Communication Department

College of Arts and Humanities
Ellensburg
Bouillon Hall, room 232A

509-963-1066
Fax: 509-963-1060
www.cwu.edu/~comm
See website for how the communication programs may be used for educational and career purposes.

Faculty and Staff
Chair
Philip Backlund, PhD

Professors
Philip Backlund, PhD, communication studies
James L. Gaudino, PhD, communication studies
Michael R. Ogden, PhD, journalism, film and video studies

Associate Professors
Lois J. Breedlove, MA, journalism
Robert C. Fordan, MA, journalism

Assistant Professors
Cesar Garcia, PhD, public relations
Elizabeth Kerns, MA, public relations
Xiaodong Kuang, PhD, public relations, advertising
Steve Jackson, MA, journalism, convergent media
Cynthia Mitchell, MBA, journalism
Maria Sanders, MA, film and video studies

Lecturers
Katherine Horowitz, MA, communication studies
Sacheen Mobley, PhD, communication studies
Toby Staab, MA, journalism

Staff
Crystal Boothman, secretary senior
Shawn Goggins, Observer business manager

Department Information
The Department of Communication prepares students to become active participants in communicating with and the shaping of modern culture in a global society. The department emphasizes student-centered instruction in gathering and disseminating written, spoken, and visual information, as well as course work in the processes, effects, and theories of human communication. The department is committed to a liberal education in written, oral, visual, and convergent media communication, as well as to training in diverse professional fields.

Department Standards
Admission Requirements
Admission to the communication department majors in Public Relations, Journalism and Communication Studies is selective. To preserve effective teacher to student ratios, to ensure students are able to register for needed courses, and to ensure access to necessary equipment, the department limits the total number of majors it can carry at any given time. The number of available spaces in each major varies each quarter according to the number of graduates the previous year. More space is generally open fall quarter.
Admission information and procedures are available in the communication department office.

Exit Requirements

Students must maintain a 2.4 GPA with a minimum grade of C- in all courses counted toward fulfilling any major or minor requirements.
No course may be counted twice in fulfilling an internal or external minor.

Financial Obligations
Production courses required for broadcast journalism and/or film and video studies have associated lab fees.

Bachelor of Arts
(NOTE: Students seeking a BA degree must complete one year college/university study or two years high school study of a single foreign language.)

Communication Foundation Core Requirements
COM 189 - Communication Orientation   1
COM 201 - Media and Culture   4
COM 202 - Communication Ethics and the First Amendment    4
Total Core Credits: 9

Programs

• Advertising Minor
• Communication Minor
• Communication Studies Major, BA
• Journalism Major, BA
• Non-profit Organization Administration Certificate (COM)
• Non-profit Organization Administration Minor (COM)
• Organizational Communication Minor
• Professional Writing Certificate (COM)
• Public Relations Major, BA