Happy Holidays: Reflections on 2010

As 2010 winds to a close, one can’t help but reflect on the many great people and events that have marked the past year in the Diederich College of Communication.

And what an eventful year it’s been for the College!

There were the departures of Associate Dean Gary Meyer and Assistant Dean Rose Richard, the appointments of Dr. Joyce Wolburg and Dr. Erik Ugland to fill the roles of Associate Dean and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Research (respectively), and the arrival of our new Assistant Dean Chioma Ugochukwu.

There’s the ongoing Centennial of Journalism celebration with events such as our September kickoff party at the Milwaukee Public Museum, the student-produced Centennial Seminars program, and the launch of a new website dedicated to the past, present and future of our journalism program.

In June, our Urban Journalism Workshop celebrated its 25th anniversary (and continues to keep going strong).

We hosted numerous inspirational guest speakers, such as free press advocates Robert McChesney and John Nichols, host of the PBS NewsHour Gwen Ifill and acclaimed journalist Lisa Ling.

And of course, there were the renovations in Johnston Hall that have brought us the new elevator and the opening of the incredible JPad student lounge.

Thanks to all our readers and contributors for a great first year. Look for new posts when we resume in January. Until then, happy holidays!

A Successful Start to the Centennial of Journalism at Marquette

By Jennifer Janviere

This past Friday, the Diederich College of Communication officially began celebrating a century of journalism education at Marquette University. The kickoff consisted of two big events in one day: the student-produced Centennial Seminars program, taped and live steamed in the early afternoon, and the Centennial Kickoff celebration at the Milwaukee Public Museum’s Streets of Old Milwaukee exhibit later that evening.

Centennial Seminars, taped in Studio 7 (Johnston Hall), offered a panel discussion on ethical issues in journalism. Panel guests included some local names (Ron Smith and Raquel Rutledge of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and our very own Dr. Bonnie Brennen) as well as national ones (political strategist Sophia Nelson, John Barron of the Chicago Sun-Times, Chris Bury of ABC News and Adam Yamaguchi from Current TV’s Vanguard). Students, faculty and staff gathered together in the new JH 103 multimedia classroom to watch the discussion unfold via livestream broadcast.

That evening, the Streets of Old Milwaukee at the Milwaukee Public Museum came alive with faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the college, all there to celebrate the past, present and future of our journalism program. Students dressed as old-fashioned ‘newsies’ strolled the cobblestone pavement throughout the evening equipped with iPads, showing student-created projects about various historical aspects of the journalism program at Marquette. Guests took novelty photos against the backdrop of old buildings holding  prop newspapers while a barbershop quartet sang in the background. Later in the evening, dean Lori Bergen gave a speech about the centennial milestone, after which Marquette’s own Gold N’ Blues entertained guests with a medley of songs. As a whole, the event was a great way to start off the year-long festivities.

Now that the Centennial of Journalism is officially underway in the Diederich College of Communication, stay tuned for upcoming events by visiting this blog, our college website or our Centennial of Journalism at Marquette website.

View photos from behind the scenes of the Centennial Seminars production and the Centennial Kickoff party at MPM on Flickr.