Cornerstone University

2012-2013

Division of Communication & Media Assessment Report

Table of Contents

Summary of Assessment Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 - 3 Division Meeting Dates & Minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 - 17 Divisional Assessment Meeting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 – 23 Supporting Documents: Proposal for Curricular Change – Digital Media . . . . . Appendix I Proposal for Curricular Change – Audio Production. . . Appendix II Proposal for Curricular Change – Public Relations . . . Appendix III Proposal for Curricular Change – Photography . . . . . Appendix IV Proposal for Curricular Change – Journalism . . . . . . . Appendix V

Assessment Report for the Communication and Media Studies Division

2012/2013

Division Chair Summary

Assessment Goals

C&M has continued to identify areas of growth within the five major departments. New

programs have been added and existing programs reformatted. This year will see an increased

assessment presence from the chair with an extra course release for divisional business.

Division Meetings

Throughout the year, the CMS faculty has met to conduct regular academic business, but also to

target course-wide assessment of the majors. The minutes of each meeting are included.

Also in Appendix I is the supporting documentation for the Digital Media Major which will be

launched in 2013. This program seeks to leverage the curriculum offerings from Kendall

College of Art and Design in the current minors of Digital Media and Graphic Design. By using

classes in CU majors - Film and Video Production, Audio Production and Photography

production, in addition to the graphics classes at Kendall, this new major will create graduate

outcomes for a media generalist.

Department Assessment

Audio Production

During the 2012/2013 year, the audio production program was reengineered from a core major

with three specialist strands of Radio Production, Music Production and Audio Post-Production,

to single more generalist curriculum. The supporting documentation is included in Appendix II

Goals for 2013

- Monitor the changes in curriculum content in the new design

- Launch new class in Music Fundamentals for Audio Professionals and assess the

effectiveness through student feedback

- Plan new class in Audio Production for new media

Communications

The Communication department continued to monitor the cognates of Broadcast Com and

Strategic Com. There was a desire to reexamine a generalist COM outcome for students who are

not interested in on-air talent or a business focus, or for those who desire a thinner compliment of

classes for a double major.

A weakness was identified in that the communication department has moved from three full-time

professors to one over the span of the last decade, yet enrollment has not significantly declined.

This will be a primary goal of 2013 – to secure a new faculty member.

Goals for 2013

- Generalist Communication as a potential offering for Fall 2014

- Continued work towards a health COM cognate

- Differentiate strategic communication from public relations in graduate outcomes

- Secure new faculty member

Film and Video Production

A strategic plan has begun to be formulated to address enrollment, facilities and curricular needs.

While the faculty continue to monitor the new degree design, the change in facilities is

prompting a discussion on the mission and vision of the program. A clearer definition of mission

heading will be a goal for this year.

Goals for 2013

- Refine mission and vision of the program

- Monitor changes to the degree program through OCEs and student focus groups

- Begin connecting assessment items in individual courses to program learning

objectives

Journalism

Journalism achieved all three goals from 2012 - planting two new majors in Public Relations and

Photography and in reconstituting the Journalism major as a single focus. This documentation is

included in appendix III, IV and V. The goal this year is to monitor those changes to ensure the

path is matching with the industry trends. Also the division acquired a social media grant and

Journalism has begun to examine how this could be used to complement their curriculum.

Goals for 2013

- Monitor development of new major

- Seek to integrate social media class

- Investigate electronic production options and overlaps

Theatre

Theatre assessment will continue in examining the viability of classes and curriculum structure

of both the theatre arts and music theatre strand. With a change in facilities, the theatre major

will need to work towards matching curriculum and resources. This will be the primary goal.

