College-wide Awards Program Accepting Nominations

Is there one professor who has served as a mentor during your time in CCI? Do you know a scholar who exhibits professional or creative activities in a professional or academic discipline? Has your advisor gone above and beyond to help you fit in all your necessary credits before graduation? Is there that one person who you believe provides outstanding service to CCI or a school within the college? If your answer is yes to any of these questions, then now is your chance to give back by nominating this outstanding faculty or staff member.

“I nominated a CCI professor to acknowledge her passion for teaching and show my appreciation of her,” said Erica Batyko, junior public relations major. “The professor goes above and beyond her duties to make sure her students succeed. I can think of no greater way to thank her than to nominate her so she can be recognized for her hard work by the College of Communication and Information. For all she’s done for me, it’s the least I can do for her.”

The College of Communication and Information is currently taking nominations for its third annual CCI Faculty and Staff Awards program. Five awards will be bestowed to honorees at the All Schools Retreat in August:

• Distinguished Teaching Award: Nominate professors who are full-time tenured faculty members with seven or more years of teaching experience in CCI.
• Outstanding Teacher Award: Nominate a professor who is a non-tenure track or part-time faculty member with a minimum of five consecutive years teaching in CCI.
• Distinguished Service Award: Nominations for this award should provide superior service to the school(s) and/or college.
• Distinguished Advisor Award: Nominate an advisor who goes ‘above and beyond’ in his/her helpful and positive attitude regarding the guidance of students.
• Distinguished Scholar Award: Only Kent State tenure or tenure-track faculty members can make nominations.

Nomination forms can be turned in in the College office, Rm. 131 Moulton Hall, by 5 p.m. on July 12 and may be sent through campus mail or emailed to the College email address. Online forms and more information about each award can be found online. All nominations will be held in the strictest confidence.

A nomination for your favorite teacher, advisor, or scholar is a great way to say thank you to that certain faculty or staff member for all of his or her hard work during your college career.

“I suggest other students nominate CCI faculty and staff to show their gratitude to the amazing faculty and staff members who go above and beyond to see their students succeed,” said Batyko. “It’s a great opportunity to have your voice heard in CCI.”

To nominate a CCI faculty and/or staff member today, visit 
http://www.kent.edu/cci/faculty/awards.cfm
.

Communication Skills Highly Valued By Employers Hiring College Graduates

By Nicole Gennarelli

Recently, the 2013 Job Outlook survey of employers by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) was released and communication skills and majors were ranked highly by employers.

“The survey of employers by the NACE demonstrates the centrality and importance of communication skills and training to be effective in the workforce today,” said School of Communication Studies Associate Professor and Undergraduate Coordinator Jeffrey Child. “Communication is in the top five degrees overall that employers are most interested in among any college graduate today and effective verbal communication skill ranks at the very top of qualities that a range of employers seek out.  Communication skills and training ranked higher in importance among employers than any other technical skill that students might pick up at college.  Majors from the School of Communication Studies are well poised for success in the professional world and have a skill set that is in demand among employers today.”

According to the survey:

• Communication is in the top 5 degrees in demand by employers according to the Job Outlook 2013 survey from the NACE.
• Communication studies is the top type of communication degree in demand by employers.
• Seventy-four percent of employers said they seek written communication skills and 67 percent reported seeking verbal communication skills as the top attributes on a candidate’s resume.
• NACE reported that the ideal candidate is a good communicator who can make decisions and solve problems while working effectively in a team.
• On average, employers rated communication skills between very and extremely important.
• Problem-solving skills, written communication skills and teamwork are also highly sought after.
• The top communication degrees in demand are: Communication, public relations, advertising.
• NACE reported that employers rate the ability to verbally communicate with people inside and outside the organization as the highest quality in a candidate.

Professor Helps to Author Digital Newsbook on Plagiarism

By Nicole Gennarelli

Jan Leach, associate professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, helped write a digital newsbook titled “Telling the Truth and Nothing But” about plagiarism and fabrication produced and released by the National Summit to Fight Plagiarism and Fabrication.

