Far & Wide Alumni Magazine - Texas Tech College of Media & Communication
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Student Leaders in Action
A brief history of our Student Ambassador Program
34
2023 Year in Review
Photo features of events in the last year
TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY ® College of Media & Communication 10
38
Timeline of Notable Moments
• Eko, Kee Professorships
• Knight Foundation Grant & Misinformation Research
• Ad team wins National Student Advertising Competition
Alumni Spotlight: Darrin Hanson
Darrin Hanson supports the college that helped build his foundation
A Legacy of Impact
The indelible imprint of Burle Pettit
Called Up: CoMC to MLB
By Adam Coleman, B.A. Journalism, ’10; The Athletic, Staff Editor
The Rise of Esports A space to study the next frontier of gaming & streaming
A Global Impact A snapshot of our student population
STUDENT LEADERS IN ACTION
A BRIEF HISTORY OF OUR STUDENT AMBASSADOR PROGRAM
Leadership comes in many different forms. For the College of Media & Communication (CoMC), leadership is represented by a chosen group of students known as the Dean’s Student Ambassadors (DSA). These handselected students are the face of the CoMC, representing seven different majors and nearly 2,300 students.
Background of DSA
The DSA was preceded by the Dean’s Student Council, a group of students organized by CoMC’s inaugural dean Jerry Hudson with the goal of providing a student’s perspectives to the operations of the college. Meanwhile, the DSA was only a small team spearheading recruitment efforts within the college.
Because of the responsibility overlap, former director of DSA, Emily Balke, and former dean David Perlmutter, Ph.D., decided to merge the two organizations.
“[We] wanted to have one focused student service group that would not only be able to help us with so many aspects of the success of the college but also be a place where we could do some terrific leadership training that would radiate and help all CoMC students,” Perlmutter said.
Julia Heard Witt, senior director of advising, has seen the organization’s exponential growth and efforts to provide students with real-world experience.
“[We] noted that we wanted to grow the program and make it more professional,” Heard Witt said. “We recognized the time students give to us in that program and how they can benefit from it. I feel like this is a great organization for students to be able to give back to the college they love but, in return, also get access to alumni to really build their networking and professional skills.”
story by ARIANNA FLORES
Face of CoMC
Being a part of DSA means representing CoMC and Texas Tech’s values whether in the classroom, at local high schools, and even outside Lubbock. Today, they are led by Brooke Galvan, unit manager for recruiting—and a former DSA herself.
“Ambassadors help other students connect with the community, and they represent who CoMC is and what we do,” said Galvan.
DSA students work around the college in many facets, such as giving tours to prospective students and their families, helping current students during the “pop-in” advising appointments, and building their own network at various alumni events.
Each year, student ambassadors receive a scholarship of $1,000 for their contribution to the College of Media & Communication.
“[The] scholarship is a huge piece that former dean Perlmutter was extremely supportive of when it first evolved,” Galvan said. “He found value in supporting students financially. As much as the students put in, we want to be able to also give them that scholarship piece.”
National Advisory Board
Alongside their many day-to-day responsibilities, DSAs assume a frontline role in CoMC’s largest annual event.
Every spring, CoMC hosts its National Advisory Board (NAB) meeting, an event that connects board members to ambassadors and vice versa. Matt Wilson, the current president of the NAB and the senior vice president for sports for the Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau, said his favorite part of these meetings is giving back to students and helping them ease their nerves about finding a job after graduation.
“For our students to be involved with the National Advisory Board means they have instant connections to tenured professionals – people who have been doing their job for a long time and know a lot of people,” Wilson said. “The more involved you are with the advisory board and the more you’re involved with our alumni, the better off you’re going to be because you’re going to have more connections which leads to more opportunities.”
Leah Doherty, a former DSA in 2017 and current sports anchor at WOIO in Cleveland, said the skills she learned while part of the organization are incomparable, and the experience she had helped her grow into the professional she is today.
“I thought participating in the NAB meeting was such a huge advantage,” Doherty said. “Being part of the day and meeting people who are at the top in their industry and being able to pick their brains and talk to them was invaluable.”
DSA Leadership Dinner
Once a month, CoMC alumni working across the nation are brought back to Lubbock to connect with current DSA students during a professional dinner setting. During these dinners, ambassadors can ask alumni questions about their path to success, learning about the good, the bad and the reality of today’s workforce.
Galvan noted the worth of student ambassadors participating in the monthly dinners.
“Leadership dinners are a huge value, just being able to network with our faculty here,” Galvan said. “They get a little bit more face time with department chairs and faculty members than probably most students do.”
Ana DeLano, the Lubbock regional manager for Reliant Energy spoke about her journey into the professrional world, describing her untraditional path to success to students and how they can learn from her experiences.
“I was encouraged by how bright their futures were, I was impressed because they probably have it more together than I did at that age,” DeLano said. “It was nice to know that I could offer them some advice that maybe they hadn’t heard before.”
Chyna Vargas has attended nearly 20 dinners in her two years with the organization. The 2024 journalism graduate said seeing the variety of CoMC alumni succeed in diverse industries is invaluable.
“I enjoy hearing the different perspectives and pathways alumni take after graduating from our college,” Vargas said. “It truly makes me believe in ‘any industry, anywhere.’ While I don’t always relate to every alumnus, I can take a lesson they have learned and apply it to my own college experience. Making those connections and networking is crucial for future endeavors. For that, I’m thankful the organization coordinates these for the DSA.”
Past to Present: Where are they now?
Galvan started her college career as a student assistant to Balke and became a DSA while pursuing her degree in public relations. Balke first met Galvan at a high school leadership camp and remembered her enthusiasm and passion, a quality that has never wavered.
Now, Galvan leads the organization with eagerness and devotion, sharing the knowledge she has gained with students whose shoes she has been in.
Hunter Johnston, a public relations graduate from CoMC, said she credits what she learned while a DSA to helping her land an internship with Josh Abbott Band’s charity.
“DSA definitely prepared me for my future career,” Johnston said. “It really showed me how to be professional with my communication and work with others to bring insight into what was more important. I think DSA taught me how to have professional communication with peers. It really gave me an opportunity to learn the best ways to communicate with people in order to establish yourself in your role.”
Johnston has utilized what she learned as a DSA and Red Raider to her current role working as the senior marketing specialist for Cinemark movie theaters.