Goals for 2013

- Examine the matching of curriculum and resourcing

- Begin strategic plan for increasing long term viability of the program

- Seek to develop strategies to boost enrollment

2012 – 2013 Division Meetings were held:

Aug. 27, 2012

Sept. 10 & 24, 2012

Oct. 1, 2012

Dec. 3 &10, 2012

Jan. 21, 2013

Feb. 18, 2013

Mar. 18, 2013

Apr. 8, 2013

Meeting of Division of Communication & Media Monday, Aug. 27, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Duff, Anderson, Sindorf, Blanchard, Porter, Hunter, Miller, Poling

Prayer Requests: Dave - recruitment efforts; Kathy - media team- teaching efforts and her Honduras

trip; Alan – modernizing the JRN program, his father as he deals with the homegoing of Alan’s mom, and

Alan’s youngest son has serious health issues; Brad – housing situation; Jennifer – Jason’s work

schedule; Randy - his parents’ care and major decisions to make; Desiree – Haley’s health and her

evaluation for surgery next week; Pete - continuing research for his doctorate and praise for progress at

his church. Pete opened in prayer.

Announcements

Jennifer needs more students for the London trip during J-term in January, 2013.

Desiree needs additional Intercultural Communication students this fall.

Kemp’s job description now covers divisional support in addition to FVP department support.

2012-2013 Goals & Aspirations for Division of Communication & Media

Media—keep working toward industry relevance, students graduating w/quality education, eliminate

redundancy within the program, identify specific skills for students to prepare them for employment,

produce greater caliber of story-telling through faculty teamwork and one-on-one student mentoring.

(WELCOME, BRAD!)

Journalism—improve relevance of the program, emphasize writing skills are sought after by employers,

prepare students for life after school, look at ways to embed technology in journalism courses, achieve

stand-alone PHO and PR majors by the end of FA12.

Theatre—revise THR major, add a hip-hop class and possibly a part-time person for ticketing/marketing,

devise an accountability system w/students, address the need for more THR students and grow the

major as well.

Audio—examine curriculum, help FVP students produce great audio on their projects, build on basics,

continue to bridge gaps w/music department, grow the audio talent base, work on possible Pro Tools

certification for CU students, initiate Tuesday Night Music Club—provide professional environment for

writers to bring in their music and compile an album.

Communication—evaluate the Strategic and Broadcast emphases and possibly rename them for more

flexibility, possibly offer conflict management and other new classes in the future.

The Future of the Division of Communication & Media

Pete led discussion by asking, “As we think about our majors, are there common student learning

objectives shared by CM departments for which team-teaching is applicable?” The responses included:

public speaking and presentation/persuasion skills

writing journalistically

conflict management

interpersonal communication

team-building/problem-solving/leadership skills

visual communication skills

peer assessment/critique

creativity/storytelling craft

media entrepreneurial skills

functioning in a corporate environment

Pete asked a second question, “What are some things Pete and/or the institution can do to make your

job easier or more effective?” Responses included these action items:

Pete will schedule a meeting with Joe Stowell, Bill Knott, Rick Ostrander and Marc Fowler to ask

purposeful questions about the proposed chapel/media/music arts building. C & M faculty

input will be gathered at our division meeting on Mon., Sept. 24, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Mary will send a survey to our faculty, asking them to give feedback about developing different

approaches to curriculum and determining which C & M divisional courses should be taken by all

of our JRN, THR, COM, AUD and FVP students. Results will be discussed at our division meeting

on Mon., Sept. 10, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

C & M faculty will email Pete or Mary suggestions for making their jobs easier and/or more

effective.

Adjournment

Next scheduled division meeting is Mon., Sept. 10, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Sept. 10, 2012 @ 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Porter, Miller, Hunter, Blanchard, Sindorf, Duff, Poling

Old Business

Focusing on four main areas, discussion continued to find which C & M divisional courses should be

taken by all of our JRN, THR, COM, AUD & FVP students:

public speaking and presentation/persuasion skills—Des reported advanced public speaking students learn six key strategies, including story, difficult concepts explanation, motivational speech, philosophy of life speech , expository workshops and readings.

persuasive/factual writing—Alan related that his JRN courses cover feature/narrative,

interviewing and propaganda. Alan’s students learn to prioritize information as they write a life

story, news column, or report on an actual event. Alan suggested identifying desired writing

outcomes; Kathy responded that students need practical and business writing skills.

group communication (combination of conflict management, interpersonal communication and

team-building/problem-solving/leadership skills)-- There was consensus for team-teaching COM

321 Group Communication to students in all C & M departments. Des and Kathy have been

tasked with creating a syllabus to reflect these proposed changes.

visual communication skills—It was discussed that students need to achieve basic audio,

photography, and electronic media skills in order to create websites, do videos, etc. This need

may be addressed with a survey course that covers images and words.

