CORE COURSES
Take the following courses:
CM-130 Introduction to Human Communication
Surveys the fundamental tenets of human communication through application. This course is concerned with how and why we speak, listen, respond, and strategize through the uses of verbal and nonverbal symbol systems.
3 CreditsS
CM-132 Message Analysis
The study of rhetoric investigates the art of persuasion. The course introduces the basic rhetorical concepts and language we need to make sense of the sea of messages we swim in. The course aims to sharpen your ability to reason, reflect, send, perceive and discern messages in a variety of contexts. Upon completion of this course students understand several humanistic perspectives toward communication and are able to apply the basic tools of rhetorical analysis. Students have an increased awareness of the ways in which our symbolic behaviors shape our social lives.
3 CreditsH, CS
CM-133 Mass Media and Society
An examination of the convergence of mass media (print, radio, television, sound, film, and internet) which serve our most common public interests. The focus is on the four primary functions to inform, to entertain, to persuade, and to transmit culture. Students have a better understanding of the tension between media as business and its social responsibility to its citizens. This course is not open to seniors.
3 CreditsH, CS
CM-200 Art of Public Speaking
Seeks to develop and improve fundamental principles and methods of selecting, organizing, developing, and communicating a line of reasoning and evidence for constructive influence in speaking situations. Students make three formal presentations, analyze messages, and improve their listening skills
3 CreditsCS, HPrerequisites: Sophomore, Junior, or Senior standing.
CM-401 Senior Seminar
Senior Seminar in Communication is an opportunity to refine your understanding of your communication POE and experiences and their application to the professional world of business or graduate school. Students will reflect on their communication expertise, prepare resumes and interwiewing techniques, network with alums in communication, and communicate their expertise. This course intends to make explicit the strong knowledge base acquired in a Communication POE and to explore the opportunities available in the field of communication.
1 CreditHPrerequisites: Senior standing.
SKILLS & METHODS COURSES
Take 9 credits from the following courses:
CM-220 Group Communication
This course is designed to improve communication with others in small group task and problem-solving situations. Working with a community partner students propose, plan and carry out a service project. We explore ways of developing communication strategies for group decision making, for leadership, and for managing interpersonal conflict, as well as presentations skills. This course takes a balanced approach to understanding and using communication theories, as well as offering practical experience using those skills for working in small groups. By the end of the semester students understand the group experience in terms of shared leadership of working cooperatively with diverse group members; and the necessity for ethical choices.
4 CreditsH, CS, SW-LEPrerequisite: CM-130 or CM-132 or CM-133. Pre- or Co-Requisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109.
CM-230 Interpersonal Communication
Introduces students to the various theories and styles of one-on-one communication. It emphasizes the transactional approach in the study of the communication process as it occurs in interpersonal relationships. It explores interaction as a way by which we come to know ourselves and each other.
3 CreditsH, CSPrerequisites: CM130
CM-261 CM Studies in Germany I
This course is a short-term study abroad class that meets for one hour a week in the spring semester to prepare for a 10-day trip to Germany in May. We will cover an array of communication topics including public speaking, intercultural and group communication, as well as journalism and PR/marketing related topics. The cost for the trip will include travel, hotel, food and fees. Estimated cost for the course is approximately $3,000.
1 CreditI, HCorequisite: CM262.
CM-262 CM Studies in Germany II
This course is a short-term study abroad class that meets for one hour a week in the spring semester to prepare for a 10-day trip to Germany in May. We cover an array of communication topics including public speaking, intercultural and group communication, as well as journalism and PR/marketing related topics. The cost for the trip will include travel, hotel, food and fees. Estimated cost for the course is approximately $3,000.
2 CreditsI, HCorequisite: CM261.
CM-300 Professional Presentations
Designed for students to improve and polish their speaking skills for effective presentations in professional settings. It is a performance course with emphasis placed on speech structure, audience adaptation, style of presentation (oral report and manuscript reading), with the use of PowerPoint and/or Prez1. Video is used to help speakers understand the relationship between their speaking behaviors and responses of listeners.