Kayla Barnhart said the Red Raider network and DSA connections helped her land her current role as a brand manager for TRG in Dallas. She recommends all students get involved in the college to help them in the future.
“DSA was the best thing I did for myself, and I think it really benefited me when I graduated,” Barnhart said. “There are so many opportunities to talk to so many different alumni in DSA, and they’re so willing to provide help.”
Current DSA, excited for the future
In May of 2023, CoMC saw 11 ambassadors walk across the commencement stage to tackle diverse careers and opportunities.
Dain Denham, a recent DSA and creative media industries graduate, now works as a communications coordinator at the Texas House of Representatives. He said giving tours at CoMC has helped him in his current role at the Texas Capitol and his leadership style flourished while a part of DSA.
“For me, being an ambassador was one of the first ways I could start to be a leader because we were all leaders in a big group of ambassadors and we’re all going to talk about our leadership styles,” Denham said. “I think DSA was a great opportunity to learn how to be my own type of leader.”
Current junior Averi Rice is in Houston working as a client legal contracts coordinator for a property management firm. Rice, a newly selected DSA, applied because of her desire to connect to the online Red Raider network.
“I saw a really great opportunity to help close that void between distance students and on-campus activities,” Rice said. “I wanted to get that help, participate and make a difference for students who might be in a similar position as me.”
Rice, studying digital media and professional communication, said she is honored to be chosen as DSA
and hopes to connect with other nontraditional students and show them that, despite the distance or online barrier, everyone is a Red Raider.
“As a Dean’s Student Ambassador, I hope this position allows me to help close the gap and make people more comfortable with the online formatting of things. That way, online students can participate just as much as traditional students,” Rice said.
Vargas, who served as a journalism intern at NASA, was named a team captain to the DSA squad in 2023. Through the various organizations she is involved in, including DSA, she has developed her leadership style.
“I believe one of the most important skills to have as a leader is being able to work well with others,” Vargas said. “Whether I was team captain or not, I would have to be part of a team whose goal is to represent the college to the best of our abilities. The same goes for a job. Individuals represent who they work for and must collaborate with others for the best outcomes. DSA emulates those scenarios for future professional experiences.”
No matter the year, the leadership of CoMC, or the degrees earned, the DSAs stand as a pillar among the energetic current flowing through the doors, standing alongside their fellow students as examples of what hard work and generosity can provide to the community.
CaseyBuscher, a familiar face in the sports media industry, has developed content as the team reporter and director of digital and social media for the Dallas Wings, the lone Texas WNBA team, along with the Panther City Lacrosse Club.
Buscher graduated from CoMC in electronic communication, now known as creative media industries, with a minor in public relations, and was a Dean’s Student Ambassador during her undergraduate years.
“DSA helped me become a better leader overall. And it taught me how to connect with people and the industry that I want to be in and how to build good communication skills. And just overall, build a career in media. I think with DSA I was surrounded by a lot of people who were very driven. And that helped me a lot with my career down the line, just being able to be inspired by my peers around me within DSA.”
Buscher reminisced and said her favorite part about being a DSA was being the face of the college, helping new students feel at home.
“It was easy to be involved with whatever I wanted to be because I was very well informed (about the college) by being in DSA. So I think that was my favorite thing, being very plugged into the college, and it helped me grow,” Buscher said.
Buscher said she is still in contact with her former DSA colleagues with several of them working in the television industry and still feels plugged into the Texas Tech network. The Dallas native has a long list of sportsrelated positions on her resume that have led her to her current role with companies like NCAA, ESPN, Texas Rangers, and Texas Tech Athletics.
“I’m really happy that I went to Tech because there’s so much opportunity at Texas Tech to get involved with really whatever you want to do. It has everything so looking back I’m very happy that I went there.”
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Darrin Hanson spent his first year after college crawling under dusty countertops in Amoco gas stations. He wasn’t searching for spare change or sneaking away from the responsibilities of a greenhorn professional. Hanson, equipped with a broadcast journalism degree from the School of Mass Communications at Texas Tech University, was installing point-of-sale systems. They even had touch screens.
But nine months later, the journalism graduate was leading his own team of installers, his hands clean of the ambiguous grime from bundling wires beneath counters. Soon enough, Hanson set out for California as the new on-site liaison between Chevron Oil Company and his employer formally known as EDS.
Then, Dell Technologies was knocking on his door. A few years later, his business cards read Vice President, followed by Chief Revenue Officer. Today, he stands as the Senior Vice President at Abrigo.
Without a broadcast station in sight of his career trajectory, Hanson nonetheless attributes his exponential success to his degree track within the then-School of Mass Communications.
“Guess why?” asks Hanson as he sits in the living room of his ranch home outside San Antonio. “I was good at communicating. I took so many experiences and lessons from my degree and used them. From those young ages, I felt I was good at leading meetings and facilitating strategy conversations simply because of going to a school centered in communication.”
Behind Hanson is a pool table claiming the middle of the room, a testament to his love story with his wife Maureen. Texas Tech memorabilia spatters the walls and shelves like black and scarlet paint— although, they must share space with some Aggie gear on account of
story & photography by JAMES LOSS
Maureen. The history of the Hanson family lives in these assorted tokens: the chance meetings and tough choices; the lives of three children now carving their own path in the wide world; and, of course, Hanson’s deep connection to his alma mater, to which he now graciously gives back on a regular basis.
Hanson, however, never envisioned himself becoming once again so closely bound to Texas Tech after graduating.
As fate might have it, Hanson grew up as an Aggie fan. Luckily, he says, his older sister made the wise choice to go to Texas Tech. After a few visits to see his sister during football season, Hanson was hooked.
“Lubbock is an oasis among West Texas,” said Hanson. “The campus is one of the most beautiful in the country, and then all you have to do is walk around a tailgate or the dormitories to feel that energy and spirit of what it means to be a Red Raider.”
Hanson joined the Red Raider family in 1990 as a broadcast journalism
major. Much like the day one opportunities hosted within the College of Media & Communication today, Hanson quickly became involved with extracurriculars to help develop his professional skillset and achieve his goals of working in sports media. All it took was a little confidence and a sideline conversation at a basketball game, and Hanson was employed by KAMC.
Working on Sony Betamax tape editors, Hanson helped keep the station running on its timely intervals for nearly the entirety of his college career. He even had an impromptu on-air moment when his mentor stepped out of the booth during a baseball game and pushed the microphone in front of Hanson.
