Dean's Note
Dear CoMC Friends:
Dean David D. Perlmutter, Ph.D.
Consider this a version of the “What I Did This Summer” elementary school essay. During
July, I spent a delightful two weeks teaching a class on personal and institutional
branding at the Universidad Panamericana (UP) in Guadalajara, Mexico.
UP is an internationally prestigious Catholic university with three campuses and increasing
scholarly and global impact ambitions. Last year, we hosted a professor from UP who
taught and conducted research in our college as a visiting professor of Hispanic media
associated with our Thomas Jay Harris Institute for Hispanic and International Media.
I loved the students and learned as much from them about how little the alleged barriers
of nationality, culture, ethnicity and language matter when you want to achieve a
joint goal as they may have learned from me about branding.
I also palpably felt how excited they were to build a future together with the College
of Media & Communication at Texas Tech. (I always wore Texas Tech shirts and was stopped
on campus at least a dozen times by students offering a friendly “Pistolas arriba!”
– or some variation)
I also found that UP and our college share many characteristics, not the least of
which is our joint belief that our students are entering an economy that is so globalized
that meaningful international and cross-cultural experience is not just a philosophical
choice but a career imperative.
In order to build our contacts, I invited three of our CoMC faculty to sequentially
visit and guest lecture. They earned rave reviews from UP faculty and students alike.
Two of them are planning to create a study abroad class for Guadalajara. UP has no
dorms, so instead our Texas Tech students—who would take classes together with UP
students—would live in the homes of local Mexican families. I can't think of a more
rich and immersive experience.
The UP engagement is but one component of a new global strategy for our college. We
are pursuing similar studies abroad, scholar exchanges, joint research projects, and
client campaigns with partners in China, South Korea, Thailand, Germany, London, New
Zealand, southeastern Europe and Puerto Rico (technically “study away,” not study
abroad). Within five years we want to build a network that allows our faculty and
students to become global media and communication leaders.
Best Wishes,
David D. Perlmutter, Ph.D.
Professor and Dean
topBill Dean Receives Silver Medal Award From Lubbock Advertising Federation
By Rachel Blevins
Dr. Bill Dean with Award.
Bill Dean, Ed.D., an associate professor in the College of Media & Communication and
the executive vice president and CEO of the Texas Tech Alumni Association, became
the 56th recipient of the Lubbock Advertising Federation's Silver Medal award on July
21.
Olan Farnall, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Advertising, described
the Silver Medal as the highest award presented by the Lubbock Advertising Federation,
and said that it is given to an individual who promotes and represents the best in
advertising over the course of his or her career.
A graduate of Texas Tech, Dean became a faculty member in 1967. He started as the
director for student publications and an assistant professor in journalism. Over the
last 48 years, in addition to his work with the Alumni Association, he has held various
positions in the College of Media & Communication, including associate dean and associate
professor.
Dean said that he is honored to receive the award, and he called the ceremony a very
humbling experience. He thanked several people who have influenced his life.
"I consider it a very great honor," Dean said. "However, no one receives an honor
like this without the help and support of many people. Someone who has been with me
all the way is my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I also want to thank my wife (Peggy)
of 49 years, and our family, my staff at the Texas Tech Alumni Association, the administration,
and my fellow faculty members in Media and Communication, and the coaches, teammates
and young men I coached for 35 years in baseball."
Megan Horton (BA Advertising, 2002), an elementary music teacher and high school choir
director in Mineral Wells, Texas, was a student in Dean's classes during her time
in college. Horton said she remembers Dean as a fair, straightforward professor in
classes such as Intro to Mass Communications and Mass Communications Law.
Dr. Bill Dean.
"Dr. Dean's straightforward manner and no-nonsense way of introducing students to
the field of mass communications whet our appetites for more as we learned about the
power of propaganda, the difference between libel and slander, and much more," Horton
said.
Trent Seltzer, Ph.D., chairperson of the Department of Public Relations, attended
the award ceremony and said it was great to see Dean receive much-deserved recognition.
"He's done and continues to do so much for the university and the college," Seltzer
explained. "I know the faculty and staff from the College of Media & Communication
enjoyed getting to share the evening with him and his family and friends."
Todd Chambers, Ph.D., the associate dean for undergraduate affairs in CoMC, said that
he has been blessed both to have been a student in Dean's classes in the past, and
to be a colleague of Dean's in the present.
"It is such an honor to work with Dr. Bill Dean," Chambers said. "He has been such
an influential faculty member who has had such an impact on literally thousands of
Red Raiders with careers in media and communication, as well as hundreds of other
industries."
David Perlmutter, Ph.D., the dean of CoMC, called Dean an integral part of the university.
"Bill Dean is as much a TTU institution as the Masked Rider and the Carol of Lights,"
Perlmutter said. "He has spent his whole life and career in service to others, whether
Tech students or kids in K-12 who wanted to play baseball. I have never met a man
with more achievements and who is less interested in boasting about them."
topStudent Finds Work Experience 1,374 Miles From Lubbock
By Carson Wilson
Student Finds Work Experience 1,374 Miles From Lubbock
It took Kaitlin Bain 24 hours to drive through the American South toward her temporary
home in Savannah, Ga. After two days on the road, Bain arrived and began her internship
at the Savannah Morning News.
"Savannah has a rich cultural history like no place I've ever lived in before," Bain,
a Houston native, said. "Texas has great history, but it's not as well-preserved as
in Savannah."
