Notes from the Chair: Fall 2024 Mia Moody, Ph.D. Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media Professor & Chair

Notes from the Chair: Fall 2024
Mia Moody, Ph.D. Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media Professor & Chair

Welcome to the fall and winter notes from the Baylor Department of Journalism, Public Relations & New Media chair. It has been a busy semester of activities focused on improving services for our students. As we revise our strategic plan to align with the University’s new initiative, “Baylor in Deeds,” our faculty has been actively evaluating its goals. One of our primary goals is to update the curriculum based on feedback from the 2022 accreditation team and to ensure it meets industry standards. We have incorporated relationships and marketability into our accreditation outcomes to enhance our graduates’ competitiveness and prepare them to address workforce challenges effectively.

Under the leadership of our Undergraduate Program Director, Liz Bates, we have focused on curriculum development and strategies for recruiting and retaining students. For several semesters, we have achieved 100% first-year student retention rates. Dr. Cassy Burleson, senior lecturer, and Professor Kim Patterson have helped students secure internships and jobs after graduation, achieving 93-100% placement rates over the last few semesters.

Another recent goal is to use best practices to incorporate artificial intelligence into our curriculum. AI has a transformative role in education. It personalizes learning to meet students’ unique needs and pace, effectively addressing their strengths and weaknesses. Additionally, it enhances administrative efficiency by automating tasks, allowing educators to dedicate more time to teaching. 

Several of our faculty members have been completing ethics training offered by the University or through their membership in professional associations, such as the Page Society, NABJ, and AEJMC. Faculty members Professor Sharon Gripp, Dr. Alec Tefertiller, and Dr. Rosalynn Vasquez have been researching ways to use AI in our classrooms. We hope to offer additional training to faculty to enhance learning and support services through AI and other technologies, which can improve their effectiveness as educators.

Other goals:

We will continue collaborating with our advisory board members and Friends of the Department Council, which have offered valuable guidance on various issues. An inaugural slate of officers and regular advisory board meetings will enable us to work with industry leaders and alums, fostering continuous improvement within our department. We welcomed three new board members, whose bios are below.

• Supporting faculty, staff, and students’ mental health and well-being is crucial as we educate survivors of the pandemic for their overall success. For faculty, we encourage participation in workshops on mindfulness and resilience to provide better services for students, as well as self-care and work-life balance for themselves. Like students, we must continue to help them by raising awareness and encouraging them to seek counseling services, peer support groups, and other help.
• Strengthening our ties with the local community, our students work with nonprofits to complete media plans that the agencies can incorporate into their communications strategies. Faculty members mentor students from underserved communities Hearne and Calvert and host tours for the Greater Waco Chamber’s Leadership, Education, and Development (LEAD) Program, which provides students with lifelong skills by introducing them to various business and networking opportunities.
•  Increasing global engagement opportunities led to a new Global Engagement class and Study Abroad program by Dr. Marlene Neill and Dr. Mia Moody. The new Baylor JPR&NM Study Abroad program in Vienna will highlight global engagement and student flourishing this summer. Throughout the five-week study abroad program, students will visit museums, attend classical concerts, explore iconic landmarks, and visit Salzburg while examining global journalism, public relations, and new media. Read more. 

New Baylor Journalism, Public Relations and New Media Board Members: 

We are excited to welcome three new board members who are active in the community and corporate America. The alumni are eager to help share their ideas for improving our department. 

• Jill Petri is a senior vice president at Frost Bank. In her current role as the Fair and Responsible Banking Commercial Development Manager, she works with commercial and credit leadership to develop programs and facilitate re-engineering processes that support Frost Bank’s mission of improving all people’s lives in all the communities It serves. Petri began her career at Frost in 1994 and has worked in several areas, including marketing, staff development, research, and strategy. Petri graduated from Baylor University in 1990 with a B.A. in Journalism. A former newspaper reporter at the Waco Tribune-Herald, she continues to write for online publications about parenting and life as the wife of a high school coach. She also writes a weekly newsletter on her Substack, “Fourth Part of the Day.”
• Amber White Tierce has over 25 years of public affairs experience, leading industry-recognized communications, advocacy, and marketing campaigns while empowering and mentoring high-performing teams. In her current role, she advances Chevron’s presence in the Greater Houston area through local government/business engagement, sports partnerships, social investment, and communications. Throughout her career at Chevron, Tierce has held various positions in regulatory advocacy, issues management, and strategic communications. Before joining Chevron, she served as Vice President at Fleishman-Hillard International Communications, leading communications and sports marketing campaigns for top brands and Fortune 100 companies.
• Caroline Yablon is a social media strategist, storyteller, and content creator based in Dallas. She graduated from Baylor University in 2020 with a B.A. in Journalism, concentrating in Public Relations and minoring in Marketing. She was a reporter and copy editor for the Baylor Lariat in college. One of her favorite stories covered the life of Jess Cagle, former editor-in-chief of People Magazine and a Baylor alumnus. Additionally, she gained hands-on experience as an editorial and social media intern for the Wacoan Magazine.

