|
|
 Nathan Miczo, Associate Professor, Communication Nathan Miczo has been busy researching, writing and publishing this year. COFAC faculty stay busy on top of their teaching duties. He has presented and published chapters in several books.
- Miczo, N. (2012, February). Opposite-sex affinity-seeking, self-criticism, and masculinity-femininity as predictors of dieting attitudes. Paper presented to the Interpersonal Communication Interest Group, Western States Communication Association, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- Miczo, N. (2012). Reflective conversation as a foundation for communicative virtue. In T. J. Socha & M. J. Pitts (Eds.), The positive side of interpersonal communication (pp. 73-89). New York: Peter Lang.
- Miczo, N., & Miczo, L. A. (2012). Humor in intercultural interactions: Challenges and pitfalls. In R. DiCioccio (Ed.), Humor communication: Theory, impact, outcomes. Kendall Hunt. This chapter was co-authored with Lisa Miczo:
- Miczo, N. (2012). Humor and message production. In R. DiCioccio (Ed.), Humor communication: Theory, impact, outcomes. Kendall Hunt.
 Sarah Noack, right, with faculty mentor Professor Lisa Miczo Sarah Noack, senior from Eureka, has received the Fourth Place award from the WIU Phi Kappa Phi Undergraduate Research Paper Committee for her paper entitled, “Silent Music: The Impact of Nonverbal Communication in Live Music Performance.” The recognition includes a $150 monetary award. Sarah received the award at the Phi Kappa Phi Banquet on April 15. Sarah’s mentor is Professor Lisa Miczo.
Sarah also received the first place award for Communication for her research presentation at Undergraduate Research Day. Her honors thesis exhibition at Undergraduate Research Day represents the expansion of her Phi Kappa Phi project into a full-blown honors thesis of the same name. She did an empirical study of participants’ responses to the same musical piece performed with less or more nonverbal expressiveness as an exploration of the elements that affect audience members’ performance appreciation.
 Sarah Noack with her Undergraduate Research Day presentation
 Chris Carpenter, Assistant Professor, Department of Communication From University Relations:
When Darth Vader was introduced as the dark side of the Force in the first installment of the original trilogy, “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope” (1977), Christopher Carpenter, the 30-year old assistant professor of communication at Western Illinois University, was not yet born.
Now, Carpenter is getting worldwide news coverage for his study of the “dark side,” but on the timely subject of Facebook.
Carpenter’s study, “Narcissism on Facebook: Self-promotional and Anti-social Behavior,” is published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, Vol. 52, issue 4 (March 2012), p. 482-486, as well as on numerous other websites.
Narcissism is defined in this study as “a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration and an exaggerated sense of self-importance,” Carpenter said.
For the average narcissist, Facebook “offers a gateway for hundreds of shallow relationships and emotionally detached communication.” More importantly, for this study, social networking in general allows the user a great deal of control over how he or she is presented to and perceived by peers and other users, he added.
Read more.
 Patrick Stufflebeam, BA 1999, Communication, Music minor Patrick Stufflebeam, BA communication, minor music 1999, has been elected to partnership in HeplerBroom LLC, Edwardsville, IL office.
Patrick Stufflebeam is a litigation attorney in the areas of products and premises liability with a special emphasis on toxic tort defense, including asbestos, manganese and silica.
Stufflebeam is admitted to practice in Missouri, Illinois, the U.S. District Court of Southern Illinois, Asbestos MDL, U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Stufflebeam is a member of the Illinois Association Defense Trial Counsel, Board of Directors, Madison County Bar Association, and the Defense Research Institute.
He graduated from Saint Louis University School of Law in 2002. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts from Western Illinois University in 1999, magna cum laude.
HeplerBroom has 80 attorneys and offices in St. Louis, Edwardsville, Springfield and Chicago. The firm traces its history to 1894.
Congratulations to Patrick Stufflebeam. A double COFAC grad!
Comm has lots of news to report. They are very busy people!
National Communication Association presentations:
- McEwan, B. (2011). Maintaining friendships together: An actor-partner interdependence model analysis of the effect of relational maintenance behaviors on relational quality indicators in young adult friendships. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- McEwan, B. (2011). Compressed crystal: A metaphor for mediated identity expression. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Pfafman, T. (2011). Contradictions and paradox in women’s constructions of organizational power. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Carpenter, C. J. (2011). The relative investment model of power in romantic relationships. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Shulman, H. C., Boster, F., Carpenter, C. J., Shaw, A. S. (2011). Why do students completing a political knowledge test score higher online than in the classroom? A series of studies. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Carpenter, C. J. (2011). A meta-analysis of the functional matching effect based on functional attitude theory. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Lauer, I. (2011). Translation as rhetorical practice in Roman antiquity: The assimilation and cultivation of voice. Paper presented at a meeting of the National Communication Association, New Orleans, LA.
- Bree McEwan of the Department of Communication was elected to the Vice Chair Elect position of the Human Communication and Technology Division of the National Communication Association. McEwan will serve a three year term culminating in service as Division Chair in 2014.
Publications
- McEwan, B. & Sobre-Denton, M. (2011). Virtual cosmopolitanism: Constructing third cultures and transmitting social and cultural capital through social media. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 4, 252-258.
Sarah Hill successfully defended her Master’s Thesis entitled “The Way We Think is How We Ink: Using the Reasoned Action Approach to Examine Communicated Beliefs about Tattooing.” Her MA committee consisted of Dr. Bree McEwan, Dr. Peter Jorgensen, and Dr. Lisa Miczo.
