Judy VanSlyke Turk receives PRSA Richmond's prestigious Thomas Jefferson Award

On June 12, PRSA Richmond awarded Judy VanSlyke Turk, PhD., APR, Fellow PRSA, with the prestigious Thomas Jefferson Award.

Each year PRSA Richmond recognizes extraordinary achievement by an individual working in the field of public relations. Thomas Jefferson Award winners exemplify the best in the profession. The program is open to public relations practitioners in the Greater Richmond metropolitan area.

“This award recognizes and celebrates a lifetime of achievement,” said Felicia McLemore, APR, PRSA Richmond’s president. “In Judy VanSlyke Turk’s case, she has achieved enough for three lifetimes! We’re so pleased to be able to honor her in this way, and to count her among our chapter membership.”

Judy VanSlyke Turk is Director of the School of Mass Communications at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Prior to joining VCU in March 2002, she was founding dean of the College of Communication and Media Sciences at Zayed University in the United Arab Emirates, a position she held for 2½ years. Previously, she was dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of South Carolina, director of the journalism and mass communications program at Kent State University and a faculty member at the University of Oklahoma, Louisiana State University and Syracuse University.

VanSlyke Turk is president-elect of the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communications and is past president of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (AEJMC), the largest association of journalism faculty and administrators in the United States. She was chair of the teaching standards committee in 1992

VanSlyke Turk is an elected member of the Arthur W. Page Society, an association of senior executives and educators in corporate communication and public relations.

She is 2008 chair of the Educational Affairs Committee of the Public Relations Society of America and a past chair of its College of Fellows. She also is a member of the Commission on Public Relations Education, a collaborative venture among PRSA and several other academic and professional associations in public relations.

VanSlyke Turk, who worked professionally for The Associated Press and in university and corporate public relations before beginning her academic career, was named Outstanding Public Relations Educator in 1992 by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). In 2005 she was awarded the Pathfinder Award by the Institute for Public Relations in recognition of her research and publications in the field of public relations.

She is associate editor of Journalism Studies, an international refereed journal. She also is a member of the editorial advisory board for Journal of Public Relations Research, and Journalism and Mass Communications Quarterly.

VanSlyke Turk is co-author of This is PR: The Realities of Public Relations (Wadsworth Publishing, now in its 9th edition) and co-editor of a collection of international public relations case studies developed as a project of the Public Relations Division of AEJMC and published by the Institute for Public Relations.

She has consulted and lectured on public relations and journalism/mass communications curriculum issues in Eastern Europe, the Newly Independent States, the Baltics, Russia, the Middle East and Asia.

Dr. VanSlyke Turk's friends congratulate her in a video tribute

View the tribute video in which just a few of Dr. VanSlyke Turk's friends congratulate her on this lifetime achievement award.

Tribute Video- Part I

Tribute Video- Part II

School of Mass Comm welcomes Timothy Bajkiewicz

The School of Mass Communications at VCU has added another broadcast journalism faculty member, Associate Professor Dr. Tim Bajkiewicz (or as he prefers, “Dr. B”).

“I'm really excited about coming to VCU. I just have a good feeling about everything--the students, my fellow faculty, the campus,” said Bajkiewicz. “When you start talking to people you can sense the buzz and that's something special. I visited campus in late January, which was a little cold for a guy who's basically lived in Florida for the past 20 years. Everyone was so kind to me and I had a great time. As soon as I got there I knew this is where I wanted to be,” he said.

Bajkiewicz holds a doctorate in journalism and mass communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also has a master’s degree in mass communication and telecommunication from the University of Florida. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida as well, majoring in anthropology with a minor in mass communication.

“I bring a lot of broadcasting and media experience with me, especially with multimedia journalism,” Bajkiewicz said. “You just have to look around to see all the ways we get information today, like our cell phones or online. Quality information has never been so important, and so we need to train the next generation of media storytellers. VCU's School of Mass Communications has a great national reputation, and I'm looking forward to working with the School's students and faculty to keep that up.”

Bajkiewicz has a great deal of teaching experience, including working as an instructor at the University of South Florida. He has also received a number of awards such as the Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award for his work at the University of South Florida. He also placed second in the “Promising Professors” National Teaching Competition the same year.

Bajkiewicz also has a long list of professional broadcast experience. He was a researcher and production assistant for the North Carolina Center for Public Television. He was Online Assistant Coordinator of the General Alumni Association at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has also been a full-time on-air talent at stations like WRUF AM-FM in Gainesville, Florida, WGLF-FM in Tallahassee and WRQN-FM in Toledo, Ohio.

