. Doyle has remained committed to photographing Mississippi and the South, with a particular focus on sharing stories from the Delta.

DR. BRAD LiEB is the Director of Chickasaw Nation Archaeology and Field Studies. In 2015, he was a member of the team that discovered numerous 16th-century Spanish artifacts at the Starkville Archaeological Complex — remnants of Hernando de Soto’s 1540 expedition through the South.

DR. SADDiq DzUkOGi is a poet and assistant professor of English at Mississippi State University. He is the author of Your Crib, My Qibla (University of Nebraska Press, 2021), winner of the 2021 Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry, and the 2022 Julie Suk Award.

“Six STRiNG” ANDREw SULLiVAN is a 17-year-old blues prodigy. He first heard live blues music in Clarksdale when he was five years old and became friends with blues musicians such as Big A, who he still plays with and is inspired by.

kAMAU BOSTic is a photographer for the Mabus Agency in Tupelo, Miss. He specializes in portraiture. As the Mabus Agency website put it, “Kamau is always looking for ways to add freshness where it’s least expected.”

RAchEL DANGERMOND is the director of the 100 Men Hall in Bay St. Louis, Miss. She is a writer and award-winning investigative reporter. She founded Greenlight Global Research in 2011. She has been a speaker with the Department of Justice’s community policing initiative and has led trainings in anti-oppression.

cOL. chRiSTiAN PATTERSON is the commander of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg, Miss. Colonel Patterson received his commission as an Adjutant General (AG) Corps Officer from Louisiana State University in 1999. He has served in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and other places around the world in the past 20+ years.

BiLL wiLSON is a lifelong artist whose primary medium is painting. He was the artist-in-residence at the Mississippi Governor’s Mansion for three years. He painted many facets of the mansion during that time, and published The Mississippi Governor’s Mansion: Memories of the People’s Home with Gov. Phil Bryant.

STOry STATE STudENT COmPETiTiON WiNNErS

Story State also offers a student competition, accepting entries in oral, written and film categories. The 2023 winners were all awarded in the written category.

WriTTEN CATEgOry

1ST PLACE & mASTEr STOryTELLEr

HEATHER HARRiSOn, an MSU senior communication major from Hazlehurst, won for her story “9/11,” a written narrative recounting Annemarie Bohn’s coverage of the devastating attacks as a student-journalist for The Reflector, MSU’s student-run newspaper.

WriTTEN CATEgOry

2Nd PLACE

ELizAbETH KEEn, an MSU junior communication major from Redwood, won 2nd for “Mike and Me: How One Eccentric College Football Coach Shaped My Life.” Keen’s story details former MSU football coach Mike Leach’s impact on her life and work.

WriTTEN CATEgOry

3rd PLACE

EMMA DOTSOn, an MSU business administration graduate student from Madison, won 3rd for “The Cheese Fry Crawl.” Dotson’s piece takes the reader through a personal tastetesting of various cheese fries in Starkville as she searched for the very best option.

COmmuNICATION mASTEr’S dEgrEE PrOgrAm

Our graduate program’s academic year was complete with firsts--new courses, strong student enrollment, and our first two graduates of the program. The graduate enrollment featured 16 students for fall 2022. We look forward to another year of growth and evolution as we continue to provide our students with a world-class education in Communication.

BrITISh STudy ABrOAd: ThE yANkS ArE COmiNg!

Seven MSU Students will learn about British and American culture this summer while studying abroad in London.

will facilitate the course, and students will visit a number of media and cultural institutions in and around London.

FirST CO COmmuNITy COLLEgE PrEvIEW dAy

The department hosted its first Communication Community College Preview Day. Potential transfer students toured the Reflector, WMSV, and the Digital Media Center. They also met professors in each concentration areas and had the opportunity to ask questions about our program. Our goal is to host the community college preview day annually for transfer students.

DR. PETE SMiTh

ACEJmC PrE-SITE vISIT

The Department of Communication had a pre-visit site from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications to seek accreditation. The post-visit report said, ”The Department of Communication at Mississippi State University has a sound foundation for achieving accreditation: effective leadership at the department level, support from the dean, a sound curriculum, accomplished faculty and staff, strong student interest in the programs and well-equipped facilities.” An action plan has been developed with the faculty who will update and revise the self-study by the end of the year in advance of a possible 2024-2025 official visit.

FALL 2022 & SPriNg 2023 PrISm CLIENT LIST

FALL 2022:

1. The Office of Prestigious External Scholarships (OPES)

2. Story State

3. Shower Power

4. Magnolia Independent Film Festival

mSu SPEAkiNg CENTEr

SPriNg 2023:

1. Power of the Almond

2. Oktibbeha County Hospital

3. Student Money Management Center

In its second full year serving students, the MSU Speaking Center served approximately 325 students of various majors. In total, the center had four communication interns, five consultants paid by the department and five additional consultants. The Speaking Center hosted four workshops and had presentations in over 20 classes. The Center's Instagram handle now has over 1500 followers.

BLOCk FAmILy TOurS dIgITAL mEdIA CENTEr

The Block family, as well as board members from Block Communications, Inc., recently toured the MSU Digital Media Center. The Block’s donated funds which allowed MSU to build the DMC. During the tour, the group saw the MSU communication student news team in action as it was prepping for its live newscast.

Thanks to MSU, McComas Hall has a new addition. The university graciously added outdoor seating on the patio outside of McComas, giving students an outdoor space to study and hang out between classes. Students and faculty enjoyed the new seating area throughout the academic year, with some faculty members even holding class on the patio during nice weather days!

dEPArTmENT COmPLETES BASEmENT rENOvATION

After many years of waiting, our department was finally granted the McComas Hall basement art gallery space. Renovations followed, and we now have a new seminar/ conference room for graduate classes and meetings, four additional faculty offices and a space for graduate assistants to work.

mSu PrOvIdES OuTdOOr SEATINg FOr mCCOmAS

ThEATrE hOSTS TWO WOrkShOPS FOr STudENTS

PrOFESSiONALizATiON WOrkShOP

The professionalization workshop provided students with detailed explanations and examples to assist them in building an effective resume. The workshop covered topics including resume design and tailoring resumes for specific applications.

