What's New:

The Bloomsburg University Xi Omega chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Honor Society, has been named the 2019 Chapter of the Year by the National Communication Association.

 

Congrats to Communication Studies student Kyle Bower for serving as APSCUF’s summer government-relations and communications intern.

 

 

 

Congrats to The National Communication Association Student Club (NCASC)! NCASC was selected as the 2018 Bloomsburg University Student Organization of the Year for their outstanding work in the areas of leadership, programming, and service.

Please see our Communication Studies Newsletters:

The BU Department of Communication Studies is officially on social media! Please like our Facebook page and our Twitter page and share with friends who may be interested!

 


Featured Student

Sydney Rimmer

My name is Sydney Rimmer, and I am currently a senior at Bloomsburg, double majoring in Communication Studies with a Leadership and Public Advocacy focus and Political Science with a Legal Studies focus, as well as a minor in Public Relations. This summer, I am beyond grateful to have participated in an internship at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in the Senate Republicans Communications Office, as it was an incredibly fulfilling experience.
The office had a group of employees designated to each area of communications. There were teams of employees for areas such as speech writing, webmasters, photography, film, social media, and others. I got to shadow and help complete assignments in each of these areas, and gain an appreciation for the importance of each specialty. This offered a unique opportunity to understand “a day in the life” of the employees in this office and their responsibilities, and it also gave me an opportunity to meet people outside of the office, and experience things many other people will never experience. Seeing the behind the scenes of these events was so interesting.
The brunt of my work was done in June, as that is when the Senate is in session and the budget is being passed. Once the budget passed, July slowed down and there were significantly less events occurring, therefore less events for me to shadow, as the Senators stay in their district offices as opposed to coming to the Capitol. This gave me an accurate representation of the job, both the hustle and bustle of June, and the relaxed nature of July.
This internship has also proven to be a vital step in my networking. I received a follow up luncheon with the lobbying firm who encouraged me to intern in the Capitol, as well as encouragement from my office to look for a career in the Senate when I graduate. I got a chance to work with several Senators, thereby networking with them, which was a personal goal of mine for the summer. Another strength of my internship was the bond I formed with my coworkers. I was the only intern in my office, however I fit in perfectly with the full time employees despite us being in all different walks of life. I had anticipated forming relationships with my coworkers, but I had not foreseen how close I would grow with them. I am so blessed to now call many of my coworkers my friends. We have spent time together in both the office, as well as our free time, and I am elated they have taken me under their wings, and I still stay in touch with many of them despite being many months post internship.
My internship was a wonderful experience, and truly turned out to be a highlight of my summer. I am able to walk away from this office confident that I completed assignments efficiently and to the best of my ability. I have grown from this experience, and I am excited to see how the things I have learned and the connections I have made will apply to my future endeavors.



Welcome to
Communication Studies

Welcome to the Department of Communication Studies at Bloomsburg University. Our department has over 250 students who are currently majoring in Communication Studies. We also offer a minor in Communication Studies.

There are currently 17 tenured/tenure track faculty who teach full time in the department.

Our department also supports general education for the entire university with courses such as Introduction to Communication Studies, Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication, Small Group Communication, and Intercultural Communication.Faculty

Please see our Communication Studies Newsletter - Spring 2017

Get to know our students:

Stephanie Bouffard


For junior Stephanie Bouffard, Communication Studies has opened up a career path that incorporates everything she wants in her dream job: education, advocacy, and philanthropy.

"I aspire to educate others. Not so much on the topic of special education itself, but to educate others with special needs. I want to advocate for them, and be the voice both for those who have the inability to speak, whether that's due to their disability or suppression."  
  
Although she just declared a Special Education minor during the Fall 2016 semester, Stephanie noticed the integral part that communication plays in classes outside of the major. Each experience and situation requires a unique application of communication.

"Even though there are so many differences between my major and my minor, I also find commonalities between the two. Beyond just the people, it's the commonality for advocacy. I find it very inspiring to see the passion both the Communications Department as well as the Special Education Department both have when it comes to advocacy, both in public and behind the scenes. "

For Stephanie, other students within Communication Studies played a significant role in why she decided to join this major.

"Listening to stories about how their major is used in their everyday lives was important to me, it was something I was looking for, too."

With career aspirations to campaign for individuals with exceptionalities or special needs, Stephanie also plans to take classes in the Leadership and Public Advocacy track, offered through her major. Focusing on campaigns, public policy, and rhetoric, Stephanie will have the opportunity to build skills and gain exposure to resources that will help her reach her goals. Impacting people every day, Stephanie is involved on campus and volunteers her time to help numerous organizations.

"In terms of what I see myself doing in the future, I would love to be a motivational speaker, campaign worker, or running a specific organization that would expand other's knowledge on the backlash of individuals with special needs, as well as campaign for the ones who are underrepresented."

In the upcoming months, Stephanie hopes to get an internship with an afterschool program to work with children with special needs, but until then, she will continue her advocacy through organizations at BU, and in her local community.

 

 

Client Projects Connect BU Students with the Community

Client Projects Connect BU Students with the Community

 

BLOOMSBURG---In the Department of Communication Studies at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, client projects represent important hands-on learning experiences for students, and are integrated into various classes.

During the Spring 2021 semester student teams in Dr. Elizabeth Petre’s class, “Communication for Business Professionals” worked virtually with several local organizations to develop external communication materials that met the client’s needs.

One team, Raquel Bedard, Michelle Makar, Abigail Stout, and Courtenie Young, worked with the United Way of Columbia and Montour Counties to brainstorm and design marketing materials for upcoming community initiatives and events.

Another group, Brieanna Jackson, Alyssa Jopling, Justin Mendoza, Gianna Monastero, and Samantha Rikess, developed and promoted the social media for PA PETS, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to helping homeless animals.

Two teams worked with Camp Victory, an organization that runs summer camps for individuals with special needs. One team, Marlon Argueta-Diaz, Megan Beck, and Breanna Forrest, updated a Camp Victory brochure and flyer, while the other team, Danely Benitez, Hugo Giles, Paiton Knorr, and Yuliana Martinez, developed various social media pages.

Finally, Ian Duffy-Guy, Alissah Francis, Jephte Guillaume, Maddie Krumenacker, and Alicea Nelson worked directly with the Department of Communication Studies on developing materials to promote the department’s recently-approved minor in professional communication.

All student teams worked together, remotely for 10 weeks to complete the project which consisted of multiple meetings with their clients, researching different aspects of the project, and creating and designing the marketing and promotional materials. Clients attended the final presentations on Zoom, and expressed appreciation and excitement for the students’ creative ideas.

The project provided an opportunity for students to network with local professionals, collaborate with other students in the class, and create deliverables that their clients can actually use—and they enhanced their professional communication skills in the process.