Show Communications dept cuts cord Mark Hewitt News Editor After two years of active planning Communications previously a subcategory of the department of English at became a separate department on campus The split took effect on July first 1989 under the auspices of the Division of Health and Human Services According to the coordinator of the new department Loretta Loret- Loret ta Walker it was a timely move Communications and English were put together many years ago when we were a small school but our department has grown so much that we have two full time faculty and five to eight part time faculty who have been teaching full time loads So large is the new Communications Communications Communications Com Com- department that according to Walker were they to employ a full time staff they would have at least eight people We are big she said when we were with English we took ty-percent ty of their budget Continued on page 3 English and Communication departments separate f 1 Continued from page 1 l With at least 26 sections of Com Corn seven sections of Com Corn and single sections of a smattering of other communications communications communications com com- courses including including including ing journalism the new department is planning to increase increase increase in in- crease its it's staff soon Were looking right now at a person to teach our television production courses We need to get our advanced television production courses proposed and get them past the curriculum committee first The split will be beneficial to students since the Department Department Department Depart Depart- ment is also working on establishing establishing establishing lishing an Associate of Science of Communication degree with an additional proposal for an Associate of Applied Sciences degree Roselyn Kirk associate professor of English and humanities and a full time faculty member in the Communications Department Department Depart Depart- I ment says that these degrees I help give st students d what they need from education education- choices We want to give students students students stu stu- stu- stu dents options We want these degrees to transfer to a sit sity yet make graduates eligible for jobs Other benefits of the new department are the availability of previously overloaded overloaded overloaded over over- loaded classes and the guarantee that those classes will be kept at a smaller size For example Com Corn is a required required required re re- re- re course for many undergraduate undergraduate undergraduate under under- graduate degrees and it has a three quarter waiting list for registration at the University of Utah The new department will not only make such classes classes classes clas clas- ses available but accessible by supporting a larger faculty at a smaller institution Additionally S the of Communications Communications Com Com- departmentalization of om- om and its subsequent subsequent subsequent sub sub- sequent degree will allow transfer students to fill the general education requirements requirements requirements require require- ments of higher universities more easily As Kirk points out If you take the first three quarters of journalism you youcan youcan youcan can transfer into the Department Department Department Depart Depart- ment of Journalism at the University of Utah without taking their test which is required required required re re- re- re of transfer Journalism students In this way were we're building building building build build- ing some credibility with universities By the same token we dont don't want this to tobe tobe tobe be only a transfer program We want students to also be beable beable beable able to go out and get a job The Department has one new class Communication Introduction to Mass Communication and it is hoping to add Communication tion Writing For the Mass Media Kirk said In com corn we will go into magazine writ writ- ing television script writing radio script writing advanced feature writing and writing for commercials Tentative level television production course will focus on the development of the schools school's television channel j |