3 CreditsCS, HPrerequisites: CM200.
CM-289 Communication Practicum
A Practicum in Communication encourage students to: (1) develop skills in analyzing and delivering public presentations; (2) assess, interpret and analyze messages data among diverse audiences; (3) understand speech communication in a variety of contexts; (4) appreciate public address from a historic perspective; and (5) participate actively in the communication field. This course is repeatable up to 4 credits.
1-2 CreditsF, H
IM-250 Digital Audio Production
Digital Audio Production introduces the student to the fundamentals of capturing, editing and reproducing sound, using digital tools. Hands on studio work combines with basic acoustic theory to help conceptualize the bridge between the analogue and digital worlds. The final project for the course puts the student in teams to record, edit, mix and do simple mastering on a full length CD.
3 CreditsF,CTDH
IM-360 Digital Video Production
Video Production I is a practical hands-on experience with cinematography, audio production, and lighting. Students learn the necessary skills to tell an well produced digital story with appropriate technical knowledge to enhance the narrative and audience engagement. This course will teach students how to work as a professional videographer by expanding digital media knowledge and techniques. Students will learn the technical foundations of video production, camera operation, lighting, audio acquisition and editing. Students will be encouraged to investigate the impact of video content based on the viewer in addition to artistic potential through digital storytelling.
3 CreditsF,CTDHPrerequisites: IM110 or permission by permission of instructor with prior video experience.
IM-361 Video Production II
Digital Video Production II allows students to work from ideas to a final video production that is ready to showcase at a film premiere, enter into film competitions, or share with a client as a professional commercial for their business. From preproduction planning all the way to post production editing, students will work on a series of videos with full creative rights. Students will be required to oversee planning, storyboarding, shooting, editing, and final exporting. Students with prior video production experience are preferred.
3 CreditsF,CTDHPrerequisite: IM360 or by instructor permission.
Take the following course:
Designed to explore analytical approaches applied to a variety of media, including
advertising, television sitcoms, new shows, propaganda, film, music and architecture,
in order to ascertain the persuasive messages inherent in each artifact. By examining
the rhetorical choices revealed by each method of criticism, we can better understand
the structure of message design, the medium and in a larger sense the cultural values
that shape both. 3 CreditsH, CW, CSPrerequisites: CM132 or CM133.CM-330 Media Analysis
SEMINAR COURSES
Take 12 credits from the following courses:
CM-245 Photojournalism: the Ethics of Seeing
This introductory course explores the ethical responsibility in photojournalism. We all take pictures and know of photos that have changed us and changed the world. What are the ethics of seeing - a technical term which questions point of view and the understanding of the cultures and social issues portrayed.
3 CreditsF, H, SW-ERPre-req or co-req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109
CM-290 The Metaverse
This introductory course focuses on how information technologies shape the way we think and organize ourselves. In studying the technology of the book, social media and the metaverse, students explore change and technology as central to the decision making of leaders.
3 CreditsH, CW, CSPrerequisites: CM133 or IT110 or IT111.
CM-399 Special Topics
Allows departments to offer special topics not normally offered. Departments may offer more than one special topic.
1-4 Credits Prerequisites vary by topic.
CM-420A Hollywood Films
In this course we explore one visual medium: film. Hollywood film is understood as mainstream media which is meant for a general audience and with strong box office constraints. A rhetorical perspective insists on the presence of an audience which is not necessarily of interest in all types of film study but will be crucial in our discussions. We relate theories, methods of production, and criticism to our work but it is not limited to them. This course is an opportunity for students to explore what mainstream films mean and why they are such an important cultural phenomenon.
3 CreditsH, CWPrerequisites: CM132 or CM133.
CM-420B Media Violence
This media studies course introduces students to basic issues and research surrounding media violence. We take a hard look at media violence and its scholarly research in order to understand the intricacies of both our fascination and repulsion for all of the media's manifestations of violence. Cross-listed in Communication and Peace and Conflicts Studies, this course asks students to critically analyze media violence while integrating current media research into our understanding of violence as a presence in our lives and what we can or should do about it.