Students of today will surely tell similar stories of their trustful mentors providing responsibilities for which they may think themselves unprepared. However, much like Hanson, they often leave the moment thinking, I can do it.
“Those were the cool experiences,” said Hanson. “But memories like
that always bring me back to the classroom, too. I was probably way too into myself and the TV station stuff, but I often think about how much I use the skills in my dayto-day work. And these are skills I wouldn’t have if all my teachers and mentors weren’t as patient and dedicated as they were.”
Hanson graduated in 1994 and began his career of positions, arguably, incongruous with his degree. He would not return to Lubbock for more than two decades.
As he jumped his way up the corporate ladder, Hanson was in attendance for a fortuitous pairing of friends in a pool hall near the Dallas area. There, he found Maureen and told his friend she had the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. A similar group of fans were watching the NFC Championship game the next day in support of the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys lost, but Hanson could not have cared less as he watched Maureen leave the house that day.
The Cowboys have not returned to a championship game since then, and Hanson often jokes he made an unwitting deal with the football gods on that day.
From Maureen and Darren Hanson sprung Reilly, Jack, and Kate. Reilly followed her mother’s path to Texas A&M, while Jack followed his father’s path to Texas Tech. Kate soon must make a choice for her collegiate allegiance, and Hanson says she has no desire to be the tiebreaker for the family.
It was through his son Jack, who is now a public relations major at the College of Media & Communication, that Hanson found himself returned to the deep spirit of his college days.
“In his first year, he was literally in the same dorm as I was,” said Hanson. “Seeing him there, spending time with him out there, it reminded me of all these conversations about
how much you care about your school. Not just the athletics and teams on the field, but also how you feel about the academics and what the school has to do with who you are.”
Sitting at the so-far peak of his career with Abrigo, Hanson witnessed the Centennial Celebration Kickoff at the Carol of Lights ceremony in 2022. Coupled with his resurging pride for his Red Raiders, Hanson was itching to get involved with his university again.
“We’re getting to be empty nesters,” said Hanson. “Thanks to career choices and chances taken, we are where we always hoped we’d be financially. So, we just sat down one day and we started to think about things that are important to us. Among many other things, of course, were our universities.”
Hanson said he received an outpouring of positive support from the university when he inquired about gifting to the university. Specifically, Lauren Hill, assistant director of development, helped Hanson review his many options to donate time and resources to the college.
In honor of his love for sports, Hanson provided a donation to Texas Tech Athletics, which will enshrine his name in the new endzone project at Jones AT&T Stadium. However, as Hanson pointed out many times, his college experience was characterized by great support from his academic mentors.
“We weren’t quite sure what a donation to the academic side would look like,” said Hanson. “Do you name a bench? Maybe a classroom? We didn’t know. But, again, all the credit goes to [Hill]. She was the first one that planted a seed about an academic scholarship.”
The Darrin & Maureen Hanson Family Scholarship Endowment will go into effect in 2024, set to provide
new opportunities for numerous future students. For a student to qualify for the scholarship, they must have a financial need, remain in good academic standing, and they must be involved in some form of student organizations. The latter requirement is a direct influence from Jack’s time at Texas Tech during the pandemic, when most involvement opportunities were highly modified or canceled entirely.
Above all, however, Hanson cites legacy and heritage as the driving force for his gifts.
“As you get a little closer to retirement, a little older, you start thinking about words like legacy,” said Hanson. “You start to think ‘This is a place I could really leave a mark, a place that is important to me.’ And, admittedly, it makes you feel young again. That sounds cheesy, but I’m reconnecting with this place
This is a place I could really leave a mark, a place that is important to me.
that I haven’t really seen for the last 30 years. A place that made me who I am.”
With the new endowment, Hanson has ensured his family’s legacy with the College of Media & Communication is just beginning. He said the heart of academics is the student in the classroom, and if he can provide the chance for one more student to be in that classroom, he can consider it a win.
“To me, I look at it a lot like my career,” Hanson said. “I always needed a reason beyond the paycheck. I think that idea— working for something greater than the paycheck—will be even more important for the next generation.”
In the ranch house outside San Antonio, Hanson and Maureen sit side by side on the couch. The sunlight shifts slowly over the pool table behind them. In this secluded space, Aggies and Red Raiders are allowed to hold hands under a ceasefire charter titled: It’s About the Students.
When asked what he hopes to get out his new relationship with CoMC, Hanson had a simple answer: “Time spent.”
Hanson and his family will have a chance to meet their scholarship recipients in 2024 at the annual Scholarship Luncheon. For future donors, Hanson leaves a final message.
“It is not a blind gift,” Hanson said. “You can be as involved as you want or not at all. You can see where the money is going and the direct impact. But at the end of the day, you have an opportunity to give something far beyond money.”
by JAMES LOSS
Legacy can be an important word for many. Especially, as the years begin to stack upon each other, many of us may begin to think about the impacts we have made and what we will leave behind.
Some people don’t think about it at all. And yet their actions, backed by unwavering virtues, create a potent legacy despite the lack of an agenda to do so.
Emory “Burle” Pettit, a monument to the standard of American journalism and beloved West Texan, passed away in May 2022. With overwhelming support from the Lubbock community and greater Texas Tech network, Burle Pettit is now the namesake of one of the most prestigious scholarships in the College of Media & Communication.
The scholarship is overseen by one of Burle’s sons, Scott Pettit.
In order to understand the significance of receiving a scholarship attached to the name Burle Pettit, one must first understand Burle himself. Fortunately for the recipients, a book dedicated to Burle Pettit’s achievements is handed out. For everyone else, however, history holds plentiful evidence of the impact left by Burle Pettit.
Hailing from Moran, Texas, Burle Pettit received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Texas and served in the United States Army from 1955-1956. He started at the Lubbock-Avalanche journal in 1960, where he remained for the next four decades and ended his tenure after serving five years as editor. In this time, he collected multiple awards from The Associated Press and United Press International.
Even in retirement, Burle Pettit remained the face of the newspaper. He continued writing columns, was named editor emeritus, and his name appeared on the opinion page masthead. In 2019, the book “A Boyhood Dream Realized: Half a Century of Texas Culture, One Newspaper Column at a Time” was published, which contains a collection of Burle Pettit’s work and is provided to all scholarship recipients.
