ADRIAN COLLEGE COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT: CONNER WISE 1

Communication Department Adrian College,

110 S Madison St Adrian, MI 49221

ADRIAN COLLEGE COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT: CONNER WISE 2

Index
Introduction……………………………………………………................... Page 3

Mission Statement…………………………………………………………. Page 3

Changes Made…………………………………………………………. Page 3 – 5

Conclusion………………………………………………………………… Page 6

Appendix A: Courses in the previous curriculum (2019-2020) ………. Page 7

Appendix B: Courses in the new curriculum (2020-2021) ……………. Page 8

ADRIAN COLLEGE COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT: CONNER WISE 3

Introduction
Within the last year at Adrian College, there have substantial changes to the

Communication undergraduate program. While some changes were made to the curriculum last

year such as adding new two new majors in the communication field (Bachelor of Fine Arts in

Film Studies & Bachelor of Science in Public Relations), the 2020/2021 school year changes

were implemented to help students transition into higher level classes. This will also help

students remember the course material in 100 level Communication classes because now there is

not a huge time gap between these similar courses.

Mission Statement
The Department of Communication Arts and Sciences mission is to train balanced

communication professionals who can succeed in numerous careers such as radio broadcasting,

video production, public relations, or graduate school. All students are immersed in a

comprehensive experiential learning program in the production arts, which is balanced with a

strong foundation in human communication theory and media criticism coursework. Students

who graduate are prepared to be critical thinkers and innovative communication professionals.

Changes Made
Like mentioned in the introduction, the main changes that were made in the curriculum

were the level of the classes. To start, the first change that was made was the switch from Digital

Media Productions II (COMM239) to now COMM339. This year, Professor Neal wanted to

branch out on the film major. After four years of teaching at Adrian College, Neal has begun to
ADRIAN COLLEGE COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT: CONNER WISE 4

feel more comfortable with his students and the expectations that his students should be meeting.

The main reason faculty has changed Digital Media Productions II from a 200-level class to a

300-level class is because of the workload that is presented in this course. When the staff in the

Communication department came together, they decided that Digital Media Productions was an

intense class and that the level should reflect that. After meeting with Professor Winckles,

department chair of communication art and sciences, Winkles stated “We wanted to reflect the

agenda for that course by putting it up at the 300-level class instead of having too much

workload for a 200-level course”. This will allow students to know how to handle technology

and know more about equipment before jumping into a 300-level class. Without prior

knowledge, going into Digital Media Productions II was considerably challenging on the

students. By eliminating this time gap, students will be more prepared for this course.

Not only were the film classes substituted, but the radio production branch was also

tweaked in its own way. Radio Production COMM 307 is now COMM 285. Throughout the last

twelve years, this course has been a 300-level class. This changed this year due to individual

professors in the communication field going their own direction. While Professor Neal wanted to

focus more on video production, Dr. Shehan took this to rearrange his broadcasting courses. Dr.

Shehan states, “It became really apparent when I had students struggling with some of the

technical work. I had to teach it at a 300-level to some degree because they were getting a 300-

level credit… it was unfair and frustrating and that’s not the point of what we were trying to do”.

There were a lot of different topics covered in this class and what Dr. Shehan said, “Way over a

200-level course.”

While there have been changes to upper level curriculum, this will also affect what will

be introduced and taught in beginning Communication courses. For instance, now that Radio
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Productions is a 200-level course instead of a 300-level course, that means it is a mid-way point

for students. In the past, COMM109 TV and Radio Announcing had a lot of hands on experience

with equipment on top of terms and operations. This year it will taught differently as there will

be no equipment involved. Dr. Shehan states, “The only equipment those students will run is the

prompter… which is nice in a way so I don’t have to cram tech in there… so they can just focus

on their performance”. Having younger students just focusing on one aspect of Tv and Radio

Announcing will not make them feel too overwhelmed. Then, students will go into Radio

Productions COMM 285 knowing the announcing methods and will learn hardware and

equipment. The faculty dividing up the course material between these classes will allow Adrian

College students to have an easier transitioning period and to accumulate the knowledge over the

right amount of time.

The last change that was made to the Communication major at Adrian College was the

switch from TV Studio Production COMM 310, to TV Productions COMM 290. While this is

still a higher 200-level class, the differences between a 200-level and 300-level class are

dramatically noticeable. After asking Professor Neal why this change was made, he simply put it

as, “It bridges the gap”. This correlates with the other two switches as the overall motive for

these changes was to make sure students were getting a fair opportunity and an easier

transitioning period. Not only does the course level number change, but this means even the

course name has to change. In all of the courses that have switched, the names have too but they

are very miniscule.

Conclusion
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In conclusion, the Communication major at Adrian College has made some slight

changes for the 2020-2021 school year. These changes are the switches from Digital Media

Productions COMM 239 to Digital Media Productions COMM 339, Radio Productions COMM

307 to Radio Productions COMM 285, and lastly the switch from TV Studio Production COMM

310 to TV Studio Productions to TV Productions COMM 290. These changes that have been

implemented into the curriculum should allow Adrian College students to have a smoother

experience in the Communication department. The changes also represent the mission statement

of the communication department as students will receive an education of human connection

while also experiencing hands on work.

ADRIAN COLLEGE COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT: CONNER WISE 7

Appendix A:

Courses in the previous curriculum (2019-2020)

Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and Sciences (42 Hours)

Communications Core (39 hours)

COMM109 TV and Radio Announcing (3)

COMM110 Survey of Mass Communication (3)

Or

COMM205 Public Relations I (3)

COMM209 Interpersonal Communication (3)

COMM210 Digital Media Production I (3)

COMM218 Introduction to Communication Theory (3)

COMM239 Digital Media Production II (3)

COMM280 Communication Ethics (3)

COMM307 Radio Productions (3)

COMM308 Mass Communication Criticism (3)

COMM310 TV Productions (3)

COMM314 Public Relations II (3)

COMM317 PR Performance and Production (3)

COMM422 Capstone: Senior Experience in COMM Arts (3)

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Appendix B:

Courses in current curriculum

Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and Sciences (42 Hours)

Communications Core (39 hours)

COMM109 TV and Radio Announcing (3)

COMM110 Survey of Mass Communication (3)

Or

COMM209 Interpersonal Communication (3)

COMM205 Public Relations I (3)

COMM210 Digital Media Production I (3)

COMM218 Introduction to Communication Theory (3)

COMM280 Communication Ethics (3)

COMM285 Radio Productions (3)

COMM290 TV Productions (3)

COMM308 Mass Communication Criticism (3)

COMM314 Public Relations II (3)

COMM317 PR Performance and Production (3)

COMM339 Digital Media Production II (3)

COMM422 Capstone: Senior Experience in COMM Arts (3)