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.


Department News:

March 2018 Newsletter

Communication Day

Communication Day is a one-day research conference sponsored by the 2018 Student Organization of the Year, the National Communication Association Student Club (NCASC). It took place Tuesday, March 6th, 2018 in the Kehr Union Ballrooms. Communication Day was a very successful event with over 350 attendees. The following presentations featured Communication Studies faculty, students, and alumni:

Dr. Ningxin Wang
“Mix-media relationships: Understanding multiple communication in close relationships”

Dr. Skye Chernichky-Karcher
“Family communication during times of stress and crisis”

Dr. Shuzhen Huang
“Transnationalism and Communication Studies”

Frederick Douglass Debate Society (Drs. Green, Miller, and Shorter, Ms. Amanda Weaver)
“The debate over removing confederate monuments in the United States”

Speak Out! Panel (Ms. Gina Rodriguez)
“Q & A session with students from the LGBTQA Community”

Ms. Kylie Ryan & Mr. Joshua Lloyd
“Study abroad panel”

Dr. Janet Bodenman – “Knock ‘em dead at the interview”

Dr. Erin Brummett and Panelists Ms. Courtney Enderline, Ms. Katherine Schmidt & Ms. Facia Sirleaf
“Connections across differences: Examining moments of (in)effective interracial dialogue through theory and practice”

Dr. Elizabeth Petre
“Elevator pitches and professional introductions"

Dr. Mary King
“Individual and relational experiences of unintended pregnancy"

Dr. James Petre
“Basics of saving and investing”

Kate Armstrong & Panelists
“What is Instructional Technology?”
MSIT Graduate Student

Ms. Courtney Underline, Ms. Jolene Drum, Ms. Nicole Donlick, & Ms. Jen Galer
“Addressing negative behaviors and situations: Water cooler and locker room talk”

Undergraduate Students, Communication Studies
Ms. Claire Simoff & Mr. Thomas Weber
“Study abroad panel”


Featured Talk

Dr. Shuzhen Huang presented the featured talk as part of the celebration of International Women’s Day at BU on Wednesday, March 26th. Her talk was titled "Teaching and Research as Activism.”