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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.

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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.

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Department News:
January-February 2014

Publications

Heineman, D.S. (2014). Public memory and gamer identity: Retrogaming as nostalgia. Journal of Games Criticism, 1, Available at: http://gamescriticism.org/articles/heineman-1-1

‪Miller, E. C. (2014). Religious rhetoric and American politics: The endurance of civil religion in electoral campaigns, by Christopher B. Chap (Book Review). Rhetoric Society Quarterly, 44, 97-100.

 

Conference Presentations

Heineman, D. S. (2014, January). Playing torture: A comparative analysis of U.S. military interrogation policies and interactive interrogation in war-based video games. Paper presented at the Games of Late Modernity, a Conference focused on Johan Huizinga’s Homo Ludens: 75 Years Later, Leusden, NL. (http://www.gamesoflatemodernity.org)

 

Scholarly Achievement

‪Dr. Eric C. Miller was invited and recently joined Religion Dispatches as a blogger, focusing on Christian Right political rhetoric. RD is a web magazine for religious scholars, journalists, and activists, sponsored by the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Southern California (USC).

 

Special Topics Course for Spring 2014

Dr. Jihyun Kim is offering a special topics course on Communication and Technology for Spring 2014.  This course is focused upon the way we present ourselves in the virtual world, relationships with other people (e.g., family friends, romantic partners), and relationship with technology.

Dr. Mary Nagy is offering a special topics course on Health Campaigns for Spring 2014.  This course is focused upon designing and developing health campaigns for preventing dangerous drinking behaviors among college students.

 

Talks/Lectures/Workshops

Dr. Janet Bodenman and Dr. Angela LaValley gave a talk titled ‘Getting Where you Want to Go: Nuts, Bolts, and Potholes of Curriculum Mapping’ at TALE (Teaching and Learning Enhancement Center) on February 28.  This workshop focused upon the process of curriculum mapping - where to start, essential steps, and the challenges you might encounter along the way.

Professor Ruth Beerman and Professor Phil Rippke co-facilitated a workshop entitled, "Public Speaking, Engaging Others, and Nonverbal Communication" for the Center for Leadership and Engagement certificate program. The workshop centered around a rhetorical understanding of leadership; the idea being that everyone can learn how to become a better public speaker and leader.

Professor Ruth Beerman and Professor Phil Rippke co-facilitated a workshop entitled, "Digital Citizenship and Ethics" for the Center for Leadership and Engagement certificate program. This workshop took up the question of what does it mean to be a citizen in a digital era and environment, particularly focusing on social media. This workshop utilized a case study of University of Illinois, Urbana Champagne and Twitter response to Chancellor Phyllis Wise's decision to hold classes on January 27, 2014.