Adjournment

Prior to our next meeting on Mon., Sept. 24 at 10 a.m.:

1) Please devise your department’s wish list for the proposed chapel/media/music arts building and look over past architectural info located at Mary’s desk. Square footage should be adequate for 200 C & M majors.

2) Determine what media skills are most commonly needed for our C & M majors.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Sept. 24, 2012, at 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Duff, Sindorf, Lyons, Hunter, Miller, Porter, Poling

Prayer Requests: Hayley Duff’s pending surgery; Jennifer’s girls adjusting to no pets. Pete opened in

prayer.

Old Business

Proposed chapel/media/music arts building – Pete reported that CU administrators are ready to hire an

architect, and he encouraged immediate attention be given to formulating facility needs-- including

square footage, equipment, and personnel wish lists—prior to UAC’s next meeting.

These ideas were suggested for purpose-built spaces in the new building, in light of future division

growth:

Presentation classrooms with cameras (for student feedback and distance learning)

Modular classrooms, possibly with dividers, that would be conducive to small groups

Mock business room

Studios

Faculty offices

Pete stressed the importance of putting ideal square footage requirements on paper for each

department; he advised consulting 2007 architectural plans for baseline information.

Other issues to be addressed:

Viability of converting Faber Hall solely for Division of Communication & Media’s use

Personnel needs and how our faculty will be involved in the hiring process

Adjournment

Next division meeting is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 1, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Oct. 1, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Duff, Sindorf, Hunter, Blanchard, Porter, Miller, Poling

Prayer Requests: Hayley Duff’s surgery scheduled for 12-3-12; Brad closing on his new house; Alan will

moderate a local political event; Kathy requested prayer for CBN’s president while in Chad; Jennifer’s

praise for Jason’s new work schedule. Pete opened in prayer.

Old Business

2013-2014 Academic budget requests for UAC were decided:

Increase guest lecturer allotment from $2,500 to $5,000

Communication faculty new hire

Theatre Tech new hire (part-time faculty/part-time technician)

Theatre Marketing new hire

Discussion included gathering statistics for existing and potential majors in Communication and Theatre.

Pete suggested prioritizing these needs and then submitting them to UAC on a regular basis. Jennifer

proposed full-time hours for the division’s administrative assistant; this would be a matter for the

personnel committee.

Square footage needs were discussed for the proposed chapel, media & music arts building:

Expanded TV studio & control room.

Add auditorium for Theatre.

Communication Dept. needs collaborative, hi-tech classrooms w/lab.

“The Herald” office will need a TV studio.

Pete directed everyone to give their specific square footage estimates to Mary, prior to UAC’s next

meeting on Thurs., Oct. 11, 2012, at 2:30 p.m.

Adjournment

Next scheduled division meeting is Monday, Oct. 8, 2012, at 10:00 a.m.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Nov. 26, 2012 – 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Sindorf, Miller, Porter, Blanchard, Hunter, Duff, Poling

Prayer Requests: Hayley’s surgeries, Alan’s father, son’s health issues and church decisions; Pete’s

dissertation interviews, Randy’s family, closing on Brad’s new house. Pete opened in prayer.

New Business

Registrar requires FA13 course schedule by Dec. 3, 2012. Please review proposed FA13 course list and 5

yr. plan for our division, and send changes to Mary by Thurs., Nov. 29, 2012.

Old Business

Curriculum discussion included:

Proposals for four 1-credit JRN 380 internships and new JRN 101 Intro to Broadcast/Digital/Print Media

Writing (tabled).

Need for intro media writing curriculum prior to MDA 318 Writing for Electronic Media, whether

incorporated as pod-taught broadcast writing in JRN 201 Newswriting & Reporting I, embedded in COM

161 Intro to PR (at 4 credits), or created as a free-standing course.

Evaluate content for MDA 271 Video Production I and JRN 480 Multi-Media Reporting.

