September 2018 College News

an M.A. alum, Holly Van Eynde , earned a Top Paper Award from the Instructional Communication Division at the National Communication Association for their manuscript entitled “Te road to hel(l)icopter teaching: An empirical examination of a novel instructional communication construct.” Te paper was co-authored with faculty members Kristen Farris and Marian Houser. Undergraduate student Luke A. Dye will present “A Devils Guide to Public Speaking: Lessons from Screwtapes Communication Principles” at the 2018 National Communication Conference in Salt Lake City. Undergraduate student Tina Esnaashari , was featured by Texas State on the Transfer Stories webpage. She mentions the impact of Comm Week on her journey and Dr. Elizabeth Eger as a mentor. M.A. students Hannah Jones , Lace Senegal , and Shannon Tefertiller collaborated to develop a pamphlet that describes how Communication Studies undergraduate courses equip students with the knowledge and skills to achieve success in either the workforce or connect with either Business or Civil Engagement. To complete the publication, they completed interviews with individuals from the corporate and nonproft sectors. ALUMNI ACCOLADES Dr. Phil Clampitt (M.A. 1978) recently published a commentary on the Communication Currents website from the National Communication Association. Te article is called, “Why Fake News Can Be Great News for Universities.” Ashley Weeks Kutach (B.A. 1996 & M.A. 1997) is Vice President of People and Chief of Staf at Mentoring Minds. She is also completing coursework toward a Ph.D. in Human Resource Development. WELCOMING NEW FACULTY Cassandra LeClair joins the Department of Communication Studies as a Lecturer. Cassandra completed her Ph.D. in Communication Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she focused on Interpersonal and Family Communication, with a specialization in Women’s and Gender studies. She teaches a variety of classes, including Fundamentals of Human Communication, Interpersonal Communication, 8 | September | College News Communication and Gender, and Relational Communication. Cassandra’s research focuses primarily in the ways in which individuals and relational partners communicatively cope and negotiate identity in the face of unexpected or ongoing relational turning points and how this communication is linked to health outcomes. Seokhoon Ahn joins the Department of Communication Studies as a Lecturer. Seokhoon received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and taught at Saint Cloud State University. Te main foci of his research revolves around intercultural communication with emphasis on acculturation, host people’s receptivity, and comparative studies between the East and the West. His research has appeared in 11 peer-reviewed journals, and he is currently working on several research projects including international students’ acculturative motives and their acculturation choices in the U.S., the infuence of the direct and indirect intergroup contact on host people’s perceived threats toward immigrants, and meta- analyses on acculturation and multiculturalism. Joshua Miller joins the Department of Communication Studies as an Assistant Professor. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His dissertation was entitled, “Rhetorics of Opacity: Case Studies of GLBTQ Christian Advocacy from the 1960s and Early 1970s.” He earned a B.A. in Social Relations and Policy from Michigan State University and an M.A. in Communication Studies (Rhetoric) from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. His scholarship focuses on social controversy and community empowerment in cultural and political contexts. Josh’s articles, chapters, and reviews appear in QED: A Journal in GLBTQ Worldmaking , Southern Communication Journal , Iowa Journal of Communication , Women’s Studies in Communication , and Te SAGE Encyclopedia of Communication Research Methods . He has served as a manuscript reviewer for journals and conferences, delivered public presentations addressing topics such as DACA and institutional racism, and assists with voter registration for the League of Women Voters.