Craig Silverman, the award-winning journalist and the founder of Regret the Error, started the idea for the book last summer when he wrote about incidences of journalistic plagiarism. His article on Poynter Online asked senior newsroom employees about the incidents but he received no response. From his frustration, he wrote “Journalism’s Summer of Sin marked by plagiarism, fabrication, obfuscation” and said that newsroom employees are unwilling to acknowledge and take responsibility for this problem. According to the article, Silverman suggested “journalism’s leading professional organizations have their ethics committees (and/or boards) look at this issue, gather what material and policies they have, and determine what guidance they can offer to newsrooms.” Teresea Schmedding, president of the American Copy Editors Society, responded to his post agreeing with the need for high-level analysis of plagiarism. From that, the book project became a reality.

“I think members of the Summit, including everybody who participated and the sponsoring organizations, realized how urgent this issue is because there were and are so many high-profile instances of plagiarism and fabrication,” Leach said. “All these cases chip away at journalism’s credibility.”

Schmedding contacted Leach last year to ask her to contribute to the digital newsbook. Three committees were created and each was assigned a specific part of the book to complete. The three sections are: “Defining the Problem,” “Preventing Infractions” and “Responding to the Inevitable.” Leach was part of the definitions committee along with Henry Fuhrman, Los Angeles Times chairman; Maria Cianci, Yahoo.com; Pam Fine, University of Kansas; Dylan Smith, Lion Publishers/TucsonSentinel.com; Mark Willis, Sirius SM Satellite radio and Stacey Woelfels, University of Missouri. The definitions committee wrote part of the book’s introduction, plus Chapter 2 “Defining the Problem,” and various parts of the report.

“We did individual research, wrote and edited specific parts of the chapter and collected material and resources. There was a lot of sharing and talking. We had a very tight deadline because we started work in December and turned everything in for compilation and editing in February,” Leach said. “I’m also quoted in Chapter 3 about who plagiarizes or fabricates. For that part of the report, I was interviewed via email by Patrick Smith of the Omaha World-Herald, another participant on a different committee.”

Leach believes this book is a useful tool for many types of authors.

“The book should be a useful tool for editors, educators and everybody who collects information for distribution,” Leach said. “It’s a practical guide with specific examples and prescriptive examples to avoid plagiarism.”

College-wide Awards Program Accepting Nominations

Is there one professor who has served as a mentor during your time in CCI? Do you know a scholar who exhibits professional or creative activities in a professional or academic discipline? Has your advisor gone above and beyond to help you fit in all your necessary credits before graduation? Is there that one person who you believe provides outstanding service to CCI or a school within the college? If your answer is yes to any of these questions, then now is your chance to give back by nominating this outstanding faculty or staff member.

The College of Communication and Information is currently taking nominations for its third annual CCI Faculty and Staff Awards program. Five awards will be bestowed to honorees at the All Schools Retreat in August:

• Distinguished Teaching Award: Nominate professors who are full-time tenured faculty members with seven or more years of teaching experience in CCI.
• Outstanding Teacher Award: Nominate a professor who is a non-tenure track or part-time faculty member with a minimum of five consecutive years teaching in CCI.
• Distinguished Service Award: Nominations for this award should provide superior service to the school(s) and/or college.
• Distinguished Advisor Award: Nominate an advisor who goes ‘above and beyond’ in his/her helpful and positive attitude regarding the guidance of students.
• Distinguished Scholar Award: Only Kent State tenure or tenure-track faculty members can make nominations.

Nomination forms can be turned in in the College office, Rm. 131 Moulton Hall, by 5 p.m. on May 31 and may be sent through campus mail or emailed to the College email address. Online forms and more information about each award can be found online. All nominations will be held in the strictest confidence.

A nomination for your favorite teacher, advisor, or scholar is a great way to say thank you to that certain faculty or staff member for all of his or her hard work during your college career.

School of Communication Studies Advisor Will Compete at Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show

By Catherine Berry

COMM Advisor Lorie Hopp and her loyal Belgian Sheepdog, Grand Champion Images Majestic Dante, will compete in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show on Feb. 11 and 12 in New York City.

This will be a first Westminster Show for both of them. Breed judging for them will take place at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 11. If Dante wins “Best of Breed,” he will then advance to Madison Square Garden that night to compete in the Herding Group. The competition at this level is especially tough because many of the breeds competing will have professional handlers, some of whom are well known in the dog show world. Hopp is not a professional handler, but rather an owner handler, so it’s more difficult to catch the interest of the judges.

“It’s always fun to win, but it’s an even greater achievement when we can win over professional handlers, which we’ve done in the past. We have to really be on our game at Westminster, though, since it is the biggest, most famous show in the country,” Hopp said.

