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WRC PROGRAM REVIEW 2008
BACKGROUND
The Writing, Rhetoric, and Communication (WRC) Program is Transylvania’s newest.
Until the 2005/2006 academic year, there was no such entity. The program was initially
created by bringing together four existing faculty members: Martha Billips and Martha
Gehringer from English, Gary Deaton from Sociology/ Anthropology/Communication,
and Bryan Trabold from Foundations of the Liberal Arts. All four were teachers in the
Foundations of the Liberal Arts two semester sequence. All four also completed part of
their 7 unit load in responsibilities not involving classroom instruction: Billips as FLA
Director, Gehringer as Director of the Writing Center, Trabold as the Associate Director
of the Writing Center, and Deaton as Director of Forensics.
During the inaugural year of WRC’s existence, Professor Trabold accepted a position at
another institution. Thus, the main objective of the program’s first year was to hire a
replacement for Bryan. We knew that it would be incredibly difficult to replace a
teacher, colleague, and friend of his caliber. We also knew, however, that it was an
opportunity to help shape the future of the program, particularly by bolstering our
offerings in rhetoric. We wanted someone whose background was strong in both
composition and rhetoric, and who had significant Writing Center experience. Enter
Scott Whiddon. Scott was at or near the top of the list of candidates at every stage of the
search process and emerged as the clear favorite once candidates visited campus. Since
his arrival, Scott has filled his role in all the ways we expected and has also exceeded our
expectations in significant ways.
2006/2007 was the first year with the program as it is now constituted in place. During
that year we also welcomed part-time visiting professor and Writer in Residence Frank X.
Walker, offered courses taught by visiting English professor Carrie Green and adjunct
professor Lee Fortner, hosted the first annual WRC Speaker (Susan Weinstein), and
established a number of new relationships with WRC linked internship sites. These latter
two additions were primarily driven by the work of Dr. Whiddon. Scott also enhanced
the campus culture by working with a group of interested students to reestablish the
campus radio station. Additionally, Gary was on the committee that hired an advisor and
chose editors for the post-hiatus return of the campus newspaper.
Perhaps most importantly, WRC conducted a thorough analysis of its course offerings
and revised the curriculum in significant ways (with important assistance from Julie
Anderson and the members of the CPC). This analysis and revision was driven by
student interest in the program as a potential major and/or minor. While the
Communication Minor that was extant before the creation of WRC continued under the
program’s purview, it was significantly revised as a part of this review. Additionally, this
process of analysis allowed us to clarify the appropriate levels for our courses, add new
courses that did not previously exist, and establish a progression of courses that would be
most advantageous for a student to follow.
In 2007/2008 we have been fortunate enough to have yet another Visiting
Professor/Writer in Residence, Devin Brown. We have also continued to offer courses
taught by Lee Fortner. We are hosting the second annual WRC Speaker, Dr. Katrina
Powell (Associate Professor of Rhetoric, Virginia Tech). Perhaps most importantly, we
have a number of students who have proposed or are proposing self-designed WRC
Majors. We are pleased with not only the number, but also the caliber of students who
have shown interest in the program. For example, two WRC majors-to-be, Travis
Maynard and Kris Olsen, presented a collaborative analysis of the rhetoric of “Letter
from Birmingham Jail” and its contemporary applications (hosted by Professor Whiddon)
as part of the extended Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration organized by the Minority
Affairs Office and the Lilly Project. Additionally, Megan Handshoe, Betsey Pigg, and
Melissa Sharpe will become the first three students to graduate as WRC majors this May.
Also, Sarah Lackey, an English major and Communication Minor, is planning to pursue
graduate study in Communication. Certainly the futures of these students and others who
will graduate with WRC Majors in the next few years will figure prominently in our next
Program Review.
Discussions are ongoing among the members of the program about the aspects and the
timing of formal proposals for a WRC Minor and a WRC Major, obvious next steps for
WRC. We will address these issue and related concerns in other portions of this review.
ANALYSIS OF CURRICULUM
a. How do your courses fit together to achieve program goals?
After last year’s extensive analysis and revision, we have a curriculum that is clearly
organized and helps us achieve our goals as a program. One course that we added,
Introduction to Communication, will serve as an overview of the discipline and as a
gateway course for the upper level communication classes. Most of our other 1000 level
courses are more oriented toward serving general university needs than linking to our
curriculum (e.g., Public Speaking, Basic Writing, Writing Lab, Introduction to
Journalism). Public Speaking, Argumentation and Debate, and Voice and Interpretation
also provide training for those students who wish to pursue competition in Forensics.
Argumentation and Debate is also an effective companion course with the two semester
rhetoric sequence.
At the 2000 level, we offer two courses in Communication, two courses in Writing, and
two courses in Rhetoric. Four of these six courses are focused on particular contexts.
The two communication courses examine the role gender plays in communicative
interaction (Gender and Communication), and the roles other cultural variables play
(Intercultural Communication). One of the Writing courses examines the organizational
context (Business Writing) and one of the rhetoric courses analyzes social movements
(Rhetoric of Resistance).
Introduction to Classical Rhetoric provides students with an overview of the history of
the field as well as an opportunity to engage in application of the classical forms to
contemporary acts. Writing for Writing’s Sake is an opportunity to study, practice, and
enjoy the craft of writing with other like-minded persons.
All of these courses combine theoretical understanding with significant praxis. This level
of course work asks students to understand, to contemplate, and to apply within the
particular models being addressed.
Our 3000 level courses expand on all three of the aforementioned processes
(understanding, contemplation, and praxis) and ask students to delve more deeply into
particular sub-disciplines. Nonverbal Communication draws on the literature and
analytical tools of those who study this aspect of the field of communication.
Organizational Communication is also a significant sub-discipline with its own literature,
its own analytical tools, and its own ways of thinking about both theory and praxis.
Our other three 3000 level courses (Persuasion, The Art of Persuasive Writing, Readings
in Rhetorical Criticism) give students an opportunity to see how the three aspects of the
program come together. In a very real way, these are all courses in rhetoric (defined by
Aristotle as “the art of finding, in any situation, the available means of persuasion”).
Persuasion focuses on the literature in the field of communication addressing these
issues, but inherently finds its foundation in classical rhetorical study and examines the
work of contemporary rhetorical scholars. Writing to persuade is also a clear focus of the
course, from the perspectives of both senders and receivers. Persuasive Writing utilizes
the logic of Persuasion and Rhetoric and focuses on creating and interpreting written
work. Rhetorical Criticism focuses on analyzing and creating rhetorical artifacts and
connects to the skills of Persuasive Writing as well as utilizing what Persuasion scholars
have learned to help in sending and receiving rhetorical messages. Thus, while each class
has its own unique focus, they also help students synthesize concepts from all three
aspects of the program.
Our two primary 4000 level courses are Directed Study and Advanced Studies in WRC.
These serve as opportunities for students who want a deeper exploration of some aspect
of our curriculum. Either of these courses can also be utilized as a Senior Seminar
substitution for those persons designing their own major in WRC.
Two additional, less traditional types of course offerings are Internships and Practica.
Both of these course types allow our students opportunities to utilize what they are
learning in our classrooms in new ways, to gather information unavailable elsewhere in
the curriculum, and to continue synthesizing theory and practice.
Because of their ability to think well, write well, and speak well, and because of their
cognitive awareness in these areas, WRC students are valuable to sites seeking interns
(e.g., both Betsey Pigg and Megan Handshoe are currently interning at Lexmark, chosen
through an intensely competitive search process). Because a number of these sites are
environments that we have sought (again, primarily through the efforts of Professor
Whiddon), these experiences are also beneficial to our students.
The two ways in which we are currently utilizing practica are for Forensics and for
Writing Center Tutors-in-training. The forensics practicum has been ongoing for over
twenty years and provides additional motivation for those who choose to develop the
particular research, analysis, thinking, writing, and speaking skills that successful speech
and debate competition requires.
The Writing Center Tutor training utilizes one of the new practica we added during our
curriculum revision (the .5 credit). This effort allows our training to be equivalent to that
conducted at large, research I institutions. While we will continue to do training sessions
with the tutors once they are part of the writing center staff, this practicum allows
important reading, discussion, instruction, and shadowing of veteran tutors to take place
before these tutors-to-be ever actually assist another student under the auspices of the
Writing Center.
There is currently some discussion about utilizing WRC Practica as a way to provide
academic credit for involvement in campus media. The radio station, the newspaper, the
yearbook, and the campus literary magazine are potential sites for future utilization of the
Practicum in WRC (more on this issue elsewhere).
b. COMPARISON TO BENCHMARKS
It is important to keep in mind that none of our benchmarks do what we do in the way
that we do it (i.e., no one else has a WRC Program). However, some of our benchmarks
are offering similar models housed differently. Most, but not all, offer Writing Centers
(usually under the auspices of the English Program). Some offer majors in
Communication. Several provide extensive offerings in media and journalism. Only two
are very similar to Transylvania. We will briefly discuss the benchmarks in ascending
order of similarity.
Interestingly, the benchmark with the least similarity is the one with the greatest
geographic proximity. Centre’s online catalogue includes no mention of a Writing
Center and no course listings that are analogous to the offerings at Transylvania in WRC.
Birmingham Southern, Millsaps, Rhodes, and Wofford all offer a few courses in one
or more of our three disciplines, but noting that builds a curriculum or connects courses
in structured ways.
Earlham provides a Minor in Journalism, but no courses in other WRC areas.
Albion’s program is titled Communication Studies. They offer both a Major and a Minor
in Communication Studies, and a Minor in Journalism. Those majoring in Comm.
Studies may choose an emphasis in Interpersonal Communication, an emphasis in
Organizational Communication, or an emphasis in Mass Communication. The program
also sponsors a “concentration” in Mass Communication, designed as a supplement to a
major in another field.
The Communication program at Hanover (where the University President is a
Communication Ph. D.!) is similar to Albion’s. Hanover offers a communication major
and the foci of their course offerings are mass media and organizational communication.
The most intense focus on writing, rhetoric, and communication issues among our
benchmarks can be found at Denison. Denison provides both a major and a minor in
Communication. They also offer an English major with a Writing concentration. In
addition to a Writing Center they also provide assistance with oral communication as
they have a CXC (Communication across the curriculum) focus and a related general
education requirement. The facts that there are 15 Communication faculty members and
that communication is one of the largest majors on campus show the differences in
Denison’s direction. However, the combination of writing courses offered in English and
courses in Communication and Rhetoric offered in Communication reveal the similarities
of approach.
The benchmark that wins the prize for greatest degree of similarity to what we are doing
is Wittenberg. Wittenberg has a Writing Center, offers courses in Expository Writing
and Journalism in its English program, and offers a major in Communication, where the
offerings include a number of courses with a rhetorical focus.
c. SERVICE TO TRANSY’S EDUCATIONAL MISSION
WRC faculty serve the educational mission of Transylvania in at least three ways. First,
we are committed to our involvement in the featured core experience of Transylvania’s
General Education Requirements, Foundations of the Liberal Arts. Program faculty teach
a minimum of four sections of this course every semester. Second, we are involved with
co-curricular experiences (like forensics and the radio station) that help “provide students
with the basis for continuing intellectual development and for purposeful, responsible,
and fulfilling lives” as our mission statement suggests. Finally (and most importantly)
our program offerings are in keeping with the great traditions of the Liberal Arts and with
the contemporary application of those concepts to the Transylvania experience.
Broadly speaking, a liberal arts education ought to be about transformation, not only of
the individual, but also of the community, and ultimately of the world and the future.
This transformative notion is supported by the eight goals listed in our mission statement
and by the conversations conducted by those involved in the summer Liberal Arts
Seminar. The WRC program views what we do as being in the center of this liberal arts
transformation. We also hold this notion of a transformative experience as being at the
center of what we do. Thus, the relationship between a WRC experience and a liberal
arts experience is clearly an intertwined and reciprocal one. We draw strength from
interacting with students who are being socialized to this ideal throughout their Transy
life. We share that strength and vision, and assist in their transformation through the
coursework of our curriculum. We help shape that vision through our work in FLA. We
help students utilize and share their transformation through internships, practica, and cocurricular experiences. We know that students are well-equipped by what they are
learning in other programs to do what we ask of them. We strive, in turn, to equip them
to be even more successful and productive in their other coursework, and, more crucially,
in the rest of their lives.
d. GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
Business Writing, Writing for Writing’s Sake, Rhetoric of Resistance, and the Art of
Persuasive Writing are our Area IV courses. Gender and Communication, Intercultural
Communication, Nonverbal Communication, Organizational Communication,
Persuasion, Introduction to Classical Rhetoric, and Readings in Rhetorical Criticism are
our Area IV W courses. All of our Writing Intensive courses (and most of those not so
labeled) are following the guidelines for writing intensiveness. Students write at least
fifteen pages, there is both direct and indirect writing instruction, there is a lot of teacher
feedback, and there are opportunities for revision and improvement.
Moreover, all of the aforementioned courses meet the responsibilities for Area IV.
Keeping the goals of successful transformation in mind, the courses ask liberal arts
questions, discuss knowledge in broad and encompassing ways (the very nature of
understanding, analyzing and critiquing expository writing, public argumentation, and all
forms of rhetoric), and go into depth about the particular focus of the course.
Additionally, all of these courses point toward the upper levels of the taxonomy of
learning, focusing on synthesis and application.
MEASURING STUDENT SUCCESS
Ultimately, we are measuring student success by how well we help them complete the
transformation discussed above. In order to accomplish that goal, successful students
will reveal a number of smaller changes. First, every class attempts to equip students
with the insider’s vocabulary, the common vernacular utilized by experts. More
importantly, all of our classes are designed to help students employ that vocabulary (and
the concomitant knowledge) in effective analysis and critique. All of our courses ask
students to utilize written communication as a part of our evaluation of their success. The
vast majority also ask them to utilize oral communication in informal (e.g., class
discussion) and formal (e.g., individual presentations, group presentations) ways. For all
of our students we hope to make them better, more critical and thoughtful citizens. We
hope to see them actively engaged in making the communities of which they are a part
better places through their active participation. We also hope to prepare them to meet
whatever goals they have. Some will seek graduate programs of different types, others
will seek immediate employment. For example, the four students currently enrolled in
the Directed Study course all have different goals: Betsey Pigg wants to find a job as an
Admissions Counselor; Megan Handshoe is planning to attend Law School (and has
already been accepted at her first choice); Sarah Lackey wants to attend graduate school
in Communication; Melissa Sharpe wants to find a job in the journalism field prior to
contemplating graduate school.
We also want to encourage them to expand their educational boundaries by engaging in
scholarship beyond the campus borders. Eric Reed (Sociology Major and
Communication Minor), Marshall Jolly (American Studies Major and Communication
Minor), and Megan Handshoe have all been presenters at one or more Academic
conferences related to WRC. Melissa Sharpe is following Reed (who was chosen last
year) as a presenter at this year’s Undergraduate Honors Conference of the Southern
States Communication Association. Reed’s paper was originally written for Gender and
Communication. Sharpe’s paper was originally written for Classical Rhetoric. Reed also
took a paper originally written for Gary’s FLA II class, revised it significantly as part of a
Classical Rhetoric project and got it published in a refereed online journal.
Additionally, we want our students to expand their learning by applying it in on-campus
opportunities that are outside the classroom. The aforementioned presentation by Kris
Olsen and Travis Maynard is a prime example of this type of activity. Betsey Pigg and
Megan Handshoe are also featured in the annual “Interviews for College and Beyond”
presentation given to prospective students by professor Deaton. Handshoe was the
featured speaker in Deaton’s “Presentation on Presentations” two years ago, delivering
her FLA II paper/presentation to the new first year class.
MEASURING PROGRAM SUCCESS
For now, the only measure we really have is the number and (more importantly) quality
of students interested in WRC. As we mature, we will need to continue to look at
whether students are doing all the activities described above. We can evaluate
vocabulary and skill acquisition in our classes. We will want to also be certain that our
students are continuing to engage in the intellectual life of the campus and in their own
intellectual life beyond the campus. We will want to know that student’s are achieving
the goals they have set for themselves in terms of graduate schools and occupational
success. We will want to keep our graduates connected to both ourselves and the newer
students so that we can all learn from one another and so that we can improve what we
offer and how we offer it.
UTILIZING ASSESSMENT
Because of the new status of our program, we have not had a lot of opportunity for
assessment. However, with immense help from Julie Anderson and the Registrar’s
Office and through the guidance of last year’s CPC, we were able to conduct a significant
and successful revamping of our course offerings. This has made what we do clearer,
more consistent, and more transparent. It has also improved the opportunity for students
who want to self-design WRC majors and given us a clear head start on creating a
permanent Major and Minor.
CHANGES AND THE OBSTACLES THERETO
The most obvious and immediate changes include developing and implementing a Major
and Minor in WRC. Additionally, we would like to increase our offerings in both
breadth and depth. Also, we would like to clarify the relationship between our program
and the campus media.
The two biggest obstacles to our future growth and development are 1) the
multidirectional nature of our various assignments; and 2) the staffing limitations created
by #1. We will discuss each of these concerns below.
1. Every member of the program teaches at least one section of FLA each semester
(sometimes more). Every member of the program also has release time for
administrative responsibilities: Martha Billips is the Director of FLA, Gary
Deaton is the Director of Forensics, Martha Gehringer is the Director of the
Writing Center, and Scott Whiddon is the Associate Director of the Writing
Center. Additionally, the other courses taught by Martha Billips are primarily in
the English program (in fact, so far, exclusively so).
2. As a result of the above constraints, the most course offerings available in WRC
in an academic year would be twelve. Given that a program with two people
teaching full time could offer fourteen courses in a year, our program faces a
potential double bind -- on the one hand, we are unable to offer the number of
courses we would like; on the other hand, the perception may be that a four
person program should be able to offer plenty of courses. As the ability to fill
both program faculty courses and those taught by visiting and adjunct professors
indicates, and as we clarified in our proposal to the Dean last year, we desperately
need another faculty member.
3. An additional time constraint is Writing Lab. Our Writing Center Director and
Associate Director give immense amounts of time to this endeavor (which is
separate from the Writing Center itself). This provides an incredible service to
the University and the students who need it, but it makes it even more difficult to
accomplish other goals that the WRC Program might have.
It will also be important that as we move forward we clarify the relationship between
our program and the campus media. There is currently no official relationship. Scott
Whiddon’s work with the radio station is purely voluntary and not part of his official
assignment. Martha Gehringer teaches the Introduction to Journalism course, but the
class is not officially connected to the campus print media (paper, yearbook, and
literary magazine). Due to the limitations described above, it would be impossible for
our program to take a more active, official role. A potentially more complex question
is whether the WRC Practica ought to be utilized in support of these activities and if
they are how the details of that utilization might be structured.
USE OF PREVIOUS ASSESSMENT
Since this is our first assessment, this question does not apply.
INTEGRATION OF GLOBAL ISSUES?
The most obvious example of this aspect of the curriculum is our Intercultural
Communication course. However, a number of the other courses often feature
assignments that either require or allow exploration of global issues (e.g., Gender and
Communication, Classical Rhetoric, Rhetorical Criticism, Nonverbal Communication).
Still others feature sections that address global issues (e.g., Rhetoric of Resistance,
Organizational Communication, Nonverbal Communication, Persuasion), or often
involve study abroad (e.g., Writing for Writing’s Sake).
APPENDIX A
BENCHMARK WEBSITE INFO
(ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY)
Albion College Info
Communication is the process that makes us human. It is through our ability to use
symbolic expression that we develop our identities, gain personal effectiveness, and
establish, maintain, and change the societies in which we live. Communication is then a
study which is central to the mission of the liberal arts. Students investigate how humans
use signs and symbols to communicate in a variety of settings: interpersonal, public,
organizational, and mass communications contexts. In all of this study, students come to
understand the mutually influencing and interdependent nature of all communication.
Students majoring in speech communication may be interested in pursuing a mass
communication concentration as well. Majors are expected to participate in all
assessment objectives as outlined by the department.
As of 2006 the requirements for a Major or a Minor have
changed.
Students who entered before that time can still use the old system. The New
system is as follows
New major/minor
Communication Studies Major