The driving force within Burle Pettit’s passion for journalism was his dedication to accuracy, a characteristic cited many times by many former colleagues. However, his son Scott Pettit takes this thought a step further.
“I think the key thing, when thinking about where journalism really fit for Dad, was his obligation to the community,” said Scott Pettit.
Although Burle Pettit was paid to provide informative stories to his community, Scott said Burle always saw the impact beyond the story.
With an authentic concern for the people of West Texas, Burle Pettit placed the newspaper squarely in the middle of local policy, community engagement, and truth. A former mentee of Burle Pettit, Doug Hensley, who is now an adjunct instructor at the College of Media & Communication, sheds light on the
significance of the Pettit name in Lubbock.
“If Burle Pettit gave you the newspaper’s blessing, which he was able to do, it was a big feather in an organization’s cap,” said Hensley.
Hensley also quickly learned the importance of accuracy from Burle Pettit, which he says was perhaps one of the largest reasons people gravitated towards his leadership.
“You had to get it right,” said Hensley. “Obviously, being in news, he wanted to be first, but it was more important to him that you were first and right.”
One may begin to draw a stern image of Burle Pettit thus far, with his hawk-like attention to detail in an industry dominated by tight deadlines. However, one of Hensely’s fondest memories of Burle Pettit is how the man paid attention to his team. Whether it was critique or praise, Burle Pettit came to deliver the news personally.
“And if he came in there to give you praise, it made your day.”
Hensley, like many students and practitioners of journalism, makes note of a gradual but certain shift in the industry’s landscape since the days of Burle Pettit. Between social media, smart phones, and bipartisanship, some say evidence exists for the dilution of these traditional journalistic standards for which Burle Pettit vouched so deeply.
Hensley says Burle might feel sad about the state of modern journalism. Certainly, he would be sad about the fate of newspapers.
But the College of Media & Communication has not forgotten, nor will it soon forget, the lessons set forth by Burle Pettit to numerous mentees such as Hensley. And, with Scott Pettit endowing the latest scholarship in his father’s honor, he
is buzzing for the future of student journalists.
“Our goal,” said Pettit, “is to recruit the best students from all over the United States, to come here to Texas Tech, and learn journalism and apply journalism while they’re here. And then they’ll leave and make their mark out in the world.”
Pettit says he hopes to get younger journalists involved in the new world of multimedia and social media while still holding the instilled journalistic ideals of fairness and accuracy.
As of recent, CoMC journalism students are seeing exciting placements, such as Chyna Vargas, a 2024 journalism graduate, who landed an internship with NASA. Vargas is one of the first recipients of the Burle Pettit Scholarship Endowment in Journalism.
“To receive this scholarship was an honor, but what made it special was learning the history and legacy of Burle Pettit in journalism,” said Vargas. “I love being a part of something so unique and heartwarming. I can’t wait to see this endowment’s continued growth and future journalism students’ successes.”
Since enacting the plan to get a scholarship off the ground, Pettit has received an overwhelming degree of support from Burle Pettit fans around the country—the countless lives he influenced. When making initial phone calls, Pettit found an incomparable champion for the scholarship in former Chancellor Emeritus of the Texas Tech University System Kent Hance and many more.
“I believe that my father’s popularity was driven based on his writing,” said Pettit. “He would write on a broad array of issues, and he was such a great storyteller, that people really connected with him.”
being in news, he wanted to be first, but it was more important to him that you were first and right.
Although Burle was not a graduate of CoMC, Pettit says he could not think of a better place to plant the flag of his father’s legacy. Not just in the college, but West Texas itself.
“West Texas grit is unique,” said Pettit. “It’s something Dad wrote about quite a bit. He felt like it was a real thing. This part of the country is just really special. I think it starts with the work ethic. This climate, it kind of creates a little bit of grit getting through it sometimes. But most days, as we all know being West Texans, are beautiful.”
With such strong momentum lifting the scholarship in its maiden year 2023, Scott Pettit looks toward a future with more students walking away with his father’s book in their hand and an opportunity for education.
“This school is growing,” said Scott Pettit. “With the Centennial, there’s high expectations for the next 100 years. We really want to help these students, but when you look at the resources dedicated to journalism, they’re challenging. If we could fill that void and create a pipeline of talent coming into this school and helping with the newspaper, I think it’s going to make a big difference.
”
CoMC to MLB
by ADAM COLEMAN
B.A. Journalism, ’10; “The Athletic, Staff Editor”
Left:
Photo by Daniel Shirey / MLB
Photos via Getty Images
Center: Photo by Stacy Revere / Getty Images
Right:
Photo by Texas Rangers
It’s 23 days before
Opening Day and Emily Jones is preparing to travel to Arizona, where the World Series champion Texas Rangers conduct spring training.
Jones, a 1998 broadcast journalism graduate of Texas Tech University’s College of Media and Communication and Plainview native, is the on-field reporter for the team. She is entering her 20th season covering the Rangers. Her 25-year career has mostly been on television, spending time at what used to be known as Fox Sports Southwest before the network turned into Bally Sports Southwest.
Her stay in Arizona won’t be too complicated as she builds relationships with new faces and gets reacquainted with old ones before the Rangers’ late-March game against the Chicago Cubs.
Perhaps John Martin and Jones have crossed paths a time or two at Globe Life Field. Martin is a class of 2016 CoMC graduate with an electronic media and communication degree. He currently works as a production assistant for MLB Network. The job takes him all over and around ballparks as he assists on-air talent and camera crew members, among other duties.
Evan Triplett didn’t spend too much time in West Palm Beach, Fla. for the Houston Astros’ spring training — a quick two-day trip in fact. The class of 2019 graduate will be busy soon enough as the team’s manager of photography. He considers it a coup working at Minute Maid Park, just 20 miles from his childhood home in Deer Park. Triplett quickly worked himself up from team
photographer to his current title. Some might have caught a glimpse of him as a student photographer at numerous Tech athletics events. Now, he’s capturing some of the most incredible moments Major League Baseball has to offer on his Sony camera.
In the press box at Minute Maid Park is where New Deal native Kristie Rieken will be once the season’s
first pitch is thrown. Writing for the Associated Press requires her to be entrenched in multiple locker rooms across numerous major leagues. She says there is something special about baseball, though. The 2000 graduate with a journalism degree has spent more than two decades working for one of the most reputable news organizations in the world.