Hopp and Dante have been training since he was a puppy, and they started competing in 2005. Since he started competing, Dante has won many breed competitions, a regional specialty and group placements. Additionally, he has Rally Novice and Canine Good Citizen titles. He is also a bronze level grand champion.

Last year, Dante competed in the AKC Eukanuba National Championship in Orlando, Fla., where he won a select, also known as an Award of Merit. Dante is currently ranked in the top 25 Belgian Sheepdogs in the country. He is 9 years old, a veteran, and this may be their only opportunity to go to Westminster.

If they don’t win in their Breed competition, Hopp says she would still be thrilled to win a select. “Award of merit from Westminster would still be pretty darn cool.”

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show airs with the group competition on two nights, Feb. 11 live on CNBC and Feb. 12 live on USA Network both from 8 to 11 p.m. The show culminates when all first place winners from each group advances to the final round of competition, “Best in Show.” Only one dog is chosen to win “Best of Show.” The winner will receive a giant ribbon, trophy and a cash prize. The winner also makes many TV appearances.

Hopp and Dante also have plans to compete later this year at the National Dog Show in Pennsylvania in November.

Kent State Student Supports Broadcast of Super Bowl for BBC

TeleProductions Takes Satellite Truck to New Orleans

Having on your resume that you have experience in producing the Super Bowl for BBC should guarantee some extra looks. Well, after Sunday, Feb. 3, that will be true for Kent State University student Dan LeBeau.

This week, LeBeau and a four-man crew from Kent State’s TeleProductions’ unit will travel to New Orleans, La., with the department’s satellite uplink and production truck for Super Bowl XLVII to provide production and satellite capabilities for the BBC’s live broadcast of the game.

TeleProductions was contacted by a company it had done business with previously and then went through a rigorous negotiation process to make sure its truck and production team met all of the technical and professional requirements necessary to fulfill the live broadcast needs.

“We are extremely excited about the trip,” said Jeff Bentley, executive producer of the Kent State Sports Network and senior producer in TeleProductions. “We are continually trying to establish new clients, and this gives us the opportunity to increase our visibility and reputation as a capable and reliable production/satellite provider. We also see this as an excellent opportunity to promote our outstanding TeleProductions’ department and staff, as well as Kent State University.”

Besides LeBeau and Bentley, TeleProductions’ staff members Dan Tonneli, Bill Kennedy and Jason Forbes will make the trip to assist with the production.

“LeBeau is one of TeleProductions’ most experienced student workers and will be responsible for audio and camera set-up, as well as monitoring the equipment during the game,” Bentley said.

“Almost everybody in this industry wants to be involved in a Super Bowl production,” LeBeau said. “I think it’s only natural that TeleProductions is bringing a student employee along for the Super Bowl. It certainly shows the level of commitment that the staff has for student training, and it highlights the level of trust that they have in my abilities.”

Mark Bussey, director of technology and TeleProductions said, “TeleProductions’ involvement with the Super Bowl is a testament to its reputation and the extremely high level of professionalism, performance detail and overall capability of the team. We view this as an important validation.”

Follow LeBeau’s journey to the Super Bowl and his time working side-by-side with the professionals on the Kent State University College of Communication and Information Facebook page, or on Twitter @CCIKentState #KSUSuperBowl beginning through Feb. 5.

“It would be amazing to have this opportunity at any point in a career, but to have the opportunity as a student is absolutely incredible,” LeBeau said. “I can’t wait to add this to my resume.”

TeleProductions Lands Contract with The CW Columbus

By Nicole Gennarelli

Kent State University TeleProductions partnered with The CW Network in Columbus and Mann Communications this fall to produce Thursday Night Lights, a five-game high school football series profiling Columbus teams.

Mann Communications contacted TeleProductions after hearing about its state-of-the-art satellite uplink/production truck and inquired about broadcasting a high school football package in Columbus. Once the partnership with CW Columbus was finalized to air the games, the whole deal came together.

“The great benefits to doing this program is marketing our truck and our TeleProductions program at Kent State,” said Jeff Bentley, TeleProductions executive producer for the Kent State Sports Network.

This program was the first time that high school football had been aired live on Thursday nights. The series aired five different Columbus area high school football games. Each week there were two student athletes from each team honored at halftime. Video stories of each player were played for spectators to watch.