A minimum of nine units in communication studies, including: 101,
241, 322; one course from 202, 207, 313; one course from 203, 301,
306, 351; one course from 205, 207, 306, 365; three courses from
201, 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245, 301, 306, 311, 312, 313, 325,
341, 351, 365.
Note the three units required are made up of one from each of the following
major areas.
Mass Communication (205, 207, 306, 365)
Organizational Communication (203, 301, 306, 351)
Interpersonal Communication (202, 207, 313)
Communication Studies Minor

A minimum of six units in communication studies, including:
including: 101, 241, 322; one course from 202, 207, 313; one course
from 203, 301, 306, 351; one course from 205, 207, 306, 365.
Communication Studies Major with an emphasis in Interpersonal
Communication

A minimum of nine units in communication studies, including: 101,
241, 322; two courses from 202, 207, 313; one course from 203,
301, 306, 351*; one course from 205, 207, 306, 365; two courses
from 201, 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245, 301, 306, 311, 312, 313,
325, 341, 351, 365.
Communication Studies Major with an emphasis on Organizational
Communication

A minimum of nine units in communication studies, including: 101,
241*, 322; one course from 202, 207, 313; two courses from 203,
301, 306, 351; one course from 205, 207, 306, 365; two courses
from 201, 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245, 301, 306, 311, 312, 313,
325, 341, 351, 365.
Communication Studies Major with an emphasis on the Mass Media

A minimum of nine units in communication studies, including: 101,
241, 322; one course from 202, 207, 313; one course from 203, 301,
306, 351; two courses from 205, 207, 306, 365; two courses from
201, 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245, 301, 306, 311, 312, 313, 325,
341, 351, 365.
Requirements for the Old Major


A minimum of nine units in speech communication, including: 101, 201,
241, 322; two courses from 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245; two courses
from 301, 306, 311, 312, 313, 325, 341; one course from 351, 365.
Courses required for the major must be taken for numerical grades.
Requirements for the Old Minor


A minimum of six units in speech communication, including: 101, 201,
241, 322; one course from 202, 203, 205, 206, 207, 245; one course from
301, 306, 311, 312, 313, 325, 341.
Courses required for the minor must be taken for numerical grade.
Requirements for Major With Elementary Education Certification
The exact requirements for certification in speech communication are currently
under review. Students seeking certification to teach in the elementary classroom
with a teaching major in speech communication should consult with the Speech
Communication Department and the Albion College Education Department.
Requirements for Major With Secondary Education Certification
The exact requirements for certification in speech communication are currently
under review. Students seeking certification to teach in the secondary classroom
with a teaching major or minor in speech communication should consult with the
Speech Communication Department and the Albion College Education
Department.
Albion College ◦ Albion, Michigan ◦ 517/629-1000
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© 2008 All rights reserved.
Mass Communications Concentration
This concentration is designed to supplement a chosen academic major by
providing course work which focuses on issues and choices in selected mass
communication areas.
Admission
All concentrations are individually designed; therefore, students must be accepted
into the program, and must contact the chair of the Mass Communication in
Speech Communication by the end of their sophomore year.
Requirements
The concentration consists of six units of credit contracted between the candidate
and the chair of the committee: one required course, a one-unit internship and four
units of electives. The following courses are required in the concentration:
1. Speech Communication 205, Mass Communication, one unit.
2. A writing course from the following list: English 203, 205, 207, 308, 310.
3. Internship, one or two units. Students are required to take one unit of internship
but may receive credit for a two-unit internship. If a one-unit internship is selected,
students may choose a directed study or another elective to fulfill the six-unit
requirement. Special work experience or practicum credit may be used as
internship credit with committee permission. All internships are taken on a
credit/no credit basis, and must be registered through Albion College. Tuition is
charged.
4. At least three additional units from the following list of electives. With the chair
of Mass Communication Concentration Committee, students will choose courses
from the following electives to best fulfill their designated areas of interest:
Anthropology and Sociology

