MIKE BROWN’S JOURNEY TO HIS KAZAKH ROOTS
When Mike Brown went to Kazakhstan for the first time nearly 13 years ago, he never knew what would open up in his life, both professionally and personally.
Brown, an emeritus professor of journalism, was director of graduate studies when he began a relationship with al-Farabi Kazakh National University (KazNU) and Karlyga Myssayeva, vice dean of its Journalism Faculty — a connection that was facilitated by Askhat Yerkimbay, a COJO alum who is now senior lecturer at SDU University outside of Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Brown and COJO faculty Cindy Price Schultz were given a tour of SDU University in Kazakhstan by COJO alum Askhat Yerkimbay. Yerkimbay and his family also hosted them for a dinner at his home in Almaty.
Last fall, Brown and COJO faculty member Cindy Price Schultz went to Kazakhstan to establish connections with other Kazakh universities and for Price Schultz’s sabbatical research about online journalism in the country. But while he was there, Brown also discovered some family history in a village in northern Kazakhstan.
Brown’s ancestors were Germans who lived in the Volga region of Russia. While his great-grandparents came to the US in 1912, other relatives founded a village in Kazakhstan. He discovered this information when he was editor for the Journal of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia
“It took several years to put all the pieces together, but I finally confirmed that my relatives were prominent in this Kazakh village — and this was before the Russian revolution,” Brown said. “It meant there was an opportunity to find evidence of relatives and I had
hopes of going to the village on one of my trips to Kazakhstan.”
Brown went with Myssayeva, Price Schultz, two Kazakh historians, and a camera crew from Khabar, the national television channel, to visit Karamyshevka, a village started by his relatives in 1906, a few hours outside of the capital city of Astana. Karamyshevka was also the name of the village on the Volga where Brown’s family originated, which is how this quest emerged.
“We started on a nice highway from the city, then turned onto a paved road, then it became a gravel road, followed by a very rough dirt road with potholes that could take out a small car,” Price Schultz said. “I was so glad that the man from the TV station was driving because it was quite an adventure getting there!”
When Brown arrived, the TV crew followed him to the village sign then into the town where the two cemeteries had grave markers with pictures and names of some of his ancestors.
When he was there, he said, “I really feel good about being here. It’s amazing because I’ve only heard stories about my family that came from Russia and lived in this area. To be here and actually see these relatives and this gravesite is something else. He was probably my grandfather’s cousin, which is really quite exciting!”
Brown became a viral sensation when the news story was posted on the TV station’s website. It has more than 40,000 views: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=A0hiRf0BsWM
Now that Brown has returned to the US, he has taken steps to learn more about the German-Russians that he found in the village.
Brown is interviewed by Kazakh journalists and assisted by KazNU professor Karlyga Myssayeva and two Kazakh historians at the gravesite of one of his relatives.
“There is an extensive library of information at the headquarters of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russians in Lincoln, Nebraska. I’ll visit the library this summer to see what they have. When Hitler invaded Russia, over 400,000 German-Russians were sent to Kazakhstan by Stalin. There’s not a lot of information available about them, and less about those who arrived before the Soviets took power, so we’ll see what I can find.”
While in the country, Brown and Price Schultz met with members of the US Embassy and officials at Eurasian National University. Also, agreements were signed between COJO and the Journalism Faculty at KazNU, as well as the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences at SDU University. Yerkimbay led a tour of the SDU facilities and hosted Brown and Price Schultz at his family’s home in Almaty.
“Since our first agreement in 2012, we have hosted several dozen students here at UW, and developed close personal
friendships, particularly with Karlyga and Askhat and his family,” Brown said. “This makes our visits particularly rewarding.”
In the 13 years of cooperation, nearly 40 Kazakh students have come to UW either as two-week interns or one-month visiting scholars. Price Schultz is looking forward to continuing these connections in the future.
“I appreciate that Mike came with me to Kazakhstan to introduce me to professors and others who understood the importance of the link between the University of Wyoming and that country,” Price Schultz said. “Now that I have been there, more COJO faculty can continue the legacy that Mike started.”
While in Kazakhstan, the COJO professors visited national parks, the Tien Shen mountains and the capital Astana, among other things.
