Seniors Cap Off Studies in Communication with Client Presentations
May 9, 2024 |
As senior communication majors prepare for graduation, how do they know they are ready to launch into the next phase of their career? The answer may be found through their experience with senior seminar courses and related capstone projects – designed to provide a bridge between the practice activities in the classroom and the real-world application of communication within the broader community.
Over the span of the spring semester, student-led teams collaborate to produce a capstone project to meet specific communication needs of a community partner through research, strategic planning and concept development. Students leverage their skills to produce deliverables tailored to meet the client’s needs while also developing work samples to showcase their talents in their student portfolio. The final phase of each project culminates in client presentations to share the proposed ideas and strategies crafted by each group. This semester, students worked with a total of four different clients, including several small businesses and a nonprofit organization.
The Brickery, a local Lego cafe and the first of its kind in the United States, located at Newport on the Levee, was the client for the advertising and public relations majors. The students worked closely with the owner, Dan, to build plans specific to different needs.
Advertising majors had two groups that focused on two different aspects of the company. One group, composed of Zeke Ntia, Isaac Fiely, Bella Brancato, and Ian Tierney focused on creating an advertising strategy for The Brickery’s professional development program. The other group, Hayden Smith, Colleen Sully, Logan Keeney, and Drew Stanley, worked to provide a strategy to engage more college aged audiences and overall create a larger awareness of the business.
Advertising, pictured from left to right: Logan Keeney, Isaac Fiely, Ian Tierney, Zeke Ntia, Dr. Wendy Maxian, Drew Stanley, Hayden Smith, Bella Brancato, and Colleen Sully
For students in the public relations major their main focus was to build a PR plan to expand the consumer base for The Brickery. Alessandra Clavel Hernandez, Stella DeMarco, Robbie Dzierzanowski, Emilie Ivy, and Alanee Wright all worked together to create the “Why I Build Campaign” that focuses on engaging a diverse range of audiences and allowing consumers to find meaning when building. The other group of students, Ella Anich, Nina Benich, Catrice Chambers, Izzy Fooks-Michnya, Ally Linser, Sarah Seward, and Kane Worch, targeted college-aged students and millennials and focused on finding ways to connect to the audience’s childhood through numerous events.
Public Relations, pictured from left to right: Ally Linser, Ella Anich, Izzy Fooks-Michnya, Sarah Seward, Kane Worch, Dr. Leslie Rasmussen, Nina Benich, and Catrice Chambers
Public relations, pictured from left to right: Robbie Dzierzanowski, Emilie Ivy, Alessandra Clavel Hernandez, Alanee Wright, Stella DeMarco, and Dr. Leslie Rasmussen
Communication studies majors had two clients, the first was the Cincinnati Veterans Administration and the second was Churchill's Fine Teas. The group who worked with the Cincinnati VA included Nicholas Chamberlin, Maddie Cress, Liberty Menke, and Ryan Newcomb. They worked to improve the My Life, My Story program by using a communication theory to persuade people to see the importance of the program and volunteering, as well as adding a social media element to allow for more of an emotional connection. The second client, Churchill’s Fine Teas had four groups that developed communication plans for the business. All groups worked to the clients needs of reaching a larger, younger audience. Ideas varied from different social media campaigns, to on–campus partnerships with the business to get more students aware and involved. Students in these groups include: Catrice Chambers, Bryan Coley, Robbie Dzierzanowski, Hannah Thompson, Stella DeMarco, Izzy Fooks-Michnya, Emilie Ivy, Caroline Palermo, Hannah Hodgson, Sarah Seward, Taylor Barbieri, Tom Sipp, and Jimmy Zafiropulos.
Communication Studies (My Life, My Story), pictured from left to right: Danielle Clark (Cincinnati VA), Liberty Menke, Ryan Newcomb, Dr. Thomas Wagner, Maddie Cress, Dr. Nam-Ha Brown (Cincinnati VA), and Nicholas Chamberlin.
Communication Studies (Churchill’s Teas), pictured from left to right: Angela Qu (owner), Dr. Thomas Wagner, Bryan Coley, Robbie Dzieranowski, Catrice Chambers, and Hannah Thompson
Communication studies (Churchill’s Teas), pictured from left to right: Izzy Fooks-Michnya, Stella DeMarco, Angela Qu (owner), Emilie Ivy, Caroline Palermo, and Dr. Thomas Wagner.
Communication studies (Churchill’s Teas), pictured from left to right: Angela Qu (owner), Taylor Barbieri, Thomas Sipp, Dr. Thomas Wagner, and Jimmy Zafiropulos.
Communication studies (Churchill’s Teas), pictured from left to right: Angela Qu (owner), Hannah Hodgson, Dr. Thomas Wagner, and Sarah Seward.
Unlike the other majors where the client was local, the digital media major’s client was the St. George Greek Festival in Greenville, South Carolina. Dr. Andrew Zolides, the capstone professor brought in a little taste of home as his dad, Harry Zolides, is the chairperson of the festival. Students working with this client proposed new ways to help engage more people, specifically a younger audience, in order to get more volunteers and attendees for the festival. The students researched other Greek festivals, as well as this one and found strategies that they saw best fit for their proposal. Digital media students in the capstone include: Bella Brancato, Isaac Fiely, Theodora Ermionkhale, Thelma Ermionkhale, Kaeley Hahn, Sienna Glaze, Alessandra Clavel Hernandez, Julia Garcia, Logan Keeney, Kaitlyn Blaha, Mikal Mandichak, and Mark Tortorelli.
Digital media, pictured from left to right: Sienna Glaze, Alessandra Clavel Hernandez, Julia Garcia Vincenty, Harry Zolides (Chairperson of the Festival), Dr. Andrew Zolides, and Thelma Ermionkhale.
Digital media, pictured from left to right: Kaitlyn Blaha, Mikal Mandichak, Harry Zolides (Chairperson of the Festival), Mark Tortorelli, Logan Keeney, and Dr. Andrew Zolides.
Digital media, pictured from left to right: Kaeley Hahn, Bella Brancato, Theodora Ermionkhale, Harry Zolides (Chairperson of the Festival), Isaac Fiely, and Dr. Andrew Zolides.
