Mass Communications and Journalism students performed admirably in local, regional and national competitions.

Stanley Donaldson completed an internship at the Virginian-Pilot in spring 2004.  Lester Davis was awarded a 2004 summer internship at the Baltimore Sun.  He worked as a general assignment reporter for 12 weeks.  Stanley Donaldson was selected for the Knight Ridder Internship Program.  He would work at three Knight Ridder-owned newspapers across the country for 12 months.  Madia Brown was selected as a Chips Quinn Scholar for the summer of 2004.  She worked as a graphic design intern for 12 weeks at the Detroit Free Press and also received a $1,000 scholarship from the Freedom Forum at the completion of the internship.  Darnell Mayberry was awarded a 2004 summer internship at the Akron Beacon Journal.  He worked as a sports reporter for 10 weeks.  Jennifer Jiggets and Darnell Mayberry were among 30 students selected from Historically Black Colleges and Universities to participate in a two-week New York Times Institute at Dillard University, New Orleans, LA, in May 2004.  Stanley Donaldson, Jennifer Jiggets and Darnell Mayberry received the Hampton Roads Black Media Professionals Excel Award in 2004 for the best newspaper editorial, news story and sports story respectively.  D’Angelo Gore and Tameeka Mitchem were awarded 2004 summer internships at the Washington Informer and Norfolk (VA) Journal and Guide respectively.  They were among 13 students trained at the First Black College Wire Institute in June 2004.

Dr. Paula C. Briggs, associate professor, was a National Association of Television Program Executives Faculty Fellow in 2004.  She has presented scholarly papers, including “The Shaping of Stereotypes in Predominantly Black Sitcoms: A Critical Analysis.”

Dr. Wanda G. Brockington, associate professor, has presented scholarly papers, including “Connected or Disconnected? African Americans, Identity and the Internet” and “African-American College Students and Internet Use.”  She is also co-authoring a proposed book dealing with women on the cutting edge of the information age.

Dr. Cathy M. Jackson, assistant professor, successfully defended her dissertation in 2004.  She made a presentation, “An HBCU Graduate’s Perspective on Closing and Opening the Hiring Gap,” as a panelist on a session titled “Hiring Disparities: The Myth of Insufficient Numbers of Minorities for Hire” during the August 2004 convention of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication in Toronto, Canada.  She participated in a new documentary film about the life and legend of Jesse James.  The film, a co-production of Hidden Hill Productions and WGBA Educational Foundation, will be broadcast nationally on the PBS series, “American Experience,” in the 2005 – 2006 season.  Dr. Jackson, author of “The Making of an American Outlaw Hero: Jesse James, Folklore, and the Late 19^th Century Print Media,” traveled to New York City to film portions of the documentary.

Mr. Richard Koonce, assistant professor and an alumnus of the department (’91), is on educational leave.  He is completing doctoral studies at Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH.

Dr. Emeka J. Okoli, professor, made a scholarly presentation, “Strengthening Democratic Governance in Nigeria Through Strategic Training in Intercultural/Interethnic Communication and Conflict Resolution,” in 2004.  He is a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Abuja in Nigeria for the spring 2005 and fall 2005 semesters.

Dr. Emmanuel U. Onyedike, professor and department head, served as a discussant in a refereed paper session, “Images and Roles of Race in the Media,” at the August 2004 convention of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication in Toronto, Canada.  He also moderated a research session, “Let’s Talk About Race: News, Health and Community” at the Toronto convention.

Mr. Steve E. Opfer, instructor, is one of “the best teachers in America,” according to Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers.  He has also made scholarly presentations, including “An Ethnographic Examination of a Virtual Community: Computer Golf and Course Design on the World Wide Web.”  While carrying out his teaching and advising responsibilities at NSU, Mr. Opfer is also completing his doctoral studies at Regent University in Virginia Beach, VA.

Dr. Erwin K. Thomas, who has been a professor in the department since 1980, retired in summer 2004.

Dr. Stan Tickton, professor, was elected to represent the Mass Communication Division in the National Communication Association’s Legislative Assembly at the November 2004 NCA conference in Chicago.  In January 2005, he attended the National Association of Television Program Executives Conference in Las Vegas, NV.

For more alumni information, please contact Dr. Brockington via e-mail at wgbrockington@nsu.edu or phone (757) 823-8067, or contact Dr. Briggs via e-mail at pcbriggs@nsu.edu or phone (757) 823-2384.

Alumni should also visit NSU's Alumni Community at http://alumni.nsu.edu and visit the departmental discussion forum at http://nsumcjr.proboards2.com, which features an alumni discussion board. Both require registration and log-on.