New Faculty, Staff and Student Workers
We welcomed new faculty, staff, and student workers to our department this fall. 

• In September, new faculty additions included Dr. Tamara Welter, a tenure-track faculty member, and Professor Stephen Green, a lecturer. Welter comes to us from Biola’s Journalism and PR department. Her teaching emphasis is on visual and cross-cultural media. Green, a Baylor former student and former College Station High School teacher, specializes in audio-video instruction and photography. 
• Alumni Cody Soto, Claire St. Amant, and Rebecca Chapman finished their first semesters of teaching at Baylor. Soto taught Reporting and Writing for Media Markets, and Chapman taught Advanced Reporting and Writing. 
• Baylor has appointed Sommer Ingram Dean as the Fred Hartman Distinguished Professor for a second term. Dean is a former journalist and licensed attorney with expertise in media law and ethics, including freedom of speech, media freedom, and access to information. She has served as a staff attorney at the Student Press Law Center, a nonprofit that promotes, supports, and defends student journalists’ and advisers’ First Amendment rights. 
•  We are excited to introduce our new administrative associate, Lauren Spears. Spears hails from Dallas and studied Mass Communication at the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor. Her favorite soda is Dr Pepper, and she loves snacking on chips and salsa.
• Student workers include ambassador Anna Kate Elkins, who has helped with our social media presence; Anni Qiang, who decorated the department’s beautiful tree; and Om Patel, who helps where needed.

Faculty Kudos

Our faculty members have been busy making their mark in academia. They have received awards, published articles, received grants, and presented at conferences. These are some of the highlights:

• Dr. Marlene Neill made several research presentations this fall, including the PRSA Southwest District in Arkansas, the Institute for Public Relations in Dallas, the California Association of Public Information Officials (online seminar), the Minnesota PRSA in Minneapolis, and the PRSA International Conference in Anaheim, California. Neill’s journal article, “Identifying & Addressing Gaps in Public Relations Ethics Education,” was selected for the Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication Top Ethics in PR Pedagogy Award from the Journal of Public Relations Education. Her co-authors are Shannon Bowen and Denise Bortree. 
• Professor Sharon Gripp, senior lecturer, was recognized for the second year by the National Federation of Press Women, receiving an Honorable Mention for opinion/editorial writing. Award winners were announced on June 22, 2024, at the national conference in St. Louis. The editorial piece, “A&M Botched Journalism School Hire,” appeared in the Waco Tribune-Herald on August 2, 2023. In other news, Gripp will lead a seminar on excellence in teaching. Her session, “Conversations and Clarity in AI Usage,” will help faculty set parameters for student AI usage and provide guidelines for disregarding these parameters. The seminar will be at 2:30 p.m. on February 10.
• Dr. Rosalynn Vasquez presented “Smashing the Habitus: An Inquiry into Social and Cultural Capital of U.S. Hispanic and White PR Practitioners and Career Progression” at the European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA) conference on September 11, 2024, at Bucharest, Romania. She participated as a panelist speaking on “DEI in the Public Relations Classroom: What’s Next?” at the PRSA Educators Academy on October 14, 2024, in Anaheim, CA. Vasquez and Dr. Alec Tefertiller received a grant in 2024 from the Rapoport Foundation to examine Latinos’ perceptions and responses to health misinformation- and disinformation on social media. Vasquez received a grant in 2024 from the Arthur W. Page Center to explore the role of PR in communicating DEI & Ethics in U.S. companies.
• Dr. Alec Tefertiller, Dr. Rosalynn Vasquez, and Matthew Brammer, former lecturer, presented “The Kids Are Alright: Examining How U.S. Public Relations Students Ethically Navigate Artificial Intelligence.” This paper won the second-place teaching paper award in the AEJMC Public Relations Division. 
• Dr. Rosalynn Vasquez, Dr. Alec Tefertiller, Kim Patterson, Dr. Elizabeth Bates, and Matthew Brammer, former lecturer, presented “Applying Strategic Thinking and AI in Public Relations Case Study Approach” at the 2024 Southwest Symposium organized by SWECJMC on October 25, 2024. 
• Professor Kevin Tankersley, senior lecturer, and Dr. Rosalynn Vasquez, assistant professor, were elected to represent our department in the University’s Faculty Senate.
• Dr. Tamara Welter, an assistant professor, was invited to the Summer Faculty Institute. Participants explored teaching, research, and collegiality, constructing syllabi and managing preparation time there.
• The City of Waco recognized former Baylor Journalism, Public Relations, & New Media senior lecturer Carol Perry for designing the city logo many years ago and her service to Waco and Baylor University. Waco proclaimed Carol Perry Day!

