The Department of Communication is continuously impressed by the amount of work and commitment our students take to further their education and careers. There are many students that go above and beyond their class assignments to make themselves the best communication professionals they can be. Senior communication major Sahara Shrestha is a prime example of an outstanding student in the department.

 

Sahara originally entered UConn as a Biology major, but quickly changed after she realized that her people skills would be best used elsewhere. She has a strong passion for the entertainment industry and she aspires to spend her career collaborating with people, so she knew communication was the perfect major for her.

 

Through her love of communication, she decided to become the co-founder of the UConn  Chapter of Spoon University in January of 2016. Spoon University is an online journalism website about food. The writers feature new restaurants, health trends, and anything related to food. Sahara later became the President, as well as the Marketing Director for the chapter. Her role as the Marketing Director makes her the voice of the chapter and allows her to maintain the chapter’s reputation through social media and planning fundraisers. This opportunity has been an incredible collaboration of passions. She is a self proclaimed foodie, and getting an opportunity to use food to further her career was everything she could have hoped for.

 

Her experience with Spoon University has given her a lot of insight as to what career path she wants to take post graduation. She noted that she would love to continue working with SpoonU Headquarters, but she has dreams of working in the entertainment industry. Her experiences at UConn and in her positions have paved the way for her to continue working in marketing, and fulfill her dream of one day become a communication professional in New York City.

 

Sahara has truly found her place within the Department of Communication. She stated that her favorite course over her four years has been COMM 2940. She found the course to be incredibly helpful and felt that it was the most hands-on Comm class that she has taken. Sahara loved being able to physically create something and found digital production to be a very interesting topic. Over her four years, Sahara has created a strong connection with current Graduate Teaching Assistant Ambyre Ponivas. She has taken multiple classes with her, and found that she teaches class in a way that makes students interested and invested in their studies.

 

Whether it be her involvement with Spoon University, or in her studies, Sahara is well-rounded student that the Department of Communication is lucky to have as part of our program. Sahara constantly follows her passions, and we’re lucky her passions have led her to UConn!

 

If you’re interested in joining the UConn chapter of Spoon University, email Sahara at sahara.shrestha@uconn.edu.

In the fall of 2017, students in Communications courses devoted their semesters to creating projects, films, and photo essays that the Department of Communication is proud to present. Featured below are projects from students of The Process of Communication (COMM 1000), Fundamentals of Digital Production (COMM 2940), and Persuasion (COMM 3100).

 

The Process of Communication

A course taught by Professor Stephen Stifano

COMM 1000-  A study of modern communication theories and principles where students understand how people affect and are affected by others through communication.

 

This short film expresses the importance of equality for all people.

 

Fundamentals of Digital Production

A course taught by Professor Stephen Stifano and Adam Rainear

COMM 2940- Students develop fundamentals associated with the production of digital video, audio, and images to communicate with various audiences by rotating through various roles of pre-production, production, and post-production processes in the creation of multimedia projects.

This film shows a couple’s journey into making their house a home.

 

This sci-fi short film about a woman trapped in her own home is a must-watch thriller.

 

Persuasion

A course taught by Thomas Meade, Kimberly Embacher, and Matthew Morse

COMM 3100- Students are introduced to theories of attitude formation, change and reinforcement. Research is used to evaluate past and present models of persuasion through the creation of their own social campaign.

https://nicoleevans8.wixsite.com/uconnshot

UConn Shot was a campaign designed to promote the free flu shot services that are on and around campus.

 

https://uconnsoberides.weebly.com/

UConn Sober Rides is a student campaign that connected UConn students with sober drivers to reduce the amount of drunk driving.

 

Like these videos? Follow us on social media to keep up with the latest details about this semester’s Digital Projects Screening taking place later on in the semester.

Millions of Americans tuned in early September to watch an American tradition: the Miss America Pageant. This year the Department of Communication watched excitedly as UConn Communications major Eliza Kanner took the stage as Miss Connecticut.

 

As a senior, Eliza has been devoted to the Department of Communication for the past three years. She stated that upon entering college, she was unaware of which career path she wanted to go down. After getting involved with the Miss America Organization, she found herself learning public speaking skills, effective brand management, and gaining media, interpersonal, and mass communication skills. Her journey with Miss America pointed her in the direction of the communications field where she began to explore opportunities within the COMM Department.

 

Eliza expressed that her favorite COMM class so far has been Computer Mediated Communication (COMM 4660W) with Professor Christensen. She found this class particularly interesting because computer mediated communication research is still fairly new and constantly evolving. The constant change and evolution of the study of communication has really sparked her interest over the course of her time at UConn. While taking COMM 4660W, she researched government officials on social media and its effects on society, where she was able to look at the benefits and setbacks of government officials on social media platforms. She stated that Professor Christensen has become a great mentor for her when it comes to her future career as well as her role in Miss America. She stated that since the beginning of the semester he emphasized that supporting students with their future was a priority of his. With help from COMM Advisor Joel Nebres, they created a program allowing for Eliza to earn credit for her role as Miss Connecticut.

Eliza will now be fulfilling her duties not only as Miss Connecticut, but as a UConn Senior as well. In her role as Miss Connecticut, she will be making public appearances to represent the Miss America Organization as well as the state of Connecticut. Along with her duties as Miss Connecticut, she’ll be continuing her studies as a UConn Husky. To keep up with Eliza on her journey as Miss Connecticut, you can follow her on Facebook (@MissAmericaCT), Instagram (@missamericact), and Twitter (@MissAmericaCT).