FINANCIAL LITErACy WOrkShOP

The financial literacy workshop was hosted in an effort to provide information and tips to help inform students handle their money. This workshop was a part of the professional workshop series.

FuN CONTENT AddEd TO dEPArTmENT SOCIAL mEdIA

One of our 2022-23 department interns, Spencer Smith, served as our social media coordinator. Smith brought unique ideas and created several new ways to interact with our social media audiences. Popular recurring posts included “Meet Your Professor Monday,” “This or That Thursday,” and “Fun Fact Friday.” The account also featured events happening throughout the department for each concentration. If you don’t already follow us on our social platforms, give us a follow and enjoy our student-created content.

“Meet Your Professor Monday” video with Dr. Pete Smith.

Instagram post for College Colors Day and Maroon Friday.

dEPArTmENT WELCOmES NEW FACuLTy mEmBErS

Hunter & Jones will join us for Fall 2023/ Welcome to our new faculty members.

MARcUS hUNTER is an award-winning Journalist and Mississippi State Alum. Hunter is excited to return to his alma mater to lend his over 20 years of broadcast experience to the next generation of journalists. Marcus is the Weekend Daybreak news anchor for WREG News Channel Three in Memphis, TN. He has also worked as a News Anchor in Jackson, MS, and Sports anchor in Columbus, MS, and Memphis, TN. Marcus will bring his vast industry expertise to the classroom, giving MSU students firsthand knowledge of daily operations in a working newsroom.

“I look forward to working with the incredible staff in the Department of Communication at Mississippi State University.” Hunter said, “Today’s journalism students are the future of our industry, and it is important that we develop wellrounded, diverse, and fact-based journalists. This is an exciting time at MSU, and I am happy to be a part of it.” -Hunter

REx JONES is a documentary filmmaker from Hickory, MS. His work has been broadcast nationally on PBS, won awards from various organizations, and been chosen as official selections of festivals worldwide. Jones holds an MFA in Science & Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University and an MBA and BS in Computer Engineering from Mississippi State University.

“I am thrilled to return to my alma mater to pursue my creative endeavors and teach the next generation of storytellers.” - Jones

Hunter Jones

FACULTY NEWS & AWARDS

LikES WiNS LOCAL & rEgiONAL BrOAdCASTiNg AWArdS

DR. TERRY LikES won a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in electronic journalism.

LikES, Head of MSU’s Department of Communication, won the award in the category of Excellence in Sound for his report, “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash: His concert and arrest in Starkville impact the legacy for both the singer and the community.” The report aired on WMSV-FM, MSU’s radio station.

LikES competed in RTDNA Region 9 against other entries from Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Regional winners automatically advance to the national competition where winners will be announced in August. This award marks the tenth regional Murrow Award received by Likes from 2007 to 2023.

Likes

LikES also received three state broadcasting awards from the Mississippi Association of Broadcasters—the state’s premier organization dedicated to recognizing the highest standards of broadcast production. He took 1st place in the Documentary category and 3rd place in the Use of Sound category for his report, “Where politicians and media laugh: a retrospective of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Likes also took 1st place Feature Story, for his report, “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash: His concert and arrest in Starkville impact the legacy for both the singer and the community.”

LikES SErvES AS EXTErNAL rEvIEWEr

LikES was asked by four universities to serve as an external reviewer for faculty going up for promotions. The list of universities include the University of Arkansas, University of Alabama, Middle Tennessee State University and the University of South Alabama.

FACULTY NEWS & AWARDS

INSTruCTOrS WIN NATIONAL BrOAdCASTINg AWArdS

VicTORiA BAiLEY & JOSh

FOREMAN, instructors in P&DJ and B&DJ, recently won National Broadcasting Society Awards. Bailey received an award in the News Reporting category for her piece “Amory Plant Layoffs.” Foreman received his award in the Other category for his entry “Story State Fostering Innovative Storytelling.”

FACuLTy mEmBErS ATTENd “mEET yOur PrOFESSOr” EvENT

cOMMUNicATiON FAcULTY MEMBERS, Dr. Terry Likes, Dr. John Forde, Anna Blount and Aundrea Self, attended Delta Gamma sorority’s meet your professor event where members invited a professor to the DG house to get to know them better.

BAILEy COmPLETES BrOAdCAST FELLOWShIP

VicTORiA BAiLEY, an instructor in Broadcast & Digital Journalism, participated in the Mississippi Association of Broadcasters summer 2022 fellowship.

WILLIAmS SELECTEd AS A&S SENATE rEPrESENTATivE

Bailey Williams

DR. kEViN wiLLiAMS, associate professor in Broadcast and Digital Journalism, was elected to represent the College of Arts and Sciences on the Robert Holland Faculty Senate.

Foreman Bailey

SmITh NAmEd humANITIES TEAChEr OF ThE yEAr

DR. PETE SMiTh, an associate professor in Communication & Media Studies, was recognized as Mississippi State’s Humanities Teacher of the Year for 2022-2023 by the Office of the President and the College of Arts and Sciences. As a result, Smith was invited to give a public lecture at the Mississippi Humanities Council in Jackson.

SmITh NAmEd COmmITTEE ChAIr

SMiTh has been named chair of the Margaret A. Blanchard Prize Committee, the top graduate student award given by the American Journalism Historians’ Association. The award recognizes the top dissertation in the area of mass communication history.

SmITh COmPLETES mANuSCriPT

Smith completed the “Birddogs and Tough Old Broads: Women Journalists of Mississippi and a Century of State Politics, 1880s-1980s” manuscript for Lexington Books in August.

SEITz hONOrEd FOr WOrk IN COmmuNITy ENgAgEmENT

The Center for Community-Engaged Learning (CCEL), recognized DR. hOLLi SEiTz, associate professor in the Department of Communication, with its 2022 MSU Excellence in Community Engagement Award. Seitz’s project is the award winner in the category of Community-Engaged Teaching & Learning.”

Smith Seitz

SEITz WINS NIFA AWArd

DR. hOLLi SEiTz is part of the PROMISE Initiative team, which won a U.S. Department of Agriculture NIFA Partnership Award for Innovative Programs and Projects.