3 CreditsH, CWPrerequisites: CM132 or CM133.
CM-420D Truth and Lying
This media studies course introduces students to the theories of rhetoric to understand the question, who can we trust? We pay special attention to the classical period of Rhetoric and the Rhetoric of the 20th century. Rhetoric has been transformed through media. Despite these transformations, rhetoric has always been considered of first importance for the ethical practical conduct of our everyday lives. How we present or lives our beliefs, attitudes, and commitments is indeed the concern of when we lie and who we can trust in our personal and public lives.
3 CreditsH, CWPrerequisites: CM132 or CM133.
CM-420E Digital Storytelling
Digital stories derive their power in weaving images, music, narrative and voice together, and thereby giving deep dimension and vivid color to characters, situations, experiences, and insights. This course offers students the opportunity to experiment with narratives and their visualization using digital media technologies as a vehicle to tell stories creatively with a clear point of view and audience awareness.
3 CreditsH, F, CTDHPrerequisites: CM133 or 1 of the following courses, CM290 or IT110 or AR404.
ELECTIVE COURSES
Take 12 credits from the following courses:
PS-205 Politics in Film
This course is designed as an introduction to the study of ethical ideas as presented
in motion pictures. We will look both at the direct representation of political ideas
or points of view (especially through satire), and at the way Hollywood has shaped
our ideas about the process of ethical decision-making. (Formerly PS-305)
4 CreditsH, F, SW-ERPre- or co-requisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109
EN-307 Mythology in Film
This course will explore how film communicates the myths of a various societies to
its members. By combining theoretical approaches to myth with film analysis, we will
explore the ways in which cinema both influences and reflects the way we think, what
we value, fear, and aspire to achieve. Focusing on some of the most prevalent themes
in this genre, students will be introduced to Classical and contemporary adaptations
of myths and their historical and cultural contexts, examining how those narratives
provide meaning today via cinema.
4 CreditsHPrerequisites: EN110 or EN108 and EN109.
ESS-119 Environmental Film
This course explores classic and current environmental and nature films and documentaries
as both art and information. Students will watch and discuss 10 films.
1 CreditF
ESS-121 Environmental Film Lab
Create a short nature or environmental film. The course will cover filming, sound
interviewing experts, and post-production. Students will use Adobe Premier and Audition.
2 CreditsF
RU-203 East European Film
Examines the films and writings on film of some of the famous East European directors:
Eisenstein and other early Soviets, Czech films in the 1960s, Georgian films of the
eighties. Wajda and other Polish filmmakers, and current Russian films.
4 CreditsCA,H,F,CW
ESS-118 Global Justice Film
Through the medium of film, this one-credit course showcases environmental and sustainability
issues within a global context. The themes and documentaries presented in the course
will focus on intersecting elements of the environment, culture, access, class, gender,
sustainability, and innovation. Based on the documentaries and discussion in the course,
opportunities to engage in local sustainable measures will be possible.
1 Credit
FR-326 French Cinema
An overview of the history of French Cinema and various schools of film analysis.
Participants in this course view and analyze major examples of French cinema from
its origins to today. Discussions are in English. Papers may be written in English
or French.
4 CreditsF,I,H,CW
EN-299 Special Topics
Allows the department to offer special topics not normally offered. Departments may
offer more than one special topic.
1-4 Credits Prerequisites vary by title.
EN-311 Professional News and Feature Writing
This advanced writing course introduces students to the genres and techniques of journalism.
Students will write a number of news and feature stories. The writing process involves
interviewing, note taking and other forms of data gathering on campus and local news
events, creating multiple story drafts and participating in peer-editing workshops:
work culminates in a portfolio of stories written throughout the semester. Students
need not plan to become professional media writers to benefit from the course.
4 CreditsH, CWPrerequisite: EN110 or EN109.
EN-237 Constructing Identities
Applying various cultural and theoretical perspectives, students will view and read
works from Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Kurt Vonnegut, Salman Rushdie, David
Foster Wallace and others to examine ways that consumerism, technology, social institutions
and other facets of modern culture and society shape identities and influence the
human condition.