The Department hopes its graduate students and others will go to Kazakhstan in the future to see the amazing work that in the international journalism field.
Mike Brown touches the sign at the entrance of Karamyshevka, a village started by his relatives in 1906 in Kazakhstan.
Epping
exhibits “Made in Peru”
In 2022, COJO Professor Shane Epping went to Peru with two undergraduate students to build schools in the small village of El Chino. Two years later, Epping returned to Peru to document the stories of women whose craft supports their community, promotes environmental conservation and keeps their cultural traditions alive.
El Chino is located on the Tahuayo River in Peru, a few hours south of Iquitos via the Amazon River. While volunteering there in 2022, Epping met a small group of women from the Association of Artisans, “Manos Amazonicas,” who make baskets, bowls, home décor and jewelry from natural materials sustainably harvested from the rainforest. Their traditional art of weaving generates income to support their families and allows the women to have a voice in the patriarchal society of Peru.
As a scholar, Epping approached the project through the lens of phenomenology and utilized a postmodern, transformative framework to document the essence of the women’s lived experiences. He took photos of each of the 16 artisans, interviewed them and filmed the craftsmaking process — from collecting chambira palm fiber, a material that comes from the leaves of a palm tree native to the Amazon rainforest, to selling handmade goods to tourists.
Naturally, the project came with its share of challenges, the biggest of which was accurately representing the voices of a marginalized community as an outsider.
“As an American male, who is probably perceived by most people as White, I am self-aware of my world view and perspective,” Epping said. “I was an outsider in Perú carrying sophisticated camera equipment, asking strangers who I may never see again, who speak a different language, to share their personal stories.”
To offset this imbalance, Epping sought the help of Dolly Beaver, chief executive officer of Amazonia Expeditions and a native Spanish speaker. Beaver accompanied Epping throughout his time in Peru, helping him navigate the language barrier and get acquainted with the local community.
The people of El Chino met Epping with warmth and hospitality. “It would have been understandable if any of the artisans did not trust me, but in all cases,
they were welcoming,” he said. “The presence of a camera and audio gear can be off-putting for those who are being documented, but that was not the case in Peru. Instead, every single person I had an interest in speaking to, welcomed me into their homes. They wanted to tell their stories. It was amazing!”
As a gesture of gratitude, Epping captured family portraits of almost everyone he interviewed and, with Dolly Beaver’s assistance, arranged for them to be delivered to the artisans.
Another challenge Epping faced was the environment of the Amazon rainforest. The climate was hot and humid, and the small village of El Chino lacked modern conveniences like air conditioning or refrigeration. Moreover, the rainforest was full of insects similar to mosquitoes that were happy to feast on an unsuspecting traveler. Despite the obstacles, Epping returned to the U.S. with a camera full of photos telling the inspirational stories of these women. Through his project, he aims to raise awareness of the artisans in El Chino, whose contributions help their voices resonate in a world where women are often overlooked and underappreciated. The photos were accepted in a juried, solo exhibition at D’art Gallery in Denver, Colorado, and were unveiled on Jan. 25, 2025. This endeavor would not be possible without the support of the College of Arts and Sciences that funded the trip with a grant.
Support Peruvian Artisans
You can buy authentic crafts made by women featured in this article: https://angelsoftheamazon.org/artisania-store/
Photos by Shane Epping, 2024
Bridging Design & Science
KAYLA CLARK’S INNOVATIVE
APPROACH AT UW
A familiar face in the University of Wyoming’s COJO Department, Kayla Clark has recently transitioned from assistant lecturer to assistant professor. As a UW alumnus and first-generation college student, Clark knows that the academic journey can be challenging and is dedicated to helping her students realize their potential as visual communicators.
“COJO is an incredibly welcoming and supportive department,” Clark said. “The faculty and students are curious, passionate, and eager to explore new ideas.”
In addition to the Communication and Journalism Department, she teaches in the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. Clark offers courses in graphic design, visual communication and science communication, such as Media, Science & Society, Graphics of Communication, Web Design and Social Media.