Alumni Kudos

We are always very proud of our alums and their achievements. This semester, they have been featured in articles, won awards, published books, and spoken at conferences. Here are a few highlights:

• The Baylor Line highlighted Professor Emeritus Bob Darden in the feature “Shaping Minds to Sharing Stories: A Professor’s New Journey.” After decades of teaching, Baylor’s most awarded professor began a new chapter as a monthly columnist for Baylor Line. Read more.
• JPR&NM graduate Tiffanie Blackmon-Jones is the 2024 Mrs. Barbara Walker Distinguished Black Alum. Baylor also recognized Blackmon as a member of Baylor’s 2005 national champions, the first women’s team to win a title in Baylor history.
• Alum Alexandra Leatu was named the interim head coach of men’s tennis at Queens University of Charlotte. She will continue as head coach of the women’s tennis team at Queens University.
• Former student Drake Toll presented the keynote address at the 2024 American Studies Association of Texas conference. He discussed his six years of experience in sports media as an award-winning podcaster, play-by-play broadcaster, studio host, and writer.
•  Claire St. Amant, the Lillian and Rupert Radford Endowed Visiting Professor of Journalism, taught a podcast media course. St. Amant recently received the first copies of her book, “Killer Story: The Truth Behind True Crime Journalism.” She is a Baylor’s Journalism, Public Relations, and New Media program graduate and a former “48 Hours” and “60 Minutes” reporter.

Student kudos: 
We are proud of the achievements of our students in Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media, and Student Publications. These include being crowned homecoming queen, publishing in journals, and presenting at conferences. 

•  A team of graduate students who completed our Research Methods Course in the spring published their first journal article, which was published in Corporate Communications: An International Journal. In addition, one of the team members, Raphael Roker, had the opportunity to present the findings at the AEJMC conference in Philadelphia and the PRSA International Conference in Anaheim, California. Their study found differing perceptions of PR professionals’ expectations versus performance, prompting changed PR accreditation and certification exams. Read more. 
•  Emeri Drewry, a graduate student, was selected for the Plank Center for Leadership’s new EMERGE Leadership Academy program. She will receive a year of mentoring and leadership development training.
• NABJ President Cole Gee received a National NABJ scholarship this summer and was recognized at the national conference in Chicago.
• Baylor students and faculty crowned JPR&NM major Anna Kate Elkins (BRH Choir) and Business Fellows major Langley Cerovich (BRH Choir) king. 
   

Baylor Student Media

• The Student Media Department won 22 awards in November at the CMA/ACP National Convention in New Orleans. The Baylor Lariat, for its election guide from October 17, won the first Liberty Award for best election print edition. The Society of Professional Journalists and Flytedesk presented the award.
• Rory Dulock, Abbey Ferguson, and Sarah Gallaher were recognized and received scholarships from the prestigious Headliners Foundation of Texas! Other BU students were Olivia Turner and Foster Nicholas, who were recognized.
• Lariat TV News earned a Broadcast Pacemaker Award, making Baylor the only school to earn that distinction in the past three years. In the Pinnacle awards, Focus Magazine earned first place for best feature magazine, LTVN had the best video newscast, and Lariat and Roundup won second place in the best newspaper and yearbook categories. 
• Senior Kassidy Tsikitas’ photo of Brittney Griner and Baylor coach Nicki Collen at Griner’s jersey retirement earned a Pacemaker Award for best sports feature photo.

Baylor JPR&NM Events
Thanks to Lauren Spears and Office Manager Lanisa Tovar, the Baylor JPR&NM office party was a resounding success, featuring delicious food and exciting games. This year, we celebrated new faculty members, Professor Stephen Green and Dr. Tamara Welter, with special awards, including the “Willie” and “Elvis,” reintroduced by Professor Kevin Tankersley. As always, the event’s highlight was the much-anticipated gift exchange, which added a festive touch to the celebration. 

• Earlier this semester, the homecoming reception offered alums, friends, and faculty a chance to catch up. I want to thank advisory board president Chris Talley for his help. 
• Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media, KWBU, and Baylor Libraries presented “Passport to Literacy,” featuring Professor Gripp, Drs. Moody, and Alec Tefertiller. Read more. 
• Christmas in Castellaw began early, thanks to graduate assistant Anni Qiang, who decorated the department’s beautiful tree. Om Patel helped where needed to make office events successful.
   

In Memoriam
We will deeply miss Shadow, our beloved companion who has been a part of the Castellaw Communications Center family for over 17 years. Her presence has brought joy to our daily lives, and her absence will leave a void in our hearts.

To end on a positive note, I am honored to have received the Southwest Education Council for Journalism and Mass Communication (SWECJMC) 2024 Educator Award, created in 2021 to honor a faculty member at a SWECJMC member institution who has demonstrated an outstanding contribution to journalism and mass communication education and an exceptional commitment to undergraduate and graduate education through innovative practices, excellent student outcomes, and classroom-focused research. In other news, I began my stint as the Vice President of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC). I will ascend to president in 2026. I am grateful to be able to serve in this role and represent my department and Baylor University positively.

Have a happy holiday! Please consider donating to Baylor JPR&NM: https://bbis.baylor.edu/give?id=49837&a=2&c=827.

Baylor JPR&NM Faculty, staff, and students appreciate your support.