SEITz SErvES ON hEALTh COmm COmmITTEE

SEiTz was recently voted and elected to serve on the Health Communication Division’s awards committee. Seitz will work with committee members to read and evaluate nominees’ materials.

kNIghT NAmEd LuCkydAy SChOLArS FELLOW

AMY kNiGhT, an instructor in Communication & Media Studies, was awarded the university’s first Luckyday Scholars Program Faculty Fellow. The program, established in 2019 by the Luckyday Foundation, engages a community of student scholars in servant leadership.

LOEhWINg SELECTEd AS ASSOCiATE dEAN

DR. MELANiE LOEhwiNG, an associate professor in Communication & Media Studies, was appointed to serve in the College of Arts & Sciences as Associate Dean for Academics beginning July 1, 2023.

mCCOrmICk JOINS COhOrT OF COmmuNITy ENgAgEd LEArNINg FELLOWS

cARRiE MccORMick, an instructor in Communication & Media Studies, was invited to join the 2023-2024 cohort of Community-Engaged Learning Fellows that begins in May 2023.

Knight

McCormick

Loehwing

Seitz

FOrEmAN PuBLIShES BOOk ThAT SPOTLIghTS mISSISSIPPI dELTA

JOSh FOREMAN, an instructor in Print & Digital Journalism, has released a new book in his “Hidden History” series, the fifth in a series of works detailing the mysteries and unseen aspects of the Deep South. The book written by Foreman and Ryan Starrett, a longtime friend of Foreman, depicts stories about the MS Delta and its rich history.

FOrEmAN SELECTEd FOr PILOT

PrOgrAm

FOREMAN was selected for the JSTOR Innovators pilot program, a digital library for the intellectually curious. The program asks select faculty from various universities to share the teaching resources they develop using the JSTOR database.

COmmuNICATION LECTurEr WINS PrAm PrOFESSIONAL AChIEvEmENT AWArd

chRiSTiE JONES LAwRENcE, communication lecturer, President of Surge Advisors and past president of the Starkville-MSU PRAM Chapter, is the 2023 PRAM Professional Achievement Award winner, the state’s top honor recognizing excellence in public relations. The panel of accredited PR professionals from PRSA of Maryland of the Public Relations Society of America tasked with selecting the winner had this to say about this year’s honoree:

“She has achieved a successful career in public relations. Her commitment to the profession shines through in her dedication to lifelong learning.”

“Her list of accomplishments and achievements is vast, seconded only by her list of services she has provided. “

Foreman

Lawrence

F i S h E r P u BLIS h ES P r h i STO ry BOO k

DR. MELODY FiShER, an associate professor in Public Relations, published the book, “The Untold Power: Underrepresented Groups in Public Relations.” In her book, Fisher fills a void in social science literature about public relations history by highlighting the contributions to the field by members of ethnically and racially underrepresented groups.

FOrdE & FIShEr rECEivE A&S AWArdS

DR. JOhN FORDE & DR. MELODY FiShER both received awards from the College of Arts & Sciences. Dr. Forde received the 2023 Robert E. Wolverton College Legacy Award, and Dr. Melody Fisher received a 2023 Arts & Sciences Research Award.

A NT h ON y & Br OWN WIN STATE AWA rd S

kELLi ANThONY & kARYN

BROwN, communication instructors, won a PRism award for their volunteer PR efforts for a Starkville Academy fundraising campaign. Brown & Anthony, along with communication alumnus Sarah Nicholas and colleague Sam Kealhofer won four awards for their MSU College of Arts & Sciences public relations efforts. The awards were presented at the state PRAM conference held in Tupelo in April.

Brown & Anthony

FAC u LT y m E m BE r S WIN LOCAL AWA rd S

AwARD OF ExcELLENcE: Improving the Recognition & Reputation of the Department of Communication, MSU Department of Communication, kELLi ANThONY AND zOiE hENSON (student).

AwARD OF ExcELLENcE: The Cross of Christ for Starkville, chRiSTiE JONES LAwRENcE.

Fisher

Forde & Fisher

FACULTY NEWS & AWARDS

hAyS INvITEd TO INTErNATIONAL CONFErENCE iN hAWAii

TONYA hAYS, MFA, an assistant professor in Theatre, was invited to present her submission, “Using Improvisational Technique and Experiential Learning in the STEM/STEAM/STREAM Classroom” at the 12th Annual Hawaii University International Conference on STEM/STEAM Education.

Hays

mTA hONOrS TWO ThEATrE mSu FACuLTy mEmBErS

Two Mississippi State Department of Communication faculty members took home awards from the recent Mississippi Theatre Association annual festival.

MELANiE hARRiS, a communication instructor, won the award for Outstanding Contribution to Community Theatre - College and University Division, and PAULA MABRY, a communication lecturer, won Best DirectionCommunity Theatre Division.

mABry dirECTS AWArd-WiNNiNg COmmuNiTy ThEATrE PLAy

Paula Mabry, a lecturer in Theatre, directed The Starkville Community Theatre play “Underneath the Lintel,” which won Best Actor, Best Director and will represent the Southeastern states at the national theatre festival, American Association of Community Theatre, in mid-June.

Harris Mabry

2022-23 COmmuNiCATiON FACuLTy AWArdS

PAuLA mABry / OuTSTANdiNg LECTurEr

“Paula’s lifelong commitment to her specialty is beyond admirable. Even after 35 in secondary education, she continues to engage in professional development and her students reap the benefit. I appreciate that she encourages students regardless of how little or how much experience they have in theater.”

-ALUMNi ExTERNAL REViEwER

TONyA hAyS / FACuLTy AWArd FOr EXCELLENCE iN CrEATivE AChiEvEmENT

“There is no doubt that Tonya’s creative achievement is aligned with the university’s new tagline, “Taking Care of What Matters.” Her work using theatre as a mechanism for social change and helping others see the role the arts can play in improving our lives is incredibly commendable.”

