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.