366 Anthropology of Mass Culture
English




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
203 Advanced Expository Writing
205 Introductory Creative Writing
207 News and Feature Writing
307, 308 Advanced News and Feature Writing
309, 310 News Editing I
321 Advanced Creative Writing
Speech Communication







301 Studies in Free Speech
306 Public Relations
311 Environmental Communication
312 Minority Images in American Media
325 Visual Communication
351 Persuasion
365 Media Theory
Art and Art History


241 Beginning Photography
341 Advanced Photography
Other courses may be used for the concentration as they are offered.
Albion College ◦ Albion, Michigan ◦ 517/629-1000
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© 2008 All rights reserved.
Journalism
Internships
Most journalism minors at Albion College choose to do an internship after completing the
beginning and advanced writing and reporting courses.
Some work and study abroad through off-campus programs; recent internship placements
have been at The Guardian Observer, Reader's Digest, NBC News and The New Statesman
Magazine in London, at the World Association of Newspapers in Paris, at the Soho Press and
Jane magazine in New York, and at media companies in Sydney, Nairobi, Florence and
Aberdeen.
In Michigan, students have gained editorial experience working for The Jackson CitizenPatriot, The Battle Creek Enquirer, The Northville Record, The Novi News, The Oakland
Business Review, The Albion Recorder, Jackson Magazine, The Gale Group and other local
newspapers, magazines and book publishers. Some have pursued writing opportunities in
marketing and public relations at companies such as the Detroit Lions, The Detroit Metro
Times, Starr Commonwealth and others.
In addition, journalism students are encouraged to submit articles for freelance publication.
Check it out
Here's your chance to see what some of our interns are writing:
Andrew Kimball, '09
Intern, Harbor Light News (summer 2007)
'Bio Blitz' last weekend drew scientists, students to University of Michigan Biological
Station(front page story)
www.harborlightnews.com/atf.php?sid=2211
Student Publication
The Pleiad. A weekly student newspaper written and edited entirely by Albion College
students.
Awards
The Pleiad competes against other weekly college papers in Division II in the Michigan Press
Association's student newspaper contest.
Michigan Press Association awards for the Pleiad, 2006-07








General Excellence 3rd place
News Page Design 3rd place
Feature Page Design 3rd place
Non-Deadline Story 1st place Izzy Bendall and Andrew Kimball - "Underground Dog
Fighting"
Investigative Reporting 1st place Holly Setter - "Frustration 101"
Investigative Reporting 2nd place Kyle Gillis - "PTM Begins Paying Back Bonuses"
Feature 3rd place Kayla Kiley - "Pornified"
Column 2nd place Holly Setter - "Cheney vs. Smith"
Michigan Press Association awards for the Pleiad, 2005-06

General Excellence 2nd place

Student Manager of the Year (one statewide winner) Maria Stella, business manager

Non-Deadline Story 2nd place Maria Stella - “Construction to Finish on Controversial
Ethanol Plant”

Investigative Reporting 2nd place Michael Melvin and Lindsay Zeigin-Netter - Budget
series

Sports News 3rd place Jake Lloyd - “MIAA Champions”

Sports Feature 1st place Jake Lloyd - “The Hardest Race Yet”

News Page Design Honorable mention
Michigan Press Association awards for the Pleiad, 2004-05

Investigative Reporting 1st place Michael Melvin, tenure series

Sports Feature 1st place Charlie Snearly - "The Long Development of a Diaper
Dandy"

Column 1st place Jill Hindenach - "Zero Tolerance Policy Needed"

Sports Features 2nd place Jake Lloyd - "Homecoming Weekend 2004"

Non-Deadline Story 3rd place Rachel Karmol - "Students Report Sexual Assault"

