April & May 2024 College News

Kelli Ottmers spoke to Stephanie Dailey's COMM 4327 class CELEBRATING ROSEANN MANDZIUK Friends and colleagues gathered to celebrate the retirement of Roseann Mandziuk after 37 years of service to Texas State University. It was a festive occasion with a performance by students of the Musical Theatre program, a video presentation featuring Dr. Mandziuk’s previous students, and celebratory speeches by fellow faculty members. [1] Roseann is currently a University Distinguished Professor, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses including protest rhetoric, media criticism, and rhetorical methods. She is the recipient of numerous teaching awards, including 2023 Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching at the Professor/Associate rank, five Presidential Distinction Awards for Excellence in Teaching and six College Achievement Awards for Excellence in Teaching at the Associate/Full Professor rank. She has received two Fulbright Scholar Awards, teaching courses in both Poland and India, and has held visiting professorships at the University of Amsterdam and Moscow State University. During her time at Texas State, Roseann feels immense gratification to see the many students she has worked with over the years and the successes they have had, both in the academic and professional ranks. “I believe that my role as a professor is to help open avenues for students to discover their own perspectives, their own critical sensibilities, and their voices, and to realize the power that their voices and their bodies have to fight in the service of justice. What I strive to do in every class I teach is provide examples, perspectives, and challenges that will help students see their world differently.” Roseann’s research focuses upon images of women, 1 2 3 Roseann Mandziuk has retired after 37 years of service to Texas State University Ann Burnette concluded her year as president of the Southern States Communication Association COMMUNICATION STUDIES Communication Studies, Health Communication, Interpersonal Communication, Leadership Studies, Organizational Communication, Persuasive Communication, Political Communication, & Teacher Certif ication in Communication Studies the rhetorical uses of history, and the construction of public memory in museums and monuments. She has co-authored a scholarly book about the rhetoric of Sojourner Truth, published numerous articles and book chapters examining historical and contemporary rhetoric, and served as Editor of Women’s Studies in Communication . Through both teaching and research, Roseann hopes that “my students discover the means of resistance, if that’s what they need, or discover the means of harnessing communication to do great things, to better the world.” Roseann also leaves a legacy of dedicated service, both Texas State and to the Communication discipline. She has served as president of both the National Communication Association and the Southern States Communication Association. Through her leadership positions in professional associations across her career, she advocates for the inclusion and encouragement of diverse voices in the communication discipline, both in the professional sphere and in the areas of scholarship and pedagogy. As president of the National Communication Association, she cites the development of a new strategic plan as her most important accomplishment, helping to guide the discipline of Communication into the future. The plan emphasizes increased member engagement, promoting and advocating for Inclusivity, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) in the field of Communication, and promoting the role of Communication in challenging existing structures and fostering meaningful change. At Texas State, Roseann is most proud of chairing the Presidential Work Life Advisory Council. In conjunction with Human Resources, the Advisory Council created Bobcat Balance, a free program providing financial, mental health, and legal resources to help support well-being at work and at home for Texas State employees. Bobcat Balance was instrumental in advocating for the current University workload policy, establishing free mental health care for employees, providing financial resources, legal guidance, emergency assistance programs, and child- care challenges. Career highlights include: • President of the National Communication Association • President of the Southern States Communication Association • 2023 Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching at the Professor/Associate rank • 2013 Presidential Award for Service at the Professor/Associate Professor rank • Fulbright Scholar, Indraprastha College for Women, Delhi, India • Fulbright Scholar, Warsaw School of Social Sciences and Humanities • Selected as an American Council on Education Fellow • 25 peer-reviewed publications • 62 papers presented to professional conferences. • 5 Presidential Distinction Awards for Excellence in Teaching • 6 College Achievement Awards for Excellence in Teaching -Associate/Full Professor • Supervisor of 18 M.A. theses and 8 undergraduate theses Roseann is also proud of the Bobcats' efforts, adding that "having three slots in the national quarterfinals was pretty exciting for us and contributed to our top 25 finish." FACULTY ACCOLADES Ann Burnette concluded her year as President of the Southern States Communication Association. She delivered her presidential address, "What Teaching Public Speaking Teaches Me" at the annual convention in Frisco, Texas. She will serve as Immediate Past President until April 2025. Ann presented the paper "'We need to do something about Richard': Examining the rhetoric in free speech battles in Texas" to the annual convention of the Eastern Communication Association in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The paper was co-authored with Rebekah Fox . She also presented the paper "Shining a spotlight on Texas free speech issues" to the annual convention of the Southern States Communication Association. [2] Casey Chilton presented “Developing and Giving Effective Presentations” to the Texas Youth Preparedness Council as they prepare to give presentations on their individual emergency 8 | April & May 2024 | College News College of Fine Arts and Communication | 9