4 CreditsCAPrerequisites: EN110 or EN109.
EN-273 Visual Literacy
This course explores how visuals and text are used for purposes of identification,
information, and persuasion. It looks at many visual modes such as comics, ads, maps,
graffiti, film, art, scientific images, and web sites. Students have the option to
create arguments using only text, only images, or a combination of both.
4 CreditsHPrerequisite: EN110 or EN109.
EN-374 Ethical Game Design
This course focuses on both the use of ethical principles to design games and the
critical study of ethical games, which position players to make ethical decisionsthroughout
the game. After learning about ethical principles through play and analysis, students
design a text-based game where players make ethical choices shaping the narrative
and experience of the game.
3 CreditsSW-ER,H,CWPrerequisite: FYC-101
EN-376 Writing Across Media
When we want to convey a message to others, how do we choose whether to Tweet, blog,
or shoot video? And why does it matter which we choose? Contemporary life asks us
to be agile interpreters of images, texts, and sounds. In response, this course immerses
students into the theory and practice of how and why we choose the media in which
we communicate. Students explore how we understand and manipulate media, but also
how media-in and of themselves-influence what gets written and how. Through an assignment
sequence that includes text, webtext, image, sound, and video, students gain strength
and versatility as writers by honing their awareness of genre, audience, and rhetorical
situation. The course culminates in a multimodal, web-based portfolio. This course
may be of interest to those considering not only professional writing, but also business,
marketing, technology, creative entrepreneurship, media studies, art, and/or design.
3 CreditsH,CW,CTDHPre-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109.
EN-378 Video Production Writing
Writing for Video Production is a course that combines contemporary rhetoric, creative
inquiry, design thinking, media authorship, self-reflection, and social engagement.
Students complete directed writing such as journal entries, scripts, storyboards,
and shotlists in concert with video production, facilitating an integrated process
of thinking, creating, and problem-solving.
4 CreditsH,CW,CTDH,WK-CETake FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109
IM-110 Principles of Digital Media
An introduction to the concepts of digital media. Students will develop an understanding
of the basics of digital media, the technology surrounding the creation and use of
digital media, and its association with art, communication, and information technology.
Through a laboratory context of experimentation and discussion, the course explores
the use of various creative software programs used to create artistic and expressive
media content. The course provides an overview of media formats, media creation, the
fundamental properties of the tools required for media manipulation, and insight into
the artistic, social, psychological, and legal aspects of digital media. Restrictions:
IMA or Art POE or secondary emphasis, or by instructor permission.
3 CreditsCTDH
IM-310 Social Media
This course will introduce students to the context and forms of social media. We will
explore the theories and practices of narrative expression in online context, explore
social media as culture and study the impact of " the sharing economy. " What is social
media, who uses it, who gains from it, and how is it transforming new media aswell
as traditional media. One of the outcomes of social media is that everything is connected,
creating massive amounts of user generated content and data. Students will learn to
analyze, design and visualize this data. We will also focus on the social norms of
user communities and how we can leverage it to better understand emerging technologies.
Students will have the opportunity to explore both theory and practice of social media
through writing assignments, presentations, curating and creating creative content,
and participating on both online and offline discussions.
3 CreditsFPrerequisites: IM110 or IT110 or IT111 or CS110.
AR-104
Design and Color
The discipline of design is basic to all forms of visual art, including painting,
drawing, photography, ceramics and illustration. This course is designed to acquaint
the student with the basic elements of picture structure: composition, line, shape,
value, texture, color, scale, proportion, tension, and balance. Note: A special fee
for art supplies is assessed.
3 CreditsF,CTDH
AR-204
Digital Art I
This course focuses on the creation of art through electronic processes. Adobe Creative
Cloud and other apps will be utilized along with scanners, cameras, and printers.
Final works will be exhibited electronically and in print.