“The truck traveled from Kent to Columbus every Thursday and on occasion left Columbus and went straight to an ESPN3 game at Ohio University or University of Toledo,” said Dan Tonelli, TeleProductions engineering and operations manager. “There were also a couple of weeks where we had Thursday, Friday and Saturday games.”

Many student workers at TeleProductions were able to gain real-world experience during the Thursday Night Light season, as well.

“That is what makes this whole thing a win-win situation,” Tonelli said. “The students get great experience, and the PR value of having our truck at all of these high schools is huge. The station is providing programming that no one else in the market is doing – probably the only opportunity most of these athletes will have to play in a televised game.”

Because of the professionalism and quality of programs TeleProductions produced, the CW Columbus will be continuing Thursday Night Lights in 2013 with a 10-game season.

“Our partnership with Kent State for Thursday Night Lights was successful due to the professionalism and experience of Jeff, Dan and their amazing production and engineering crew,” said Ellen Daly, vice president and general manager of The CW Columbus. “They share our philosophy of producing the best product possible, and this was certainly apparent in the look of the live HD broadcast of Thursday Night Lights. The positive viewer feedback was tremendous with an overwhelming response to the quality of our production.”

Currently, TeleProductions is in negotiations to take its truck to the Super Bowl in New Orleans, La., this year.

“We’ll be in a live productions capacity working for the BBC involved in its live production of the Super Bowl,” Bentley said. “We are excited at the real possibility of having our truck in New Orleans for the Super Bowl. We feel this is just another great opportunity to market not only our truck and department, but the whole university. It would be so cool to see the big Kent State logo on our truck in the massive production truck compound.”

CCI Faculty and Students Travel to Israel With Comparative Religous Thought II Class

By: Emily Horne

The Jewish Studies group in a Druze village. © Photo by Megann Galehouse

In May, David LaBelle, who is directing the Photojournalism program, and two of his students traveled to Israel. On this trip, they joined Chaya Kessler, Director of the Jewish Studies program, David Odell Scott, Chair of the Department of Philosophy, and other students participating in a short study-abroad trip through Comparative Religious Thought II, which fulfills both the Humanities Core and Global Diversity requirement.

A market area from the streets of Old City Jerusalem. © Photo by David LaBelle

Kessler said after speaking to LaBelle at a new hire orientation three years ago, they discovered many similar interests that could potentially lead to collaboration. “In both our programs we strive to expand beyond our own small niche. Collaborations allow this to naturally develop,” Kessler said. LaBelle also spoke highly of the collaboration saying, “this is what we need to be doing more of, quite frankly.”

LaBelle worked with students Megann Galehouse and Chloe Makarick to create an independent study project that involved the trip to Israel. The initial goal of the project was to do more than simply travel photography because “to shoot any kind of intimate or meaningful pictures on tour is a challenge,” LaBelle said.

The group chose to explore the idea of the “Jerusalem Syndrome,” a condition in which people think they are, in fact, one of the Bible figures and become very emotionally involved at those religious sites. This project proved to be more time consuming and in depth than expected so the group revised their focus.

The Stone of Unction inside the Church of the Holy Sephulchre in Jerusalem. © Photo by Chloe Makarick

While traveling, LaBelle, Galehouse, and Makarick shifted gears and looked more at prayer and how different people are praying. They tried to focus on how individuals choose to express their faith. Since Israel is the center of different religions, it provides for a variety of religious experiences. This project will continue throughout the semester.

Galehouse, a junior in the photojournalism program, said this trip allowed her to learn how to be more patient with others as well as the importance of allowing oneself to get to know people based on their interests and thoughts. “It will open your eyes to new things and teach you to be a better person,” she said.

Makarick, a senior information design major and photojournalism minor, said her own personal goal with this trip was try to connect with as many people as she could. Not only did she connect with the people in Israel but with the others on the trip as well. “It was awesome how great the group meshed together. We were all intermingling, learning from each other and exchanging ideas,” she said.

Prayer candles in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. © Photo by Megann Galehouse

Galehouse indicated her biggest takeaway from this trip as having the opportunity to shadow LaBelle. She said that experience was truly beneficial and something she will treasure. Makarick’s biggest takeaway was the realization that you have to experience unfamiliar cultures with an open mind and accept everyone despite the differences you may have.

Photographs from this trip and project will be on display near the Wick Poetry Center in the Library beginning September 12.