Feature Story 3rd place Michael Melvin - "Albion Review Redux"
Life After Albion
What are they writing now? We are proud to showcase the accomplishments of some of our
most recent graduates.
Liz Shepard, '06
Staff writer, The Argus-Press
Utility funding for business park questioned
http://www.argus-press.com/articles/2007/09/01/news/news1.txt
Kayla Kiley, '07
Reporter, Cadillac News
I got milk: The woes of being a city girl on a farm
www.cadillacnews.com/articles/2007/06/14/news/news06.txt
Denison Communication Info
Welcome to the Communication Department. Throughout our teaching and learning, research
and writing, and service and civic engagement, we welcome students from diverse economic,
ethnic, gender, political, racial, religious, and sexual backgrounds. Our curriculum, faculty, and
students are excited to explore communication in relation to justice, diversity, engagement, ethics
and pluralism. Sound fun? Join us!
Who We Are
The Department of Communication is one of the largest and most popular departments on
campus. We have approximately 251 majors and 48 minors. 71 students in the 2000-2001 school
year of Denison's total graduating class were Communication majors.
Our department offerings are unusually rich for a program our size. We offer over 30 courses that
present considerable breadth and depth in the areas of speech, rhetoric, media studies, and
interpersonal communication. We also provide a range of resources and programs for students
including extracurricular activities, service learning, and internships. See the rest of our web site
for more details.
Our Mission
Communication processes and events are simultaneously shaped by their physical and social
environments, making the study of communication inherently dynamic. Over its history, the
discipline of communication has evolved in its theoretical scope and content, reflecting change in
the larger intellectual tradition. During the present century of significant social and cultural
change, the study of communication has continued to expand to encompass the contexts of
family, friendship, groups, organizations and mass media, in addition to those of politics and
social policy upon which the tradition is built.
A sympathetic affinity between the study of communication and the community, which keeps
theory symmetrically aligned with praxis, is essential to the vitality of the discipline and thus to
those who seek a degree within it. With these assumptions in mind, the department sees its
mission as education students about the process of communication.
Among our goals are:
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To understand the role communication plays in the construct of knowledge;
To develop a knowledge of and knowledge about the communication discipline;
To critically evaluate communication;
To study communication in order to make us more humane and to create a
community of understanding;
To develop imagination and creativity in our approach to the study of
communication.
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Course Catalog 2007-2008
Communication
Faculty
Departmental Guidelines and Goals
Communication Major
Communication Minor
Course Offerings
Faculty
Associate Professor Lisbeth Lipari, Chair
Professor Suzanne E. Condray; Associate Professors John Arthos, Jeffrey Kurtz,
Laurel Kennedy, Lisbeth Lipari; Assistant Professors Amanda Gunn, Carol (Mimi)
Harvey, Eric Saranovitz; Visiting Assistant Professors W. Buddy Howell, William
Kirkpatrick; Instructors/Assistant Professors Erika Molloseau, David Oh; Visiting
Instructors/Assistant Professors Cassandra Secrease-Dickson, Erin Underwood;
Instructors (part-time)Philip Martin, Alan D. Miller; Academic Secretary Sally
Scheiderer
Departmental Guidelines and Goals
Courses in the Department of Communication examine the process by which meanings
are developed, shaped, and shared in interpersonal, speaker-audience and mass media
contexts. In the classroom, faculty and students study the characteristics of messages
that affect the ways people perceive them, assign meaning to them, and respond to
them in different circumstances.
Courses in the department present opportunities for students who wish to gain a deeper
insight into the communication process or who are considering careers in teaching,
law, journalism, radio or television broadcasting, communication management,
government, business and public policy.
Communication Major
A student majoring in Communication must complete a minimum of 36 semester hours
of credit in the department. All majors must take Communication In Social Interaction
(COMM 280) and Research Methods (COMM 290) by the end of their sophomore
year and before taking upper division (300- and 400-level) courses. In addition to
completing these core requirements, students must complete 8 credit hours of 200-level
coursework, 8 credit hours of 300-level coursework, a 4-credit 400-level seminar, and
8 credit hours of electives, 4 credit hours of which must be taken at the 300- or 400level and 4 credit hours of which can be at any level.
Communication Minor
A student minoring in Communication must complete a minimum of 24 semester hours
of credit in the department. All minors must take Communication and Social
Interaction (COMM 280) and Research Methods (COMM 290) by the end of their
sophomore year and before taking upper division (300- and 400-level) courses. In
addition to completing these core requirements, students must complete 4 credit hours
of 200-level coursework, 4 credit hours of 300-level coursework, a 4-credit 400-level
seminar and 4 credit hours of electives at the 300- or 400- level.
Course Offerings
Introduction to Public Speaking (COMM-101). This course is designed to help
students develop skills for effective oral communication. At a minimum, students will
emerge more confident on the public platform. When refined by practice and
experience, the critical thinking, composition, and performance skills learned should
prove most useful in personal and professional endeavors. Howell, Martin,
Underwood. 4
Introduction to Writing for Print (COMM-108). This course focuses on the
fundamentals of reporting and writing nonfiction for print. Topics include storytelling
and narrative, lead writing, point of view, information gathering, interviewing, and
more. The class aims to help students develop overall research, writing, and thinking
skills; questioning, listening, and interviewing skills; and a more sophisticated
understanding of print journalism. Miller. 4
Introduction to Communication Ethics (COMM-111). This course explores
communication ethics from philosophical and applied perspectives in a variety of
social contexts. Weekly theoretical discussions are grounded in applied cases that
resolve around issues such as whistleblowing, free speech, group think, lying,
confidentiality, privacy, coercion, and consensus. Lipari. 4
Introduction to Argumentation and Debate (COMM-122). In this course students
will explore the art of inquiry and advocacy known as argumentation. In order to
become better audiences and practitioners of argument, students will consider the
nature of argument, the building blocks of argument and the practice of argument in
public debate. Kurtz, Lipari, Howell. 4
Introduction to Mass Communication (COMM-126). This course is designed to
initiate students into critical and intelligent debates surrounding the issue of
communication and its pertinence to mass, modern and postmodern societies. We
consider specifically how mass communication has been defined from the 19th through
to the beginning of the 21st century and how this history is relevant to issues of mass
society today. Given that almost every person in America is affected by mass culture
and media, we will discuss through the lectures, discussions and exercises a number of
controversial suggestions, critical paradigms and mainstream assumptions. Throughout
the course, students will be expected to understand these approaches and be able to
both criticize and recognize the legitimacy of these models. Kirkpatrick, Molloseau,
Oh. 4
Introduction to Media Literacy (COMM-147). While most of us are proficient
consumers of visual electronic media - we have the speed of symbol-recognition and
comprehension skills to be adept "readers" - few of us have been taught to bring to that
reading the critical skills we learn in the study of literature, music or art. This course
examines how sound and images construct the "realities" that media presumably
represent. Condray, Kirkpatrick, Saranovitz. 4
Introductory Topics in Communication (COMM-199). A general category used
only in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Communication Special Topics (COMM-215). Special Topics in Communication
provides a venue in which to explore in depth an aspect or issue related to
communication study. May be taken more than once by majors or non-majors to
address special topics. Staff. 4
Group Communication (COMM-221). This course explores the communication
processes in and around social, organizational and political groups. The dynamic
nature of group formation, flexibility and sustainability will serve as the foundation of
the course. Questions regarding the desire for belonging, how belonging gets enacted,
and the tensions of group identification and membership will serve as the thread for
exploring groups in a variety of contexts. Gunn, Secrease-Dickson. 4
Rhetoric and Persuasion (COMM-223). Rhetoric is the art of the spoken and written
word, and its study and practice has been the foundation of a liberal education for two
thousand years. It grounds the traditions and practices of politics, law, commerce and
religion, and its power is felt in every sphere of public life. In this course we focus on
the practice and theory of rhetoric as the medium of civic engagement, and the
constituting act of self and community. Arthos, Howell, Kurtz, Underwood. 4
Interpersonal Communication (COMM-224). This course provides students with an
interpretive and critical perspective for investigating the process of our making social
worlds. Students will analyze interactional patterns of communication in personal and
cultural mythology, in family communication, and in college students' culture. Gunn,
Harvey, Secrease-Dickson. 4
History of Radio and Television in America (COMM-225). The broadcasting
industry is undergoing dramatic change as new technologies and shifting attitudes
toward regulation alter relationships within the industry, rechannel audience viewing,
and redirect revenues. This class explores these phenomena though the lens of U.S.
broadcast history, and studies the structure of the broadcasting/cable industries, the
objectives of radio and television as social forces and cultural influences, program
types and existing programs aimed toward the development of acceptable standards for
broadcasting. Oh, Kirkpatrick. 4
Mediating Gender and Sexuality (COMM-229). In this class we will critically
examine and evaluate the cultural construction and representation of gender and
sexuality in contemporary American mass media, and trace their development
throughout the 20th century. We will focus on a variety of mass-produced commercial
media texts, surveying television, magazines, advertising, and popular music. Although
gender is the primary identity construction examined in this course, we will also pay
close attention to other aspects of identity that define American women, such as
ethnicity, class, and sexuality. We will investigate representational issues in relation to
their political repercussions, and draw from a broad range of academic literature,
including feminist television criticism, film theory, cultural studies, communication
theory, and popular music criticism. Condray, Molloseau. 4
Ethnicity and Racism in American Media (COMM-239). This course critically
examines the forms that racial and ethnic representations have taken in American
media. The course will attempt to chart changes in public perception of racial and
ethnic difference in the context of cultural and social transformations, as well as
adjustments in the U.S. media industry. We will first establish a foundational
knowledge of media criticism and explore theories and perspectives on how ethnicity
is experienced in American culture. We will then focus on the topic of the
representation of ethnicity in American media, surveying it historically, in relation to
specific ethnic groups, at particular moments, and in a variety of genres. Condray,
Molloseau, Oh. 4
Intercultural Communication (COMM-244). This course examines the processes
and politics of intercultural communication in both domestic and international
contexts. Students will enhance their cross-cultural awareness by exploring differences
in value orientations, thought patterns and (non)verbal behaviors, challenges of
transition and adaptation across cultures, identity management in intercultural settings,
intergroup relationship development and conflict resolution, and intercultural
communication competence and ethics. Throughout the course, special considerations
will be given to power and privilege issues in bridging differences and embracing
diversity. Harvey, Secrease-Dickson. 4
Communication in Social Interaction (COMM-280). This course introduces
students to selected theoretical perspectives and vocabularies for understanding human
communication. This course is designed to both introduce and provide an overview of
the discipline of communication studies. First-Year or sophomore standing or consent.
Required of all majors and minors. Arthos, Harvey, Kurtz. 4
Research in Methods (COMM-290). The purpose of this course is to expose students
to major research methods used in the communication discipline. The course will
sensitize students to issues in the field, familiarize students with types of research
methods used in the discipline and enable students to formulate research questions, and
design appropriate studies to answer those questions. In addition, the course will
facilitate students' ability to understand the logic and process of research and to engage
in critical analyses of reports and studies published in communication journals. Firstyear or sophomore standing or consent. Required of majors/minors. Condray, Gunn,
Saranovitz. 4
Intermediate Topics in Communication (COMM-299). A general category used
only in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Media Programming and Economics (COMM-301). This course explores the
business of media, a crucial component to understanding why various programming
forms appear. A primary goal for this class is for students to gain an understanding of
the complicated transactions and forces that contribute to the creation of the various
media texts through which culture is created, transmitted, and shared. While many of
the features of this course emphasize practical skills or applied learning, my goal is not
to create media programmers, so much as expand students' knowledge of the innerworking of the media industries to which they will subscribe and consume from
throughout their lives. Consequently, students should regularly reflect on questions
such as what does this practice mean "in the big picture"; how is power transferred
through this practice; what assumptions exist, and whom do they benefit. Saranovitz.
4
Comparative Media Systems (COMM-305). This course examines media systems in
developed and developing nations. It explores the ways in which various media
systems have been shaped and influenced by the social, political and cultural systems
in which they are located and, in turn, how the media shape and influence those
systems. Investigating the different contexts that determine how a medium such as
television, radio, or the internet is used in terms of who decides what is conveyed to
the public, and with which rationale, students will examine the ways in which media
outlets around the world have or have not served popular expression and democracy.
Saranovitz. 4
Organizational Culture (COMM-306). This course is informed by the claim that
communication is the means through which we construct, participate, and convey the
cultures we a part of. The constitutive nature of communication is explored by
investigating an existing organizational culture through an application of
communication concepts and theories, cultural studies theories, and qualitative
research methods. Gunn. 4
Ethics and the Public Sphere (COMM-311). This course explores the intersection
between communication ethics and political communication in the context of
democratic pluralism. After being introduced to the central themes, questions, and
literatures of discourse ethics and dialogic philosophy, students then explore the
relationships between response and responsibility, and ethics and politics, in
deliberative public spheres. Lipari. 4
Listening, Thinking, Being (COMM-313). Although we know listening is central to
communication, we rarely think about it. In this course we place listening at the center
of communication and explore a range of sound environments and listening practices
including auditory cultures, acoustic ecology, animal communication, film sound,
music, human dialogue, and deaf cultures. Rather than focus on technical questions
such as how to be a more effective listener the course asks the basic question of how
we listen and explores the indissoluble relationships between listening, speaking,
thinking, and being. Along the way, we will also consider the cultural, philosophical
and ethical dimensions of listening. Lipari. 4
Special Topics in Communication (COMM-315). These classes focus intensively
upon a particular aspect of communication. May be taken more than once for elective
credit as an upper division course. Examples of recent topics include: Critical Theory
in Communication. Staff. 4
The Rhetoric of Citizenship (COMM-324). This course explores the symbolic
dimensions of the American public discourse about rights and citizenship. Students
will undertake historical and rhetorical examinations of the key texts and issues that