-ALUMNi ExTERNAL REViEwER

LAWrENCE STrOuT/ EXCELLENCE iN TEAChiNg

“Larry’s commitment to providing a high-quality education for his students is clear. Incorporating both the content and lessons learned through his own achievement of an additional degree into his teaching undoubtedly provides for a more meaningful classroom experience. He has even gone so far as using that background as a foundation for developing a new course.”

-ALUMNi ExTERNAL REViEwER

ChriS miSuN / EXCELLENCE iN SErviCE

“The depth to which Chris has jumped into service activities that benefit the department, university, and community in just four short years is incredibly impressive. His passion for film and broadcasting is clear, taking his efforts outside of the classroom in a way that creates enriching opportunities and stronger connections across the campus, community, and state for the Department of Communication.”

-ALUMNi ExTERNAL REViEwER

CONgrATuLATiONS TO Our iNSTruCTOrS

SEvEN CO iNSTruCTOrS PrOmOTEd TO iNSTruCTOr II

For the first time in MSU history, instructors have the opportunity for promotion. In fall 2022, MSU implemented a new promotion option for instructors, including ranks of Instructor I, Instructor II, and Instructor III. Instructors become eligible for promotion to Instructor II after a minimum of five years of service at the instructor level. Seven of our instructors met those qualifications, with several surpassing the minimum requirements by 15 years or more, and all seven instructors received promotion to Instructor II.

kELLi ANThONy kAryN BrOWN ChEryL ChAmBErS Amy FOuNTAiN mEAghAN gOrdON

mELANiE hArriS Amy kNighT

PrESENTATiONS & PuBLiCATiONS

BAzAA, uyANgA, Condis, M. (2022) gave a presentation on A Thematic Analysis of a Successful Fan Activist Campaign at the International Communication Association’s 72nd Annual Conference in Paris, France

BAzAA, uyANgA (2023) presented Conceptual Definition, Operationalization, and Factors of Value Perspective at the International Communication Association’s 73rd Annual Conference in Ontario, Canada

FiShEr, mELOdy published The Untold Power: Underrepresented groups in public relations. New York: Business Experts Press.

Plowman, K., FOrdE, J. E., Rawlins, B., Puglisi, G., & Turk, J. (accepted, date pending). Public relations graduates’ perceptions of their degrees and careers: A five-university survey. Journal of Public Relations Education.

Penning, T., FOrdE, J. & Broussard, S. (2022, March) presented Student, professional, and employer perceptions of professional development in public relations: Testing a theoretical framework at the International Public Relations Research Conference in Orlando, FL. .

ChOi, hEESOOk. Published “How Partisan Cable News Mobilizes Viewers: Partisan Media, Discussion Networks and Political Participation”.in the Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media

ChOi, hEESOOk (2022) presented paper What mobilizes political satire viewers: The role of partisanship and discussion networks in the effects of political satire viewing on political participation at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication Annual Conference in Detroit, MI.

POE, PhiLiP published “Hate, Inc: Why Today’s Media Makes Us Hate Each Other”. Electronic News 16, 60-62.

POE, PhiLiP presented “G.I.F.T.S. (Great Ideas for Teaching Students): Copyediting in Canvas” at the Mississippi Communication Association Conference on Feb. 17, 2023.

FOrEmAN, JOSh, and Starrett, Ryan published Death Along the Natchez Trace (Charleston: The History Press, 2022).

FOrEmAN, JOSh presented “Decidedly Southern” at the Mississippi Book Festival 2022 on August 20, 2022 in Jackson.

FOrEmAN, JOSh presented “Literature at Lunch” at the Natchez Film and Literary Celebration 2022 on February 16, 2022 in Natchez, MS.

LikES, TErry (2022) presented “Recruitment and Retention of Students in the COVID Era and Beyond” at the Broadcast Education Association conference in Las Vegas.

LikES, TErry Likes’ audio documentary “Newsroom Need: How Demand Now Far Outweighs Supply For Hiring Young TV Journalists.” Aired on WMSV-FM.

NiChOLSON, JOhN published “Hands-on Activities, Video Libraries and Experiential Learning: Engaged Pedagogies and Student Connections for Better Learning - Instructional Development Division.

NiChOLSON, JOhN (2022) published “The Do’s and Dont’s: Implications and Considerations for Instructional Humor.” Harris, J., hAyS, TONyA,(June 2022) presented paper ”Performing Arts as Integrated Method for Teaching STE(A)M Concepts to Middle and High School Students.”

hAyS, TONyA (2022, March) presented “The Rubber Chicken Improv Festival” at the Southeastern Theatre Conference. Horn,Elizabeth., hAyS, TONyA (2022) published “United

We Stand? Devised Theatre for Social Change in Tumultuous, America.” Chapter, The Routledge Companion to Theatre and Young People.” Edited by Busby, Freebody and Rajendran, Taylor & Francis Routledge.

COLLiEr, J.r., Van Duyn, E. published “Fake news by any other name: The effects of phrases for false content on public perceptions of U.S. news media” in the Journal of Applied Communication Research.

COLLiEr, J.r., Kim, Y., Murray, C., & Stroud, N.J. (2022, Sept.) presented Partisan memes: A content and engagement analysis across 3 U.S. election cycles at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Political Communication Division, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

Zenner, S., Haenschen, K., &. COLLiEr, J.r. (2022, Nov.) presented You’re just not my type: The relationship between fonts, political ideology, and affective polarization at the annual meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA. mCCOrmiCk, C.r. (2022, October) presented Hey Y’all, Let’s Talk about Dialect at interactive session at Transitioning to College Writing Symposium in Oxford, MS.

mCCOrmiCk, C.r. (2022, April) presented Pop Culture Podcast: Creating an Engaging Vocal Style while Enhancing Group Work at GIFTS session at the meeting of the Southern States Communication Association in Greenville, SC.

Okafor, M. I., SEiTz, hOLLi, Downey, L. H., & Buys, D. R. (2022) published “Formative research to inform COVID-19 vaccine education in Mississippi” in the Journal of Public Health in the Deep South,

SEiTz, hOLLi, Robertson, M. N., Steen, J., Dulaney, S., & Buys, D. (2022) published “Development and pretesting of prescription opioid misuse prevention messages: Results and implications for practice. Health Communication.”