School of Mass Comm welcomes Soo Yeon Hong

Part of what makes Virginia Commonwealth University and the School of Mass Communications great is its experienced and diverse faculty. The school takes pride in hiring qualified faculty to educate the continuously growing number of students. Dr. Soo Yeon Hong is one of the newest assistant professors to be added to the School’s faculty.

Hong, who joins the School on Aug. 15, said, “I'm very excited to join the faculty at the School of Mass Communications in Virginia Commonwealth University and to teach students at VCU. I've taught students before but this is huge! Many of my friends here in Syracuse told me that Richmond is a very historic city. But with so much energy coming from the students, the professors, VCU, and the city, I felt like I was in a very young city when I was there for an interview last fall.”

Hong received her PhD in May 2008 from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. She obtained a master’s degree in television, radio and film in May of 2005 and a master’s in magazine journalism in December of 2000, both from Syracuse. She also has a bachelor’s degree in Spanish language and literature from Hankook University of Foreign Studies in Seoul, Korea.

“I've always followed my heart which led me to explore wonderful professions and education--public relations, graphic design, research, magazine journalism, film, marketing--as well as great parts of the world--Spain, Indonesia, Japan, New York City, Syracuse, and Alabama, “ Hong said.

Hong began her teaching experience as a guest lecturer at Syracuse University. She quickly moved up the ladder to become a lab instructor and then a teaching assistant. After that she became an adjunct professor, teaching Introduction to the Graphic Arts and Visual Communication Theory and Practices.

“At VCU, I want my diverse experience to create useful, relevant lessons that kindle and affirm students' interest, and I want the work we do in the classroom to build students' confidence,” Hong said.

She was rated as one of the best Syracuse professors and classes in The Daily Orange, a student-run newspaper at Syracuse. Hong was also Mentor to a Syracuse University Scholar in 2006-2007. University Scholar is the highest honor given to an undergraduate.

Hong is excited about her new position, stating, “I can't wait to begin my journey in VCU.”

School of Mass Comm hosts Urban Journalism Workshop

The Virginia Urban Journalism Workshop is back for its 2008 encore! Twelve rising or graduating high school seniors have been selected to participate in this year’s program, which will take place June 15-27. The students are from James River, Deep Run, Cosby, Varina, Charlottesville, John S. Battle, Floyd, Windsor, L.C. Bird, George Wythe and J.R. Tucker High School.

This two-week intensive residential workshop is designed for high school students interested in journalism. The Richmond Times-Dispatch and VCU's School of Mass Communications and the Virginia Press Association are partnering to sponsor the event. Additional funding is being provided by the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund. It will take place on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and includes occasional visits to the Times-Dispatch building.

The workshop is offered to participants at no cost.“This is a wonderful opportunity for students to learn about writing, editing, design, graphics and career opportunities in the important field of journalism,” said Carol Mawyer, director of the Workshop and the School’s assistant director for student services and scholastic journalism. The Workshop’s associate director is Associate Professor Bonnie Newman Davis.

Kappa Tau Alpha inducts 32 new members

This spring, 32 students were inducted into the George T. Crutchfield Chapter of Kappa Tau Alpha, a journalism and mass communications honor society.

“This is the Phi Beta Kappa of mass communications students,” Dr. Judy VanSlyke Turk told those assembled, illustrating the honor and importance of membership in Kappa Tau Alpha.

Kappa Tau Alpha is meant to foster a high level of scholarship in journalism and mass communications. Therefore, membership was extended by invitation only to juniors and seniors with overall grade point averages in the top 10 percent of their class in the School of Mass Communications.

Turk, the chapter advisor, led the ceremony held in the Temple building on March 21. She read from the chapter’s charter explaining to all of the new members and guests the history and purpose of the organization.

VCU’s chapter was chartered in 1978 and has initiated new classes each year since. With this year’s number of new inductees, Turk commented the new class was larger than it has been in the recent past.

Kappa Tau Alpha was founded at the University of Missouri in 1910 and is the seventh oldest national honor society. It is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and is the only member dedicated to journalism/mass communications.

According to the Kappa Tau Alpha web site, the organization’s emblem is the key, which stands for knowledge and communication. In addition, the letters kappa, tau and alpha suggest the words knowledge, truth and accuracy. The Greek letters also represent “The Truth Will Prevail” the underlying purpose of journalism and mass communications.