Photo by Texas Rangers
It’s not always about the action on the diamond, though. Baseball stadiums are not just baseball stadiums — they are entertainment venues. Kiyah Hays and Hannah Rodriguez know that all too well. The two work in special events for the Astros, helping the venue book, plan and conduct anything from weddings and Christmas parties to high school proms and corporate dinners and happy hours. Hays, a 2019 graduate, and Rodriguez, a 2022 graduate, are busiest when the team is away.
All the way in New York City, few are as busy as Carina Negrete leading up to Opening Day. The class of 2020 journalism graduate, minor in creative media industries and sports media certificate recipient, is a replay supervisor for Major League Baseball. Her days before the year’s first pitch are comprised of training and onboarding new seasonal employees.
Sure, the first sign of fall and football excites many Texans, but baseball season holds a special place, too. It’s what binds this diverse group of CoMC alumni together.
Each one has traveled a winding path en route to dream careers and —from young upstarts to seasoned veterans —each one also credits Texas Tech’s impact and influence as a reason they get to make careers out of America’s favorite pastime.
HOW TEXAS TECH HELPED ME GET HERE
Any Bally Sports Southwest Rangers broadcast could feature Jones interviewing players such as Rangers third baseman and fellow CoMC graduate Josh Jung, who has a communication studies degree. In many ways, Jones is a face of the team, or one fans often see at least.
What Jones does now is the culmination of a storied career that started at Texas Tech.
Raised by her father with her sister, Jones knew television and sports was were where she wanted to be, even idolizing ESPN’s Linda Cohn on SportsCenter before her own career helped her realize how enjoyable it is not being behind a desk all the time.
Jones didn’t have to travel far to realize her dreams.
“There was really no other college I considered,” Jones said. “It was pretty much always Tech. That’s where I knew I wanted to be.”
Rieken has spent many years in a clubhouse like Jones. She covers every Astros home game, and the game could lead her to write about many different things — no-hitters, division championships and more. Rieken’s byline could show up in any
Photo by Texas Rangers
publication in the world considering how many news services use the AP. She’s seen five World Series and even outside of baseball, this summer’s Olympics in Paris will be her third.
CoMC was very different when Jones and Rieken were in school, but the same prevalent theme then is present now: The college and city provide a wealth of real-world experience at students’ fingertips and the impact people in the college have lasts a lifetime.
A professor helped Rieken land an internship with the Lubbock AvalancheJournal. Those small progressions turned into personal wins for Rieken. And those personal wins turned into her start with the AP as an editorial assistant. Rieken covered her first college football game — between Texas Tech and Baylor —for the University Daily (now known as the Daily Toreador).
“We used to get to go to locker rooms in college,” Rieken said. “That was the first time I was ever in a locker room. That was kind of trial by fire, getting that real-world experience. Now it’s no big deal. But back then, it was big to get that experience when I was still in college.”
from beloved CoMC journalism professor Robert Wernsman, who passed away in 2015.
“The care that he put into the relationships that he built with his students was special,” Jones said. “At the time, trying to pull that off
Martin sees the television business from a different lens. He spends a lot of time with on-air talent in his role. He could be watching on-air talent like Alex Rodriguez rehearsing lines, helping transport said talent, coordinating schedules with producers and directors,
As many subjects in this story do, Jones fondly remembers current Associate Professor Bill Dean, who she considers every student’s introduction to the world of mass communication.
So much of Jones’ career is driven by relationships. How to forge those relationships is what she learned
in a sports setting wasn’t exactly the norm. I was pretty hellbent on not budging on that. I wanted that to be a big part of how I approached my job.”
That initiative carried Jones to a degree in three-and-a-half years, while graduating magna cum laude. She might be remembered mostly in Lubbock as a sports director for KCBD.
assisting camera crew and more. The effort and manpower it takes for just a single broadcast is lost on the average viewer. Martin is one of the many behind the scenes.
“It gave me a lot of opportunity to learn from these commentators about the industry,” Martin said. “You can learn so much from a camera but from the actual sports commentators, when you’re driving around these professionals who all played the game, it’s a whole
Photo by Texas Rangers
different inside into the reality of the game that you only take for granted as entertainment.”
Martin spent six years working for the Rangers as part of the in-house video production team at Globe Life Field and what is now known as Choctaw Stadium before that. He spent time as a shader, which requires keeping an eye on different camera angles and color correcting video. He also recorded and built highlight packages and sorted through replays. He’d work Rangers games and non-Rangers events at the stadiums. This role led to current work with MLB Network.
The native Texan will add this summer’s MLB All-Star Game at Globe Life Field to a list of experiences that includes every World Series from 2020-2023, which has taken place at both Globe Life Field and Minute Maid Park at one point or another.
This led to another opportunity and similar roles with NBC, NFL Network and CBS Sports. Martin, who currently lives in Wichita, Kan., has been a production assistant during Kansas City Chiefs games. He also helps at Kansas City Royals games. The catalyst for this career could be traced back to Martin’s time during
“That was the first time I was ever in a locker room. That was kind of trial by fire, getting that real-world experience.”
his junior year as a camera operator at Texas Tech Athletics events. He shot baseball, softball, basketball, football games and more.
Martin said Don Ellis, current associate director and academic advisor, was one of many at Texas Tech who provided a helping hand at the start of his career, even when it came to deciding video production as the path he wanted to explore.
Triplett saw plenty of work for Texas Tech Athletics, too. With some high school experience as a photographer, he remembers the feeling of imposter syndrome when he landed an opportunity to shoot for the school’s teams. He was thrown right into the fire with the season’s first football game in 2017.
Soon, that turned into College World Series trips with the baseball team and NCAA Championships in golf. Those were blocks for Triplett and his colleagues to build portfolios.
Photo by Texas Rangers
“It’s cool looking back to see I was trusted with capturing those memories and working with those teams and professionals at the time,” Triplett said. “… We were all just kind of figuring it out together.”
Working in the athletics department with a background in public relations helped Triplett realize how much versatility and creativity would help him after college. Photography isn’t just pushing a button on a camera —graphic design, Photoshop and more make up what Triplett calls a practicing art.
“Whenever you’re a college kid and you’re just grinding constantly, you kind of understand that you need to have so many tools to try and get your first job,” Triplett said. “If you’re just a one-trick pony, it’s not going to work for you right out of the gate.”
