Austin Burwell, a senior from Dewar, earned the top student research paper.
Rogers State University students won more awards than any other university at this year’s Oklahoma Speech Theater and Communications Association (OSTCA) Conference held last weekend at East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma.
Austin Burwell, a radio/television senior from Dewar, earned the top student research paper for his examination of how social media is contributing to the spread of misinformation in politics. He wrote the paper for his Communications Research Methods class.
Nate Cogan, a corporate communications senior from Bixby, and Naomi Roman, a corporate communications senior from Tulsa, were a part of the winning team in the public relations competition. For their presentation, they created create a public relations plan to promote their non-profit client, Mama T’s homeless shelter, as well as determine how the new non-profit organization could raise money in the community.
Nate Cogan, a senior from Bixby, and Naomi Roman, a senior from Tulsa, were a part of the winning team in the public relations competition.
Other RSU students participating in the annual OSTCA conference were Karmyn Hawley, a corporate communications junior from Claremore; Amanda Hopkins, a corporate communications senior from Tulsa; Nanette Kelley, a corporate communications senior from McKinley, California; Creed Littlefield, a radio/television senior from Afton; and Ashley Riggs, a corporate communications senior from Broken Arrow. Kelley won an award for best photo taken during the conference.
Bruce Hartley, recently hired as a strategic communications instructor at RSU, was elected as president of OSCTA. Dr. Juliet Evusa, RSU Associate Professor of Communications and the Greg Kunz Endowed Chair of Communications, was elected the organization’s vice president-elect, which means she will serve as its vice-president next year.
Lee Williams, RSU Assistant Professor of Communications, delivered a presentation about the university’s recent “Zuck2RSU” public relations campaign to try and get Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to visit campus, and Dr. Evusa presented “Modern Day Disparity through the Eyes and Experiences of Underprivileged High School Students: A Video Ethnography.”
RSU offers a bachelor’s degree in communications with options in communication arts, corporate communications and radio/television, along with minors in those same fields. For more information about RSU’s Department of Communications, visit www.rsu.edu/communications or call 918-343-6825.