SEiTz, hOLLi, Downey, L., & Byrd, S. (2022, November 17-20) presented Evaluation of a social marketing campaign to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and physical activity among individuals eligible for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits at the National Communication Association 108th Annual Convention in New Orleans, LA.

SEiTz, hOLLi Dulaney, S., Okafor, M., Downey, L., & Buys, D. (2022, November 6-9).presented Rural perspectives on federal COVID-19 vaccine messages: Recommendations for practice at the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting & Expo in Boston, MA.

Robertson, M. N., SEiTz, hOLLi, Downey, L. H., Hardman, A., Steen, J., & Buys, D. (2022). published “Increasing uptake of prescription drug take-back boxes: Eliciting preferences and applying the theory of planned behavior to predict use. Health Education and Behavior.”

Freeman, C., Burch, R., Strawderman, L., Black, C., Saucier, D., Rickert, J., Wilson, J., SEiTz, hOLLi, & Stull, J. (2022). published “Do they really work? Quantifying fabric mask effectiveness to improve public health messaging” in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

Methvin, J., Gardner, A. J., Pylate, L. B., Hunt, B., SEiTz, hOLLi, & Hyatt, R. Y. (2022). published Making COVID-19-related decisions: A qualitative study of university students in the Journal of Public Health in the Deep South.

PErFOrmANCES

To view a complete list of performances, click here.

T h EAT r E m S u 2022-2023 SEASON

ThEATrE mSu hOSTS huNgEr rEAdINg

ThEATRE MSU AND ThE ShAckOULS hONORS

cOLLEGE hosted a stage reading of the play Hunger by Bohdan Boychuk. The reading was directed by MSU alumna Emma Denson.

ThEATrE hOSTEd ANNuAL mEET & grEET

ThEATRE MSU hosted its beginning of the year meet & greet for Fall 2022. The event drew 75 students and offered a Q&A for students.

ThEATrE mSu ATTENdS

SOuThEASTErN ThEATrE CONFErENCE

Fifteen students and four faculty members represented ThEATRE MSU at SETC. Faculty members gave three presentations and four students were involved in the presentations. During the conference, 12 students received job offers and many have already signed contracts. Eight of the job offers were in the technical theatre area.

ThEATrE mSu WOrkS WITh STArkvILLE POLICE IN rOLE-PLAyINg dE-ESCALATION TrAININg

ThEATRE MSU played a unique role in partnership with the MSU Psychology Department and the Starkville Police Department. Deepali Dhruve, a Psychology graduate student, developed a program to use live-actor role-plays, similar to what the medical community has used for decades to train medical students. Dhruve hired theatre students as actors and scriptwriters for the various scenarios.

The collaboration was a success, and as a result, Tonya Hays, MFA, an assistant professor in Theatre, Dhruve, Dr. Michael Nadorff, associate professor in the Department of Psychology and Director of the Clinical Ph.D. Program, as well as Chief Mark Ballard from the Starkville Police Department were guests on an episode of Vision Podcast, the bi-monthly MSU College of Arts & Sciences podcast.

Dhruve also received the 2023 A&S Outstanding Doctoral Graduate Student award. She won due to her collaboration with Theatre MSU’s de-escalation with the police project.

ThEATrE mSu PArTNErS WiTh STArkvILLE COmmuNITy ThEATrE

Theatre MSU partnered with Starkville Community Theatre for a special production of “The Belle of Amherst,” a William Luce production highlighting the life of acclaimed poet Emily Dickinson. The play was funded through a collaboration with MSU’s Center for Community Engaged Learning. Based on the life and poems of the reclusive 19th-century poet, “The Belle of Amherst” is a biographical portrait of the “eccentric spinster” Dickinson in her Amherst, Massachusetts home.

B&dJ STudENTS WIN NumErOuS AWArdS

MAB AwARDS: The Mississippi Association of Broadcasters awarded MSU students more honors in radio and television than any other college/university in the state for 2023. For the third year in a row, MSU won both the RADiO STUDENT BROADcASTER OF ThE YEAR AND TV STUDENT BROADcASTER OF ThE YEAR.

NATiONAL ACAdEmy OF TELEviSiON ArTS & SCiENCES: Mississippi State’s student produced newscast, “TAkE 30 NEwS,” was presented with the Best Newscast award during the Student Production Awards. The award was presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Southeast Chapter.

BEA AWArdS: Communication students received six Creative Competition awards for exceptional media work at the Broadcast Education Association conference in October at Colorado State University. Excellence awards were given to BRODY hAMM, ANNA NOBLES, zAchARY cALhOUN, BRANDON GREEN AND FLORA DEDEAUx. The students took home awards in categories for Audio Competition, Film and Video Narrative Competition and Film and Music Video.

NATiONAL uNdErgrAduATE STudENT ELECTrONiC mEdiA: MSU students won 14 awards including six Category Awards and eight Honorable Mentions. Student winners included: JAckSON SMiTh, TANNER MARLAR, ELizABETh kEEN, AALiYAN MOhAMMED, chASE LEE, ALLEN PEGUES, BEN ShANNON, chASE cRAwFORD, hANNAh LAURiE, zAchARY cALhOUN, wiLLiAM LiNDSEY, JOShUA BRiTT, ANNA NOBLES, JAckSON SPEYERER, BRODY hAMM, cODY BLASzczAk, AND TREY BARRETT.

SOCiETy OF PrOFESSiONAL JOurNALiSTS: Eight MSU students are finalists in the Student Society of Professional Journalism Awards at this year’s regional competition. MSU had five winners who will move on to compete nationally later this year. The student award winners are: Chris LoNigro, Jackson Smith, Landon Scheel, Elizabeth Keen, and Hannah Moroney.

BrOAdCAST STudENTS TOur WCBI

Victoria Bailey, an instructor in Broadcast & Digital Journalism, and her broadcast capstone students got a tour of the newsroom, control room, and studio at WCBI Headquarters in Columbus, MS. Students met with Executive Producer Mary Catherine Sullivan,Anchor/Producer Scott Martin, and News Director Joey Barnes.

