John Thompson
April 30, 2015
I-COMM Introduction
Brother John Thompson talked about the in’s and out’s of I-COMM. He spent some time talking about Scroll and Soapbox Agency, and we also heard from Andrew Murdoch and Juan Carlos, two individuals I work with in Soapbox whom are Agency Manager and Traffic Manager, respectively. There wasn’t anything new that stood out to me that was said about I-COMM or Soapbox Agency that I can honestly say I “learned” about. Brother Thompson spoke about the importance of building a portfolio and the advantages that gives you, even over good grades or a degree. In this industry people care more about what you can do, who you know, if you’re easy to work with, and what you have done, more than what your GPA was.
Lane Williams
May 7th, 2015
Our Blog / Journalism / News
Lane Williams came in and spoke about the relevance of news and journalism in our society as people and how to get more involved. He stated that if you’re a Comm major, no matter what department, you should be keeping up to date with current events and the news, which is something I strongly agree with. I am glad that broadcast and media journalism exists, but working in that industry was never anything that intrigued me. I learned that my choices I made earlier about not wanting to go into journalism was a choice I still don’t regret.
Christian Mawlam / Brian Howard
May 14th, 2015
Video Production
This was the day I was absent. That said, for what it’s worth, I have a video production emphasis and have taken multiple classes from Bro Howard over the years and I learn video production from Brother Mawlam, outside of class, on an almost daily basis. I have learned a lot from Brother Howard from his various classes. Brother Mawlam has been a huge mentor for me within Soapbox Agency and continually critiques my video production to make it better and better. Recently I have learned from Brother Mawlam how to better color correct and grade video to give it a traditional film look.
Caryn Esplin
May 21st, 2015
Visual Communication Emphasis
Sister Esplin spoke on the visual communication emphasis and the various opportunities involved. She had a nice display for us showcasing work from some of her students and gave examples of how visual communication relates to the modern world. I learned that graphic designers have big roles to play in media distribution and all walks of life, be it advertising, PR, politics, art, science, or even philosophy. Graphic design is really the art of controlling the eye and call to action of the individual.
Ward Hicks
May 28th, 2015
Public Relations / PRSSA
During this class session I learned about the efficiency and impact of PR on both individual companies and the world. I learned that writing is foundational, not only to the PR industry but truly any line of professional work wherein individuals will communicate. I also learned that you need a hard-skill to be hired and excel. The best of these skills—the universal one—is writing. There were other statistics which are neither here nor there for me in the long run, like 2/3 of the PR department is female and PR exists to manage the image—public image—of the brand.
Jeff Hochstrasser
June 4, 2015
Advertising
Unfortunately for Jeff, when he came in for his presentation the projector was not working the way it should so his demonstration was limited. Either way he was still able to talk about the power and impact of advertising and the careers / opportunities it holds. I was able to learn that to get into various ad agencies you have to network with others and demonstrate your abilities both as a “creative” and as an “administrative.” This means the difference between coming up with artistic ideas and those who handle the business side of things. Left brain, right brain.
Andra Hansen
June 11th, 2015
Organizational Communication & Advocacy
Sister Hansen came in and spoke on some really good topics, I found it to be a great meeting. She pushed the ideal for each individual to think for themselves and to understand how to “learn”. It made me think about the balance between doing what you believe is right from sources you trust, and putting forth the effort to put things to trial. I learned that the same issue, cast in two different lights, produce two different messages and meanings. She talked about how she goes further into these principles in the class that she puts on, on campus.
Tyler Christensen
June 18th, 2015
Understanding GRAD Plans
Tyler came and spoke about the logistics of grad plans and how to align yours. What he demonstrated and outlined are a lot of things that I not only already knew, but have already set up throughout my time here at BYU-I. One thing I learned was that in the near future the grad plan system is going to go through a redesign to make things more streamlined.
Skaughtie 