give these their tone and tenor. Kurtz, Lipari, Mollosean. 4
Communication Law (COMM-328). Communication Law examines the
constitutional and statutory principles associated with the First Amendment issues of
free speech and free press. The course examines legal decisions, governmental
regulatory doctrines, and self-regulatory practices which inform First Amendment law.
Particular topics discussed include censorship, obscenity and pornography, libel law,
privacy, governmental secrecy, free press/fair trial, regulation of telecommunications,
advertising and the Internet. Condray. 4
Exploring Rhetorical Texts (COMM-344). This course examines the art of
rhetorical criticism. In becoming a practicing rhetorical critic, students will learn to
situate, interpret, and judge historical and contemporary public persuasive discourse.
Topics include the nature of criticism and the role of the critic, the process of
contextual reconstruction, key issues in textual reading, and methods of rhetorical
analysis. Prerequisite: COMM 101, 222 or 223. Arthos, Kurtz. 4
Advanced Journalism (COMM-350). This course allows students to explore the
planning, reporting, and writing of in-depth news stories. It also explores the ethical
considerations of such projects. The organic and collaborative process provides
students the opportunity to hone their writing skills by focusing on the importance of
story structure and content. Prerequisites: COMM 208 or consent. Miller. 4
Directed Study (COMM-361). Staff. 1-4
Directed Study (COMM-362). Staff. 1-4
Independent Study (COMM-363). Staff. 1-4
Independent Study (COMM-364). Staff. 1-4
Advanced Topics in Communication (COMM-399). A general category used only
in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Language, Identity and Politics: Discourse and the Public Sphere (COMM-402).
This course examines the role of language and discourse in constructing, maintaining
and transforming identities, publics and politics in late 20th century democracies.
Throughout, we will consider the relationship between language use and unequal
relations of power. We will begin with an introduction to discourse studies and explore
discourse as symbolic power, social practice and ideology. Next, we will examine the
role of discourse in constructing and maintaining identities and communities, including
those of sublatern and marginalized publics. Finally, we will examine and critique the
role of discourse in public sphere(s) from Afrocentric, feminist and queer perspectives.
Lipari. 4
Culture and Communication (COMM-403). This seminar takes a historical and
critical approach to understand the role communication plays in creating various
cultural experiences. Major theories on culture and race are examined. Topics include:
How can we best understand and study the construct "culture?" What does "American
culture" mean within a pluralistic and diverse society? How are different cultural
voices created, heard or erased? How is "America" constructed from international
scholars' perspectives? Gunn. 4
Mass Media and Politics (COMM-404). This course examines the relationship
between the media and the American presidency from both a historical and
contemporary perspective. The seminar focuses on the historical dynamics of the
relationship, the role of institutional factors in White House coverage, the influence of
presidential press coverage on public perception of the presidency, and the influence of
the media on presidential election campaigns. Resources and texts represent a diversity
of views among scholars, journalists and presidential administration personnel.
Condray, Oh. 4
Advocating Reform: Communication in Social Movements (COMM-406). This
course focuses on the historical rhetorics of discontent and transformation. Students
will examine the characteristics and functions of persuasive discourse produced by
social movements; the ways in which symbolic action sought to shape perceptions of
concrete realities. Of particular interest will be the intersection of cultural context,
biography, and creative rhetorical strategy. Kurtz. 4
Critical Perspectives in Communication (COMM-408). This course is designed to
acquaint students with criticism as a method for answering research questions in
communication. Students will be provided with opportunities to apply various methods
in the writing of essays analyzing various kinds of communication texts - both
discursive and non-discursive. Public communication via public speaking, broadcast,
film and print media as well as art, architecture and music will be among the texts
examined over the course of the term. Staff. 4
International Communication (COMM-409). This seminar examines the nature of
information flows within and between nations, the issues raised by such
communication, and the institutions involved and patterns evident in the development
of and relations between nation-states. The course explores issues surrounding the
constituent role that the news and entertainment media have played in the formation
and maintenance of the nation-state. Topics raised will include uses of information in
domestic and foreign policy, the extension of cultural imperialism, corporate invasion
of privacy, and incursions upon sovereignty and national security. In examining the
resolution of such issues, the course analyzes how nations' power is distributed and
utilized among multiple forces. Saranovitz. 4
Critical Issues in Global Communication: Media Imperialism and Cross-Cultural
Encounters (COMM-412). Broadcast and film products and properties seem to
naturally flow globally with little resistance from the national borders that have
traditionally limited and expanded the movements of particular peoples. This situation
is relatively new and has prompted debates about the need to recognize how
international economies operate vis-a-vis the concerns of the nation state, its citizenry
and their specific cultural contexts. This class will provide historical, cultural and
economic backdrops that frame how and why debates about mass media differ from
one national context to the other. Saranovitz. 4
Rhetoric and the American Experience (COMM-413). This course explores the
American rhetorical tradition and some of the speakers, ideas, and movements that
have given it its voice and texture. We will read broadly and deeply key oratorical texts
from the nineteenth century to the present and examine the scholarship that has
attempted to explain these acts of symbolic influence. Our work will culminate in the
drafting and thorough revising of article-length research essays. Students will be
invited throughout the seminar to stretch and refine their voices as working rhetorical
scholars. Class sessions will be discussion-driven and substantial preparation and
participation from all students will be encouraged. Kurtz. 4
Conflict and Communication (COMM-415). A study of how the use of
communication during the process of social interaction creates and resolves conflict.
The course will explore theories relating to the nature of conflict, strategic negotiation
models, issues revolving around third party intervention, and other topics related to the
current research in peace, reconcilliation, conflict and communication theory. Harvey,
Lipari. 4
Senior Research (COMM-451). Staff. 4
Senior Research (COMM-452). Staff. 4
Honors Project (COMM-461). Staff. 4
Honors Project (COMM-462). Staff. 4
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Course Catalog 2007-2008
English
Faculty
Departmental Guidelines and Goals
English Major
English Minor
Writing Concentration
Additional Points of Interest
Course Offerings
Faculty
Associate Professor Linda Krumholz, Chair
Professors David Baker, Kirk Combe, Desmond Hamlet, Ann Townsend, Marlene
Tromp; Associate Professors James P. Davis, Richard A. Hood, Linda Krumholz, Lisa
J. McDonnell, Fred Porcheddu, Dennis Read, Sandra Runzo; Assistant Professors
Brenda M. Boyle, Sylvia Brown, Anita Mannur, Amy Scott-Douglass, Margot Singer;
Instructor/Assistant Professor John F. Shuler; Visiting Assistant Professors Simone C.
Drake, James Weaver, Charles Wyatt; Academic Secretary Anneliese Davis
Departmental Guidelines and Goals
The English curriculum is intended to serve the general needs of the liberal arts student
and at the same time provide coherent programs for the more specialized needs of
students who wish to major in literature or in writing. Students who major in English
do so at a time when the discipline itself is undergoing an unusually intensive period of
self-examination and change. The breadth of these changes in the purposes, methods,
and critical theories that underlie and shape what we do as instructors of English attests
that the study of language and literature is a dynamic, living, and lively pursuit, one
that integrates political, social, philosophic, cultural, and aesthetic values. As a
department participating in this evolution, we have designed a program that enables
students to pursue a variety of personal and professional goals, one that seeks to
balance a variety of needs: for experiences shared by all students majoring in English
as well as opportunities for students to pursue individual interests; for historical
breadth as well as depth of inquiry; for a variety of classroom experiences, including
comprehensive historical surveys, specialized seminars (focusing on particular authors,
genres, themes, critical approaches, or historical moments), and individual writing
projects, whether scholarly or creative. The faculty in English participate actively in
the General Education program, the Women's Studies program, the Black Studies
program, service learning opportunities, the Queer Studies concentration, and
International Studies.
All students may enjoy readings and lectures made possible by the endowed Harriet
Ewens Beck Fund, which has brought such writers as Eudora Welty, Ernest Gaines,
Alice Walker, Galway Kinnell, Tom Stoppard, Louise Erdrich, Carolyn Forche, and
Mark Strand for visits or short residencies each year. The curriculum in English is also
enhanced by a variety of opportunities for students to pursue publishing their works
locally in a variety of student-edited journals. Articulate (a forum for cultural and
literary criticism), Exile (a journal of creative writing), Judy (a feminist journal), and
MOYO (a magazine of commentary) are among the publications associated with
students in English.
English Major
Students who major in English must choose an advisor in the English Department to
assist them with selecting and sequencing classes to meet their academic and
professional goals. All students who major in English must complete a minimum of
nine classes in the department, excluding FYS-101. Four of these classes are
specifically required: a shared core of historical surveys (English 213, 214, and 230)
and a senior seminar (English 400), which is offered each semester on a variety of
topics. Students who concentrate in creative writing may find additional requirements
listed below. For students not electing to pursue a concentration in creative writing,
four seminars at the 300-level are required, one of which must focus on literature
before 1900. All students are strongly urged to begin their major coursework with the
required historical surveys, which provide useful historical context for subsequent,
more focused study in the seminars. But, because specific 300-level seminars probably
are not offered every semester, students are encouraged to take seminars, even before
they have completed the required surveys, if they are interested in the topics. Students
are urged to take a course in critical theory (English 302 or 379, for example) some
time during their stay at Denison, particularly if they wish to pursue studies in English
after graduating. A typical array of classes in English would include four 200-level
classes, four 300-level seminars, and one senior seminar. Students are encouraged to
take more than the minimum number of required classes. The optional, year-long
senior research project (English 451-452), like the senior writing project for creative
writers, may count as one 300-level course. Students must take at least two of the 300level seminars and the senior seminar in residence at Denison.
Each semester, students wishing to take classes in English should read the semester's
course descriptions, available from the English office, which provide more detailed
information about specific classes than what appears below.
English Minor
To minor in English, students must take English 213, 214, and 230, and three
additional courses, at least two of which are at the 300 or 400 level. The senior seminar
may be elected as one of these.
Writing Concentration
We are pleased to offer English majors an opportunity to participate in Denison's long
and rich history of nurturing writers. Since 1949, Denison's English Department has
offered a concentration in creative writing because we believe creative writing is a
fundamental expression of literary knowledge and practice.
To major in English with a concentration in writing, students must take a minimum of
nine courses, including English 213, 214, 230, and 400. Also required are English 237,
and at least three other courses at or above the 300 level, including one 300-level
creative writing class (383, 384, 385) and one 300-level course in literature before
1900. Writing concentrators must also take a two-semester residential senior writing
project (English 453-54), which counts as one 300-level course.
All writing courses conducted as workshops assume that each student will participate
both as a writer and as a responsible critic of the writing of others. A student
concentrating in writing should not enroll for more than one writing course per
semester and may not take other writing courses at the same time he or she is working
on the senior writing project. We suggest that students' 300-level writing courses be in
the genre or genres in which they are most likely to focus for their senior writing
project.
Additional Points of Interest
Teacher Education Program. Students who have been accepted into the Teacher
Education Program should work with a member of the Department of Education and
an advisor in the Department of English regarding the course of study at Denison.
Course Offerings
Introductory Topics in English (ENGL-199). A general category used only in the
evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Introduction to Literature (ENGL-200). An introduction to literary types, this
course will emphasize close interpretive reading of poetry, fiction and drama. Staff. 4
Academic Writing (ENGL-201). Theory and practice in essay and other academic
writing, allowing students to concentrate on mastering styles appropriate to their own
academic or personal needs. Staff. 4
Texts and Contexts: Introduction to Critical Reading (ENGL-202). A study of the
theory and practice of critical reading, with an emphasis on developing progressive
expertise in reading for significant detail, irony, intertextuality, and the "writerly" text.
Theoretical readings will focus on reader-response and an introduction to
poststructuralism. Staff. 4
Studies in Literature (ENGL-210). An intensive study of selected writers, works,
literary genres, or themes. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff. 4
Early British Literature (ENGL-213). A study of selected works by men and
women writing in the 8th through the 17th centuries. With close attention to various
genres and through various critical approaches, this course attends to literary and
cultural developments as reflected in a variety of texts and contexts. Staff. 4
Eighteenth- and Nineteenth- Century British Literature (ENGL-214). A study of
selected works by men and women in the eighteenth centuries in England. The course
pays close attention to various genres - satire, poetry, drama, criticism, and fiction and is designed to sharpen students' reading, interpretive, critical and writing skills,
while attending to literary and cultural developments in eighteenth-century, Romantic,
and Victorian texts. Staff. 4
Shakespeare (ENGL-215). A study of principal plays, emphasizing the poetic and
dramatic aspects of Shakespeare's work, as viewed through a variety of critical
perspectives. Staff. 4
Modern British and American Poetry (ENGL-219). A survey of poetry from the
first half of the 20th century. Attention to major poets (such as T.S. Eliot, W.B. Yeats,
and Marianne Moore) as well as Modernist schools (Imagism, the Harlem
Renaissance) will be enhanced by attention to the wider history, philosophy and
aesthetics of the time. Staff. 4
Modern British and American Fiction (ENGL-220). A survey of fiction from the
first half of the 20th century, with attention to such authors as Conrad, Faulkner,
Forster, Hemingway, Hurston, Joyce, Lawrence, Toomer, Welty, Wharton, Woolf and
Wright. Staff. 4
Women in Literature (ENGL-225). Selected poetry and prose by women guide
inquiries into writing and gender and into related issues, such as sexuality, history,
race, class, identity and power. Staff. 4
American Literature Before 1900 (ENGL-230). A survey of texts and literary
movements in America before 1900, emphasizing literary responses to such issues as
progress, national identity, the American landscape and slavery. The course will
introduce seventeenth and eighteenth century texts and focus more fully on the
literature of the nineteenth century, with attention to various genres and critical
approaches. Staff. 4
Creative Writing (ENGL-237). An introductory course in the writing of fiction and
poetry. Students will be asked to read in both genres, do exercises focusing on
technique and style, complete and revise significant work in both genres and critique
classmates' work with an eye to providing constructive feedback. Staff. 4
Modern Drama (ENGL-240). A consideration of drama from 1890 to 1956, with
emphasis on British and American playwrights, and an eye to female and minority
dramatists disenfranchised from the main stages. Staff. 4
