From the Classroom & Beyond |
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Welcome to comm·unity, the biannual newsletter reporting on new and exciting developments in our department! In addition to covering course updates, we highlighted what students have been doing outside the classroom. Our students have been learning through real-world experience– something that makes the Communication department so great. Read on for what our community has been up to this semester!
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The last weeks of the spring semester have had some familiar sights: the tulips sprouting outside the steps to the Quad, awards ceremonies, Springfest, and the annual issue of The Triangle. This year, some new patterns have emerged, if only temporarily: hybrid and remote classes, people wearing masks on campus, COVID-19 testing in Smith Auditorium, and, thankfully, a vaccine clinic in the same location. This school year has brought us many challenges, but we are persevering and overcoming them. More of our classes were taught on campus in hybrid mode this semester, and we are looking forward to being back fully in person this coming fall.
More than merely managing these challenges, our Communication majors and minors have achieved great successes, including presenting their original research at the Eastern Communication Association, attending the PRSSA National Assembly, induction into Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Association’s honor society, and landing prestigious internships and fellowships, including NBC Sports, CBS Sports, The United Soccer League, Rubenstein PR, J PR, USA/SyFy, and the Television Academy Foundation.
This semester, the Communication Department launched a new site to showcase our students’ work at https://mccommdept.com/. In addition to the second year of basketball, our Sports Media Production program broadcast Jaspers sports live on ESPN+ from Gaelic Park for the first time this semester, and four of our students and our producer traveled to Atlantic City to work the MAAC NCAA Tournament. Our courses moved back into the TV studio and Avid editing classroom, and MCTV became an official student club.
We are working to continue this momentum in fall: Jared Diamond, the MLB reporter for The Wall Street Journal, will be teaching Sports Reporting and Writing, COMM alumnus and editor for Nickelodeon Rob Colaianni will teach Introduction to Story and Postproduction, and our own Dr. Michael Plugh will teach the innovative special topics course Communication and the Future. Also, this fall, our Advertising concentration will introduce a revision of its curriculum and the new course Advertising Agencies and Storytelling in spring.
As the city continues to open up later this summer, we expect that more internships will move back to on-site and more events will be held in person instead of virtually. Of course, the virtual world is not going anywhere, and we will continue to feature the achievements of our students and alumni across our social media feeds. Be sure to subscribe to @MCCOMMDEPT on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook so you can follow along too. Congratulations to our graduates, and we look forward to welcoming current and new students back on campus in the fall.
Dr. Michael Grabowski
Chair, Communication Department
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Introducing Lambda Pi Eta's New Inductees |
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by Calista Baker
Lambda Pi Eta is Manhattan College’s chapter of the Communication honor society. This year’s induction ceremony took place virtually on February 26. The ceremony usually inducts new members in the fall, but due to COVID-19, the event date was pushed back. Faculty advisor Mike Plugh had hoped to be able to hold the event in person this spring, but with the pandemic still going strong, realized that it would have to be held virtually on Zoom.
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Senior Seminar Students Research
Their Passions
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by Christine Nappi
Delving into research and uncovering the answer to thought-provoking questions is no easy feat– that’s something all Senior Seminar students can relate to. However, students Cort Koss and Molly Prior think differently. This past semester, the two have been able to study topics that excite them and explore their passions further.
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Sports Media Production Crew
Covers MAAC Basketball
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by Scarlett Sperduto
This March, the Manhattan College men’s and women’s basketball team traveled to Atlantic City for the annual NCAA MAAC conference. They were joined by our state-of-the-art ESPN mobile production unit, producer and director Joseph Ruggiero, and four sports media production students, Cort Koss, Thomas Courtney, Elyse Holmes, and Kieran Sullivan.
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PRSSA Attends Leadership Assembly |
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by Timmy Kwong
As a Junior Executive Board member of Manhattan College’s Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Chapter, Madison Mulkigian, a current sophomore, had the honor of attending- ing the annual PRSSA 2021 Leadership Assembly. The Leadership Assembly is a unique opportunity for PRSSA members to not only expand their
leadership skills within the field of PR, but also to learn new ways to improve the future of the industry.
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Communication Department Launches
Advertising Program Reboot
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by Scarlett Sperduto
The Manhattan College Communication Department is extremely excited to announce that the Advertising concentration will be undergoing some big changes that will be set into action in Fall of 2021. The purpose of this reboot is for the concentration’s curriculum to be updated in order to match changes in the rapidly evolving advertising industry.