Develop JRN 370 Principles of Social Media; get ready to submit to UAC.

Next steps for Photography curriculum need to be identified. Updated digital copy will be sent to

faculty; please email your feedback to Pete this week.

Adjournment

Next scheduled division meeting is Monday, Dec. 3 at 10 a.m.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Dec. 3, 2012, 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Miller, Blanchard, Porter, Anderson, Sindorf, Poling. Kathy opened in prayer.

Announcements:

Academic catalog revisions are due by mid-January.

Next UAC meeting is Thurs., Dec. 13, 2012.

Next division meeting is tentatively scheduled for Mon., Dec., 10, 2012, at 10:00 a.m.

Old Business

Pete led discussion on curricular change proposals for

JRN: Name change from B.S. in Journalism w/News Editorial to B.S. in Journalism, with additional

targeted electives and local option for the immersion semester

AUDIO: Name change from B.A. in Audio Production w/radio, music or sound for film to streamlined

B.A. in Audio Production.

PHOTOGRAPHY: Name change from B.S. in Journalism w/Visual Communication to B.A. in Photography.

DIGITAL MEDIA: Create B.A. in Digital Media, including Kendall College of Art & Design courses and

existing CU courses in film, audio, and photography.

Additional discussion centered on

embedding internship hours in immersion semesters

awarding credit for the 6-semester requirement for “The Herald”

retaining course name JRN 201 Newswriting & Reporting I

comparing content of JRN 201 with MDA 319 Mass Media Literacy

streamlining Audio to include a New Media Production class or Special Topics for Audio

stressing the need for two internship experiences in the photography major

evaluating internship requirements for photography minor

Adjournment

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Dec. 10, 2012 - 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Miller, Porter, Blanchard, Hunter, Sindorf, Poling. Pete opened in prayer.

New Business

Alan reported the Faculty Senate’s recommendation to increase faculty salaries was recently denied by

UAC. He suggested Faculty Senate should submit a revised recommendation to UAC that includes

possible funding sources for salary increases. Our faculty agreed. Additionally, it was agreed that a

letter should be submitted to Faculty Senate, stressing the need for endowment funds to be raised for

operational costs of the new chapel/media/music building. It was reiterated that the proposed building

needs to have purpose-built spaces for communication and media.

Old Business

Pete led discussion on the curricular change proposal for

PUBLIC RELATIONS--These decisions were made:

Continue looking at outcomes for PRA 365 Writing for Public Relations and PRA 363 Media

Relations.

Make JRN 401 Mass Media Ethics, History & Law part of the PR core.

Drop PHO 235 Principles of Visual Communication from the core and put COM 322 Advanced

Public Speaking in its place.

Leave room in the core for a social media requirement, initially introduced as a 480 elective.

Address redundancy between PHO 235 Principles of Visual Communication, PHO 236 Intro to

Photography and PRA 262 Advertising Principles.

Adjournment

Division of Communication & Media

Monday, Jan. 21, 2013, 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Hunter, Anderson, Blanchard, Porter, Poling

Prayer Requests: the Duff family as they attend John’s father’s funeral in Maine; Hayley’s recovery;

safety during winter travel. Praise for the purchase of Brad’s new house; safe return of our traveling

faculty and students during J-term. Pete opened in prayer.

Announcements

Dr. Stowell visits our Mon., Feb. 18, 2013 division meeting. Feel free to ask him questions regarding CU.

Please sign up by Feb. 15 for Admissions events for prospective students (clipboard sign-up on the

counter by Mary’s desk).

Golden Eagle academic fairs—Sat., Feb. 2, 12:30 – 1:00 p.m. in BOLT; Fri., Feb. 15 & Mar. 15, 12:00 – 12:30 p.m. in

BHAC

Encompass orientation days-- Apr. 5, 12, 19, 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. in Seminary chapel, and June 21 and July 12, 9:00

a.m. – 11:00 a.m. in BOLT.

Academic catalog changes are due by the end of January. Please review your department’s listing and

submit changes to Pete or Mary.

Pete announced that Advancement has secured a $40,000 grant for our division, to be used toward

researching the impact of social media.

