April & May 2024 College News

COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION MAY ISSUE | SPR I NG 2024 CONTENTS ART AND DESIGN [PG. 2] DANCE [PG. 12] MUSIC [PG. 18] COMMUNICATION STUDIES [PG. 8] JOURNAL ISM AND MASS COMMUNICATION [PG. 14] THEATRE [PG. 20] f inearts.t xstate.edu facebook.com/t xstcollegefac instagram.com/t xstfac twitter.com/t xstfac youtube.com/t xstatecollegefac FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA! LETTER FROM THE DEAN DR. JOHN FLEMING We just celebrated graduation, with over 600 CoFAC degrees awarded at our May ceremony. It was a joyous day of celebration with students and their families, and a fitting conclusion to a highly successful semester. Faculty, students, and alumni continue to win awards and assume leadership positions. • Art and Design faculty (pp.2-4) exhibited their work and presented their research in Brooklyn, Chicago, Minneapolis, Lake Charles, Fort Wayne, and at Penn State University. • Shannon Faseler was featured in Hillviews and was selected for an Artic Circle Residency; communication design students won 85 awards in the Graphis New Talent 2024 competition. • In Communication Studies (pp.8-11), the department celebrated the career of Dr. Roseann Mandziuk, who is retiring after an illustrious 37-year career. • Multiple faculty presented their research at the Southern States Communication Association and Eastern States Communication Association conferences, with faculty also publishing articles in Health Communication, Communication Teacher, Journal of Public Health , and an edited book. • At the 2024 Pi Kappa Delta National Tournament, student Ro Adams finished as the National JV Lincoln-Douglas Debate Champion, while Taylor Tate finished as the national runner-up in the varsity division of the Lincoln-Douglas Debate Competition. • In Dance (pp.12-13), Ana Baer’s screendances were exhibited in India, Malta, the UK, and in Argentina where she won the award for Best Experimental Short film. COVER PHOTO: The Department of Theatre and Dance staged a remarkable production of Urinetown [ P G . 2 0] • Jonathan Pattiwael placed in the top 4 at a break-dance battle in Seattle; Kaysie Seitz Brown and Torens Johnson led our community outreach project STREAM in Motion 9.0. • In Journalism and Mass Communication (pp. 14-17), Nandini Bhalla won a DEFCon Teaching Fellowship from the Mellon Foundation, and Cindy Royal published in Journalism Studies . • Michel Haigh gave a keynote address to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers World Wide Public Affairs Conference and presented at multiple conference leading to a Top Paper award and a book chapter. • The University Star won 15 awards from the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, while KTSW won 2 awards; via professors and student organizations, SJMC students visited the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, NASA, the Houston Astros, Houston Texans, and Circuit of the Americas. • In Music (pp. 18-19), Daris Hale and Ian Davidson performed at the Royal Academy of Music in London, while Mary Ellen Cavitt served as an Honor Band Guest Conductor in Bogota, Columbia. • Daveda Karanas performed the lead operatic role at Madrid’s Teatro Real, while Dimitar Ninov will be presenting his research at the University of Cambridge. • In Theatre (pp.20-21), Ana Martinez won a Wilson Latin American Research Grant, while actor Richard Robichaux’s latest film, The Long Game , was screened at the White House. • Student films won the Best Texas Short Film at the Comedy Film Festival and screened at the ATX Short Film Showcase. • Alum Stephen Brower is in Lempicka on Broadway, Dannie McCallum is in Marvel Studio’s Echo , Ana Puig is in FBI: International , and Isaac Garza’s short film is in the Cleveland International Film Festival. Many more student, alumni, and faculty accolades are in inside. My gratitude and congratulations to all, with wishes for a healthy, happy summer!