Communication & Media Arts Present Annual Senior Awards

Congratulations to the Class of 2011's select group of communication majors honored on Friday, May 20, during the annual Marist College Baccalaureate and Communication and Media Arts Senior Award ceremonies.

David Amrani
School of Communication and The Arts
Baccalaureate Recipient

During a campus-wide ceremony in the Marist Chapel, President Dennis Murray awarded David Amrani the School of Communication and the Arts Baccalaureate award for special achievement in academic and community affairs. David, who earned an overall grade-point average of 3.96, will graduate with a concentration in advertising and minors in writing and information technology.

During his four years at Marist, David has been an active contributor to campus communication outlets like the student-produced My575 news site; he has served the Marist community as a Marist Library student assistant; and he has represented Marist as a national-caliber fencer (foil). He plans to pursue a master's degree in communication following graduation as he prepares for a career in political communication and campaign strategy.

During another ceremony, held in the Lowell Thomas Center, seven graduating communication majors received annual School of Communication and the Arts Excellence Awards. The awards honor the top seniors in each of the seven academic concentrations comprising the Department of Communication and the Department of Media Arts. Recipients of these awards, who are selected by faculty members from both departments, best exemplify excellence in education through overall academic performance and accomplishments in student activities, athletics, internships, service to the community, professional and scholarly conferences, and other extracurricular activities.

The School of Communication and the Arts Dean Steven Ralston and Assistant Dean Missy Alexander presided over the ceremony, congratulated the recipients, and acknowledged the important contributions of  their families and friends. Faculty members from each of the Department of Communication and the Department of Media Arts presented the Excellence Awards to the following honorees.

Advertising: Stephen Gariepy
Communication Studies: Sarah Parsloe
Interactive Media/Game Studies: Brian McMillan
Journalism: Jacel Egan
Public Relations/Organizational Communication: Sabrina Clark
Radio/TV/Film: Laura Veltre
Sports Communication: Allison Burke

I was proud to present the Excellence Award in Public Relations/Organizational Communication to Sabrina Clark. Sabrina earned an overall 3.8 grade-point average while completing a double major in communication and Spanish with a minor in business. During her four years at Marist, she was active in student activities, including the Marist Red Foxes Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). As the chapter's vice president in her junior year and president in her senior year, Sabrina increased active membership by leading the development of programs like the chapter's annual leadership forum and its new student-run public relations firm, Northroad Communications. Sabrina also served as the first president of the new Marist Student Entrepreneur Network (MSEN).

Sabrina Clark
Excellence Award
in Public Relations
Recipient

Sabrina also served as a public relations consultant to clients in Marist's new business incubator, which works with local firms and start-up businesses to apply technology for economic growth and new job creation. Sabrina has already accepted a full-time position as public relations and marketing coordinator for VisionScape Interactive, LLC, a new firm based in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., that uses innovative 3D gaming technology to help clients create interactive replicas of property, landscape and home-improvement projects in minutes.

Dr. Mark Van Dyke with Sabrina Clark
2011 Senior Awards Ceremony

Congratulations to all senior award recipients -- you make us proud to be a Red Fox!

Marist Associate Professor Stephen Croucher Publishes Second Book

Congratulations to my colleague Dr. Stephen Croucher on publication of his second book by Hampton Press, based in New York City. Release of the book, “Religious Misperceptions: The Case of Muslims and Christians in France and Britain,” couldn't be more timely. It explores how misperceptions between Muslims and Christians in France and Britain perpetuate interpersonal and societal conflicts.

In its review of the book, Hampton Press stressed the relevance of “Religious Perceptions” to contemporary conflicts like those currently occurring around the world. Hampton observed on the book’s website, “In the wake of numerous historical and current geopolitical, social and economic events/tragedies, misunderstandings have emerged and proliferated about Islam and Christianity.” Hampton also credited the book with helping to address misconceptions that have been created by “inadequate media coverage, lack of interpersonal understanding/knowledge, and deep-seeded prejudices.”