He took and learned from where he could. He cites how enjoyable Jody Roginson, currently an associate professor of practice, made her class. Even a few interactions with Chris Cook, currently an assistant professor of practice and assistant dean of enrollment management and marketing, in Texas Tech Athletics played a role. And to see the impact Robert Giovannetti, current senior associate athletics director, has had on the athletics communications department is inspiring.
Those experiences, embracing the grind and patience buoyed Triplett’s career. He landed an internship with the Minnesota Twins in 2020 before moving back to the Houston area, spending time as a substitute teacher in Dickinson ISD while applying and hoping to get a chance to shoot for a Major League team again.
The Astros called in the middle of class one day. Now, he spends his time capturing champagne showers in the clubhouse, player walk-in photos on Fridays, Jose Altuve’s 2,000th hit and the chaos that is the final out of a World Series.
“I pride myself on being this trustworthy, very loyal, very gritty hard worker and it’s been nice to see people — whether it’s here with the Astros or with the Twins or Tech — I think that goes a long way,” he said.
“I wouldn’t be here without Tech for sure.”
“It’s cool looking back to see I was trusted with capturing those memories and working with those teams and professionals at the time.”
about the science behind instant replay in the sport, Negrete can explain it.
“Every game has an umpire’s eyes on it because at the end of the day, we’re trying to show evidence to either confirm or overturn the play that has just been called into question,” she said. “But we don’t get to make those decisions. Our umpires do. So, it’s my job on the back wall to filter through our isolated camera angles and make sure I’m not missing the needle in the haystack.”
Negrete laughs and adds, “I know the rules of baseball more than I should.”
How did she go from CoMC to this?
Negrete remembers choosing Texas Tech for its professors and the opportunity for hands-on learning. She and Triplett echo many of the same experiences: the push to be well-rounded, creative and versatile can lead a CoMC student anywhere.
All the onboarding, sifting through the training curriculum and training of new employees is just a small part of Negrete’s job description. Also a Texas native, the 26-year-old is the youngest person to transition from seasonal status to full time as an employee with MLB’s replay team.
During the season, Negrete is in the office five hours prior to the day’s first pitch employing pre-game checks, testing audio with on-field umpires, communicating with ballpark techs, app testing and more.
You can find her near what they call the “back wall” of the room, working with other replay operators and providing angles to show umpires. Something as simple as reviewing a player being hit by a pitch isn’t so simple. If you’ve ever wondered
At Texas Tech, Negrete wrote about court cases, covered softball, learned how to design her own website and more. Also a Daily Toreador alum, she thought writing would be her initial path. She credits CoMC Professor Lucinda Holt for growing her writing and pushing her own boundaries on what she was capable of.
“Honestly, I think Tech just catapulted me and allowed me to gain confidence in myself and in my abilities,” Negrete said. “It taught me everything I needed to know to just dive into somewhere in sports.”
Negrete’s love of baseball is organic. Of Mexican heritage and from a family of Tejanitas, she grew up watching an uncle play the game. Working in baseball was a natural landing spot, even if it came with risk.
Photo by Julio Aguilar / Getty Images
Negrete moved to New York in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic for a season job that initially paid $21 per hour. Her fearlessness turned into favor.
Hays and Rodriguez also are proof of how a CoMC degree can take you to unique spaces. Hays has a public relations degree and has spent time in athletics communications and in the compliance department during her undergraduate days at Texas Tech and graduate school at Eastern Michigan.
That served her well when she found her way back to Houston, juggling work between the Astros, Houston Texans and Houston Rockets. Working communications for the Astros led to her stay with the organization as a special events representative.
Planning and executing an event for what could be hundreds of people inside the Diamond Club at Minute Maid Park or thousands for a college baseball tournament at the stadium seems like a far cry from her college coursework. Hays says that is not the case.
“I feel like so much of my major specific coursework was focused on building relationships with people - talking to people,” says Hays. “Things from how to build out a résumé to how to build a proper email. I will never forget just learning about the Associated Press and how to write. Those things I haven’t forgotten and that plays a role in my day-to-day. Any professional can gain something from that.”
Originally drawn by its cheerleading program, Hays only applied to Texas Tech, being assured by the sense of family she felt on campus.
And like Triplett, Hays calls Roginson’s class one of her favorite undergraduate memories, calling her course, “the most hands-on,
real-world application to sports that I had during undergrad.”
“Having that connection to Texas Tech is such a big talking point even when people didn’t go to Tech,” Hays added. “They’ll talk about Lubbock; they’ll talk about the dust storms. It’s such a good talking point.”
Rodriguez has quickly risen from pecial events intern to full-time events coordinator with the Astros.
Just before Opening Day, she was assisting the marketing team ahead for Autism Awareness Night at the ballpark. Next could be Princess Day, a networking reception for Home Depot, or community-related events through the Astros Foundation.
Rodriguez considers her journey to Texas Tech the path least traveled and one she doesn’t regret taking. Rodriguez works just 10 minutes from her alma mater Lamar High School in Houston.
Communication degrees can be very broad but there were plenty in Lubbock, Texas, who helped Rodriguez narrow her goals down.
Rodriguez even spoke to Debbie Davis, current associate professor of practice and associate dean for undergraduate affairs, before this interview. She fondly remembers working with Davis in RaiderComm, a student-run public relations agency on campus.
“I never had any interest in going into the PR agency, but I think it really helped evolve and shape my professional skills, which is something at that time I really hadn’t polished,” Rodriguez said. “She was a big influence in that.”
Lindsay Grannan, a senior lecturer in advertising, and her class focusing on event management was a big influence, too. It’s partly how Rodriguez landed where she is today.
“She really helped me realize this is what I’m good at and these are my strengths, and these are my weaknesses and how can my strength translate into profession,” Rodriguez said.
CENTERSTAGE FOR ASTROS-RANGERS ALCS
On a March 30 FOX broadcast of an Astros game against the New York Yankees, a graphic was shown highlighting the Astros and Rangers’ combined accolades since 2015.
It includes 11 postseason appearances, eight division titles, five pennants, and three World Series Championships.
Is Texas the world’s new baseball capitol? It’s a question worth asking after last year’s American League Championship Series between the two Texas franchises. The seven-game series culminating in a Rangers triumph was made for movies, from Altuve’s Game 5 heroics to Adolis García’s series MVP honors.
The alumni featured in this story had front-row seats.
