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| Seniors
Haylee Maddox and Madi Neal study in the newly renovated COM lobby. |
Student News
The Department of Communication is busy updating our student facilities. In the spring, we updated and redesigned the lobby area of the Communication building, based on student design projects in Nonverbal Communication (COM 2350). This summer, we have continued to repaint, move offices, and are creating a new collaborative classroom for students.
During the spring, Communication students had internships at The Ark
Domestic Violence Center, The Heartland Association of Realtors, The Brownwood
Chamber of Commerce, Moore Printing, and the Howard Payne University Office of Marketing and Communications. The required internship provides students opportunities for
practical application of concepts they are learning in the classroom.
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| HPU students and faculty at the Capitol in Austin, TX. |
Faculty News
Dr. Julie Welker, chair of the department of communication,
was the speech and debate contest director for several UIL tournaments in the
spring, including the UIL District 1-3AAA Regional Tournament held at Abilene
Christian University. Dr. Welker is leading a team-building seminar for an area
school district in August, and she continues to serve as president of the
Brownwood chapter of The Daughters of the Republic of Texas.
Professor Richelle Hair, instructor of communication, serves as president of the Young Leaders of Brown County and is a member of the Brown County Chamber Ambassadors. She taught Junior Achievement curriculum to 8th graders at Brownwood Middle School in the spring. She is also the HPU cheer coach.
Dr. Welker and Professor Hair will both attend the Texas
Speech Communication Association convention in October and serve on two
separate panels. Dr. Welker is leading a short-term study abroad trip
to Italy and Greece in Spring 2020.
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| Mackynlie Conklin, Miss Permian Basin, 2019, Contestant for Miss Texas USA. |
Student Highlight
Sophomore Mackynlie Conklin, from Midland, Texas, will be
competing in the Miss Texas USA pageant in August 2019 as Miss Permian Basin.
Mackynlie is an HPU cheerleader, a writer and photographer for The Yellow Jacket, and a member of Delta
Chi Rho. This year, Mackynlie will
also serve as a student worker in the HPU Communication Department.
“I want to encourage girls to be persistent in pursuing their dreams. I want to be a role model to women and young girls to believe in themselves in doing anything they put their mind to,” said Conklin. Conklin said that the HPU Communication department has helped solidify her career plans and grow her communication skills.“Being a part of the COM department has helped me to develop skills to become more professional and refined. These skills transfer over to my pageant experiences, influencing my performance. HPU pushed me to interact more with others, and it really created a perfect place to create friends, but also to have a community to put into practice the materials that I have learned. The skills I learned in the Communication Department have helped me to gain my title and have given me the confidence in myself to communicate effectively to the wide range of members of the pageant community.”
Morgan Ashmore, ('17)
I currently work as the
Public Relations Coordinator for Center for Life Resources. Since graduating
from HPU in 2017, I have used the skills that I acquired as a communication
student in many different ways. As Public Relations Coordinator, my job duties
include social media management, event planning, marketing our programs,
community connections, public speaking, graphic design, communicating
information to the media and developing a positive image of our company to the
community. Stepping in to my first professional role as public relations
coordinator was a little scary, but knowing that I was well prepared by my alma
mater calmed my nerves and gave me confidence that I needed to be successful.
It has now been seven months since I started my position as public relations
coordinator, and I absolutely love my job. I am beyond grateful that the
communication department at HPU helped me prepare and achieve my goals of
working in a field that I am so passionate about.”
Rev. Jonathan Davis, pastor of Beale Memorial Baptist Church in Tappahannock, Virginia, received his Doctorate of Ministry from Hardin Simmons University in
May 2019. Jonathan was a communication major and a member of Student Speaker
Bureau.
“I want to encourage girls to be persistent in pursuing their dreams. I want to be a role model to women and young girls to believe in themselves in doing anything they put their mind to,” said Conklin. Conklin said that the HPU Communication department has helped solidify her career plans and grow her communication skills.“Being a part of the COM department has helped me to develop skills to become more professional and refined. These skills transfer over to my pageant experiences, influencing my performance. HPU pushed me to interact more with others, and it really created a perfect place to create friends, but also to have a community to put into practice the materials that I have learned. The skills I learned in the Communication Department have helped me to gain my title and have given me the confidence in myself to communicate effectively to the wide range of members of the pageant community.”
Alumni News
Morgan Ashmore, ('17)
“I am so thankful for my time as
a communication student at HPU because I acquired a wide variety of skills that
I use everyday in my professional career. The curriculum that the Communication
Department offers prepares students for their career by offering a diverse
catalog of courses that focus on anything from social media, sports media,
advertising, public relations, nonverbal communication, journalism, rhetoric,
communication theory, etc. I was also a member of the Student Speaker Bureau
where I had the opportunity to debate some of the top speakers in the nation.
Being a member of the Student Speaker Bureau significantly increased my public
speaking skills and knowledge of current events.
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| Dr.
Jonathan Davis and wife Audrey, pictured with Dr. Julie Welker |
Jonathan
Davis, 2004
Rev. Jonathan Davis, pastor of Beale Memorial Baptist Church in Tappahannock, Virginia, received his Doctorate of Ministry from Hardin Simmons University in
May 2019. Jonathan was a communication major and a member of Student Speaker
Bureau.Upcoming Events
- Caffeinate, Communicate, Connect - Join the COM faculty every Monday at 10 a.m. for coffee, snacks, and a short devotional in the lobby of the COM building
- Student Speaker Bureau UIL Congress Workshop - October 2, 2019
- Heart of Texas Swing Tournament - Sept. 27-29, 2019 - Collegiate speech and debate tournament, featuring parliamentary debate, IPDA debate, and AFA Individual Events tournament
- Homecoming Reception for Journalism and The Yellow Jacket Alumni - Saturday, Nov. 2, 1-3 p.m. in the Balcony, Mabee Center
- Student Speaker Bureau UIL Speech/ Debate/ Journalism Workshop - Nov. 6, 2019
- Student Speaker Bureau trip to Oxford/London - Nov. 13-20, 2019
- Italy and Greece Short-Term Study Abroad Trip - May 2020—open to all students, alumni, and friends of the university
Email Dr. Welker for all event registration and information.
Stay up to date on all of our news and events by following the HPU Department of Communication Facebook page.
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