2002 News
- News by Dr. John Dahlberg
- First Year Update by Ben Dunkle
- Wanted: Effective Leaders by Mr. Stanton H. Hudson, Jr., APR
- Marilyn G. S. Watt Alumni Award by Dr. Barbara Irwin
- AWC Activities by Dr. Melissa Wanzer
- Barking Up The Right Tree In Training & Development by Dr. Charles Wigley
- DMA Newsletter by Mr. Thomas Wolfe
- More Lab "Firepower" by Dr. Barry Berlin
by Dr. John Dahlberg
Dr. John Dahlberg will not be on campus this fall and instead will be taking a semester-long sabbatical leave. Dr. Dahlberg is planning an intensive study of Internet advertising that will cover the impact of advertising on the net, measurement vs. cost, and a look at how broadband and technology are allowing advertisers a whole new range of advertising options. The Internet, as a medium, is more and more a part of all of our worlds, and surfers are constantly exposed to banners and pop-ups and progressively more creative ways to gain attention. "We just don't know if they work on us, or how they work on us. I plan to learn a little more," he said. He expects to develop research that can be used in classes and in useful articles.
Ad Club and PRSSA hear from area professionals
by Dr. John Dahlberg
As the recent semester was winding down, Watt Communications and the Canisius Chapter of PRSSA organized two separate events with advertising and public relations professionals from around Western New York. Watt Communications invited a distinguished group of account, media and creative professionals from several different local advertising agencies. This panel of professionals, including alumni Rich Spears and Gretchen Galley, gave communication studies majors insight about how the advertising agency business is supposed to work, and how it really works.
Two weeks later, several public relations professionals, among them, alumni Jeff Patterson and Don Goralski, had a robust round table discussion about how to start and succeed in public relations. Members of the Canisius Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America learned the nuances of getting jobs in both the private sector and in not-for profits.
Internships and networking were a consistent topic at both events, and those who attended left with lots of ideas for their professional futures. Both clubs plan to continue these events in the coming semesters.
First year update
by Ben Dunkle
So I’m done with my first year as a professor in Canisius’ new DMA program, and there’s quite a bit to report. I’ll just cover what stood out the most:
1. Becoming part of the Canisius community
The faculty, students and staff I’ve met here have made me feel at home. The atmosphere of community and learning at Canisius is a perfect one in which lasting friendships and professional relationships can be established.
2. Getting my technology fix
I’m a technology junkie, and I couldn’t be in a better place. The hardware, software, and facilities here made me drool when I went on my first tour here, and I’ve been a kid in a candy store ever since. It’s easy to forget that this stuff is actually work.
3. 9/11
Watching the surreal events play out on the TV was bad enough. The new job, teaching one of my first classes, enhanced the feeling of instability and insecurity. I just hope that all the people who were hurt can rebuild their lives, and that we’re fortunate and wise enough to prevent it from happening again.
4. ECA (Eastern Communicators Association) conference in New York City in April
I gave a PowerPoint presentation on PowerPoint presentations. My focus was on customizing presentations to break out of the “canned” PowerPoint look, and efficient methods of PowerPoint development.
5. Spring
Student advisement, an extra course, graduation, a meeting and presentation with recruiters in Syracuse, and grant writing for the summer all added up to being thrown to the fire after a frying pan first semester.
6. Summer!
I guess I should be taking a break. But I’m still swamped with the new Communication Studies web site, preparing a new course this fall (Digital Imaging), being a full-time dad to my 1 and 4 year olds while my wife is doing an artist-in-residency at local gallery, freelance/contractual work, and a couple of research projects. I’ll try to get some golf in if there’s any time.
Wanted: Effective Leaders
by Mr. Stanton H. Hudson, Jr., APR
What's needed to sustain a competitive advantage in today's marketplace? A growing number of corporate and organizational CEOs point to organizational effectiveness, intellectual capital, and people as the critical elements needed to compete and survive in today's global economy. For most businesses, this means shifting from the traditional approach of more efficient management of tangible resources to a new style, with an emphasis on more effective utilization of intellectual capital and human resources.
