Communication Studies Department Celebrates 100 Years!
We will be celebrating 100 years of Communication Studies for the rest of 2012. The department of "Reading and Public Speaking" was established at Southwest Texas State Normal School in 1912. For a century, the principles and practices of communication have been studied in San Marcos. In those 100 years, Communication Studies been linked with the academic study of elocution, oral interpretation, reading English & theatre.
Dr. Steven Beebe, chair of the Department of Communication Studies at Texas State said, “We've been pioneers in the study of communication, and we continue to be national leaders." "As we look ahead, we see milestones glistening like rising stars, promising even better things for our future." We commemorated this once-in-a-lifetime event with the Centennial Convocation and Picnic on Oct. 17, 2012.
Dr. Michael Osborn, Former President of The National Communication Association gave the Convocation Address :
"100 Years of Empowerment." We appreciate his participation on our Centennial celebration!
Marian L. Houser, Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Texas State University-San Marcos, has been named editor-elect of Communication Teacher, a journal published by the National Communication Association.
The National Communication Association is the world’s largest professional association of scholars, educators, students and practitioners, with more than 8,000 members representing every state in the United States and 25 countries, dedicated to studying and promoting effective and ethical communication.
Communication Teacher, one of 10 journals published by NCA, is a quarterly publication distributed internationally that is dedicated to the identification, assessment and promotion of quality teaching practices in the K-12, community college, and university communication classrooms.
Steven Beebe, chair of the Department of Communication Studies at Texas State said, “Dr. Houser’s election as editor of this prestigious journal enhances Texas State’s reputation as an emerging research university.”
Houser is both an award-winning teacher and researcher. She has authored numerous research studies about instructional communication and has also received several teaching and research awards, including the President’s Award for Excellence in Scholarly and Creative Activity at Texas State.
She is Director of the Basic Communication Course at Texas State, a course that was recognized in 2011 as the best basic communication course in the nation by the Basic Course Division of the National Communication Association.
Texas State Speech & Debate Program hosted the 2012 American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament, the largest collegiate individual events tournament in the nation. This year's competition was held at Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, April 6-9, 2012. Texas State won 17th Place Sweepstakes at this year's competition.
November 7, 2011
The Texas State Basic Communication Course, COMM 1310 (Fundamentals of Human Communication) has been selected as the recipient of the "Program of Excellence Award" for 2011. This award is given to the best basic course in the United States by the Basic Course Division of the National Communication Association (NCA)--the largest professional communication association in the world. This is the second time in two years The Dept. of Communication Studies has been selected for an award from NCA—last year Comm Studies was awarded "Program of Distinction". Now we have won the grand prize.
Here's what one committee member said about our program: "This program is thoughtfully constructed, carefully assessed, and actively seeks to meet the needs of the student population that it serves." Another reviewer wrote: "When compared to other past programs that I have reviewed for this award, this program should be considered one of the 'Top Basic Course Programs' in the nation! It not only meets, but exceeds all of the major components that are essential for a basic course program to thrive in today's academic environment. Simply put, this is an award-winning basic course program!"
Congratulations to Marian and Kristen, authors of the award proposal; congratulations to all who teach COMM 1310; A program of distinction and excellence indeed!
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