TMU 9(3), April 10, 2012

Maverick speakers' first All-American;  second 5th place national team finish. Niveditha Rajagopalan was selected as All-American for her competitive success, academics and service. The award was announced at the American Forensics Association's 35 Annual Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET),  Nationals, Texas State University in San Marcos. Rajagopalan is among 13 UNO speakers qualified for a record 51 events this year. She finished second in the nation last year in after dinner speaking and was again a finalist finishing fourth in the nation. During her four years at UNO, Rajagopalan has logged more than 1,000 volunteer hours as a research lab assistant at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She has been accepted into Midwestern-Illinois' College of Dental Medicine after graduation in May. 

UNO Forensics surpassed its record number of national finalist events with seven.  These speakers competed among the top six in the nation for each category: Trae Graham/Cole Evans (3rd place) and Stephanie Henderson/Lauren Ackerman (4th place), dramatic duo; Ackerman (2nd place) and Tessie Stednitz (3rd place), program of oral interpretation; Graham (3rd place) and Stednitz (6th place), poetry; and Rajagopalan (4th place), after dinner speaking.


In the individual sweepstakes competition, two UNO speakers finished among the top 10 in the nation: Stephanie Henderson (5th place), and  Stednitz (9th place).


UNO Forensics qualified 16 events for quarter-finals, and 12 events went on to semi-finals.  Among the top 12 in the nation were: Rajagopalan,  informative; Evans and Henderson, prose;   Stednitz, Graham, and Henderson, poetry; and Henderson and Rajagopalan, after dinner speaking. This is the most semi-finalists in UNO history. UNO had four national champions last year and also finished fifth in the nation.


The national standings were: 1) Bradley, 2) Texas, 3) Western Kentucky, 4) George Mason, and 5) Nebraska-Omaha. Three other Nebraska schools finished among the top 20: 8) Nebraska-Lincoln, 16) Hastings College, and 18) Doane College. UNL had an individual national champion in oral interpretation, as Nick Herink, Ackerman and Stednitz made for an all-Nebraska top three.

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For the latest news, please visit the UNO School of Communication Facebook page, and follow @CommUNO on Twitter. 

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Next issue: Commencement, 2012 

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Excellence in action. Graduate students Jennifer Rome, Pamm Killeen, Nick Klotz and Alex Vogt shared a panel presenting research papers at the Central States Communication Association meeting in Cleveland. "Bridging Communication Disciplines and Increasing Diversity in the World through Research" explored multi-racial spouses, urban language, LGBT online identity and self images of adolescent Latinas. The students were mentored by Reilly Professor Karen Dwyer and Assistant Professor Joy Chao, who attended the session.  * * * Associate Professor Randy Rose presented a Top Paper, "The Development of Shame: An Overarching Structuration Analysis," at the recent Central States meeting. Assistant Professor Adam Tyma chaired the Communication Theory Interest Group program. * * * Isaacson Professor Bruce Johansen published a Feb. 29 op-ed piece in the Omaha World-Herald. It challenged GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum's views on universities as "indoctrination mills." Johansen wrote, "I deeply disagree that students should be told what to think." * * * December, 2011 alumna Courtni Kopietz has been accepted for graduate studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in a prestigious medical journalism program. She currently works at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. * * * Director Jeremy Lipschultz is among about 100 international professors invited to attend the upcoming New Media Academic Summit at Stanford University in Palo Alto. He also recently published in the Huffington Post blogs about his trip to China and international social media. * * * School of Communication television staff member Gary Repair recently spoke to UNO World Geography classes about his work in Madagascar. He produced a documentary for the Henry Doorly Zoo.

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Lindsey Peterson, an undergraduate in broadcasting, is investigating the "un-schooling" movement in Nebraska for an upcoming documentary on KVNO-FM and NET Radio. Un-schooling promotes learning without the use of formal teachers, official textbooks, tests or curriculum, Peterson said. "It is a method described by proponents as designed to have children learn from their own life experiences and at a pace they decide upon." Peterson also aired a two-part series in December on "Home Birth in Nebraska." She is collaborating with KVNO News Director Robyn Wisch and received a UNO FUSE award for Arts and Humanities. Another Peterson radio story, "Girls Rock! Summer Camp," was selected as a finalist for SPJ's Mark of Excellence Award.

Events and photos.

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The Omaha News is completing another award-winning season

Top communication students were inducted Apr. 6 into Kappa Tau Alpha
and Lambda Pi Eta, which are journalism and communication honors
societies. Scholars were in the top tier among all majors to qualify.
Faculty Sherrie Wilson, Dave Ogden, Marlina Davidson 
and Kate Rempfer hosted the event.

Alumni Juan Carrillo, Yan He and Paul Critchlow hosted
Lecturer Karen Weber and students in New York

Tom Albers hosted a lunch with the 2011-12
UNO Albers Internships Scholars

Omaha hosted NCAA finalist Kansas

Alumnus Todd Simon, journalism and public relations professor at 

Kansas State University, died Mar. 5. He is remembered as an 

international media law scholar.

The calendar.  

April

12 - Faculty Honors Convocation, MBSC Ballroom, 7 a.m.
13 - Omaha Press Club Dinner, OPC, 5:30 p.m.
19 - High School Media Conference, MBSC, 9 a.m.; Conflict Coaching and Mediation, MBSC Tower Room, 11:30 a.m.
24 - Communication Week: Maverick PR/PRSSA Presentations, MBSC, 4 p.m.
25 - Communication Week: Novelist Patricia McCormick, KANEKO, 5:30 p.m.
26 - Communication Week: Alumni Panel, MBSC, 12 p.m.; Reception, Thompson Alumni Center, 5 p.m.; and 57th Annual Communication Awards Banquet, Thompson Alumni Center, 6 p.m.


May
 1 -  GOP Nebraska Senate Debate, UNO Television and NET1, 7 p.m.
  5 - CFAM Commencement, Thompson Alumni Center, 10 a.m.
 8 - School faculty retreat, Thompson Alumni Center, 9 a.m.