It would allow for students to have
more options to learn and practice the
role of advertising in this new environment.
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How Deirdre Heavey Found a Community Beyond Manhattan College on the 1 Train |
by Jilleen Barrett
As the spring semester comes to a close, graduating communication majors are wrapping up their senior seminar projects– and some are even getting recognized by the Eastern Communication Association.
Deirdre Heavey, who is finishing the journalism concentration in the communication department, presented her thesis “There’s Only 1 Train: All Aboard the Cosmopolitan Canopy from 242nd St. to South Ferry” for the association’s conference on Friday, March 26 at 4:30 p.m.
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Making Their Own Destiny: Communication Students Launch Start-ups |
by Christine Nappi
Being a full-time college student and running a successful business isn’t easy, yet, Sophie Demurjian, a senior in the advertising concentration, has figured out how to do it. Demurjian is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of her brand, Cut and Cropped.
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Meet the Five New Quadrangle Scholarship Recipients |
by Madalyn Johnson
Every year, Manhattan College’s publications committee accepts five new students as recipients of The Quadrangle Scholarship. This academic year has, however, posed challenges for these five freshmen, stripping them of the normal experiences of reporting and interviewing people at the scene of an event.
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Communication Students Participate in NBC Sports Internship Program |
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by Adrianne Hutto
This year two Communication Department students participated in the 2020-21 Wom- en’s Sports Foundation and NBC Sports Group Female Student-Athlete Mentoring Program. The purpose of this mentorship is to help student-athletes to improve their leadership and communication skills through the help of mentors in similar fields.
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Meet the Professors of Practice
in the Communication Department
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by Caroline McCarthy
The Manhattan College Communication Department is fortunate to engage four professionals in the communication field to teach courses for the 2021 Fall semester. These professionals range in expertise in public relations to homepage design and video editing - and students are very excited to learn from active industry experts.
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Dr. Thom Gencarelli Takes
a Sabbatical to Pursue His Book
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by Victoria Correia
Dr. Thom Gencarelli, the founding chair of the communication department at Manhattan College, is credited with bringing many ideas and innovations to the department. This spring, Thom is on a sabbatical leave to devote his time to work on a book titled, “Raising Digital Kids: An Owner’s Manual.”
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Then & Now with Communication
Department Alumni
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by Ally Mejia
Each semester, the Communication newsletter recognizes hard-working successful students who have found professional opportunities after graduation. Highlighting these students and their experiences serves as a guide to others interested in pursuing a similar career — students have a strong desire to know: “What happens after graduation?”
For this article, we interviewed three Manhattan College Communication Department Alumni who were previously featured in COMMunity: Melissa Gallardo (Class of 2019), Anna Occhino (Class of 2019), and Lauren Schuster (Class of 2020). Each provided an interesting perspective on transitioning from the world of internships to a professional career, along with giving important advice to give to students.
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Catching Up With Communication Alumni Rose Millheim and Matt Marcello |
by Kaylin Flam
Rose Millheim and Matt Marcello, part of the graduating class of 2019, are production assistants at the Doctor Oz Show, and here they sit down with us (virtually) to discuss their current careers and interests that got them where they are today.
At the Doctor Oz Show, Millheim and Marcello are in charge of the photos and videos that appear on the show, such as stock images, viral social media trends, or TikToks. Their jobs include finding content that the producers need for specific segments. They also deal with the buying and licensing of the content that the producers need.
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What is the Communication Department Reading, Watching, and Listening to? |
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by Jana Clark
This past year has been stressful and unprecedented to say the least, and everyone has found their own form of relaxation to help make the realities of daily life more bearable. A popular pastime with students and faculty in the Communication Department is curling up with their favorite book, listening to a podcast during their daily commute, or ending the night with a few episodes of their favorite show.
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Follow the COMM Club Social Media! |
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Engage with Fellow COMM Students |
Be sure to follow the department's accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @mccommdept for updates and information on events and happenings within the department. Also follow the accounts of the student clubs listed below.
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Editors
Editor-in-Chief: Christine Nappi
Faculty Advisor: Arshia Anwer
Executive Director: Kaitlin Scheie
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