The WCBI news crew gave students advice about resume building, preparing demos, and other tips to break into an industry that is actively looking to fill multimedia journalist positions not only in Columbus, but at many stations in Mississippi.

miSSiSSiPPi ASSOCiATiON OF BrOAdCASTErS hOLdS FIrST STudENT CONFErENCE

The Mississippi Association of Broadcasters held its first student conference in Jackson in November. Fifteen students and seven faculty members attended the conference. Faculty in attendance included Philip Poe, Kevin Williams, Anna Blount, Josh Foreman, Victoria Bailey, Chris Misun, and Terry Likes.

CmST STudENT rECOgNIzEd AT mSu rESEArCh SymPOSIum

cOMMUNicATiON & MEDiA STUDiES STUDENT

SARAh RENDON presented research at the MSU Undergraduate Research Symposium on community-engaged learning. Her work, “Examining Student Perceptions of Community Engaged Learning through Reflection,” was supervised by Dr. Holli Seitz and was recognized as the Social Sciences Category Winner in the CommunityEngaged Research Track.

P&dJ STudENTS WiN AWArdS

MPA: MSU Students won 26 awards at the annual Mississippi Press Association Summit in March. For the third year in a row, The Reflector won 1st place for “General Excellence.”

Student winners include: LizziE TOMLiN, kATiE RAiNwATER, hEAThER hARRiSON, TANNER MARLAR, LUkE cOPLEY, LANDON SchEEL, SYDNi VANDEVENDER, DYLAN FLiPPO, ELizABETh kEEN, JOhN BALADi, DONTAE BALL, hANNAh MORONEY, TREY BARRETT, SEAN SMiTh, kAT BEATTY, AND IVY ROSE BALL.

SEJc: The 2023 awards presentation for the best in broadcast, print and online journalism was held by the Southeast Journalism Conference at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, LA. Twenty-five schools submitted a total of 287 entries and MSU students won 23 total awards in the annual “Best of the South” and the “On-Site” competitions.

Student winners include: DONTAE BALL, chRiS LONiGRO, JAckSON SMiTh, SYDNi VANDEVENDER, hANNAh RAE kENNEDY, JAckSON SPEYERER, PAYTON BROwN, LYDiA PALMER, hANNAh BLANkENShiP, hEAThER hARRiSON, MOLLi kATE kEEhLEY, DYLAN FLiPPO, cODY BLASzczAk, TANNER MARLAR, LANDON SchEEL, kATiE RAiNwATER.

Pr STudENTS WIN rEgiONAL & STATE AWArdS

SPrF: During the Southern Public Relations Federation’s conference in Baton Rouge in September, five students in the Department of Communication were recognized for exceptional work in the field of Public Relations. Awards of Excellence were given to SARAh cOLVERT, BRYANNA TRULOVE, SOPhiA cALDERON, ELLY LAMB AND SAVANNAh MUNN.

PrAm: zOiE hENSON, senior public relations and philosophy major, was awarded the PRAM STUDENT OF ThE YEAR at the 2023 PRAM Conference. Henson was nominated by Kelli Anthony.

REAGAN YOUNG, senior public relations major, was awarded the Greg Raimondo Outstanding PR Student award at the 2023 PRAM Conference. Young was nominated by Dr. John Forde.

STUDENT AwARDS OF ExcELLENcE: The Magnolia Independent Film Festival: A Social Bloom at 25, LAkEN LAiRD, JOSh RiGGS AND LYDiA PALMER; The Speaking Center at Mississippi State University: Making it Public, SARAh cOLVERT, ELLY LAMB AND GEORGiA cAPAROS; Story State—Crooked Letter Tales, cAROLiNE DEwBERRY, zOiE hENSON, EMiLY ANThONY & hANNAh whALUM; Lights, Camera, ACTION! Lighting Up The Magnolia Independent Film Festival, LUcY TREw, SYDNi VANDEVENDER & DERRick LEwiS II. cERTiFicATES OF MERiT: Improving the Recognition & Reputation of the Department of Communication, zOiE hENSON; Office of Prestigious External Scholarships: Posting with Prestige, MARY GRAcE MORRiS, AiNSLEY VENDUR & ELLA SiSk; Department of Geosciences’ Public Image Out of the Stone Age, SAVANNAh MUNN, EMMA DOTSON & EMERSON BORGELT.

STudENT bULLDOG PRISM AWArdS

TOP dAWg AWArd

Bringing the Department of Geosciences’ Public Image out of the Stone Age, SAVANNAh MUNN, EMMA DOTSON AND EMERSON BORGELT

BuLLdOg PriSm AWArd

The Speaking Center at Mississippi State University: Making it Public, SARAh cOLVERT, ELLY LAMB AND GEORGiA cAPAROS

BuLLdOg PriSm AWArd

Bringing the Department of Geosciences’ Public Image out of the Stone Age, SAVANNAh MUNN, EMMA DOTSON AND EMERSON BORGELT

BuLLdOg PriSm AWArd

The Starkville Area Arts Council: Curating an Online Presence, ELLY LAMB AND SAVANNAh MUNN

AWArd OF EXCELLENCE

The Magnolia Independent Film Festival: A Social Bloom at 25, LAkEN LAiRD, JOSh RiGGS AND LYDiA PALMER

dEPArTmENT hOSTS FirST ENd OF yEAr

AWArdS & SENiOr CELEBrATiON

BROADcAST & DiGiTAL JOURNALiSM

Spring 2023 Exemplary

Achievement Awards: Elizabeth Keen, Olivia Beck, Moriah Norman, and Jon Myers

Fall 2022 Exemplary

Achievement Awards: Graduates: Jackson Smith, Ben Shannon, Eli Thurman, Zachary Calhoun, and Jacquez Terrell

cOMMUNicATiON & MEDiA

STUDiES

CMST Outstanding Students: Collin Christein

Aspen Humes

Maggie McKinnis

Jessica Pettis

Sarah Rendon

Alena Read Sowell

PRiNT & DiGiTAL JOURNALiSM

Students of the Year:

