Students on the way to Lena Pope Home.
The Department of Strategic Communication introduced a new event this semester for incoming majors, The Strat Comm Gathering. Held off campus at the Amon Carter Event Center at the Lena Pope Home, students learned more about the department, talked about the importance of community engagement and networked with alumni. The event also introduced students to the Tarrant County Coalition for Peace and Justice, the community engagement partner for the semester.
Community building started during the bus ride from TCU’s campus to Lena Pope, where they were challenged to create a hashtag for the event: #StratChat2022. At the event, students received a brief overview of the program and information about the major and the department. They networked with alumni and spoke with TCCPJ representatives. Alumni included Jay Warren, City of Arlington; David Dunmoyer, Texas Public Policy Foundation; James Terry Jr., GS&F; Molly Little, Jacob’s; Shatika Bailey, WiNGs Dallas; Sydney Hanes, Cook Children’s Health Care System; Haley Thompson, Undertone; Brooke Wilson, Camp Aldersgate Inc.; Lauren Silver, Lifeblue; Colin Onderdonk, PMG; Briana Wucinski, TechFW. These personal touches at the event encouraged new students to feel that they had made the right choice in major: “I feel much more comfortable reaching out now if I need help.” Another student said, “I think what stood out most to me was how much y’all cared. It is a tremendous help to have this packet and network with people.”
Students in dialogue with STCO alumnus James Terry Jr. ’19 at the Strat Comm Gathering.
Learning did not end there. This semester, students in the Public Relations course will take what they are learning in the classroom out to the community. By partnering with TCCPJ, strategic communication students can work on real-world projects in their first semester in the program. A non-profit organization, TCCPJ “creates collaborative education-based opportunities to center the experiences of People of the Global Majority.” Community engagement enhances the student experience at TCU and helps to build responsible citizens in the global community. One student said a major takeaway of the event was that “this major can take you anywhere, and you can bring so much good into the world.” Community building is essential to students’ work as ethical leaders. As one student noted, “I learned that connecting with your community is important in Strat Comm if you want to know your audience.”
Students eating dinner in Amon Carter Event Center.
Thank you to strategic communication faculty who participated: Catherine Coleman, Jacqueline Lambiase, Russel Mack, Ashley English, Julie O’Neil, Amiso George, Penny Kwon, Sarah Angle, Broc Sears, Lindsay Ma, Wendy Macias and Tae Rang Choi.
Keep up with the students from PR by checking out #StratChat2022 on social media. Learn more about Strategic Communication.