Few can probably explain the history between the Astros and Rangers as well as Jones and Rieken. They were around when there wasn’t much history between the two teams aside from an annual interleague series. They were both around for the Astros’ move to the American League West in 2013. They were both around for the Rangers’ domination in the series and the Astros returning the favor.
Jones didn’t think she would ever cover a Rangers World Series, remembering 2010 and 2011’s shortfalls, and she was content with that. After defeating the Astros, the Rangers then handled the Arizona Diamondbacks in five games to win the franchise’s first World Series last fall.
“I always said my ring - my championship - was the relationships I developed over the course of this career,” Jones said. “I was totally fine if I did indeed walk away without covering a World Series Championship. So, for this to come, at least in my eyes, a little bit out of the blue was incredibly sweet, incredibly gratifying and kind of the cherry on top of the whipped cream on top of the icing on top of the cake for me.”
For Rieken, the theatrics made 2023’s ALCS so exciting.
“I feel like there was a different feeling and electricity to it with it being two teams from Texas,” Rieken said. “There were a lot of Rangers fans at the ballpark at the Astros’ stadium and vice versa. It felt like even though the teams had a little bit of bad blood between each other, I felt like for the most part it was a friendly rivalry.
“Some of those games were so exciting. I feel like it really lived up to the billing of a Lone Star showdown.”
Triplett, Hays, Martin and Rodriguez each call the Houstonarea home and are close witnesses to the Astros’ glory years. They certainly do not take it for granted.
Each still took time to relish how unique the 2023 ALCS was for so many Texas Tech students and graduates from across the state, though. Triplett called it a “crazy Texas thing” which might best describe the series.
Hays and Rodriguez note the friendly back-and-forth between former TexaTech classmates. They both have 2022 World Series rings from the Astros after all.
“It’s a well-known fact a huge percentage of Tech students are either from Houston or the DFW area,” Hays said. “So, that kind of rivalry is always a little bit of fun,
and everyone likes to talk a little trash every now and again. It’s fun.
“We didn’t come out on top this time but next time, I’ll be ready to run my mouth to whoever is willing to listen,” Hays jokingly added. While loyalties lie at home, there is universal joy for Jung and what he has accomplished at Texas Tech and now in the majors.
“It was really exciting just to see Tech jump in and I would see the
Photo by Texas Rangers
university post (on social media) Josh Jung and Parker Mushinski (Texas Tech pitcher 2015-2017, 2022 World Series champion with the Astros), both notable Tech alumni,” Rodriguez said. “Just to see the overall Tech pride and how the university seemed really proud to be represented was great.”
Even if Negrete is also a Houstonarea native and grew up an Astros fan, she mostly stays impartial for obvious reasons. But she
“I was totally fine if I did indeed walk away without covering a World Series champion.”
too was proud to see Jung’s accomplishments.
“Seeing him do something so cool and so great, seeing the fruition of all of that was very cool and surreal,” Negrete said. “It just felt awesome to see a person from my alma mater being able to succeed and go out there and do it.”
WOMEN IN SPORTS
Each alumnus featured in this piece is a trailblazer in their own right. That holds especially true for women in the sports industry.
Women such as Jones and Rieken have seen the landscape in a maledominated business change over the last two decades. It doesn’t change experiences early in their careers, though.
Jones was the second woman to become a sports director at a major network affiliate in the country. With that comes criticism. Jones is open about being a young woman growing up on television in Lubbock, Texas, and needing to develop thick skin. She remembers the carefree feeling of jumping in feet first.
But having allies is what mattered most, something she tries to pass down to other women in the industry. She didn’t have to look far for those allies.
“Those relationships that I established after I graduated were huge,” Jones said. “You mention Mike Leach, Bob Knight, Marsha Sharp, Larry Hays —the impact that those coaches had on me. They way that they treated me, it really was a nice respite from the criticism that I received from the public a lot of the time just because of the position I was in, being a woman in sports.”
There weren’t many women with bylines in baseball early in Rieken’s career. She’s seen a few bouts with sexism, too. She remembers being stopped often in ballparks and mistaken for someone else other than a reporter. But Rieken also had an ally in Dusty Baker — one of baseball’s most respected managers. “He said, ‘Listen it seems like you’re having a hard time and some of the other reporters aren’t very nice to you or very helpful. Anytime you need anything, just let me know and I’ll help you out any way I can,’” Rieken recalls. “He was just so
welcoming and so helpful to me and to have a legend in the game reach out to me and try to help, that really kind of told me ‘Covering baseball is OK.’”
Gaining that kind of confidence has been key for these women. Negrete speaks to the feeling of having to prove herself not only as the one of the youngest employees on staff, but also as a woman.
“Now I think I have built myself up so well in my professional career
“So now, I feel a huge sense of pride in being able to say I am a woman in sports and my colleagues also view me as an equal contributor.”
Representation matters for Hays, not just in special events but in other parts of where her career has taken her.
“It’s refreshing to see more and more women breaking into the sports industry and not being afraid to pursue that,” she said. “That’s even on the more team-focused side and the communications side, the marketing side. I see a lot of women walking around and that’s really refreshing.”
Rodriguez spoke about gravitating toward sports because of her father’s love of baseball, even jokingly calling herself her father’s son. What she does today with the Astros is something she shares with her father.
“I love seeing everyday more and more women are rising up and representing, especially being a woman of color,” Rodriguez said. “I think it’s wonderful to see especially here at the Astros, we are extremely diverse.
and gaining all of these accolades of being the youngest person in my department to get hired, it just kind of speaks to how I get things done and am able to keep things organized,” Negrete said. “So now, I feel a huge sense of pride in being able to say I am a woman in sports and my colleagues also view me as an equal contributor.
“It makes me feel like I am capable of anything.”
While Hays and Rodriguez are not on the field, behind the camera or in the press box every day, they too feel that sense of pride.
“Being a woman in sports, it is groundbreaking and it’s really nice to see how the world has changed, even from five years ago. We have so many women stepping into GM positions, assistant general manager positions, owners, minority owners. We definitely have come a long way, but I think it’s just the beginning.”
Photo by Daniel Shirey / MLB Photos via Getty Images
THE RISE OF ESPORTS
by JAMES LOSS
As of 2020, the video game revenue outmatches film, television, and the entire music industry combined. When stacking the revenue of all professional sports combined against video games, video games still win. All in all, the descendants of quarterhoarding arcade machines are fast approaching an annual revenue of over $200 billion.
Not sold yet?