Trey Barrett

Tanner Marlar

Katie Rainwater Sowell

dEPArTmENT hOSTS FirST ENd OF yEAr AWArdS & SENiOr CELEBrATiON, COnTinUED

PUBLic RELATiONS

PRAM Student of the Year: Zoie Henson

Greg Raimondo Outstanding PR Student: Reagan Young

ThEATRE

MVP Award: Jade Keaton

Award of Merit: Corin Davis

GRADUATE PROGRAM

May 2023 Graduates: Lance Pardue

Braeden Renfrow

*First students to receive the MSU Master of Arts in Communication

TWO COmmuNICATION mAJOrS NAmEd mSu FOuNdATION STudENT AmBASSAdOrS

MSU’s Foundation announced its new student ambassadors for the 2022-23 academic school year, and two communication majors were included among the new ambassadors: cAMiLLE wALLER AND ShELBY hODGkiSS, both juniors concentrating in public relations. MSU Foundation Ambassadors strive to support the mission of Mississippi State’s Foundation with fundraising, stewardship and marketing.

LOrA J. dEFOrE iNTErNShiP SChOLArShiP AWArdEd TO TWO COmmuNICATION mAJOrS

EMMA cROUch and chLOE JAckSON were awarded the Lora J. DeFore Summer Internship Scholarship. Both students submitted strong applications, and the scholarship committee awarded $1000 to each recipient.

cROUch will intern for Pinkston, a strategy and communications firm in Falls Church, VA, where she will learn about and execute the foundational pillars of public relations. She will also gain experience in crisis management, integrated storytelling, and strategic communications.

JAckSON will intern for Senator Roger Wicker’s office in the Demmer Scholars program in Washington, DC. She is a double major in communication and political science, and this internship allows her to get experience in both areas.

Jackson

Crouch

SPEECh & dEBATE COuNCiL COmPLETES ANOThEr SuCCESSFuL SEASON

The MSU SPEEch AND DEBATE cOUNciL, led by communication faculty member Cheryl Chambers and Brett Harvey, MSU’s Title IX/EEO director, garnered 209 awards this year and 52 individual event (speech) honors, both annual record highs. At the IPDA National Championship Tournament, the team took home several sweepstakes awards, including third place season long sweeps and third place national tournament sweeps.

NOVicE DiViSiON: BRiTTiN PERDUE 2nd place debater & 4th speaker; GUiLLERMO hOFFMANN MEYER 4th place debater & 5th speaker.

JV DiViSiON: LiNDSAY cULPEPPER 3rd place debater & 5th speaker; cLAiRE GREEN AND MAGGiE PhiLLiPS 4th and 7th place debater, respectively; TANNER MARLOw 2nd speaker.

PRO DiViSiON: DEViN hUTchiNS 7th debater & 2nd speaker; LUkE chANEY 3rd place debater.

VARSiTY DiViSiON: MiA ROBERTSON 1st place debater & 1st speaker. Robertson, a graduating senior and president of the team, has received 10 championship awards in her time at MSU.

ThE SPEEch TEAM this season earned 52 awards, including 14 first place awards, and earned seven invitations to the national tournament, a record for MSU. The following students qualified at the AFA National Speech Tournament, hosted by Santa Ana College.

STUDENT qUALiFiERS: ALYSiA MOORE AND AMARi cOOPER both qualified in Program of Oral Interpretation. MATTEO MAURO qualified in After Dinner Speaking. ViNEETh VANGA AND kYLA hUNTER both qualified in Extemporaneous Speaking. NYLA JONES AND ALYSiA MOORE qualified in Poetry Interpretation.

COmmuNICATION SChOLArShIP rECIPIENTS

AggiE WEEmS

SChOLArShiP

Sarah Campbell

Gabrielle Ferreri

Aaliyan Mohammed

Moriah Norman

Travontae Townsend

dOmiNiC J. CuNETTO, Sr. ENdOWEd

ThEATrE

SChOLArShiP

Corin Davis

dON ANd ShArON

vAughAN

BrOAdCASTiNg

SChOLArShiP

Callie Simonton

EArL LOvE guyTON

mEmOriAL

SChOLArShiP

Ryan Bergman

Amelia Byars

Taylor Cook

Zoie Henson

Emily Grace McCall

Addison Thompson

FOuNdErS

SChOLArShiP-hENry

mEyEr AWArd

Taylor Byrne

Margaret McKinnis

Maryanna Morris

Eleanor Palmer

Reagan Young

hANk FLiCk

mEmOriAL FuNd

Taylor Cook

Maryanna Morris

Mary Martha Willson

hELEN ANd JOE

PhiLLiPS

SChOLArShiP FuNd

Ryan Bergman

Amelia Byars

Taylor Cook

Zoie Henson

Emily Grace McCall

Addison Thompson

JACk CriSTiL

ENdOWEd

SChOLArShiP

Jonathan Addy

Aubrey Carter

Emma Hardy

Kalann Haymon

Emma Nisbet

Natalie Robertson

Callie Simonton

Eli Thurman

LOrA J. dEFOrE

mEmOriAL ENdOWEd

SChOLArShiP

L’An Estes

PAuLA mABry

ANNuAL

SChOLArShiP

Meg McDougal

STEvEN ANd ANNA

miNOr grizzLE

ANNuAL SChOLArShiP

Zoie Henson

Emily Grace McCall

Eleanor Palmer

Addison Thompson

TurNEr CATLEdgE

mEmOriAL

JOurNALiSm FuNd

Taylor Byrne

Jada Ewing

Caroline Flint

Kayla Fredericks

Emily Grace McCall

Meg McDougal

Margaret McKinnis

Maley Moak

Maryanna Morris

Eleanor Palmer

Kyle Spencer

Addison Thompson

Lucy Trew

Mary Martha Willson

Reagan Young

*AbovE sTUdENTs ARE 2022-23 sChoLARshiP RECiPiENTs.

TWO COmm STudENTS ON hOmECOmINg COurT

Two communication students are officially maroon and white royalty.

NATALiE ROBERTSON, a freshman with a concentration in broadcast & digital journalism represented our department on the 2022 MSU Homecoming Court.