4 CreditsF,CTDH,WK-CE
PS-205 Politics in Film
This course is designed as an introduction to the study of ethical ideas as presented in motion pictures. We will look both at the direct representation of political ideas or points of view (especially through satire), and at the way Hollywood has shaped our ideas about the process of ethical decision-making. (Formerly PS-305)
4 CreditsH, F, SW-ERPre- or co-requisite: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109
EN-307 Mythology in Film
This course will explore how film communicates the myths of a various societies to its members. By combining theoretical approaches to myth with film analysis, we will explore the ways in which cinema both influences and reflects the way we think, what we value, fear, and aspire to achieve. Focusing on some of the most prevalent themes in this genre, students will be introduced to Classical and contemporary adaptations of myths and their historical and cultural contexts, examining how those narratives provide meaning today via cinema.
4 CreditsHPrerequisites: EN110 or EN108 and EN109.
ESS-119 Environmental Film
This course explores classic and current environmental and nature films and documentaries as both art and information. Students will watch and discuss 10 films.
1 CreditF
ESS-121 Environmental Film Lab
Create a short nature or environmental film. The course will cover filming, sound interviewing experts, and post-production. Students will use Adobe Premier and Audition.
2 CreditsF
RU-203 East European Film
Examines the films and writings on film of some of the famous East European directors: Eisenstein and other early Soviets, Czech films in the 1960s, Georgian films of the eighties. Wajda and other Polish filmmakers, and current Russian films.
4 CreditsCA,H,F,CW
ESS-118 Global Justice Film
Through the medium of film, this one-credit course showcases environmental and sustainability issues within a global context. The themes and documentaries presented in the course will focus on intersecting elements of the environment, culture, access, class, gender, sustainability, and innovation. Based on the documentaries and discussion in the course, opportunities to engage in local sustainable measures will be possible.
1 Credit
FR-326 French Cinema
An overview of the history of French Cinema and various schools of film analysis. Participants in this course view and analyze major examples of French cinema from its origins to today. Discussions are in English. Papers may be written in English or French.
4 CreditsF,I,H,CW
EN-299 Special Topics
Allows the department to offer special topics not normally offered. Departments may offer more than one special topic.
1-4 Credits Prerequisites vary by title.
EN-311 Professional News and Feature Writing
This advanced writing course introduces students to the genres and techniques of journalism. Students will write a number of news and feature stories. The writing process involves interviewing, note taking and other forms of data gathering on campus and local news events, creating multiple story drafts and participating in peer-editing workshops: work culminates in a portfolio of stories written throughout the semester. Students need not plan to become professional media writers to benefit from the course.
4 CreditsH, CWPrerequisite: EN110 or EN109.
EN-237 Constructing Identities
Applying various cultural and theoretical perspectives, students will view and read works from Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Kurt Vonnegut, Salman Rushdie, David Foster Wallace and others to examine ways that consumerism, technology, social institutions and other facets of modern culture and society shape identities and influence the human condition.
4 CreditsCAPrerequisites: EN110 or EN109.
EN-273 Visual Literacy
This course explores how visuals and text are used for purposes of identification, information, and persuasion. It looks at many visual modes such as comics, ads, maps, graffiti, film, art, scientific images, and web sites. Students have the option to create arguments using only text, only images, or a combination of both.
4 CreditsHPrerequisite: EN110 or EN109.
EN-374 Ethical Game Design
This course focuses on both the use of ethical principles to design games and the critical study of ethical games, which position players to make ethical decisionsthroughout the game. After learning about ethical principles through play and analysis, students design a text-based game where players make ethical choices shaping the narrative and experience of the game.
3 CreditsSW-ER,H,CWPrerequisite: FYC-101
EN-376 Writing Across Media
When we want to convey a message to others, how do we choose whether to Tweet, blog, or shoot video? And why does it matter which we choose? Contemporary life asks us to be agile interpreters of images, texts, and sounds. In response, this course immerses students into the theory and practice of how and why we choose the media in which we communicate. Students explore how we understand and manipulate media, but also how media-in and of themselves-influence what gets written and how. Through an assignment sequence that includes text, webtext, image, sound, and video, students gain strength and versatility as writers by honing their awareness of genre, audience, and rhetorical situation. The course culminates in a multimodal, web-based portfolio. This course may be of interest to those considering not only professional writing, but also business, marketing, technology, creative entrepreneurship, media studies, art, and/or design.