Old Business

Pete reported that revisions to audio and photography majors are ready to submit for UAC approval on

Jan. 24, 2013; public relations and journalism degree proposals will be fine-tuned this week.

New Business

Faculty Senate meets Jan. 31, 2013. Alan asked for input about the faculty evaluation process. These

suggestions were discussed:

Faculty evaluation focus groups might offer more reliable data than individual OCE’s.

Designate a committee to design the faculty evaluation process.

Compare evaluations with peer universities. Have students fill out evaluations midway through the course instead of adding it to the rush at

semester’s end. Talk about faculty evaluation process during spring division chapel; coach students on how to

offer constructive feedback.

It was suggested that we invite an Admissions representative to a division meeting to provide updates about our C & M departments and Terra Firma scheduling concerns.

Adjournment

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Feb. 18, 2013

Present: Muir, Porter, Duff, Hunter, Miller, Blanchard, Sindorf, Poling

Prayer Requests: Safety and wisdom for our CU students in Kenya this semester. Pete opened in prayer.

Announcements:

Dr. Rick Ostrander will attend our division meeting on Mon., Mar. 18.

Dr. Stowell has rescheduled; he will be at our meeting on Mon., Apr. 8, 2013.

Proposed chapel/media/music building update: Pete reported the scope of the building should be

decided within the next two weeks.

Adjournment

Future division meeting dates:

Feb. 25, Mar. 18, Mar. 25 and Apr. 8, 2013 at 10:00 a.m.

Division of Communication & Media Monday, March 18, 2013 – 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Anderson, Sindorf, Duff, Porter, Miller, Hunter, Blanchard, Poling

Prayer Requests: Praise that Kathy’s daughter has been accepted into a PhD. Program at U. of Hawaii;

Dave opened in prayer.

Old Business

Follow-up from last week’s events: It was recommended during discussion that Pete and Jennifer meet

with Michael Stockdale in the near future to determine Matthews Auditorium schedules and solutions,

as well as the scope of Dave Weaver’s assistance for the 2013-2014 theatre season. Alan will try to

arrange additional faculty discussion opportunities with Dr. Ostrander and Dr. Stowell.

New Business

Election of Faculty Senate representative – Kathy nominated Randy Miller for this three-year position,

and there was unanimous support.

Selection of Division Award recipient – Faculty suggested a number of seniors who may be eligible for

this award. Further research and discussion will take place before the decision is made.

Division Chair discussion—Faculty members want Pete to continue for another three-year term as

division chair, and the majority recommended Pete receive time release for two classes as well as for

planning responsibilities for the new building.

Adjournment

Future division meeting dates: March 25 and Apr. 8 (visit by Dr. Stowell)

Division worship chapel: Mon., Apr. 15, 2013

Division of Communication & Media Monday, Apr. 8, 2013 at 10:00 a.m.

Present: Muir, Hunter, Miller, Porter, Blanchard, Anderson, Sindorf, Duff, Poling

Prayer Requests: Peace for Jennifer’s daughter Madeline and her mom’s 2nd medical opinion, Alan’s

daughter-in-law, Cassie Blanchard, and her pregnancy, Randy and his family; also a friend of Randy’s

who’s undergoing chemotherapy, Kathy’s daughter, Tori, en route to Kenya. Pete opened in prayer.

Announcements

Worship chapel for our division is scheduled Mon., Apr. 15 at 10 a.m. in Faber 207; Jeff Halsted is guest

speaker.

Old Business

Update on proposed building plans: Pete reported that Matthews Auditorium renovations are slated to

begin in September, 2013, with the goal of having the space ready for CU Christmas concerts later this

year. Jennifer and Pete are giving input on Theatre’s behalf concerning sound and lighting, as well as

defining the role of facility manager. The FA13 theatre production will be performed at a different

venue, perhaps Wealthy Street Theatre.

There was further discussion on possible renovations for Daverman, Faber, and RBC. Pete reported the

process is moving forward and that all involved are still brainstorming every solution. He said having a

division proposal for our purpose-built spaces would be helpful. The division decided unanimously to

have Pete research the viability of remodeling RBC for the C & M Division, and then schedule a division

meeting with Dr. Rick Ostrander.