AVERY BRADDOck, a senior with a public relations concentration, represented communication as MiSS MSU.

The court was honored during halftime at the football game against the University of Arkansas in October.

COmmuNICATION STudENT CrOWNEd mISS mSu

ANNA-kAThERiNE ThOMPSON, a junior with concentrations in public relations and broadcast & digital journalism from Ruston, LA, was recently crowned Miss Mississippi State University. The competition is a preliminary pageant for Miss Mississippi and Miss America.

Far left: Freshman Homecoming Maid Natalie Robertson

Left: Miss MSU Avery Braddock

LiNdSEy EuBANkS

ThEATRE | 2009 STARTORix MEDiA SOLUTiONS FOUNDER

dESTiNE LALAS

PR | 2015 MS AqUARiUM DiGiTAL MARkETiNG SPEciALiST

JANELLE FiNLEy AdAmS

PR | 2009 BUSiNESS AREA AMERicAS cOMM. MANAGER

mArC rOLPh

BROADcASTiNG | 2003

UMMc ExEcUTiVE DiREcTOR OF cOMMUNicATiONS AND MARkETiNG

ShEri

PAPE-BLyThE

PR | 2002

DOOzY SOLUTiONS SENiOR MARkETiNG MANAGER

rhETT hOBArT

PR | 2012 AUBURN UNiVERSiTY DEPUTY AThLETic DiREcTOR FOR ExTERNAL AFFAiRS

COmmuNICATION ALumNA WiNS PuLiTzEr PrizE

MSU Department of Communication alumna, ANNA wOLFE (2014), won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for local reporting for her investigation, “The Backchannnel,” which “uncovered the depth of the sprawling $77 million welfare scandal, the largest embezzlement of federal funds in the state’s history.”

Wolfe, a Mississippi Today reporter, published a multi-part series in 2022, revealing for the first time how state officials misspent money intended to help the state’s poorest residents.

Prior to joining Mississippi Today, Wolfe reported for the Clarion Ledger and as an investigative reporter for the Center for Public Integrity and Jackson Free Press.

FOrmEr mSu COmmuNiCATiON AdviSOry BOArd mEmBEr INduCTEd INTO gEOrgIA rESTAurANT hALL OF FAmE

ELLEN wEAVER hARTMAN, APR, Fellow

PRSA, president and CEO of Hartman Public Relations, based in Atlanta has been recognized by the Georgia Restaurant Association as one of three inaugural inductees to the Georgia Restaurant Hall of Fame for 2022. The award recognizes individuals who have exhibited the highest standard of excellence and professionalism in all aspects of the industry and have made significant contributions to Georgia’s restaurant industry and the Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA). A native of Starkville, MS, Hartman attended Mississippi State University but graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

ALumNI PrOmOTEd AT OBSIdIAN PuBLIC rELATIONS

PEYTON GARDNER was hired as account assistant at Obsidian Public Relations. Originally from Franklin, TN, Gardner earned her bachelor’s degree in communication with a concentration in public relations from MSU. During her time at State, she completed a communication internship for a local boutique and an interior design business, and she completed freelance work in social media management.

JENNA TAYLOR was promoted to account executive, having moved up the ranks at Obsidian Public Relations since joining the team in 2018 as an intern. Taylor graduated from MSU with a bachelor’s degree in communication with a concentration in public relations. While at State, she gained experience in writing, social media and public relations through internships with the Collegiate Recovery Community and in Seattle as a summer intern at Communique PR.

COrBAN TrANSiTiONS TO ASSOCiATE dirECTOr

FOr CArEEr SErviCES & PrOgrAmS AT mSu

kATiE cORBAN, a December 2008 communication graduate, is transitioning on campus to be the associate director of Career Services and Programs at Mississippi State University. She brings a wealth of experience to the role, having previously worked as the director for marketing and communication for the Division of Student Affairs and as the communication coordinator for Admissions and Scholarships, both positions also at Mississippi State. In her new position, Katie is committed to helping students and alumni achieve their professional goals by providing them with guidance, resources, and opportunities that will help them succeed in today’s job market.

Br OA d CAST i N g & d igi TAL J O ur NAL i S m

Terry Likes, Ph.D., Department Head & Professor

Kevin Williams, Ph.D., Associate Professor

Larry Strout, Ph.D, Associate Professor

Rex Jones, MFA, Assistant Professor

Marcus Hunter, BA, Associate Professor of Practice

Chris Misun, MA, Instructor I

Victoria Bailey, MA, Instructor I

C O mmu N i CAT i ON & mE di A S T udi ES

Melanie Loehwing, Ph.D., Associate Professor

John Nicholson , Ph.D, Associate Professor

Pete Smith Ph.D., Associate Professor

Holli Seitz, Ph.D., Associate Professor

Cheryl Chambers, MA, Instructor II

Amy Fountain MA, Instructor II

Amy Knight, MA, Instructor II

Logan Copeland, MA, Instructor I

Pri NT & d igi TAL J O ur NAL i S m

Philip Poe, Ph.D., Associate Professor

Wendy Roussin, MFA, Associate Professor

Heesok Choi, Ph.D., Assistant Professor

Josh Foreman, MFA, Instructor I

Pu BL i C rELAT i ONS

Melody Fisher, Ph.D., Associate Professor

John E. Forde, Ph.D., Professor

Terri Hernandez, Ph.D., Assistant Professor

Uyanga Bazaa, Ph.D., Assistant Professor

Karyn Brown, MA, Instructor II

Kelli Anthony, MA, Instructor II

Meaghan Gordon, MA, Instructor II

Anna Blount, MA, Instructor I

Th EAT r E

Matt Webb, MFA, Clinical Assistant Professor

Tonya Hays, MFA, Assistant Professor

Melanie Harris, MS, Instructor II

Jesse Wade, MFA, Clinical Assistant Professor

S TAFF

Haylee Crouch, MA, Academic Coordinator

Kala LeGrand, MBA, Business Manager I

Myra Keasler, Business Coordinator

Click to watch each edition of Communication Connection, a monthly show where Dr. Terry Likes interviews a faculty member, student, or alumnus about their work! Click