 Comm students receive an elegant "free lunch" during the Comm Career Prep Day. Plans are underway for the 3rd Annual Department of Communication’s Career Preparation Day. This daylong conference will be held on Tuesday, September 20, 2011 in the University Union on the campus of Western Illinois University. The conference includes 10 separate sessions plus a keynote speaker during the lunch, and it is all free to all the lucky comm majors, minors and grad students. What a wonderful gift from the department to its students!
This year’s keynote speaker is Matthew Sager speaking on “Keys to Creating Your Career Process.”
All communication majors, minors, and graduate students are encouraged to attend this event and learn from department alumni about interviewing, networking, job seeking, e-recruiting, transitioning from college student to full-time employee, resume writing, promoting your communication degree, and more.
Guest presenters for the day include the following: Michelle Howe WIU Career Services; Kelly Rynkus, owner and manager of Envy in Macomb, IL; Justin Elbe, owner and operator of Elbe Auto Sales in Macomb, IL; Matthew Sager, Caterpillar;
Jessica Stock is employed by a Higher Plains Executive Placement agency, Jacksonville, IL; Sarah Hill, Spoon River Community College; Alisha Barnett, Cherrytree Companies.
 The Western Illinois University College of Fine Arts and Communication (COFAC) has announced the addition of a communication major at the WIU-Quad Cities campus.
The additional major will give WIU-QC students the opportunity to focus their undergraduate studies on an in-demand field, according to Sharon Evans, COFAC interim dean.
“The College and the Department of Communication are both very pleased to provide the dynamic and varied communication major in the Quad Cities,” Evans explained. “Employers continue to tell us that our graduates have the right skill set to add value to their companies.”
Read more.
Plans are underway for the 3rd Annual Department of Communication’s Career Preparation Day. The daylong conference will be held on Tuesday, September 20, 2011 in the University Union on the campus of Western Illinois University.
All communication majors, minors, and graduate students are encouraged to attend this event and learn from department alumni about interviewing, networking, job seeking, e-recruiting, transitioning from college student to full-time employee, resume writing, promoting your communication degree, and more.
 Abigail Barreto, junior communications major from Berkley, IL. Abigail Barreto, competed for the title of Queen of Aurora Puerto Rican Heritage Week in Aurora, IL.
Abigail was one of six local queens competing for scholarships in the four-day 40th anniversary Heritage Fest by the Aurora Puerto Rican Culture Council. Abigail Barreto, is Miss Arecibo, representing Bartlett, IL.
The council will award $5,000 in scholarships. Judges reviewing applications were Christina Campos, Aurora; Aurora Township supervisor; Arlene Peralta, Wheeling, teacher, East Aurora School Dist. 131; Cindy Hernandez, Aurora; and Rosemarie Ramos, Arlington Heights, president, Elgin Puerto Rican Heritage Council.
Abigail works as a receptionist in the WIU Writing Center.
 Erica Mitchell, 20, daughter of Steve and Missy Dearwester of Paloma and Kent and Jackie Mitchell was crowned the new 2011 Miss Adams County Fair Queen Thursday at the Adams County Fair. Mitchell, one of fourteen contestants will compete in the 2012 Miss Illinois County Fair Queen pageant in January 2012. (H-W Photo/Michael Kipley) From the Quincy Herald Whig
MENDON, Ill. — Without question, Erica Mitchell was comfortable in the spotlight Thursday night after being named the 46th Miss Adams County Fair Queen.
Mitchell said she relishes public speaking, so much so that she hopes to some day be a television news anchor.
“I love communicating with people, and I have always wanted to be a reporter,” she said. “I know the hours are terrible, but it’s something I have always wanted to do.”
The 20-year-old Mitchell was chosen from a field of 14 contestants who competed in four categories — interview, speech and stage presence, swimsuit and evening gown — for the right to represent Adams County in the Miss Illinois County Fair Queen Pageant in Springfield in January.
Mitchell, a 2009 graduate of Central High School, is working toward a communications degree at Western Illinois University. She said the heat and humidity that engulfed the Adams County Fairgrounds was definitely a problem for all of the contestants.
“You just had to fight through it,” Mitchell said.
She was competing in her first pageant and received a $2,000 scholarship as part of her prize package.
Mitchell is looking forward to the coming year, which will see her making numerous personal appearances and speaking engagements as a representative for Adams County.
“Leadership is important to me, and I have always looked at myself as a leader,” she said. “I’m not a follower.”
Runner-up to Mitchell was Megan Scheiter, 16, of Camp Point, who received a $500 scholarship. The remainder of the five finalists were second runner-up Sara Frese, 17, of Paloma who received a $350 scholarship; third runner-up Courtney Rees, 17, of Mendon who received a $250 scholarship; and fourth runner-up Meghan Townley, 20, of Quincy who received a $150 scholarship.
Rees received an additional $50 scholarship after she was voted Miss Congeniality by the her fellow contestants.
Four additional $50 scholarships were handed out to the non-finalists who were the highest scoring in the four categories of competition. Kayla Power, 19, of Quincy was chosen for interview; Allison Lawler, 16, of Quincy for speech and stage presence; Sierra Thompson, 19, of Liberty for swimsuit and Darrien Morrison, 17, of Quincy for evening gown. A final $50 scholarship was awarded to Mitchell for essay.
Lauren Whan, who will be a senior at Central High School this fall, was recognized as the outgoing fair queen.
Heinze Dance Academy students entertained the crowd of 750 during the various breaks with a selection of numbers that included “T-R-O-U-B-L-E” by Travis Tritt and “Devil With A Blue Dress On” by Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels.
The 14 contestants were just slightly below the 14.6 average for the past decade. The most contestants in the past 10 years came in 2004 with 23. The fewest was seven in 2008.
— seighinger@whig.com/221-3377
|
|
