1990 & Beyond (Today): Preparing for the Future

In 1990, Dr. William Seiler became Chair and will complete his second term in that office in 2000. It is important to note that many things have happened to the department since Dr. Seiler has taken over the leadership role some good and some not so good.

An unfortunate event took place in the fall of 1991, when the Department was targeted for elimination by an interim upper administration. The Nebraska State Legislature mandated that the University System budget cut 3 percent or 3.8 million dollars from its budget over two years. It was the Senior Vice Chancellor's office under the leadership of Stan Liberty, former Dean of Engineering and Technology, who proposed the elimination of the department. The year before the proposed elimination, the department had only seven full-time faculty members and was in a rather fragile state, after experiencing three resignations including the chair of the department. Two faculty members left the department for personal reasons, and the chair left to administer a department at another institution. However, during the spring semester, the department hired three new faculty members (Drs. Kathryn Carter, Kathleen Krone, and Ronald Lee). Immediately upon learning about its proposed elimination, the department went into a crisis mode. With the support of a large constituency of individuals both inside and outside the university, the department defeated the Vice-Chancellor's proposal. The department now enjoys a renewed sense of mission and is viewed as a strong and viable contributor to the University's mission.

The Department at the time of the budget crisis was known as the Department of Speech Communication. The name of the Department was officially changed to the Department of Communication Studies in July 1993. The new title, of course, more accurately reflects the department's academic mission, moving well beyond a focus on public oral presentations. It also came at a time when the department was repairing its image inside the university. So, the new departmental name symbolized a rebirth.

For many years, Dr. Maxine Trauernicht was the only female member of the Department. By 1991, Communication Studies was the first department in the Arts & Sciences College to achieve gender equity.

In the summer of 1994, the department hired Drs. Venita Kelley and Veronica Duncan, the department's first African American faculty members. Since 1994, there have been major changes in the faculty, in 1995/96 we had a major turnover of almost half of the faculty. We lost four women faculty members, two left for other positions, one left for personal reasons, and the other left due to a tenure denial. Since that period, the department has hired three replacements. In the fall of 1997, the department hired assistant professors Dr. Ronald Stephens and Dr. John Caughlin. In the fall of 1998, Dr. Dawn Braithwaite was hired as a tenured associate professor. The department now has ten faculty members: Dr. Dennis Bormann (Professor), Dr. Dawn Braithwaite (Associate Professor), Dr. John Caughlin (Assistant Professor), Dr. Vince Di Salvo (Professor), Dr. Phyllis Japp (Associate Professor), Dr. Venita Kelley (Assistant Professor), Dr. Kathleen Krone (Associate Professor), Dr. Ronald Lee (Associate Professor), Dr. Bill Seiler (Professor & Chair) and Dr. Ronald Stephens (Assistant Professor). In the fall of 1999, Dr. Cecil Blake will join the department as a tenured associate professor. This addition will bring the faculty to eleven members. In addition, the Department has two Senior Lectures Karen Durst and Dr. Karen Lee.

The Department has been active in the College's initiatives in the areas of family, public discourse, and diversity and human rights. In addition, the Department through the work of Dr. Ronald Lee initiated and now directs the Preparing Future Faculty project, which now involves three (English, Mathematics & Statistics, and Sociology) and next year will include seven other departments (Chemistry, Educational Psychology, History, and Political Science).

Many prominent people have either studied in the Department or participated in the Forensic Program. It is always dangerous to call the roll of outstanding individuals since normally some people are overlooked who should be included. Nevertheless, the following list represents some of the Nebraskans who have who have distinguished themselves in business, government, and/or the professions:

• Ted Sorenson - Prominent N. Y. attorney and speechwriter for President Kennedy.
• Wilmer Linkugel - Professor Emeritus, The University of Kansas.
• Andrew Wolvin - Professor, University of Maryland.
• Phil Tompkins - Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado
• Allen Overcash - Lincoln Attorney.
• Kim Robak - Lincoln Attorney; Former Lt. Governor of Nebraska; Former Vice President of External Affairs at UNL.
• Sara Boatman - Vice-President of Student Affairs, Nebraska Wesleyan University
• Richard Whitman - Dean, James Madison University, VA. (1999 UNL College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Achievement Award winner)
• Virginia Richmond - Professor, West Virginia University.
• MaryAnn Danielson - Chair, Creighton University, Omaha, NE.
• Olga Davis - Assistant Professor, Arizona State University; First African American Ph.D.
• Nancy Mitchell - Associate Professor and Chair of Advertising, UNL.
• Glen Smith - Past Chair, University of Central Arkansas.
• Maurine Eckloff - Former Chair, University of Nebraska-Kearney.
• George Lawson - Former Chair, University of Nebraska-Kearney.
• Thomas Hollihan - Professor, Annenberg School of Communication, University of Southern California.
• Robert Powell - Chair, California State University at Frenso
• Linda Mann - Former Dean, Doane College, Crete, NE.
• Mary Gill - Dean, Buena Vista College, IA.
• Frank Hale, Jr. - Vice Provost and Professor Emeritus, Distinguished Alumni and Honorary Degree, Doctor of Humane Letters UNL, 1996.
• Patricia Riley - Professor, Annenberg School of Communication, University of Southern California
• Kris (Saafeld) Malkoski - President and CEO of Pharmaceutical Corp of America.
• Melissa Beall - Professor University of Northern Iowa, Past President of Central States Communication Association.