3 CreditsH,CW,CTDHPre-Req: FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109.
EN-378 Video Production Writing
Writing for Video Production is a course that combines contemporary rhetoric, creative inquiry, design thinking, media authorship, self-reflection, and social engagement. Students complete directed writing such as journal entries, scripts, storyboards, and shotlists in concert with video production, facilitating an integrated process of thinking, creating, and problem-solving.
4 CreditsH,CW,CTDH,WK-CETake FYC-101 or EN-110 or EN-109
IM-110 Principles of Digital Media
An introduction to the concepts of digital media. Students will develop an understanding of the basics of digital media, the technology surrounding the creation and use of digital media, and its association with art, communication, and information technology. Through a laboratory context of experimentation and discussion, the course explores the use of various creative software programs used to create artistic and expressive media content. The course provides an overview of media formats, media creation, the fundamental properties of the tools required for media manipulation, and insight into the artistic, social, psychological, and legal aspects of digital media. Restrictions: IMA or Art POE or secondary emphasis, or by instructor permission.
3 CreditsCTDH
IM-310 Social Media
This course will introduce students to the context and forms of social media. We will explore the theories and practices of narrative expression in online context, explore social media as culture and study the impact of " the sharing economy. " What is social media, who uses it, who gains from it, and how is it transforming new media aswell as traditional media. One of the outcomes of social media is that everything is connected, creating massive amounts of user generated content and data. Students will learn to analyze, design and visualize this data. We will also focus on the social norms of user communities and how we can leverage it to better understand emerging technologies. Students will have the opportunity to explore both theory and practice of social media through writing assignments, presentations, curating and creating creative content, and participating on both online and offline discussions.
3 CreditsFPrerequisites: IM110 or IT110 or IT111 or CS110.
AR-104 Design and Color
The discipline of design is basic to all forms of visual art, including painting, drawing, photography, ceramics and illustration. This course is designed to acquaint the student with the basic elements of picture structure: composition, line, shape, value, texture, color, scale, proportion, tension, and balance. Note: A special fee for art supplies is assessed.
3 CreditsF,CTDH
AR-204 Digital Art I
This course focuses on the creation of art through electronic processes. Adobe Creative Cloud and other apps will be utilized along with scanners, cameras, and printers. Final works will be exhibited electronically and in print.
4 CreditsF,CTDH,WK-CE
CAPSTONE
Complete 3 credits from one of the following options below:
OPTION 1:
CM-490 Communication Internship
Communication students may apply their acquired skills and knowledge to on-the-job internships for a semester during their junior or senior year for a total of 9 credit hours. Television stations, radio stations, newspapers, magazines, public relations, advertising agencies and human relations in health organizations are all possible placements. You not only work as full-time members of a business team, but also evaluate and document your growth in a work journal and prepare a portfolio of presentations or publications.
2-9 Credits Corequisite: CM495. Prerequisite: Communication core and Jr. or Sr. standing.
CM-495 Communication Internship Research
In addition to the on-the-job experience provided by the internship, students are required to pursue research related to their placement. An in-depth research paper or presentation is completed during the semester.
2-6 CreditsHCorequisite: CM490. Prerequisite: Communication core and Jr. or Sr. standing.
OPTION 2:
CM-497 Senior Thesis Seminar
Designed to serve as a capstone course for students who emphasize Communication in their POE. The students will be expected to examine communication theories and research methods relevant to a topic, theme, issue, or problem that has served as an area of special interest throughout the previous years of study.
3-6 CreditsH, CSStudents must have Senior standing and a POE in Communication.
CM-498 Senior Thesis Research
Designed to serve as a capstone course for students who emphasize Communication in their POE. The students will be expected to examine communication theories and research methods relevant to a topic, theme, issue, or problem that has served as an area of special interest throughout the previous two years of study.
3-6 CreditsH, CSStudents must have Senior standing and have a POE in Communication. Prerequisite: CM-497.
POE Credit Total = 55
Students must complete at least 18 credits at the 300/400-level. Any course exception must be approved by the advisor and/or department chair.