STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES

1. Curriculum
   1. Continue to adapt curriculum and courses so that students are prepared to be competitive in the richly diverse and converged mass media landscape.
   2. Provide students with both a solid foundation in established theories and practices of mass communication and an appreciation for embracing emerging communication technologies.
2. Resources
   1. Continue to aggressively advocate and compete for institutional resources such as funding, physical space, labs, equipment and software so that the Department has the tools required to assist students in making the transition from academic to professional environments.
   2. Work with our alumni and Professional Advisory Council to create partnerships and endowments that enhance the student's learning experience.
3. Convergence and Cross-Collaboration
   1. Create opportunities that enable students in the four options to work in converged and collaborative environments in class settings and in student-produced media.
4. Experiential Learning
   1. Create opportunities that enable students to benefit from experiential learning in internships, practica, student media and capstone classes that provide hands-on experiences alongside media professionals.
5. Diversity
   1. Recruit and retain students and faculty to create a broadly representative department.
   2. Integrate an appreciation of diversity and cultural-representation issues into class curricula.
   3. Increase curricular attention to considerations and challenges of creating messages within a global society.
6. Faculty and Staff
   1. Support faculty and staff with training and resources to update their skills in order to assist student learning in converged, collaborative and technology-rich environments in both class settings and student media.
   2. Support faculty and staff with training and resources to enhance their professional and creative growth.
7. Recruitment and Retention
   1. Increase enrollment and retention to maximize prominence and attract resources for the department.

Revised 5/13/15