“The best part of teaching is seeing a spark of creativity ignite in a student,” Clark said. “It’s thrilling when they connect seemingly unrelated dots or come up with something unexpected,
thoughtful or clever. Design classes, in particular, give students room to explore, and I’m often surprised and inspired by the work they create.”
Clark believes in the transformative power of education and hopes that visual communication is not the only skill her students take away from the classroom. She encourages students to think critically, ask questions and not be afraid to make mistakes, as they are an essential part of the learning process.
Clark’s research focuses on community-driven and human-centered design and is often done in collaboration with scientists and experts outside of the design field. One of the projects she is currently working on examines the economic impact of arts festivals on rural towns during their quieter seasons. Laramie Winter Fest, used as a case study, will be held
A framed tintype photograph of Kayla Clark by Joseph Wyman.
for the first time on Feb. 15-16. “Laramie itself has a charm that grows on you,” Clark said. “It’s a small, entrepreneurial town with some hidden gems, but what really makes it special is the access to outdoor adventures in our backyard.”
A celebration of Laramie’s local culture, Winter Fest will feature local food vendors, artists and musicians, as well as encourage winter tourism and outdoor recreation.
Another project Clark is working on with a team of UW students and researchers is a smartphone app that crowdsources air quality data at outdoor recreation sites during wildfires. Several signs will be placed at popular backcountry recreation sites, and community members will be asked to take a photo of the landscape by positioning their cell phones on designated built-in trays. The app will then compare the image to a photo from the same site taken on a clear day and, by analyzing the visibility of known landmarks at varying distances, assess air quality. The real-time information will be communicated to other recreators to help them decide where they can go without compromising their health during wildfire events. The project won funding from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Phase 1 was conducted last summer on ten outdoor recreation sites in Albany County. Communitycollected data proved to be comparable to the calculations of specialized machines that measure air quality. “This is interesting because it could allow for this method to be used in backcountry recreation spaces where air monitoring sensors aren’t generally installed due to cost,” Clark said. “The signage could be placed in popular recreation sites around the world and ideally recreators could photograph and receive instant feedback about real-time air quality.” Clark presented the findings at the EPA in Washington, D.C. in June 2024.
Kayla Clark, Haub School students Colter Helm and Annalee Galley (middle) and COJO student Logan Ludwig (right) at the EPA.
An outdoor sign for the air quality assessment project. (Photo by Kayla Clark)
In a practice run at this summer’s North American Enduro Cup, professional enduro racer Fiona Dougherty races down a mountain on her bike in this photo taken by UW 2024 Larsh Bristol Photojournalism Fellowship recipient Forrest Cole of Wheatland. Dougherty competed in the professional enduro race held at Silver Mountain Bike Park outside of Kellogg, Idaho.
Marauders: Women Breaking Through in Mountain Biking
University of Wyoming journalism student Forrest Cole of Wheatland is the recipient of the 2024 Larsh Bristol Photojournalism Fellowship. He gave a public presentation about his work on Oct. 18, 2024.
“As a primarily male-dominated sport, mountain biking can be unwelcoming to women who wish to participate,” Cole said. Although women’s events are now recognized at the professional level, there is still a lack of support for beginner and unsponsored riders.
Cole spent the past summer photographing Fiona Dougherty, a professional enduro racer and co-founder of Mountain Marauders, a professional women’s mountain biking team.
Sports photography has always captivated Cole, who credits it as the source of his passion for cycling and outdoor recreation. Drawing on personal experiences in mountain biking, he decided to step behind the camera to document one woman’s efforts in making the sport accessible to all.
“When I got older, I realized I was just as interested in documenting those sports with a camera myself,” Cole said. “It was this interest that drove me to follow stories related to this sport, and Fiona’s story is one that I felt deserved to be told.”
The project took place in Durango, Colorado, where Cole proposed his idea to Dougherty. Throughout the summer, he photographed her at races and local bike shops, with other riders and by herself.
“I wanted to create something that showcased her passion for giving women the opportunity to have fun on bikes, something I’d heard her speak about many times before starting this process,” he said. “She’s always been an inspiration to me in that regard, and I wanted to help her efforts by giving her a platform to speak on.”
Cole hopes his project about Dougherty’s efforts will help inspire women elsewhere to participate in outdoor sports and help break down the barriers that hold them back from pursuing their passions.
