Date: Jun 16, 2010

Hofstra School of Communication Students & Faculty Honored with Industry Accomplishments

WRHU & PRSSA Students Pick Up Awards

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY – Hofstra University’s School of Communication students and faculty members have been honored with major industry accomplishments from the International Association of Business Communicators, Directors Guild of America, Press Club of Long Island Press Awards and the Research Institute for the Humanities.

Deena Kimball, a recent graduate of the public relations program and former Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) president, was honored with the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) – Long Island Chapter’s Student Achievement in Communication award. She was nominated for the award by her professor and mentor Assistant Professor Victoria Geyer. The Student Achievement in Communications Award is given to an outstanding student and/or intern who demonstrates academic achievement as well as talent for and commitment to the communications profession.

Dr. Lisa Merrill, Ph.D,  a professor in the Speech Communication, Rhetoric, Performance Studies department, was awarded the Eccles Visiting Professorship in North American Studies at the British Library for her research titled “ Performing Race and Reading Antebellum American Bodies: The Construction and Reception of the Nineteenth-Century Performances of Gender, Race, and Nationality”. Also School of Communication Associate Professor of Radio, Television, Film Dennis Mazzocco was asked to join the Directors Guild of America (DGA) 75th Anniversary Advisory Committee, and was also recently elected to its board. DGA represents 14,000 members and seeks to protect directorial teams' legal and artistic rights, contend for their creative freedom, and strengthen their ability to develop meaningful and credible careers.

And last week, WRHU Radio Hofstra University took home top honors at the Press Club of Long Island Press Awards. Student reporter Veronica Kennedy placed second in both the Radio News Reporting and Radio Feature Reporting category. The WRHU News Team, consisting of student reporters Maria Betzios, Jeff Herman and Fran Spencer, took home first place for Radio Public Affairs for their show focusing on "Older Women Younger Men". Program Director Informational Programming for WRHU John Santucci won top honors for Radio Best News Reporting and also was the winner of the College Journalist of the Year Scholarship.