"Business as usual" is becoming an oxymoron. Knowing what used to work is insufficient today. The prevailing viewpoint that management is only about "hard" skills, such as financial analysis and strategic planning, is giving way to a broader perspective. Effective leaders in the twenty-first century will not be the prototypical managers who have come up through the ranks, hung in there, and made it to the top. When middle managers and executives reach the top now, other attributes are also required, foremost of which are the ability to formulate and effectively communicate their ideas and the conviction and power to inspire and motivate.
Harvard Business School's management guru Warren Bennis put it this way. "The key to effective leadership is character." He believes that character is based on "bedrock" competencies that include purpose (giving direction and meaning), trust (allowing real relationships), and hope (providing optimism). And, what lies behind all of these competencies? Simply, it is one's interpersonal intelligence (the ability to interact with others, understand them, and interpret their behavior) and one's ability to communicate.
Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric, clearly understood the importance of blending "hard" and "soft" skills to achieve results. In the post-1989 years at GE, Welch found he had to eliminate 100,000 jobs in order to save the company. When he restructured the entire organization, he then had to sell his vision of the "boundary-less corporation" to motivate those who remained and re-instill confidence with consumers and shareholders.
How did Welch succeed? Certainly, he applied his "functional" knowledge and analytical skills. But, he also recognized that in today's world, business objectives are fulfilled through the cooperation of a variety of stakeholders. In order to create a cooperative environment, Welch not only listened to what was going on both in and outside the organization, but he heard what GE's constituencies were saying. He created the internal and external "listening posts" that provided forums for conversations and dialogues about the company and its future. His speeches and interviews, as well as his written communications, were not isolated acts of "visionary rhetoric," but, rather, part of a well-thought-out communication strategy.
What does this blending of "hard" and "soft" skills mean for aspiring leaders? Does it mean that managers with well-trained minds will find it difficult to reach top leadership positions without a correspondingly high development of their interpersonal intelligence and communication skills? Few people are born leaders, with the requisite technical and managerial skills that reflect this blended approach. But, they are learnable skills. And, Canisius College, with its value-oriented curriculum that incorporates concern for spiritual and human factors as well as more pragmatic ones, is positioned to make more effective and more human leaders in the new millennium.
Marilyn G. S. Watt Alumni Award
by Dr. Barbara Irwin
As part of its annual Senior Recognition Day this spring, The Communication Studies Department honored the 2002 recipients of the Marilyn G. S. Watt Alumni Award, Lisa A. August ’84 and Donald J. Goralski, APR, ’80. The award is presented to distinguished alumni who demonstrate the positive values exemplified by Dr. Marilyn Watt, longtime faculty member and Chair of the Department. Lisa August, Associate Director of the Career Development Center at the State University College of New York at Buffalo, was a founding member of Women in Communication as a student at Canisius, and currently serves on the Workforce Development Council of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and on the Board of Directors of Compass House. She credits Dr. Watt with being a role model for the way she works with her own students today. Donald Goralski, Senior Public Relations Officer at the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research at the University at Buffalo, has been honored nationally and locally for his work with the Public Relations Society of America and its Buffalo/Niagara Chapter. Goralski gives freely of his time towards the efforts of numerous community service agencies, and says he learned the lesson of “doing well by doing good” largely through the inspiration of Dr. Watt.
Faculty Notes:
Dr. Barbara Irwin delivered the keynote address, titled “Seventy Years of American Soap Operas: From Irna Phillips to the Latin American Influence” at a special session of the V Congress of the Americas/Popular Culture Association Convention in Puebla, Mexico, in October.
What's New
by Dr. Melissa Wanzer
Members of the Association of Women in Communication (AWC) sponsored a shadow program and networking luncheon for Communication Studies majors, produced four issues of our department newsletter and traveled to the Eastern Communication Association convention in New York City. Approximately twenty Communication Studies students participated in the shadow program during the fall and spring semesters. Student participants enjoyed their "real work"experiences and said that they gained valuable information on the current job market from the communication professionals.
Communication Studies majors also benefited from our networking luncheon held this spring. Professionals from The Buffalo News, Child and Family Services, Canisius College Admissions Office, and The Buffalo Partnership discussed their job responsibilities and provided suggestions for success in the current job market. The officers and members of AWC would like to thank all of the Canisius College Alumni that participated in the shadow program and networking luncheon!