Human Diversity Through Literature (ENGL-245). A study of selected works by
and about bisexual, gay, lesbian and transgender people. Staff. 4
Ethnic Literature (ENGL-255). A study of the literature of various ethnic, racial and
regional groups of the United States. This course explores cultural heritages, historical
struggles, artistic achievements and contemporary relations of groups in American
society. Staff. 4
Oral Tradition and Folk Imagination (ENGL-259). An inquiry into the
methodology of folklore study and an examination of the folk idiom in the American
experience. Staff. 4
Nature and the Literary Imagination (ENGL-291). A study of humanity's
relationship with and shifting conceptions of the nonhuman world. Reading selections
vary, but generally include past and contemporary writers who reflect different ethnic
and regional outlooks and who work in various modes, including literature, memoir,
natural history and science. Staff. 4
The Literature of Place (ENGL-298). An exploration of the ways in which literature
and locale inform each other, this course focuses on a specific site or community.
Through readings of literature "about" that place, the class investigates how cultural,
social, historical, and/or institutional realities interrelate - as both cause and effect with text. An optional trip to the place in question follows the semester. Staff. 4
Intermediate Topics in English (ENGL-299). A general category used only in the
evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory (ENGL-302). A survey of some of
the major literary and cultural theories employed by critics today. This course will
emphasize readings in primary texts by critical theorists as well as practical
applications of those theories to texts of various kinds. Staff. 4
Studies in Literature (ENGL-310). An intensive study of selected writers, works,
literary genres, or themes. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff. 4
Studies in Composition and Rhetoric (ENGL-311). An intensive study of selected
issues, historical periods, theory and theorists, research, or pedagogy in composition
and rhetoric. Staff. 4
Studies in the Short Story (ENGL-314). A study of selected works of major and
representative writers working in the genre of the short story. This course may focus
on a few specific writers (such as Eudora Welty or Raymond Carver), or on selected
schools and movements (such as the avant-garde, naturalism, or modernism), or on
special topics within the field (such as post-colonial fictions or Southern writing).
Staff. 4
African-American Women's Literature (ENGL-325). Historical and contemporary
African-American women's literature grounds an inquiry into black women's literary
and intellectual traditions within the matrix of race, gender, class and sexual relations
in the United States. Staff. 4
Native American Literature (ENGL-326). A study of Native American literature
that will provoke considerations of Native American cultural and religious traditions,
historical and legal struggles, artistic achievements and contributions to contemporary
American culture. Staff. 4
Composition Theory and Pedagogy (ENGL-335). An introduction to theory and
practice in composition and an opportunity to apply theories in Denison's Writing
Center or nearby classrooms. Students may concentrate on applying theory to any
context, tailoring the practicum to their areas of interest. Staff. 4
Contemporary Drama (ENGL-340). Intensive study of drama from 1956 to the
present, with an emphasis on British and American playwrights. The course will focus
on the issues, problems, techniques, and generic forms particular to contemporary
drama, with interest in the emerging drama of minority, female, and gay and lesbian
playwrights. Staff. 4
Studies in the English Novel (ENGL-341). This course will explore the English
novel by studying special thematic topics, its evolution, and/or developmental
influences. The course might include such authors as DeFoe, Fielding, Austen, Bronte,
Gaskell, Dickens, Eliot or Hardy. Staff. 4
Studies in the Contemporary Novel (ENGL-342). A study of such contemporary
international novelists as Salman Rushdie, Garcia-Marquez, Toni Morrison, Gunter
Grass, and Nadine Gordimer. The course may have a special focus on such topics as
the post-colonial novel or the historical novel. Staff. 4
Studies in Contemporary Poetry (ENGL-343). A study of selected works of major
and representative poets from the second half of the 20th century. Each section might
focus on a few specific poets (such as Adrienne Rich or W.S. Merwin), or on selected
schools and movements (such as the Confessionals, the Beats, the Language Poets), or
on special topics within the field (such as mythology, feminism, or Post-modernism
and the avant-garde.) Staff. 4
The English Language (ENGL-346). A study of the development of the English
language and its dynamic presence in the world today. In addition to surveying the
history of English from its Indo-European origins to the present time, units within the
semester cover general linguistics topics, contemporary literacy controversies, and the
social implications of dialect variation and changes in usage. Staff. 4
Studies in Medieval British Literature (ENGL-348). Special topics courses
studying the textual forms of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland from 500 to 1500
CE. Staff. 4
Studies in European Literature (ENGL-349). Selected works in translation from the
Middle Ages through the twentieth century. Depending on the topic of the seminar,
authors studied may include such diverse figures as Chretien de Troyes, Dante,
Christine de Pisan, Cervantes, Madame de Lafayette, Moliere, Goethe, Ibsen, Tolstoy,
Calvino and Christa Wolf. Staff. 4
The Harlem Renaissance (ENGL-355). An analysis of the interrelationship between
the cultural phenomenon and the literature of the Harlem Renaissance, particularly the
way in which the social, economic and political conditions of the era helped to shape
the literary art of the 1920s. Staff. 4
The Narrative of Black America (ENGL-356). A study of representative samples of
Black literature ranging from slave narratives to contemporary Black fiction. Staff. 4
Postcolonial Literature and Criticism (ENGL-357). Readings in literature and
criticism from Asia, Africa, Latin American and the Caribbean, in response to the
experience of colonialism. Staff. 4
Directed Study (ENGL-361). Offers the student an opportunity to develop, with the
help of an interested professor, a special program of study in a given topic for one
semester. May be taken more than once. Directed Study credit may be used to count
toward an English major or minor, but it may not be used in place of required 300level courses. Staff. 1-4
Directed Study (ENGL-362). Offers the student an opportunity to develop, with the
help of an interested professor, a special program of study in a given topic for one
semester. May be taken more than once. Directed Study credit may be used to count
toward an English major or minor, but it may not be used in place of required 300level courses. Staff. 1-4
Independent Study (ENGL-363). Offers the student an opportunity to develop within
a semester a wholly individualized program of study, to be supervised by an interested
professor. Independent Study credits may be used to count toward an English major or
minor, but may not be used in place of required 300-level courses. Staff. 1-4
Independent Study (ENGL-364). Offers the student an opportunity to develop within
a semester a wholly individualized program of study, to be supervised by an interested
professor. Independent Study credit may be used to count toward an English major or
minor, but may not be used in place of required 300-level courses. Staff. 1-4
Studies in 16th- and Early 17th- Century British Literature (ENGL-365). A study
of selected works of poetry, prose and drama from 1500-1660. Staff. 4
Studies in Late 17th- and 18th Century British Literature (ENGL-366). Special
topics courses based in the literacy culture of England from roughly 1640-1800. Staff.
4
Studies in 19th- Century British Literature (ENGL-367). Selected topics in the
literature of 19th- century England. The course may focus on Romantic or Victorian
authors or representative writers from both eras. Staff. 4
Studies in 19th- Century American Literature (ENGL-368). Selected topics in the
literature of 19th- century America. Staff. 4
Studies in Early American Literature (ENGL-369). Selected topics in the writings
of colonial and early national America. Staff. 4
Chaucer (ENGL-371). A survey of Chaucer's verse and prose, centering on the
Canterbury Tales. The course engages the social and intellectual transformations in
14th-century England, as well as interpretations of, and reactions to, Chaucer's writing
in the centuries since. A recurrent concern will be the challenges created by the textual
instability inherent in a manuscript culture. Staff. 4
Milton (ENGL-374). A study of Paradise Lost and selected shorter poems. Staff. 4
Late 17th- and 18th - Century Drama (ENGL-375). Studies in the production,
reception and sociopolitical context of British drama from roughly 1660 to 1800. Staff.
4
Special Topics in Literary and Cultural Theory (ENGL-379). In-depth studies of
one or two particular critical or cultural theories, with an emphasis on the practical
application of those theories to texts of various kinds. Staff. 4
Narrative Writing (ENGL-383). An advanced workshop course in fiction writing.
Students will be asked to read a wide selection of short fiction and to complete and
revise a significant collection of their original work. Students will attain a working
knowledge of fictional forms, techniques and aesthetics. Staff. 4
Nonfiction Writing (ENGL-384). An advanced workshop in the writing of
nonfiction, requiring numerous and varied reading and writing assignments. Staff. 4
Poetry Writing (ENGL-385). An advanced workshop in poetry writing. Students will
be asked to read a wide selection of poetry and to complete and revise a chapbook
collection of their original works. Students will attain a working knowledge of poetic
forms, technique and aesthetics. Staff. 4
Advanced Topics in English (ENGL-399). A general category used only in the
evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4
Senior Seminar (ENGL-400). A required course for seniors that is organized around
a theme or topic. All sections require frequent short reports to the class on research or
reading. Each student will write a long paper as the basis for a major seminar
presentation. Staff. 4
Senior Research (ENGL-451). Senior students may work on an individually
designed project for as much as two full semesters. A student whose project seems
likely to result in distinguished work and who satisfies other requirements for honors
may petition to have his or her senior research transferred to 461-462. Staff. 4
Senior Research (ENGL-452). Senior students may work on an individually
designed project for as much as two full semesters. A student whose project seems
likely to result in distinguished work and who satisfies other requirements for honors
may petition to have his or her senior research transferred to 461-462. Staff. 4
Senior Writing Project (ENGL-453). This year-long project is required for a
concentration in creative writing. Conducted under the directorship of a writing
professor, each project will include an individual reading program and will result in a
significant book-length manuscript of the student's creative work. Staff. 4
Senior Writing Project (ENGL-454). This year-long project is required for a
concentration in creative writing. Conducted under the directorship of a writing
professor, each project will include an individual reading program and will result in a
significant book-length manuscript of the student's creative work. Staff. 4
Honors Project (ENGL-461). Open only to a student whose senior research is in
progress. Staff. 4
Honors Project (ENGL-462). Open only to a student whose senior research is in
progress. Staff. 4
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why an ‘r’ requirement?
“I didn’t say to myself, “Now I will never see him,” or “Now I will never shake him by the
hand,” but, “Now I will never hear him.” The man presented himself as a voice. [. . .] The
point was in his being a gifted creature, and that of all his gifts the one that stood out preeminently, that carried with it a sense of real presence, was his ability to talk, his words--the
fit of expression, the bewildering, the illuminating, the most exalted and the most
contemptible, the pulsating stream of light, or the deceitful flow from the heart of an
impenetrable darkness.” --Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness
In 1998, the Boyer Commission Report “Reinventing Undergraduate Education” proposed
that “an integrated education” should “produce a particular kind of individual, . . . one
equipped with a spirit of inquiry and a zest for problem solving; one possessed of the skill in
communication that is the hallmark of clear thinking as well as mastery of language; one
informed by a rich and diverse experience. It is that kind of individual that will provide the
scientific, technological, academic, political, and creative leadership for the next century.”
<full text> Three years later, the Boyer Commission did a follow-up study (published in
2003) to see what recommendations had been implemented. The study concluded that
institutional initiatives to improve oral skills lagged behind analogous efforts in writing.
In 2003, the Denison general faculty reaffirmed the oral communication requirement in the
general education program, and voted to institute an across-the-divisions model for teaching
the “R” in more discipline-specific contexts. In doing this, the college affirmed the
importance of communication competence for a student’s general education, but also
emphasized the value of learning field-dependent communication practices and conventions,
idioms of discourse, etc. Both goals are consonant with the sentiments expressed by the
Boyer Commission for an integrated education.
In the intervening years, general faculty from a number of departments have stepped forward
enthusiastically to teach “R” courses, and a rich diversity of disciplines now regularly offer
these courses. The college has shown a real willingness to cultivate this momentum, provide
resources for ongoing development, and support the blossoming program. Much work
remains to be done before the across-the-disciplines program is self-sustaining, but we have
made a good start. An ad hoc study group initiated by Academic Affairs meets yearly (in the
spring) to review progress and make recommendations for continued growth and health of
the program. <Read latest report>
Informally, conversations have shown us that misunderstandings about oral communication
competence are still perpetuated that may hamper its growth through the general education
program. Some believe that because class participation is generally a hallmark of Denison
pedagogy, the “R” is redundant. There is also still a tendency to associate oral competence
with low-level career-training skills such as giving canned speeches and Power Point
presentations. Although programs elsewhere may foster this belief by teaching oral
competence at this reductive level, Denison has to be committed to recognizing speech as one
of the fundamental attributes of the educated person, and one of the most difficult to achieve.
What, then, is oral competence?
Think of what happens when a person presents her or himself to another person and speaks in
their own voice, and what the other person understands from this encounter.** There could
hardly be a more telling event. What happens in these moments as a result of this exchange
bears a great deal of the weight of our judgments, our expectations, our interests, and our
achievements. We spend a good deal of our lives preparing for these encounters, reflecting
back on them, and always trying to improve ourselves in them. And when we try to improve,
what we’re trying to improve is ourselves, probably in the most important and immediate and
intimate way anyone can, that is, how we relate to others as a human being. We all know
how difficult this is, and how critical. Human community is built around these interactions,
even if in a complex mass society a greater portion of our lives are taken over by indirect,
anonymous and mechanized procedures. It always returns to this, to the encounter, and our
performances in them.
Liberal education originally formed around the effort to help the children of well-off people
learn how to perform well in the regular engagements of human beings with one another,
since this was the crucial skill in societies where the face-to-face encounters of citizens drove
law, government, and culture. Ancient paideia came to understand this training in the
broadest sense, as the fundamental education in how to be a good human being. Quintilian’s
curriculum, which he called rhetoric, had as its goal the formation of good citizens.* The
reason we often return to the ancients on this point is because they seem to have understood
better than we that in the very deepest sense “the ‘word’ has a communal meaning and
implies a social relation.”*** To focus on speech is not to focus on message delivery, but to
focus on what it means to be fully human.
This is the connection a liberal arts teaching institution has to maintain in building a speech
program. Its curriculum is not trivial or redundant, since it is the closest we come in explicit
curricular intention to focus on the actual conduct of each student as a social being. If we
take the enormity of its subject matter seriously, it may be the most challenging and
important thing we teach. The ability to be reflective about how our words effect others, how
to shape our speech and actions and comportment in view of these effects, and to be
committed to the life-long task of improving this most central human competence, is a great