The Department of Communication is proud to have students like Eliza, who strive to take their degrees above and beyond what is asked of them. The field of communication is broad, but once students use their degrees to enhance their passions, they accomplish great things.

The UConn Department of Communication is proud to acknowledge our many students and members of our organizations. Manav Puri is one of our most involved students in our program and around the UConn campus. Manav inspires many other students with his devotion to becoming a communication professional.

 

As a senior, Manav states that becoming a Communications major has been the perfect fit for his skills and career aspirations. With an interest in the marketing and sales field of work, he has found that the Communications major has allowed him to build upon his one-on-one connections and presentation skills that will help him excel in his desired field.

 

Manav is on the executive board as the Client Liaison of UConn’s Advertising Society. The Advertising society is a student run organization that strives to develop undergraduate students’ advertising, public relations and marketing skills. He contributes to the organization by creating advertising campaigns for student organizations around the UConn campus. His work with the Advertising Society helped him gain real world experience as an intern at a company named Foresters Financial. Here he learned the skills needed to have successful sales appointments.

 

The real world applications of Persuasion (COMM 3100) lead to the course becoming Manav’s favorite course of his college career. With his interest in sales, he was thrilled to sharpen his persuasion skills by being exposed to such hands on experiences. Manav also states that Professor Thomas Meade and Ambyre Ponivas have been two of his favorite professors. He is inspired by their passion for what they’re teaching and the way they go above and beyond to assure their students succeed.

 

Manav’s involvement doesn’t stop at the Advertising society. He is a member of the UConn Car Club, UConn Business Management Society as the Chief Communication Officer, and he serves as the Vice Chair of the SUBOG Film Committee.
With his abundance of leadership positions and devotion to his career, the UConn Department of Communication is looking forward to following Manav’s post graduation successes, and wishes him luck along the way!

Lorraine Carlucci is undoubtedly one of the Communication Department’s most experienced students. With an incredible amount of work in the field of communication, Lorraine sticks out as a student that is prepared to take on the professional world

 

Lorraine originally enrolled at UConn as a marketing major, but soon found that the aspects of marketing that she connected to were all related to COMM. After making the switch to become a communications major and a political science minor, she combined her love for both communication and politics to further her career in the political world. Carlucci now serves as the president of Disney at UConn, the Vice-President of Comm Society and is a part of two SUBOG committees.

 

Outside of the classroom, Lorraine has an incredible amount of real-life experience. She has been a social media intern for the U.S. Department of State for the past year and a half under Ambassador Catherine Russell. She was also honored to be a media intern at Hillary for America, Hillary Clinton’s campaign headquarters. This was an amazing opportunity for her, as she was able to work on the team that produced Hillary Clinton’s television commercials, direct mail pieces, and radio ads. Lorraine stated that this internship was an incredible opportunity to further her experience in both the communications world as well as the political world.

 

Lorraine aspires to combine her passions for communication and political science. She stated that, “to be effective politically, communication is key”, and feels that her communication skills are going to be what prepares her for her future career.

 

She gives a lot of credit to Professor Rory McGloin as an advisor. After taking  a public speaking course with him during her freshman year, working with him in Comm Society, and being his research assistant, she feels that he is incredibly dedicated to his students, and a pleasure to work with. While giving her many great opportunities, she feels that Professor McGloin has ensured her that being a COMM major was right for her.

 

With her vast experience in and outside of the University, it is clear why she stands out as one of the Department’s most committed students. We are proud to share her accomplishments thus far and are looking forward to all that she accomplishes post-graduation!

 

 The Department of Communication’s undergraduate program is filled with students that continuously exceed the expectations. With extracurricular activities, internships, and commitments to the COMM Department, we’re proud to recognize the accomplishments of our students. As the President of the Comm Society, Grace Gagnon is one of the Department’s most active students.

 

Grace Gagnon is a junior double majoring in Communication and Journalism at the University. She stated that choosing to become a COMM major was obvious to her because she knew it would allow her to learn about the areas of research that interested her. With her love for public speaking she set out to fine tune her skills.

 

Grace has a very important role within Comm Society, which is a group that gives students a variety of opportunities to observe and investigate the fields of advertising, marketing, public relations, broadcast, and media. While collaborating with other students that are committed to furthering their education in the field of communication, they have worked closely with communication professionals. Grace is also a reporter and block anchor for UCTV, which is UConn’s student run television broadcast. She has been incredibly involved in the University’s organizations to expand upon her communications and journalism skills.

 

Outside of University organizations, Grace is heavily involved in communication and journalism organizations elsewhere. She previously interned for the COMMS department at United Technologies in Farmington, where she began to get her foot in the door of the professional world. Furthering her passion for journalism, she writes a weekly column for her local newspaper, The Bristol Observer.

 

She attributes a lot of her knowledge and passion for her career to UConn’s Professor Rory McGloin. Grace states that he, “is a great advisor and mentor for everyone on Comm Society. He has taught me how to be an effective leader, and always offers me great advice.”

 

It’s clear that Grace is one of the department’s most involved students. With her passion and hard work, she inspires her fellow classmates every day through her commitment to the field of communication. We applaud and appreciate her devotion to continually expanding her knowledge and experiences.