Dr. Croucher, a faculty member in Marist’s School of Communication and the Arts, authored the book in conjunction with Dr. Daniel Cronn-Mills, a professor and distinguished faculty scholar in the Department of Communication Studies at Minnesota State University. Dr. Croucher and Dr. Cronn-Mills used in-depth interviews and statistical analysis to examine how Muslims and Christians expressed their experiences dealing with various types of conflicts.

Describing some of the findings published in the book, Dr. Croucher reported, “Christians explain how they perceive Islam changing Europe, and how this is something Christian Europe should resist. Muslims on the other hand, see Europe as an unwelcoming home that expects them to change and become European but does not understand or respect their faith or heritage.” He added, “As conflicts linked to religious differences continue to grow and affect world affairs, this book offers analysis and solutions to religious misperceptions.”

Dr. Stephen Croucher

This is Croucher’s second book on religion and communication, specifically Islam. His first book, also published by Hampton Press, “Looking Beyond the Hijab,” was published in 2008. It analyzed the effects of the 2004 ban on the wearing of religious symbols in French public schools on Muslim-Christian relations in France. His third book, “Religion and Communication: An Anthology of Extensions in Theory, Research and Method,” is scheduled for publication in 2012 by Peter Lang Publishers.

Congratulations, again, to Stephen and to his colleague Daniel Cronn-Mills.

New Marist Public Relations Curriculum Approved By College Faculty

The Marist College faculty overwhelmingly approved a new public relations curriculum for the School of Communication and the Arts communication major and minor during the spring semester's last Plenary meeting on Wednesday, May 4. Pending approval by the Marist College Board of Trustees and New York State's Education Department, the new public relations program will be offered to students entering Marist as early as fall 2012.

The faculty vote represents a major milestone in the College's public relations program, one of the most popular academic concentrations on campus. The last revision to the public relations curriculum occurred in 1997, when the program instituted the current curriculum. The curriculum was not offered as part of the communication major until 1989, and has only undergone two revisions (including the 1997 change) since then. Prior to 1981, when the communication major was established, communication courses were offered through the English and Communication Arts program at Marist. 

The new curriculum (see diagram, below) includes significant changes to existing courses, the addition of new courses, and the offering of two separate specializations: public relations management and integrated communication. These changes will help graduates meet the demanding requirements of a rapidly evolving public relations profession; and is expected to position Marist's public relations program among the top in the Northeast and perhaps the nation. 

Four Marist communication faculty members, led by Department of Communication Chair Dr. Keith Strudler, served on the academic committee that prepared the public relations proposal: Associate Professor James Fahey (Retired), Dr. Audra Diers, Professional Lecturer Jennie Donohue, and Dr. Mark A. Van Dyke (Chair). 

For more information about the new program, go to http://bit.ly/m0cRIf.

Pending approval by the Marist Board of Trustees and the
New York State Education Department, the proposed curriculum
is expected to be offered to students entering Marist beginning in fall 2012.

Marist College Holds Media Arts Festival, May 7-8

Marist College's School of Communication and the Arts Media Arts Department will present its 2011 Media Arts Festival on Saturday and Sunday, May 7 and 8. This annual spring festival celebrates excellence in student-produced media and exemplifies the cross-disciplinary and campus-wide importance of media arts at Marist. The festival is open to all Marist students.

The 2011 festival event includes presentation of awards in three different categories on Saturday and Sunday. Light refreshments will be offered at each event: 

The Silver Fox Awards for excellence in filmmaking and music video: Sunday, May 8, 7 p.m., Nelly Goletti Theatre, Student Center.

The Marist Electronic Media Awards [MEMAs] for excellence in television and radio: Saturday, May 7, 5-10 p.m., second floor of the Lowell Thomas Center.

Happy PXL Awards for excellence in interactive media and games: Saturday, May 7, 5-10 p.m., second floor of the Lowell Thomas Center.

Click here to view 2011 Media Arts Festival video.

For a history of the the Silver Fox Awards program, click here. For a list of previous Silver Fox Award winners and their projects, click here. For additional information about the festival or Marist's media arts programs contact Dr. Paula Willoquet-Maricondi, Media Arts Chair, 845-575-3000, ext. 6045.