Faculty Note:
Dr. Melissa Wanzer was granted tenure and promoted to Associate Professor effective September 2002. Dr. Wanzer came to Canisius in 1996. She received her Ed.D. at the University of West Virginia. In addition to her teaching, in both the Communication Studies undergraduate program and the Master's program in Organizational Communication and Development, Dr. Wanzer has served as a freshman advisor, supervised an Honor's student who has assisted her with her extensive research projects, written and published several articles, volunteered for several campus-wide committees and received a summer grant to study doctor-patient communication traits at Children's Hospital of Buffalo.
Barking Up The Right Tree In Training & Development
by Dr. Charles Wigley
"You can't teach an old dog new tricks!" That might be the refrain we hear from personnel directors trying to get employees to use new innovations in technology. BUT, it's not something you'll hear in COM 319: Training & Development! Thanks to the generous efforts of the college administration and our department chair, Dr. Barry Berlin, students in the class have been developing digitally mastered DVDs as part of their classroom assignments. The DVDs are produced on our state-of-the art iMac computers.
Each spring semester, a small but hardy band of students undertakes the dogged task of learning modern training techniques. More importantly, participants engage in four training exercises throughout the course . . . where the students do the training. Whether its making something (a cappuccino or cosmopolitan martini), taking something apart (like decorking a wine bottle), putting something together (like planning a vacation), or improving one's lifestyle (by braiding one's hair or more effectively interviewing for a job), you'll find the students using our new iMac computers to create high density (500 lines of resolution), long lasting (an estimated 70,000 years!), long-running (up to 1 hour), and economical (5 bucks apiece) training videos. Unlike VHS tapes, the DVDs allow students to construct folders and menus for instant access by trainees. Instead of having to view all of a training session, trainees can select the portions that they need most, and get instant access at the click of a button! AND, the trainers learn storyboarding, nonlinear editing, and artistic compositional balance while developing the training movies!
Make no "doggie bones" about it, everyone benefits in this course . . . Recent grads have praised the value of the course for helping them to make some dough, to put some bread on the table, and to keep their worklife from going to the dogs! The course will be offered again in Spring 2003, and students should feel free to call if I can shed some light on the course!
Web newsletter-DMA
by Tom Wolfe
This 2001/02 school year at Canisius College marks the end of a second fantastic year for the new Digital Media Arts program. With almost 100 DMA majors, the program has grown very quickly.
Other exciting news from the DMA front - our first 4 graduates! This year’s undergraduate commencement included our first 4 new Digital Media Arts graduates. In preparation for their graduation, all DMA students were required to take a Capstone course which was taught by Professor Thomas Wolfe. This Capstone course required each student to develop their own print or digital portfolio. Each portfolio shows examples of the student’s best work for prospective employers to see. The broad range of their print and digital work showed everything from web sites and interactive CD-ROM’s to print ads, logos, painting and illustration. Professor Wolfe commented-“ It was amazing to see how much their technical and design skills have progressed in such a short period of time.”
In early April, Professor Wolfe attended the BEA (Broadcasting Education Association) and the NAB (National Association of Broadcaster’s) conferences held in Las Vegas. “When you’re teaching technology based courses, it’s extremely important to have a good grasp of what’s new and cutting edge when it comes to hardware and software”, said Professor Wolfe. Some of the highlights of the conference include Sony’s new digital video cameras which simulate the look of film on video. George Lucas used this new technology in his latest film, “Star Wars.” Other new technologies shown at the conference included,video servers, flat panel HDTV monitors, many new non-linear video editing systems, and much, much more.
More Lab "Firepower"
by Barry Berlin
The Communication Studies Department has made significant progress to obtain and maintain state-of-the-art facilities. Enhancements have been made to all three labs in the past academic year, and more are planned.
In the main Mac Lab, the one-year-old i-Macs were succeeded by the more powerful G-4s last September (2001). By the upcoming September (2002), new and updated software will be added. The new software includes After Effects and Cinema 4D. Both will provide greater animation capability. Upgrades will include new versions of Photoshop, Dreamweaver and Flash.
In the web lab, a new i-Mac (with a DVD burner), three drawing tablets and a higher-end color printer were added in June (2002).
In the digital video editing lab, an audio /music production studio was set up in January (2002). A digital video editing station using Final Cut Pro went into operation in January (2002) as well.