New Business

Three SP13 Powell Scholarship recipients were chosen to receive an award of $1,104 each: Brandon

Hackelberg, Jonathan Coleman, and Katarina Van Slambrook.

It was decided that our SP13 Division award winner, Joy Besley, is to receive a framed certificate and

$50. Securing a custom engraved plaque for our offices denoting division award winners will be

researched.

Adjournment CU awards chapel is Mon., Apr. 22, 2013.

Communication & Media Divisional Assessment Notes 2012-2013

Communication (submitted by Desiree Duff)

In August, 2012 a number of goals for the various programs within the Communication and Media

division were discussed. In relation to the Communication programs the following goals were expressed

and addressed during the 2012-2013 academic year:

a. Evaluate the Strategic and Broadcast emphases and possibly rename them for more flexibility

Assessment for this goal took place primarily in informal discussions with students.

o Many students are satisfied with identifying with an emphasis and focusing on

a single 50+ credit major versus acquiring a 36 credit major and a minor.

o Understanding the notion of strategic communication, a newer term even

within the communication field at large, could be further clarified for students

and faculty.

o Some students find the two options for the communication major to be too

limiting. Neither emphasis seems to be a good fit for their career goals. It

appears that further investigation of at least a third option, possibly with

options for individualized design or with a menu of options, would be appealing

to a number of students.

o Some students remain interested in a 36 credit major that would allow them to

double major during their college careers or select one or more minors. Given

the benefit of acquiring the skills gained from a communication major for

most—if not all—careers and endeavors, offering a 36 hour major, perhaps

incorporating the individualized design mentioned above, would be valuable to

both students and the university.

Based on a discussion with a number of community public relations professionals,

identifying a communication major more specifically (e.g., strategic communication

major) is both valued and preferred by professionals and therefore should benefit our

students in the job market. These comments affirmed the decision to specify type of

communication major at least in some career fields.

There were some questions raised regarding the differences between the strategic

communication major and public relations major. Discussion should continue about the

degree to which each of these majors serve distinct purposes. In general, students seem

to be able to self-identify with one or the other major.

b. Possibly offer conflict management and other new classes in the future.

Discussion is ongoing about the needs of current and future students in terms of

communication skills necessary for both personal and career success. A number

of courses could be developed to address these needs, one of which is conflict

management. At this point, this specific skill set is addressed within other

courses. While it may be valuable to consider a standalone course for this and

other important communication skills, developing such courses is difficult given

the current limited faculty.

Additional Comments:

Developing a health communication major has been a topic of interest among

some faculty and administration. Further exploration of both the viability of the

major here at Cornerstone and the availability of the resources necessary to

offer a quality program seems worthwhile. Chief among the concerns at this

point is the limited faculty in the Communication program.

At present, there is one full time faculty member teaching exclusively in the

communication program. Other faculty members are “borrowed” from their

major areas of expertise or are adjunct professors. In the past, there were

several full time faculty positions within the communication department. Most

of these positions disappeared when faculty members moved to other positions

within the university or left the university. They were not replaced. This

situation taxes current faculty often requiring course overloads and multiple

adjuncts. To even minimally achieve existing departmental goals, much less

create a more robust communication program, a faculty hire is necessary.

Media (submitted by Kathy Sindorf)

Keep working toward industry relevance – yes, we do this every week by keeping up with media trends,

inviting experts to speak to our classes, getting professional development, like the conferences we’ve

attended this year.

Students graduating w/quality education – we have worked this year for academic rigor, a clear

connection between theory and praxis, and team-teaching in each other’s classes to maximize our

strengths for the benefit of the students.

Eliminate redundancy within the program – We met in a day-long session to go over the content and

learning objectives for each of our media classes to see how we could build on important concepts

without redundancy. So far, I think it’s resulted in fewer complaints from students.

Identify specific skills for students to prepare them for employment – we also did this in a retreat

setting together, and we’ll continue to build on it.