gift to our students. Because this performative skill encompasses not only language skill and
organization of thought, but deliberative practice, group dynamics, interpersonal relations,
and even our identity as discursive beings, the four years here at Denison is a laboratory of
experiment, development and progress in shaping this paideia. That we focus one course on
a conscious examination of this process is one of the defining functions of our liberal
program.
_____________________
Notes
*Quintilian believed that a training in speech developed moral consciousness. The word is
not only the manifestation of the person to a public world, but the means by which humans
develop empathy towards others in running up against the relationship of speech and thought.
The speech curriculum also implied an epistemology that has become once again important.
The tradition of dissoi logoi, or controversia, promoted the free exchange of ideas on all
sides to come to a better understanding of the matter at hand. This fostered both a respect for
different points of view and placed a value on dialogue in its own right. As a paideia it was a
precursor to the notions of discursive democracy and dialogic practice, the very means by
which strains of intellectual culture have challenged the dominance of essentialism and
instrumental knowledge. The flip side of the ephemerality of oral communication is its
uniqueness, its particularity, its localization, key elements in the challenge to foundationalist
epistemologies.
**“My voice is attached to the mass of my own life.” --Maurice Merleau-Ponty
***Hans-Georg Gadamer, “On the Truth of the Word,” in The Specter of Relativism, ed.
Lawrence K. Schmidt, Northwestern UP, 1995.
A SHORT HISTORY
A Cursory History of “CXC” at Denison
In 1897 Denison offered a common curriculum for each of the basic degrees of bachelor of arts,
bachelor of science, and in the separate colleges. Speaking, writing and languages were the core of all
the programs. All freshmen in the Granville College B.A. took Latin, Greek, Mathematics and
Rhetoric in their first term. Examinations over the entire college curriculum were conducted in oral
and written form. In the last term of their senior year, B.A. students took Ethics, Economics,
Rhetoric--orations, and a language elective. “Rhetoric” as a required course for almost every term in
the four year sequence alternated between composition and oratory, and this alternation occurred
either within a course or between semesters. The goal of the study of “rhetoric” in the 1898-99
catalogue is described as follows: “The student is encouraged to read much, to think for himself, and,
in the most effective style, to express the results of his thinking.”
Denison’s regard for orality at the center of college learning was common at this time period.
Michael Sproule describes Harvard in the 1930s: “At Harvard, the president himself was charged
with the delivering the weekly lectures in rhetoric. . . [S]tudents typically were required to participate
several times a year in the weekly public program of forensic disputations or declamations of
memorized speeches. . . Examinations typically were not written; instead, students were tested by a
method of recitation whereby they defended a position against questions.” The speaker in a rhetorical
education was regarded as “a deliberative proponent in a welter of competing social positions. . . .
Oratory’s worldview was that of making real a plausible social knowledge for the purpose of building
coalitions of belief that might lead to action.”*
The regard for “rhetoric” as both oral and written expression began to disappear by the end of
the 19th century. Under the growing influence of industrialization, communication came to be viewed
more as the technical transfer of information. In order to make room for the extraordinary increase in
scientific knowledge, and in combination with the establishment of separate departments of
disciplinary studies, oratory was made into an elective.
At Denison, the turn of the century brought changes that included the consolidation of the
men’s and women’s colleges. The elective system was expanded and majors were added.
Interestingly, the study of “rhetoric” split along gendered lines. In the 1903-04 school year, for
instance, seniors were required “to appear in public exhibitions during the Winter Term, the
gentlemen with orations and the ladies with essays.”
After the consolidation of the colleges there was still considerable intimacy and overlap
between the study of written and oral expression. English Lit students in 1900-1901 could take
“Rhetoric—Argumentative and Persuasive Essays and Orations,” or “Oratory—British and American”
as electives, although these subjects seem to have been undertaken as literary studies rather than oral
interpretation. A new major was started up in 1901 called “Elocution and Oratory.” The stated
“purpose” of this department was “to cultivate in the individual all the best of his personality, and to
develop poise, easy carriage, and position.” It still retained a literary emphasis, including in its
curriculum courses for “literary analysis and declamation” and “the writing and delivery of original
orations.” A student could elect to take Argumentation and Debate in the 1904 “Oratory and
Elocution” program, and this course included “ex tempore speaking, principles of debate, preparation
of briefs, arrangement of argument, team work and rebuttal.” In 1904 “The Denison Oratorical
Association” was formed, and it had more or less the status of a club.
In 1919 a program in journalism was begun: “The journalism room is equipped with desks and
typewriters, and receives the most important daily papers.” In addition, courses were offered in a
department called “Public Speaking.” The department description read: “This department offers
training in expression, by finding and applying principles for developing the voice, mind, and body in
reading and speaking. The work is in no sense a mere coaching for occasion, but a personal, cultural
training which aims at helping the student gain command of his own creative powers.”
A diminished role for public speaking accompanied the movement of the overall curriculum toward
specializations in the mid twentieth century. What was once the entire curriculum (essentially the
trivium and quadrivium) became at first “group requirements” (to 1947), then a “core” program
(1948-9), and then a “general education” (1949-50). The 1950 GE labels writing and oral
composition as “proficiencies”, while it places “Reflective Thinking” (i.e., logic) and “Mathematics”,
under the rubric “Forms of Thinking.” The nadir of respect for a humanist rhetoric develops after
WW2, in stride with the rise of a technologized, and behaviorist study of propaganda and “mass
communication.” In the 1970 bulletin public speaking is reduced to the “delivery” of “effective”
communication, and “group discussion” is studied as a synthesis of “logical and psychological
approaches to the study of group behavior.” For purposes of comparison, recall the 1919 description
of elocution as “a personal, cultural training which aims at helping the student gain command of his
own creative powers”, or place these descriptions against the statement in the earliest available
bulletin (1832) about the elevated place of writing and speaking: “That the medium, and the only
medium of acquiring a true knowledge of the mind and will of God, as revealed in the Holy
Scriptures, and of communicating that mind and will to others, is human language.”
Implications
In its weaker moments, speech had moved from the practice of imitation (1903) to a science of gesture
and articulation (1920), to a perceptive taxonomy of techniques (1940), to a behaviorist pseudoscience of transmission (1965). But some things persisted in the study of public speaking at Denison
until the post-WW2 era. In almost every iteration it was regarded as a training of the whole person
rather than simply a vocal skill. The 1989 description: “The student is encouraged to read much, to
think for himself, and, in the most effective style, to express the results of his thinking”; the 1901
description of the oratory major: “to cultivate in the individual all the best of his personality”; the
1919 program in public speaking as “in no sense a mere coaching for occasion, but a personal, cultural
training which aims at helping the student gain command of his own creative powers”—all
consciously avoid the narrow instrumentalist training that came to dominate the later mass education
models. An education in speech at Denison was the cultivation of the person both inwardly and
outwardly. In addition, there was no strict compartmentalization of thinking and speaking. Education
in speech was always simultaneously education in thought.
Of course the stated goals of the earlier curricula were dominated by a conception of the
individual that is somewhat alien to us today. We want to think more about humans beings in
relationship, and thus performance is as much about dialogue and deliberation as public address and
debate. We are more conscious of the discursive formations of organizational culture, and of the
linguisticality of cultural difference. We must also acknowledge that the history of the 20th century
curriculum is a progressive marginalization of oral competency in education. But the rise in
importance of rhetoric in the last decades suggests that we have not lost the thread of Denison’s rich
rhetorical tradition that locates speech at the root of a liberal education. From this point on we want to
reaffirm Denison’s historical commitment to speech as a study integral to the realization of our full
humanity, and grow to understand the epistemic, social, cultural and ontological entailments of this
recognition.
As we go ahead as a college with institutional assessment, it would certainly not hurt to have
language in our mission documents explaining the commitment to oral competence beyond the brief
statement in the General Education Program. For reference purposes, the National Communication
Association has a helpful extended <statement> on the role of communication courses in general
education.
Key Historical Documents
<Report> of the Working Group on the Oral Competency Requirement to Academic
Affairs Council, April 24, 2006.
_______________
1 This material drawn from Denison University course catalogues in the library archives.
2 This is a very old pedagogical difference: “Whereas I consider eloquence to emerge out of true learning, you think it
is attributable to a peculiar kind of talent and practice” (Cicero, De Oratore, ch. 2).
*Michael Sproule, Proganda & Society. Cambridge UP, 1997, 27-8.
Hanover Info
Hanover Communication Department
At Hanover, I developed, edited and directed a magazine program for the campus TV station. A
summer internship with WLWT in Cincinnati led to a job as a sports producer for the 11 o'clock
news. The (communication) program gave me confidence and a solid education - communication
classes, as well as the hands-on skills that I needed to start my career.
Megan Schiering, Class of 2005
Why Study Communication?
Deciding upon a major can be an intimidating task, and you may be wondering if communication
would be a good fit for you. If any of the following is true for you, then the communication
department at Hanover College may be just what you have been searching for.
You enjoy:
• Expressing yourself
• Debates and speeches
• Writing
• Language
• Working with emerging technologies
You want to:
• Understand how technology influences communication
• Work with or in the media
• Interact with different publics
• Understand how messages are communicated effectively
• Travel abroad
• Research your interest
• Have a meaningful and fun academic and social career
What Hanover Communication Offers
In a world of text messaging, cell phones, the Internet, MySpace and more, the way people
communicate is undergoing rapid change. But whatever the form, it's the message - and the
effectiveness of that message - that matters most.
Because messages occur through a variety of means, the communication studies program at
Hanover rests on a combination of theory, mass media, and public speaking courses. This allows
students to understand the significance of and techniques for generating meaning through
messages across various contexts, cultures, channels, and media. Students may focus on mass
media, public speaking, or organizational communication, culminating in a senior year
Independent Study showcasing practical applications of knowledge gained in a chosen field of
interest.
Potential careers include positions in government, journalism, business, public relations, sales
and marketing, television production, and event planning.
Highlights
Hands-on Experience
The Student Broadcast Association uses state-of-the-art equipment to produce programs for the
Campus Channel, an on-campus TV station, and HC Radio Network, an Internet radio station.
This allows students to put into action the theory and techniques they have learning in class.
Students work in all aspects of programming and running the stations - on camera and behindthe-scenes - providing them with practical experience valued by future employers.
Expert Faculty
The communication faculty offers impressive academic diversity and real-world experience.
Students work one on one with experts in cross-cultural and global communications, presidential
speechwriting, communication law and public policy, journalism, video production, and music.
Opportunities for Research
Many communication students research their interests further by working on real-world projects
for local businesses and organizations. Recent student work has included:
• Developing a public relations and advertising campaign for historic Eleutherian College
• Working for the City Cable Television Channel.
• Creating marketing materials for various Hanover College departments, including Admissions,
External Relations, Athletics, and the Career Center.
• Writing news stories and working as technical crew for local radio stations WIKI and WORX
• Providing business communication assessments for several local companies and nonprofit
organizations.
In addition, recent student Independent Study projects have included:
• Lori Hedges wrote, directed, and edited an independent film.
• Christine Baaten developed an integrated marketing communication plan for a Cincinnati-based
natural body care products company.
• Ashley McIntyre produced a promotional video for Hanover College's Career Center.
• Megan Detterline organized and promoted a new major campus event to raise money for breast
cancer research.
• K.C. Reynolds developed, produced, and anchored a news magazine program for the Campus
Channel.
Career Opportunities
Communication within the context of a liberal arts education gives our graduates the knowledge,
skills, and experiences necessary to continue on to a variety of careers and/or graduate school
opportunities.
Previous graduates' career and professional placements have included:
• New Anchor, WGPH Fox 8 (Chapel Hill, NC)
• Promotions Director, WGLD 104.5 FM (Indianapolis)
• President, Hoosier On-Line Systems (Indianapolis)
• Public Relations Executive, USA Networks (Weston, CT)
• Event Planner, Minor League Baseball Team
• Deputy Press Secretaries for several U.S. Senators
• Sports Producer, TV Station
• Freelance Videographer
• Newscaster, C-SPAN
Graduate school placements have included:
• Valparaiso University
• University of Louisville
• University of California
• University of Nevada
• Indiana University
• Ball State University
• Carmel University
• University of Cincinnati
• University of Connecticut
• University of Notre Dame
• Purdue University
• Ohio State University
Wittenberg Info
Welcome to the Department of Communication
Communication is the study of how people make meaning. At Wittenberg, the Department of
Communication adopts a broad perspective on this topic by challenging students to examine the
nature, processes, and effects of human symbolic interaction in a number of contexts. These
include the study of rhetoric, media, and culture.
Our communication major reinforces Wittenberg's liberal arts mission rather than narrowly
training a student for a particular career. Our students develop the capacities to recognize and
evaluate underlying assumptions and values; to work effectively with others through collaboration,
team work and community building; to participate in mediation and conflict resolution; to develop
aural, visual, technological, and information literacy—all knowledge and skills that we believe are
imperative for a quality life in the 21st century. Students also have the opportunities to apply their
understandings of communication through courses or internships. The major culminates in a
capstone project during the senior year, for which our students have prepared by taking courses
in communication theory and research methods.
Communication Department
Dean’s List, Fall 2007 Released!
Congratulations to the following Communication
majors for their academic acheivements!
Caitlin Augustus
Keeley Buehler
Glenna Butera
Kelly Clark
Catherine Fernholz
Sarah Fetters
Amy Fickert
Kathleen Graham
Elizabeth Huling
Claire Johnson
Zoe Lamberson
Andrea Lauer
Erin McBride
Keith Pfeffer
Karen Phelan
Lukas Treu
Interested in Studying
Communication for Course
Credit Over the Summer?
Consider traveling with one of
the Communication professors
during Summer 2008! Dr. Matt
Smith will be making a trip to
California in July for the the yearly "Wittenberg in
San Diego: Comic-Con International" field study,
and Dr. Stefne Broz will be headed to Japan come
May for her biannual "Wittenberg in Japan: Field
Study in Japanese Culture, Communication, and
Language." Information regarding both of these
trips can be found at their respective websites.
**Update** Applications are now being accepted!
**Update** Information Session for San
Diego Trip to be held on Wednesday,
February 6, at 4 p.m. in Hollenbeck 336!