“It’s an issue and movement that extends beyond the borders of sports, and yet, for many in my community, biking has become the showcase in which women choose to make their statement,” he said.
The Larsh Bristol Photojournalism Fellowship allowed Cole to develop his first full-length photojournalism project and bring his vision to reality. (Photos by Shane Epping)
The Larsh Bristol Photojournalism Fellowship is an annual award for UW students to support strong visual storytelling projects. It is named in honor of Larsh Bristol, a UW journalism alumnus who died in 2006. It has been hosted by the UW Department of Communication and Journalism since 2008.
Receiving the Larsh Bristol Fellowship was both an honor and an exciting new opportunity for me.
It has taught me a lot about putting storytelling with a camera into practice and the work that goes along with it. It has equally shown me how rewarding doing so can be and has helped me better connect with the supportive faculty within UW’s Department of Communication and Journalism.
— Forrest Cole
STUDENT HIGHLIGHT
By Micaela Myers and Inna Willis
When Jack O’Neil visited the University of Wyoming, he told swimming and diving Coach Dave Denniston that if he joined the swim team, he wanted to be treated like every other athlete — he wanted to be pushed just as hard. And he was. As team captain, he also helped push his teammates.
O’Neil didn’t set out to be a role model or an inspiration, but as a decorated athlete, high-achieving student and someone with one leg, he understands that it goes with the territory.
“I realize that I have the power to be an inspiration every day, and I don’t take that lightly,” said O’Neil, who came to UW from Colorado Springs. “Every day that I show up to practice, I hold myself to the highest standards and hold other people to the highest standards. I recognize that I have a unique platform.”
He was born with a variety of issues in his left leg. After multiple surgeries and complications, the leg was amputated in 2013.
Now a senior at UW, O’Neil says that he strives to be a good teammate and a good person and to embrace his role as a leader.
In addition to Division I swimming, he competes internationally. His accomplishments include competing in the U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships multiple times and becoming a three-time silver medalist at the 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile.
Jack O’Neil (left) and David Abrahams from Harvard in their Team USA gear. (Photos by O’Neil and UW Athletics)
O’Neil is also a standout student, making the Western Athletic Conference All-Academic honors list. He is majoring in journalism with minors in honors and disability studies. In reflecting on his time in the Department of Communication and Journalism, O’Neil brings up a project that inspired him to pursue a career in sports journalism.
“I wrote about the intersectionality of disability and golf, two things that are very close to me, and it was so rewarding,” he said. “I realized that I could make a career out of writing about things that I care about and now I am doing that as an intern with Wyoming Public Media.”
As an athlete, O’Neil knows that his career as a swimmer will come to an end one day. However, that does not deter him from pursuing his passion. O’Neil is determined to stay involved in sports by becoming a sports reporter or a play-by-play announcer.
“The COJO major has been super helpful in giving me real practice for what I hope to do one day,” he said. “I feel that I am starting out with a good idea of how to tackle reporting and create a story in a short time. The connections I have made from being in the COJO major have made me confident about graduating and finding work, which is a relief.”
This past summer, O’Neil became an Olympian, competing in the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris.
“One thing that I noticed in Paris was that reporters were basically athletes without the competing part,” he said. “It made me realize that I can continue to live out my athlete lifestyle in a new way, which makes me really excited for the future.”
COJO Faculty Kudos
TOP SIX PAPER AWARD
Professor Hye Soo Nah received a Top Six Paper Award at the Southwest Education Council for Journalism and Mass Communication conference in Round Rock, Texas, in October 2024. Her paper examines how news images of political outgroup members contribute to emotional arousal and reinforce partisan differences.
COJO had two award winners for the UW International Photo Contest in November 2024. Professor Shane Epping won second place in the faculty-staff category for his picture of a smiling sloth that he took in Peru. Student Sera Glass won third place in the Study Abroad category for a photo that she took in Japan while studying people with mixed-race Japanese heritage.
UW PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS
Sera Glass posing with her photo from a trip to Japan.
Shane Epping posing with his photo of a smiling sloth.