Megan Condis, who were brought onboard to implement gaming design and culture courses into the curriculum with the Department of Journalism & Creative Media Industries. Although the project battled many red-tape pauses, as well as pandemic shutdowns, CESCL entered its soft launch phase in the fall of 2022.
eSports events and outreach. A CoMC alum herself, Barton first discovered the space when she was pulled into the early development stages as a consultant.
“I was doing similar work at the University of Michigan at the time,” said Barton. “I think [CoMC] just needed a good sounding board of people to try and figure out what this space was going to look like.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) released a report in 2021 stating that 67% of American adults play video games. Perhaps more importantly, however, the ESA release a similar report stating that 57% of parents play video games with their children at least once a week. In other words, it is safe to say video games are not the fad they were thought to be in those arcade days.
Thanks to the gripping power of games like Galactica and Asteroid, the first generation of gamers is just beginning to pass their love and passion onto the next generation with games like Minecraft and Super Mario Bros, thus setting the stage for the next generation of the industry itself.
Now, it’s hard to pass the space without seeing a handful of students plugged into state-of-the-art processing power and displays.
However, the lab’s capabilities extend far beyond simply playing a game at a cool computer surrounded by cool lights (it’s seriously cool). And CoMC faculty are energized about future possibilities, busy crafting plans.
I was jazzed to help out my old college because I love Texas Tech, but once that part of the project was done, I was sort of like ‘Okay, back to the Michigan work.’”
Soon after, Barton was asked if she was interested in overseeing the CECSL itself.
Barton teaches courses which feed into the CoMC Certificate of Game Design & Culture, while also, as she describes it, building the plane while flying it.
Much like Schweizer and Condis, CoMC brought in new faculty to give students full advantage of the revolutionized space. Cybbi Barton joined the roster in 2022 as a lecturer and director of
So where does college—or better yet, academia—fit into the equation?
The College of Media & Communication first prepared for the swell of video game interest by bringing games into its curriculum, along with two new faculty members to lead the way. Now, with the introduction of the CoMC eSports Competition and Streaming Lab (CECSL), CoMC sets itself at the center of student development in the video game industry.
The CECSL project was conceptualized in 2019, shortly after the hiring of Assistant Professors Bobby Schweizer and
“We’re still trying to figure out what this space can really be,” said Barton. “How is this space going to live and breathe? My mission behind the lab itself is how can we get as many people in that space to not necessarily compete and play and video games, but how can we use video games as the vehicle to have a better understanding of the academics of being a human.”
Games such as Rocket League and League of Legends have appeared on ESPN, supported by full teams of broadcasters, journalists, advertisers and, of course, the fans. As students in CoMC can operate cameras for Texas Tech sport teams, or report on the outcome through The Daily Toreador, mirror opportunities will arise for anyone with an interest in the gaming industry thanks to the CECSL.
competitions, maybe some camps for the region.”
However, like her peers, Condis envisions a future for the lab that creates opportunities far beyond playing with a controller.
“Even if people don’t consider themselves a capital-G gamer, there is a space for you here. Make an Animal Crossing club. Play some Mario Kart on the TVs. It’s not completely about yelling into your headsets.”
“We need to prepare graduates not only on how to make games, but also understand how to do the PR and advertising,” said Robert Peaslee, Ph.D., an associate professor and former chairperson for the Department of Journalism & Creative Media Industries. “The gaming industry needs organizational and intercultural communication. It needs people doing the consultant work, the HR work, the legal work. All these things that we do with film, TV, radio – it applies to gaming as well.”
Of course, the CESCL intends to host another important aspect of video games: the gaming.
Condis believes one of the biggest predictors of success in college is ensuring the student feels like they’re a part of a community, and she wants everyone to know they can find their space here.
Beside community stands education—that degree we all showed up for. For example, Schweizer hosts a course each semester in which students design and build their own board games. Perhaps one day students will load up Unreal Engine and create a video game of their own on the first floor of CoMC.
equipped with the tools, people, and knowledge to prepare students to face the largest entertainment industry in the world.
Key influencers on the project include Former Dean David D. Perlmutter, Ph.D.; Former Associate Professor & Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs Todd Chambers, Ph.D.; Professor & Associate Dean for Administration & Finance Amy Koerber, Ph.D.; Associate Professor Justin Keene, Ph.D.; as well as Barton, Condis, Peaslee, and Schweizer.
“This is expensive equipment that a lot of people just don’t have access to at home,” said Schweizer. “By us providing it to them, they have the chance to play things that they never would have and learn from them.”
The Texas Tech eSports Association has seen plenty of success in past competitions with games like Hearthstone and Rainbow Six Siege. With the CESCL, Tech eSports will have a space to meet, practice, and even host other teams for competition.
“We hope the space can be a hub for the wider community,” said Condis, who is also the faculty adviser for Tech eSports. “We’d like to host
Ultimately, the CESCL will provide a learning space which is not only unique but uncommon among the higher education landscape. After all, Schweizer and Condis represent the population of academia that were in-progress on their graduate degrees as the gaming finally found a firm hold in education. Now, along with Barton and the dedicated faculty at CoMC, they lead an expedition towards untapped and unknown potential.
Remember those big numbers at the start of the story? They’re only getting bigger. And CoMC is
2023 year in review
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CELEBRATING
Students Host Fundraising Events for Local Charity
Cyndie Buckle, an instructor for advertising & brand strategy, offered students the transformative experience of organizing their own fundraiser through her advertising campaign class.
Ad Team Competes on National Stage
Ad Team students compete at the 2024 National Student Advertising Competition. The team won first place in 2022 as one of the top eight teams in the country.
Harris Institute Teams with Library for Research
Lucinda Holt presented her findings on misinformation and disinformation of COVID-19 in Hispanic communities, a study made possible by The Knight Foundation.
EXCELLENCE
Alumni Lead Centennial Campaign at TRG
Blayne Beal and James Hering have led the planning and implementation of the campaign celebrating Texas Tech University’s centennial anniversary.
Professorships
Professor Kerk Kee, Ph.D., earned the Virginia and Choc Hutcheson Professorship in Mass Communication
Professor Lyombe Eko, Ph.D., earned the William S. Morris Professorship in Innovation, Journalism, and Information.
An Out-of-ThisWorld Internship
Journalism major Chyna Vargas spent the summer learning that good reporting is needed everywhere, even NASA.