After finishing up 2014-15 as president of the Texas Tech University Chapter of the
Society of Professional Journalists, senior reporter at The Daily Toreador, and a
member of the Miller Girls, the senior journalism and political science major said
she wanted an adventure.
Bain said she sent out 120 emails to different publications looking for internships
in cities other than Lubbock or her hometown of Houston.
"From there, I received maybe 30 replies from publications with internships and ended
up with five interviews," she said. "I interviewed with all of them and was offered
the internship in Savannah. Out of all of the interviews, it was the one I felt I
fit best with, and in addition, I would be really excited to live in Savannah for
the summer."
Bain began her internship May 26 and finished July 17. On her first day, she said
she was terrified of failing, but her coworkers at the Savannah Morning News were
welcoming and helpful.
Bain said the key to getting an internship is to not be afraid and to apply to many
places.
"Internships are pivotal," she said. "I haven't spoken to one person here or in my
journalism career who thinks it is okay to try to get a job without an internship."
Bain said she has not only improved herself as a journalist but also as a person.
She said she had to learn lessons the hard way, like how to live so far from home
while she's alone. She said this internship helped her communicate better with her
friends and her family.
"I've learned so much," she said. "Internally, I've learned how having a 40-hour-
per- week job is, how to support myself in a strange new city, and how to go exploring
and do things on my own. With regards to journalism, I'm improving as a writer through
every story. I'm working on my interviewing skills by needing to go interview people
on topics that I know nothing about. And weirdly, I'm learning how to do background
research."
Exploring and immersing herself in a new city is, she said, was the adventure she
was looking for.
topCoMC Professors Teach Class at La Universidad Panamericana Guadalajara
By Rachel Blevins
La Universidad Panamericana students giving the Guns Up.
During the summer 2015 session, students at La Universidad Panamericana in Guadalajara,
Mexico, had the opportunity to attend the class "Personal, Political and Institutional
Brand" taught by the dean of the Texas Tech University College of Media & Communication
with guest lectures by various CoMC professors.
David Perlmutter, Ph.D., the dean of CoMC, was the main instructor of the course,
which looked at how the concept of a "brand" has become a universal in strategic persuasive
communication, cutting across marketing, advertising, promotions and public relations.
Perlmutter said that this course is just the beginning of a study abroad program he
hopes to develop at Texas Tech through partnering with other universities. He explained
that the branding course helps students by looking at what makes a brand both successful
and sustainable, and teaching them how commercial and political brands originate and
are improved or undermined both by communication or PR campaigns and by natural evolution.
"We are in an era where everyone has to think of their personal brand," Perlmutter
said. "That is, what do people think of you in terms of your ability to be a leader,
to take on a particular career, and to take on projects."
Perlmutter said that when teaching the class, he worked to adapt it to an international
perspective, talking about how different institutions brand themselves, along with
cultural similarities and differences between Mexico and the United States.
"One of the top five job skills, career skills, life skills, citizenship skills every
single one of our students should develop is global competence, which relates to the
university's QEP," Perlmutter said. "Global communication is not just learning another
language. You can learn Spanish, but know nothing about the culture. So I think immersive
experiences where you get to spend some time in another culture is good for everybody."
Three other CoMC professors joined Perlmutter as guest lecturers throughout the week.
He explained that he wants other faculty members involved with the process of developing
the individual programs, because they are going to be the ones taking the lead in
long-term development.
Dean David Perlmutter speaking to La Universidad Panamericana students.
Lisa Low, an assistant professor of practice in the Department of Public Relations,
lectured on the topic of "Branding in the Digital Age." She said that it is important
for students to understand, because consumers are largely disconnected from traditional
marketing and public relations tactics.
"I think students have so much to offer in terms of how we understand new media and
how we access the new technology," Low said. "I am discussing content marketing and
social and digital media through all the implications in terms of how the Internet
has changed the way we have to do business and communicate with our various customers."
Rebecca Ortiz, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Advertising, lectured
on "Developing and Maintaining Your Professional and Personal Brand Online Using Relevant
Data Analytics."
"It was a wonderful experience, because it gave me the chance to network with faculty
and students at the university to build future collaborations in research and teaching,"
Ortiz said. "I think it is so important to connect with other universities, especially
outside of the U.S., so that we can leverage each other's strengths and learn from
each other. These kind of collaborations are what will provide us the opportunities
to teach our students how to truly communicate in a global society."
Eric Rasmussen, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Public Relations,
lectured on "Doing Well, Doing Good in Corporate Branding." He said that his lecture
highlighted how both organizations and individuals can be more successful when they
put some of their time and resources into giving back and helping others in a meaningful
way.
"I want students to understand that money is not the end all, be all," Rasmussen said.
"In our careers we have so much more to offer than what we learn in school—we can
offer who we are, both to our employer and to the communities in which we live."
Both Perlmutter and Rasmussen agreed that the students at la Universidad Panamericana
have a lot in common with students at Texas Tech.
"I think our students could go there and fit right in, and I think their students
could come here and fit right in," Rasmussen said, describing UP students as bright,
engaged, and wanting to make a difference.
Perlmutter described this connection as a "global millennial culture," which connects
students from different geographic cultures, and he said that while CoMC currently
offers two to three study abroad programs each year, he hopes to have six to seven
programs in three years.
topAriana Martell Interview
Ariana Martell, a Public Relations major from El Paso, Texas, recently went to Hong
Kong to represent Texas Tech University at the 6th Annual University Scholars Leadership
Symposium. Listen in for a little more on her trip and how she got there.