Hye Soo Nah
(COJO Kudos cont. on p. 12)
ALUMNI HIGHLIGHT
A COJO alumnus and multiple award recipient for his contributions to the Laramie community, Nicholas Jesse is passionate about empowering others and inspiring change.
Jesse graduated from the University of Wyoming in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in communication and minors in African American & Diaspora Studies and public law. He currently works as a senior project coordinator at the Wyoming School-University Partnership.
In 2024, Jesse received the True Grit Award for his efforts at the UW College of Education and the Laramigo Award for Community Engagement for his contributions to Laramie’s LGBTQ+ community through his work with Laramie PrideFest where he served as co-chair. “Having received these awards is a huge honor, primarily because it is a demonstration that the work I have been doing to foster and build community is valued,” Jesse said. “Having been born and raised in Laramie and to be named a Laramigo is surreal to say the least. It feels like my work and my life have come full circle which means so much.”
Jesse strives to promote visibility and expand inclusive spaces for the LGBTQ+ community in his hometown. “My favorite fundraising effort was working with two local coffee shops, Motive Coffee and Sunshine Coffee, to sell a limited release coffee roast during Pride Month,” he said. “I LOVE coffee and this was so much fun to connect with Jeff at Motive and Megan at Sunshine to build relationships and collaborate on something tasty.”
Jesse had also started the Fun Committee at the UW College of Education with a couple of his colleagues to promote community building through creative events, projects and activities.
Jesse believes in the transformative power of community service and encourages others to take the first step.
“We have the power, we just have to learn to tap into those undiscovered skillsets and leverage them to shape our communities for the better,” Jesse said. “Also be LOUD about your ideas. You might have a creative and unutilized idea that has not ever come up before, and your voice matters in the spaces you operate in. Use that voice!”
Jesse’s dedication to community service is fueled by his passion for social justice, education and politics, which started back when he was pursuing his bachelor’s degree. He began as a political science major, but decided to switch to communication after taking a class with former instructor Rebecca Roberts. Jesse remembers Mitzi Stewart’s course on business and professional communication, which helped him in building
Alex Rickert (left) and Nicholas Jesse (right) pose with staff recognition awards in May 2024. (Photo by Nicholas Jesse)
relationships with various organizations throughout his career. Jesse was also inspired by Dr. Tracey Patton’s course on rhetoric and social justice, which empowered him to believe in his ability to foster connections between people while considering marginalized and intersectional identities.
“I have been using my degree from the time I left school,” Jesse said. “Understanding crosscultural communication and communication boundaries has allowed me to succeed in any environment.”
Since graduation, Jesse has worked as a media assistant with Wyoming Public Radio, a paralegal, an insurance counselor and, most recently, a senior project coordinator. Jesse returned to his alma mater in 2023 to pursue a master’s in public administration and is considering running for local office after graduation.
COJO Faculty Kudos
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION ASSOCIATION
Professors Sandy Hsu and Li Li attended the 74th annual conference of the International Communication Association in Gold Coast, Australia in June 2024. Hsu presented one of the top papers for the Instructional Communication Division, while Li was the respondent for the panel.
VISCOMM 38 CONFERENCE
Several COJO professors and a master’s student presented at VisComm 38, a national visual communication conference on June 17-20, 2024, in Saratoga. Professor Cindy Price Schultz discussed the use of visuals and symbols in Twitter posts for women’s basketball teams in the Southeast Conference. Professor Shane Epping shared the preliminary results of his photographic journey to Peru (Learn more on p. 5-6). Professor Hye Soo Nah discussed how news images can affect perceptions and emotions. Emeritus professor Mike Brown talked about visual artists from the Soviet Gulags. Student Hanisah Hassim presented her findings on perceptions of harassment or romance in rom-com movies.
Nicholas Jesse (left) and his partner Tom in the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. (Photo by Nicholas Jesse)
(COJO Kudos cont. from p. 10)
Hye Soo Nah presenting her research at VisComm 38.
Professors Hsu and Li at the ICA conference.
University of Wyoming
COJO Department
Ross Hall 223/224
1000 E. University Ave. Laramie, WY 82071
uwyo.edu/cojo cojoofc@uwyo.edu (307) 766-3122
Design and layout by Inna Willis