Produce greater caliber of story-telling through faculty teamwork and one-on-one student mentoring –

yes, we’ve done that this year by beefing up our writing class, bringing in sophomores and juniors to

work alongside the seniors during their senior dramatic production process, and we’ve taken a lot of

time to meet with students individually and mentor them on a regular basis.

Audio (submitted by Randy Miller)

By far the highlight of the year was the introduction of the Pro Tool Certification/Intensive class taught

over JTerm. This class has shown immediate results in the projects form Producing 1 being far and away

the most creative and well-constructed finals I have seen in this degree. Also, because of such a large

class of juniors in Producing 1, we have had a great chance to expand out talent base for future projects,

as well as get our name out in the community.

The Tuesday Night Music Club, while still in the works, was not a possibility this year. This is due directly

because of the extreme use, and lack of recording hours. I could not justify taking valuable time from

students to pursue this endeavor. Hopefully in the future with better possibilities for recording, this

chance to bond and mold the students outside of the classroom will come to be.

We have not yet secured the “Pro Tools Training Facility” yet, though we have found some new avenues

to peruse this summer, and hope to finalize this important part of the program as soon as possible.

Journalism (submitted by Alan Blanchard)

Journalism—improve relevance of the program, emphasize writing skills are sought after by employers,

prepare students for life after school, look at ways to embed technology in journalism courses, achieve

stand-alone PHO and PR majors by the end of FA12.

1. Kemp Lyons and I met with Julie Hoogland, MLive/GR Press editor, and Dave Murray, MLive/GR

Press community engagement editor, at GR press in June, 2013 to ascertain how this web

first/print second media company is utilizing technology and social media in its daily, hourly

reporting.

2. Stand-alone PHO and PR and JRN majors take effect with Fall 2013 semester, leaving the

original model of a JRN major with PR, Vis Comm (formerly Photojournalism) and News-Editorial

emphases.

3. Continue to have our students sought out by media employers for jobs and internships,

i.e. several CU alumni working at GR Press/MLive, Kelsie Oswald interned this summer at WOOD-

1300AM radio, Kelly Gampel was hired as news editor full time at Homer (Mich.) Index, Matt

Lounsberry is doing a summer sports writing internship at Holland Sentinel, Cassie Daszko will

intern as a copy editor/paginator at Greenville (Mich.) Daily News this fall, Ava Dixon will intern at

Rockford (Mich.) Squire weekly newspaper this fall as a reporter, ... this is just a partial list, which I

can expand if that would be helpful.

Theatre (submitted by Jennifer Hunter)

Goals from August Meeting 2012:

1. Revise Theatre Major

Action: “different direction”: Pending changes from renovations to Matthews

Auditorium, instead of revising the theatre major, a total “where are we now, and where do we

want to be” is happening instead. Theatre productions have moved from 4 main stage shows

to 3 a year, smaller budgets, more student friendly. This new formula will be tested in the

2013-2014 season.

2. Add a Hip-Hop Class

Action: Paperwork for a new class was given to our adjunct Torrey Thomas. He is

working on gathering information and hopes to have something for the division to review in

August even though I am on sabbatical.

3. Part-Time Person for Ticketing/Marketing

Action: the Marketing department, under the direction of Bob Sack is going to take over

this responsibility within their department. A sharing of theatre production ticket sales funds to

help cover expenses will be implemented.

4. Accountability System with Students for said Requirements listed in the theatre major/minor

handbook

Action: Micah Shephard, administration assistant for the music division, has provided

information in detail of how they keep track of the music student requirements. Music uses a

“convocation” course called MUS-099 that is a no credit, but pass/fail course, based on the

requirements of the program. Theatre is not looking to re-invent the wheel and would like to

start the paperwork this summer to present a course offering like this in the Fall during Jennifer

Hunter’s sabbatical.

5. Grow the Theatre program

Action: Continued work on a DVD that highlights the theatre program at CU that

includes interviews with faculty, staff, and students. The incorporation of a new sponsor of KTG,

Caroline Cahoon, will take over for Jennifer Hunter while she is on sabbatical. This will help KTG

brainstorm about how they can support and encourage more majors to attend. Discussions

have happened to encourage administration to “highlight” or “sell” undergraduate majors.