2019-20 Annual Report table of CONTENTS A Foundation for Success ................... 4 Alumni Support .................................. 22 Classroom Instruction ......................... 6 Bellisario Media Center Update ....... 26 Campus Media Opportunities .......... 10 Stories of Support .............................. 28 Career Preparation ............................ 14 Honor Roll ........................................... 34 Faculty Expertise ............................... 16 Impact and Outreach ......................... 36 Staff Support ...................................... 20 Photo by Riley Herman, ’22 Photo by Riley Herman, ‘22 As I reflect on the Our power to innovate, motivate and contribute 2019-20 academic to the University and society isn’t in a single year, it’s not hyper- program, building or lab. It’s in our people. It’s bole to say it was in our ability to pull together, improvise and among the most chal- solve problems. lenging periods we’ve I witnessed this power first-hand. For instance, faced in many decades. I attended a Zoom “launch party” in April to In a single week in March, we celebrate the spring-semester edition of Valley, a had to pivot from in-residence to online instruc- glossy lifestyle magazine produced by Bellisario tion and adjust all of our student service opera- College students. The students quickly pivoted tions. Our advisers met with students by phone or and made the print product digital. Zoom. Our two spring internship and career fairs, I also watched our faculty members seize including “Success in the City” in New York City, the moment in the classroom, and for service. went virtual. So did our many resume and inter- For instance, our Knight Chair, John Affleck, viewing workshops. put together a virtual film series that featured We had to figure out how to teach hands-on award-winning work by faculty and students skills like photography and filmmaking in a along with panel discussions open to virtual setting. And we had to deal with the the community. logistics — working with students who had left Finally, I watched as dozens of alumni pitched laptop computers behind in their dorm rooms or in to help Assistant Dean Bob Martin match didn’t have adequate connectivity at home to students with internships and jobs. Many other access online classes. alumni reached out to Director of Alumni Rela- All of our embedded travel programs were scut- tions Mike Poorman to volunteer for mentoring tled, along with a new “Maymester in Manhat- and virtual class visits. And our alumni continued tan” program we had designed for first- and to give our students and programs their financial a foundation second-year students. We were also forced to support, which remains critically important in cancel many other marquee programs through these uncertain times. the summer and into the fall, including plans to Now, we look ahead at an academic year that cover the Tokyo Olympics as well as the national promises to bring new challenges. But with the political conventions. power of our people, I am confident we will have FOR SUCCESS Because of uncertain access to on-site internships, another great story to tell about the Bellisario we put our Stanley E. Degler Washington Program College. Our resolve is strong, and our on hiatus for the first time in a quarter century. commitment is unwavering. With the wide-ranging impact of the Bellisario College — from students working in a variety With a curriculum that emphasizes experiential Thank you for your support! of roles at the Super Bowl (above) to faculty experts who inform national policy and from learning as much as ours, creating alternatives engaging classrooms to similarly productive virtual environments — one thing provides to face-to-face interaction wasn’t easy. But, we found our strength, and great success, in one a consistently strong foundation for that success and more: our people. Our alumni enduring resource: our people. Dean Marie Hardin and friends, faculty, staff and students are the strength of the Bellisario College. 4 2019-20 ANNUAL REPORT DONALD P. BELLISARIO COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATIONS 5 Stephanie Madden, an assistant professor of advertising/public relations, teaches research methods. Communications, connections and community Photo by Riley Herman, ‘22 Faculty across the University worked hard during Often, the answers seem silly, and those that the spring semester to maintain Penn State’s “We attended class get an easy point. This time, Chandler Are” spirit within their virtual classrooms during a went one step further to get a giggle: after removing remote-teaching period utilized because of the his sweater and standing up, Chandler revealed his coronavirus pandemic. rainbow, Unicorn onesie. All faculty members were forced to adapt and “It gave me a chance to be goofy,” Chandler said. many thrived. “I tried to make the courses as interactive as I could, For Bellisario College faculty members Matthew like having open chats. The relationships that stu- McAllister, professor and chair of graduate programs, dents make during their college experience last and Curt Chandler, an assistant teaching professor a lifetime.” of journalism, being off campus from their peers and students was a significant change of pace. It gave me a chance to be goofy. Their move to the online format focused heavily on reassurance and transparency. Both McAllister and Chandler took the time to craft careful, – Curt Chandler, Associate Teaching Professor meaningful messages to their students in an attempt to ease concerns. McAllister found it especially important to check in on his students for both their educational success In his resident courses, Chandler had been pre- and mental well-being. He explained that he was paring students in four different storytelling classes very aware of the impact his presence could make, during the spring semester to go out and gather so he made sure to smile more on video and be information, conduct interviews and to produce enthusiastic to keep students engaged with their multimedia stories. education. Additionally, if he hadn’t heard from a “A big part of the college experience is the basic student, he reached out to see how they were learning process: by going out and doing stories,” doing to lend a hand. Chandler said. “This isn’t the kind of story that “The current discourse is uncertain, which can be students were expecting to tell.” scary,” McAllister said. “We live in a fortunate era Over the four classes he was teaching, Chandler where we can take full advantage of electronic means found that students were still able to produce and of making community. Community didn’t solely exist edit “amazing” video stories, undeterred by the in geographic spaces before COVID-19. Now, we potential limitations of being home. can expand community well beyond where we Although the classes were on Zoom, students still live. Community is simply a network of human enjoyed some of Chandler’s well-known charm in connections based upon communication.” the physical classroom: his humor. For one of his courses, Chandler used classroom a system called Top Hat to record student quiz responses via the internet. Students logged into their accounts via phones or laptops, and during the last Scan this QR code INSTRUCTION class of each course, they got to watch Chandler’s a chance to answer a message to students during the remote simple question: “what is Top-notch classroom instruction represents the core of our mission. In traditional teaching period. Chandler holding up?” and nontraditional settings, on campus or online, our award-winning faculty strive to serve students in ways that resonate most with them and lead to their success. 6 2019-20 ANNUAL REPORT DONALD P. BELLISARIO COLLEGE OF COMMUNICATIONS 7 Ad/PR program selected as national finalist The advertising/public relations program at Penn Scan this QR code State was selected as one of five national to watch the full Spring 2020 finalists for the designation of Outstanding Education Commencement Program by PRWeek. speech from Vince Sadusky. Penn State’s entry in the annual contest was its first Members of a 400-level public relations campaigns class drove Penn ever and was entirely student driven. State’s first entry in a national contest sponsored by PRWeek. Their effort helped Penn State get selected as one of five national finalists 936 Advertising/public relations majors in a capstone for the designation of Outstanding Education Program. undergraduate students earned degrees public relations course put together the extensive in 2019-20 nomination packet, which included an overview of representative of how this type of work takes place the program as well as interactions with alumni and in the industry, and the students did a great job industry professionals. The real-life project provided applying their learned public relations skills, as well students with an educational experience and a better as the soft skills required of working on collaborative, understanding of both the Bellisario College and client-facing work.” the University. Administrators and staff, along with alumni in the “We were able to hone in on specific stories of professions, provided support and information. Tom students, which might be different from our own, Resau, senior vice president of W2 Communications, and find similarities as we told the story of the who serves on the Advertising/Public Relations ACADEMIC OFFERINGS advertising/public relations program,” senior Connor Alumni Network Board, was an important