Wittenberg in San Diego

Wittenberg in Japan
Consulting Professional
Candice Lange to Speak at
Hollywood Screenwriters/Producers to Speak
Second Communication
At Wittenberg on February 7th!
Colloquium on Thursday,
November 8th at 4pm in Bayley Auditorium.
A happy convergence of a writer’s strike and the
support of Wittenberg’s departments of English,
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – Candice Lange, President
Theater and Dance, and Communication is
bringing you the following theatrical triple header. of Lange Advisors, will be speaking at the
Communication Department's second colloquium
on Thursday. A veteran of the consulting business,
Lauren Schmidt
she will discuss how to successfully deal with
Screenwriter for “The West Wing,” co-producer of stress and potential heavy workloads that students
NBC’s“Private Practice,” and a class of 2000
will encounter post-graduation. *Reminder: All
Wittenberg graduate
Communication majors are required to attend this
event!
Dan Stroeh
Learn More...
Award winning playwright, screenwriter, novelist,
anda class of 2001 Wittenberg graduate
Michael Hissrich
Award-winning producer of “The West Wing,” “ER,”
and “Third Watch”
Showtime: Feburary 7th, 4:00 p.m.
Venue: Ness Family Auditorium
190. Public Speaking. 4 semester hours.
Addresses basic theoretical principles of effective public speaking necessary for pluralistic
audiences, concentrating on content, organization, audience analysis, ethics, language, and
delivery. Students apply these principles to several oral presentations, some requiring the use of
PowerPoint. Every year.
200. Introduction to Communication Studies. 4 semester hours.
An introduction to communication theory in practical and relevant contexts (e.g., public speaking,
relational communication, organizational communication, small-group communication). Writing
intensive. Prerequisite: English 101. Every year.
220. Topics in Communication. 4 semester hours.
Courses entail an exploration of topics in communication studies in areas such as rhetoric, media,
interpersonal, or organization communication. Alternate years.
224. Group Dynamics. 4 semester hours.
Explores the theory and practice of effective communication behaviors in group discussions.
Structured group activities allow for application of scholarly theories of successful group
interaction. Every year.
270S. Interpersonal Communication. 4 semester hours.
Introduces message production and interpretation in a face-to-face context. The primary
objective of this course is to illustrate how choices in interpersonal communication behaviors are
basic to our character as human beings and the nature of our interpersonal relationships. Every
year.
280. Reasoning and Communication. 4 semester hours.
Study of and practice in practical reasoning, critical thinking, listening, reading, writing, speaking
and relational skills, and informed deliberation of critical contemporary issues. Writing intensive.
Prerequisite: English 101. Every year.
290S. Media Literacy. 4 semester hours.
Introduces students to media studies with special emphasis placed on developing critical
interpretations of mass communicated messages. Examines topics such as the origins of mass
communication systems, the audience, the current structure of media industries, and message
content. Writing intensive. Prerequisite: English 101. Every year.
300. Social Scientific Methods. 4 semester hours.
Introduces social scientific research processes in the study of communication. Primary emphasis
is on how to formulate a valid research question and conduct library research for an appropriate
literature review. Addresses how to adhere to standards for scholarly writing, and how to critically
evaluate others' research studies. Writing intensive. Prerequisites: Communication 200 and
Communication 270S, 280, or 290S; math placement score 22. Every year.
301. Critical Methods. 4 semester hours.
Develops students' abilities to describe, analyze, interpret, and evaluate messages using the
scholarly methods of the communication critic. Students review and apply multiple critical
approaches (e.g., Neo-Aristotelian, semiotics, and ideological criticism). Writing intensive.
Prerequisites: Communication 290S or permission. Every year.
320. Topics in Communication and Culture. 4 semester hours.
Includes courses a) analyzing the relationship between one’s culture and one’s communication
practices and b) exploring communication processes in a variety of cultural contexts and across
cultural differences (e.g., Communication and Gender; Intercultural Communication). Some
courses may be writing intensive. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisites: Communication 200
and Communication 270S, 280, or 290S; or permission of instructor. Alternate years.
322. Interpersonal Conflict. 4 semester hours.
An advanced service-learning course in interpersonal communication that focuses on the
communication behaviors that occur when individuals are in conflict. Requires the student to
perform 30 hours of community service as part of a course project. Prerequisites:
Communication 200 and Communication 270S, 280, or 290S; or permission of instructor.
Alternate years.
323. Interpersonal Influence. 4 semester hours.
An advanced course in interpersonal communication that adopts a language-action perspective
as it focuses on the interaction processes apparent when people atempt to directly influence the
behaviors of other people. The personal ethics of interpersonal influence attempts are
emphasized. Prerequisites: Communication 200 and Communication 270S, 280, or 290S; or
permission of instructor. Alternate years.
327. Health Communication. 4 semester hours.
An advanced seminar that investigates a wide range of scholarship about health communication.
Emphasis is on the nature of the communication processes that influence and/or are influenced
by health and health care contexts, such as communication between health care provider and
patient, as well as public health communication. Prerequisites: Communication 200 or
permission of instructor. Alternate years.
328. Intercultural Communication. 4 semester hours.
An advanced seminar that investigates the nature of the communication processes that influence
and/or are influenced by intercultural contexts. Specifically, the ways in which cultural values and
orientations shape communication styles, preferences, and expectations will be considered.
Ethics, cultural identity, conflict, and communication competence will be emphasized.
Prerequisites: Communication 200 or permission of instructor. Alternate years.
330. Analysis of Persuasion. 4 semester hours.
Explores theories of persuasion with the goal of helping students become critical receivers of
persuasion in contexts such as political rhetoric, print and electronic advertising, visual
persuasion, and social movements. Writing intensive. Prerequisites: Communication 200 and
Communication 270S, 280, or 290S; or permission of instructor. Alternate years.
350. Topics in Media. 4 semester hours.
Courses entail an advanced exploration of such topics as the nature, function, history, processes,
and effects of media and communicating in mediated contexts (e.g., Media Ethics, ComputerMediated Communication). Emphasis is not on production, but on the critical interpretation of the
media. Some courses may be writing intensive. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisites:
Communication 200 and 290. Alternate years.
351. Media Law. 4 semester hours.
Examines how the law helps shape the activities of mass media industries in the United States
with an emphasis on understanding First Amendment principles as they relate to mass
communication. Prerequisites: Communication 290S or permission of instructor. Alternate
years.
360. Topics in Rhetoric. 4 semester hours.
Courses entail an advanced exploration of rhetoric (e.g., Contemporary Perspectives on Rhetoric,
Feminist Rhetorical Theory, Rhetoric of Social Movements). Writing intensive. May be repeated
for credit. Prerequisites: Communication 200 and 280. Alternate years.
361. Gender and Communication. 4 semester hours.
Explores critically the relationship among gender, communication, and various cultural
institutions, practices, and contexts, focusing particularly on rhetorical constructions of gender
and the resulting politics. Writing intensive. Prerequisites: Communication 200 and 270S, 280,
or 290S; or permission of instructor. Alternate years.
403. Communication Senior Seminar. 4 semester hours.
Capstone experience. Through their work in small-group projects, students will practice research,
writing and critical thinking skills that are part of the process of conducting communication
research, culminating in a public presentation of their results. Writing intensive. Prerequisites:
Communication 200 and 300; senior standing. Every year.
490. Independent Study. 1 - 4 semester hours.
No more than four semester hours may be counted for the major. Prerequisite: Permission of
instructor. Every year.
491. Internship. 1 - 4 semester hours.
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Every year.
499. Senior Honors Thesis/Project. 1 - 4 semester hours.
Prerequisite: 3.50 GPA and permission of the Department Chair.
Major Requirements
Requirements for Major
The Communication major consists of 36 semester hours, distributed as follows: Communication
200, 300 and 403; eight semester hours from 270S, 280, and 290S; twelve semester hours from
301, 320, 322, 323, 327, 328, 330, 350, 351, 360, and 361; and four hours in an elective in
Communication or other approved courses. Attendance at departmental collloquia is also
required.
Recommended Courses
The Communication faculty recommends that students enroll in Communication 301 as one of
three "Advanced Seminar" courses in the major. The faculty also encourages students to explore
internship possibilities. Both the department and the Career Center have resources to assist
students in identifying potential internship sites. Students can also earn 1-8 semester hours of
academic credit for a Communication internship through Communication 491. While these
credits do not apply to the major, they do count towards the degree.
Related Areas of Study
Students interested in Communication may wish to take course offerings from several other
departments on campus. For students with specific professional aspirations, these offerings
include English 241 Beginning Journalism, English 321 Advanced Studies in Journalism,
Management 340 Marketing Management, Management 441 Advertising and Promotion, Art 241
Introduction to Photography, and Art 245 Computer Imaging. More broadly, students may also
wish to further the ethical basis of their education by taking courses such as Philosophy 103
Ethics and Identity, Religion 171S Urban Life and Social Ethics, Religion 172S Poverty and Social
Ethics, and Religion 176S Racism and Social Ethics. A student should consult with an academic
adviser to consider further course work that would complement each individual's program of
study.
ent of Communication
Communication Major Requirements
In order to graduate with the Communication Major, students must complete a minimum of 36
hours total (usually nine courses) and maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 in the major.
I. FOUNDATIONS IN THEORY AND METHODOLGY (1 REQUIRED COURSE)
COMM 200: Introduction to Communication Studies
II. INTERMEDIATE STUDY (2 ELECTIVE COURSES)
COMM 270S: Interpersonal Communications
COMM 280: Reasoning and Communication
COMM 290S: Media Literacy
III. METHODOLOGY (1 REQUIRED COURSE)
COMM 300: Research Methods in Communication
IV. ADVANCED SEMINARS (3 ELECTIVE COURSES)
COMM 301: Critical Methods
COMM 320: Topics in Communication and Culture (may be repeated for credit)
COMM 322: Interpersonal Conflict
COMM 323: Interpersonal Influence
COMM 327: Health Communication
COMM 328: Intercultural Communication
COMM 330: Persuasion
COMM 350: Topics in Media (may be repeated for credit)
COMM 351: Media Law
COMM 360: Topics in Rhetoric (may be repeated for credit)
COMM 361: Gender and Communication
V. COMMUNICATION ELECTIVE (1 ELECTIVE COURSE)
COMM 190: Public Speaking
COMM 220: Topics in Communication
COMM 224: Group Dynamics
COMM 490: Independent Study (faculty approval; 4-hour limit)
Any additional COMM course at the 100, 200, or 300 level
VI. CAPSTONE (1 REQUIRED COURSE)
COMM 403: Senior Communication Seminar
VII. OPTIONAL
COMM 491: Internship (with faculty approval)
COMM 499: Senior Honors Thesis or Project
In addition to completing the course requirements and maintaining the minimum required GPA of
2.0, students in the Communication Major also are required to attend all departmental colloquia
and fully adhere to and uphold the university's Honor Code.