Heathyr Harkless, MA 2009

I accepted an offer from the St. Joseph County Family and Justice Center as the new Victim Services Coordinator.  This is a newly created position funded by the US Department of Justice- Office of Violence Against Women and manages the collaborations and various services that are available to victims of domestic violence.  I will be managing the volunteers and various services that the organization offers to victims of domestic violence. I’ve also been hired as adjunct faculty for IUSB and Ivy Tech teaching Public Speaking and Interpersonal classes.

I believe the combination of my MA in Professional Communication and BA in Sociology and Gender Studies will serve me greatly working in this position.  Having gone through the MA program I was able to develop my research skills, public speaking and education skills through my Graduate Assistantship, and both my knowledge and application of interpersonal skills.  

I was also pleased to have an opportunity to use my synthesis research to my advantage during my interview. I was able to discuss the boundaries between the teacher-student relationship and roles as it could be compared the the therapist-client relationship that occurs in their services.  From my synthesis research I know the key to maintaining ethical relationships with students was to remain student-focused and make decisions student-focused decisions.  In regard to co-dependency and self-disclosure, I believe my synthesis information may be able to be compared for therapists to remain client-focused rather than communicating with clients out of self-serving interests.  This principle of professional relationships was not only useful in my interview, but will also be applicable in managing my volunteer therapists and prevention/maintenance of co-dependency between the therapist-client roles.

Judith LePera Dutill, MA 2006

Since earning my MA in Professional Communication (‘06) at IPFW I moved back to my home state of Pennsylvania.  My first position out of the program was as Retention Specialist at Rosemont College in suburban Philadelphia.  In this position I designed and conducted a communication audit in order to study student retention patterns in their schools of graduate and professional studies.  Based on the results of this study I was able to make recommendations to the school which informed the drafting of the college’s first retention plan. Simultaneously, during this time, I continued as an adjunct faculty member at various institutions teaching courses in communication. 

Eventually, I phased myself into full time adjunct teaching and academic advising.  I was recently offered and accepted a full time tenure track faculty position at Harrisburg Area Community College’s York Campus and I look forward to continuing my work in the field of communication as an educator beginning Fall 2009.

These experiences would not have been possible without the confidence and knowledge that I gained during my graduate studies at IPFW.  I was nurtured by a caring, knowledgeable, and professional faculty who I viewed as professors and mentors during my studies.  The program afforded me the flexibility to focus my studies on my own personal interest in communication in the higher education setting. The program transformed my life and my professional career.

Aleshia Panbamrung, MA 2008

My graduate education through the communication department has been priceless to me personally and professionally.  With my Master’s in professional communication I have been able to expand my career to become the associate director of a federally funded nonprofit agency (Northeast Indiana Area Health Education Center NEI-AHEC). I have also become a more informed and critical citizen and consumer of information.  Finally, I am now able to exercise my agency using effective strategies and perspectives that I gained through my studies.

Dena Woerner, MA 2008

I held a BA in Marketing and background in Travel and Tourism before going to IPFW to earn a MA in Professional Communication.  After graduation, I was hired as the Communications Manager for the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.  In this position, I am the direct supervisor of four travel writers located throughout the state, two photographers, an AV coordinator and an assistant.  I am the editor for all travel and tourism communication whether it be video, print, or electronic media.  I work with two agencies, CJRW for advertising and marketing, and Aristotle for our website—Arkansas.com.  I write key note speeches and addresses and am a primary media contact for the tourism department.  A few fun things I already encountered in this position are spending a couple weeks with the film crew of NHK (Japanese Public Broadcasting station) while they filmed a 90-minute documentary on agriculture and rice production in Arkansas, visiting and walking through the vineyards of Northern Arkansas, touring P. Allen Smith’s garden retreat at Moss Mountain, and an upcoming Carp fishing trip with the Discovery Channel UK.  You can check out Arkansas.com and Arkansasmediaroom.com to see what our communications team does.
 
There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t use something I learned from my classes at IPFW.  I often wondered if I would really use the theories, papers, case studies, and readings that I was exposed to while working on my degree.  I don’t have to wonder anymore.  One of the most challenging areas of my job is the management of a creative team which is located through the state of Arkansas.  The communication skills learned at IPFW are vital to my success in this position.  If I had to do it over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.  I am so glad that I chose Professional Communication as my primary discipline and that I had the excellent professors of IPFW instructing, encouraging and guiding me.  I would strongly recommend this program to anyone that wants to pursue a career in upper management and communication.

Dena Woerner
Communications Manager
Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism
phone 501-682-7606 fax  501-682-2523
1 Capitol Mall, Rm4A-900
Little Rock, AR  72201
www.arkansas.com