“I assure of you this: I came back not thinking I was Jesus or John the Baptist. Some people were a little surprised that I didn’t suffer from the Jerusalem Complex,” LaBelle joked.

Inspire Camp Concludes With Reception

Story and Photos by: Emily Horne

Inspire Camp Follow-Up

After five days of camp, Inspire: A Summer Creative Camp for High School Students concluded with a parent and camper reception Friday, July 27 from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. The parents and campers gathered to mingle and view the artifacts created throughout the week.

A student works on a stop motion animation project.

A total of 23 high school students from Ohio and Pennsylvania took part in Inspire. They were exposed to design, photography, and illustration within a higher education setting. The students were also given the opportunity to build friendships with other creative students in the region.

Co-directors Jillian Coorey and Gretchen Rinnert developed the camp for students who have completed their freshman year of high school, are between the ages of 14 and 19, and have an interest in design, photography, illustration, and creative thinking.

Rinnert said Inspire was very successful. “The students produced various design artifacts. They developed portfolio work that can help them as they enter a design program,” Rinnert said. She continued to say that “parents and campers were delighted by the work and many expressed their excitement and appreciation.”

Inspire is an annual event and will take place again next summer. To stay up-to-date on next year’s camp, regularly check the website: http://www.inspirecamp.com.

Students and parents view work from throughout the week at the reception on Friday.

VCD Professor Honored by International Organization

By: Emily Horne

David Middleton, Associate Professor in Kent State University’s (KSU) School of Visual Communication Design (VCD) is the recipient of the 2012 Distinguished Member Award from SEGD, the Society of Environmental Graphic Design. This was awarded during the SEGD Annual Conference at the Marriott Brooklyn Bridge.

This award honors Middleton for his “outstanding volunteer efforts while significantly contributing to the direction, growth, and excellence of SEGD programs” and recognizes his leadership and “many contributions to the board’s work, as well as many contributions to SEGD’s efforts in EGD education and the establishment of educational programs.”

About six years ago, Middleton was invited to be on the board for SEGD, a small international organization with about 2,000 members in professions such as graphic design, architecture, interior design, and urban planning. Middleton said the group houses many “high-level” people. To Middleton, SEGD is “really about communication and place.”

Over the last ten years, Middleton has made a number of significant contributions to SEGD through his teaching, volunteer work, and board presence. With a high student interest in the organization and its focus, Middleton taught a course for three years in which he brought in professionals as guest lecturers. This interdisciplinary course, with work both in person and through videoconference also included architecture students from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) and real estate M.B.A. students from DePaul University.

Throughout those three years, he received grant funding to teach the course and immerse the students in significant learning opportunities. Many of Middleton’s students have won awards for their outstanding work and have been published in two books. He said VCD is “really recognized in the field as one of the top schools in this area.”

Almost two years ago, Middleton took a sabbatical in which he began the development of a peer-reviewed journal called Communication and Place. Produced by SEGD, Middleton is the editor. His mission in creating this journal is to share meaningful information that professionals can use. Launching this summer, Middleton hopes this journal will be an opportunity to get graduate students involved as editorial assistants.

Middleton has also contributed to SEGD as a board member. He helped to develop a new position – the Education Director. This position is in charge of managing an interrelationship between all of the roughly 25 academic schools within the organization. This position oversees segdDESIGN, The International Journal of Environmental Graphic Design, and helps to manage the summer conference. In addition, Middleton helped to develop the Education Summit held once a year. This year, the one-day annual conference took place on June 7 in Brooklyn, NY.

Middleton has already been recognized from SEGD in the past for his meaningful contributions. A few years ago he won the “Angel” award for the educational work he has done. Being awarded the Distinguished Member Award is an honor awarded by the board that cannot go to a board member.

“For me it’s a real honor to get this award,” Middleton said, “It’s sort of a humbling thing.” He went on to say that he left the board and received the award the first year.

Currently, Middleton teaches a variety of senior and graduate-level VCD courses and still serves on the academic advisory board for SEGD education. In addition, he is the resident faculty member for the SEGD-Kent Summer Program, now in its eighth year. Typically a two-week program for advanced design students and young professionals, this program features high-level professional designers and researchers.

Middleton hopes to develop an exhibition design course for next year and plans to continue to push educational programs and research. He believes these opportunities show “the reach of college and the range of what visual communication really is.”