From the Chair
From the Chair
A few days ago, I received an e-mail from a grad in San Diego. He had visited Buffalo recently and drove past the college. Feeling nostalgic, he decided to reconnect with one of his former teachers. Vince had fond memories and kind words for teachers who had taken a boy from Buffalo, a self-described C student, and given him the confidence and guidance to become a success. It was a real pick-me-up in a day filled with the joy of bureaucracy run amok. It's also an example of what we hear frequently: Our Communication Department is a blend of challenge and nurturing that brings out the best in people, and launches them in careers they never even dreamed of.
This is a guy who still cares about Buffalo State. 
Thank you for spending some time on these pages. We're always thankful when alumni, media colleagues and friends care enough to be interested in what we've been doing lately. As you will see, this is an exciting and busy time for the Communication Department.
First, there are the people changes. Professor Rik Whitaker retired in May after 23 years in the department, nine of them as chair. Rik has created a reputation as a caring, demanding and versatile professor who, as students say, really knows his, uh, stuff.
Two new faculty members are settling in nicely: Meg Knowles, a television documentary producer, teaching TV writing and producing courses; and Jeff Hirschberg, a screenwriter heading up the new Television Arts program. We're also in the process of hiring a new journalism instructor. Nanette Tramont, former Buffalo State director of news services, is working on community relations with the department; she is also helping our alumni group become more active. You'll be hearing more from her.
Among our students, many are participating in summer internships, another area where we appreciate the involvement of media colleagues and alumni. The department also offered some new awards to graduating seniors and scholarships for incoming freshmen. Let me plant a seed now: We will be asking for your help in expanding our scholarship fund.
Meanwhile, our facilities also are undergoing continuing improvement. The college has made a major investment in technology, so faculty and students claim bragging rights to the use of brand names such as Ikegami, Grass Valley, Nikon, Chyron and Mackey. We just brought on-line our state-of-the-art video control room, the final component of a digital update program that has brought us new studio and field cameras, edit suites and equipment for audio production and digital photography.
We're also in the final states of preparing for professional accreditation, and all the faculty are helping me put together what at this point is about 354 pages of our self-study report. But the expected pay-off will be huge - putting us in an elite category. Less than 15 percent of the 800-plus schools with communication programs are accredited by ACEJMC, the Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.