Advertising, Public Relations, and Strategic Communication

Array ( [0] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 93921 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-05-19 16:40:34 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-05-19 20:40:34 [post_content] => Virginia M. McDermott is a Professor and the Dean of the Nido R. Qubein School of Communication at High Point University, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in health communication, research methods, and persuasion and media effects. Her research examines how problematic events change the nature of relationships and conversations, how communication facilitates coping, and how communication campaigns can be used to address health disparities and social inequities.   For the past few years, she and her graduate students have addressed various health risk issues, including teen pregnancy and prescription drug abuse, by using community-based approached to campaign development. Her recent publications include an article in Communication Theory and The Journal of International and Intercultural Communication. She has extensive experience in organizational training and specializes in seminars on how to develop a positive organizational environment.   Oh, and she loves Bruce Springsteen, Diet Pepsi, and dogs—not necessarily in that order. She also always has candy in her office. So, if you want to see pictures of really cute dogs or get a piece of candy, stop by her office. [post_title] => Virginia McDermott [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => virginia-mcdermott [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-08-05 09:54:36 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-08-05 13:54:36 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.highpoint.edu/?post_type=faculty-staff&p=93921 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => faculty-staff [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [1] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 97893 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-06-03 16:19:29 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-06-03 20:19:29 [post_content] => I have a background in broadcast journalism and government and healthcare public relations. I earned my PhD from UNC Chapel Hill in Strategic Communications, and my M.A. also from UNC-CH in Interdisciplinary Health Communications.   My area of research focus is qualitative analysis of communication about health care, looking at written and spoken language pertaining to issues of how healthcare services are provided, the legislative policies that affect access to healthcare, and communication between providers (physicians, advocates, etc.) and patients. I’ve published papers looking at the politicization of health coverage during debate over the Affordable Care Act, at news coverage of medical research in the news outlets and on social media, and at physician-patient communication about domestic violence.   My hope for my work with HPU students is to help them learn how they can influence others through public relations and health communication to advocate for patients and for positive change in how health care is provided. At the very least, I draw inspiration from seeing students’ motivation when they gain new skills and understanding of how communication works. It’s also rewarding to watch students grow and gain confidence in their own talents and abilities.   My prior experience is both professional and academic. The start of my career was as a broadcast journalist, in radio and television; after several years doing that, I became a public relations executive in health care–at Kaiser Permanente and with Medicare and Medicaid agencies. My husband and I moved here to North Carolina to build a house (his lifelong dream) and for me to return to school to earn my PhD, which I did at UNC Chapel Hill.   In addition to my graduate degrees, I have a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism, an Emmy nomination for my television journalism, an award from the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD for fair coverage of issues affecting the community while reporting in Atlanta, and several best-paper awards at academic conferences. [post_title] => Laura Marshall [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => laura-marshall [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-08-05 09:47:37 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-08-05 13:47:37 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.highpoint.edu/?p=97893 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => faculty-staff [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [2] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 97767 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-06-03 16:16:57 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-06-03 20:16:57 [post_content] => John T. Mims, Chair of Strategic Communication and Assistant Professor of the Practice of Communication, has been a full-time assistant professor in the Nido R. Qubein School of Communication since 2016. In 2015, Mims served as an adjunct in both the School of Communication and the Earl N. Phillips School of Business teaching public relations and marketing classes.   Prior to joining High Point University, John had more than 20 years experience working in both corporate communication and agency communication. He has developed and implemented numerous strategic communication plans for large corporate clients and non-profit organizations. He is an expert in crisis communication and communicating using social media.   John worked with students to form Ascension336, a student-run communication agency that works with non-profit clients. He believes strongly in experiential learning and creates assignments that give students a realistic look at strategic communication.   John has a bachelor of arts in Journalism and Mass Communication from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from Pfeiffer University. He is an accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America and served on the board of the local chapter. He and his wife Laura have three children. [post_title] => John Mims [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => john-mims [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-09-09 08:44:00 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-09-09 12:44:00 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.highpoint.edu/?p=97767 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => faculty-staff [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [3] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 97971 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-06-03 16:20:31 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-06-03 20:20:31 [post_content] => Matt Ritter, Assistant Professor of Strategic Communication, joined the Nido R. Qubein School of Communication in 2013 first as an adjunct instructor and later as a strategic communication professor.   Dr. Ritter is a career professional-turned academic with more than 15 years of combined experience in digital media, public relations and advertising, teaching, and research.   An expert in media relations, Dr. Ritter tries to bring that expertise to the classroom. He is passionate about ensuring that students enter their careers prepared for the changing industry landscape. His research analyzes current media trends exploring the diminishing role of elite news media outlets.  In 2016 he published his master’s thesis, which analyzes whether or not public tornado warnings actually work. Other research includes an historical analysis of the development of the NBC Peacock logo pieced together from archive material found in industry magazines published in the 1960s and 1970s.   Dr. Ritter sees it as his duty to teach students to approach public relations as an ever-evolving industry where it often feels like cutting-edge can become obsolete almost overnight. He believes students learn best when they are told how to do something, given the tools to succeed, and are then set loose to explore for themselves.   Dr. Ritter returns to his alma mater, having completed his M.A. in Strategic Communication at High Point University. [post_title] => Matthew Ritter [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => matthew-ritter [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-09-08 15:34:23 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-09-08 19:34:23 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.highpoint.edu/?p=97971 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => faculty-staff [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [4] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 98013 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-06-03 16:21:17 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-06-03 20:21:17 [post_content] => [post_title] => Nakia Shelton [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => nakia-shelton [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-08-05 10:01:26 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-08-05 14:01:26 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.highpoint.edu/?p=98013 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => faculty-staff [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [5] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 98163 [post_author] => 53 [post_date] => 2021-06-03 16:23:05 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-06-03 20:23:05 [post_content] => Dr. Sarah Vaala joined the Nido R. Qubein School of Communication in 2018 as an Assistant Professor of Strategic Communication. Her research focuses on health and learning implications of media in the lives of youth and families, as well as the ways that families and caregivers make decisions about media use. At HPU, Dr. Vaala teaches courses in research methods and health communication within the Strategic Communication undergraduate and masters programs and the Communication and Business Leadership program. She strives to teach her students the research tools at their disposal for answering intriguing and practical questions, and that “there is nothing more practical than a good theory” (Kurt Lewin).   Dr. Vaala completed her Ph.D. in Communication Studies at the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. As a graduate student, she worked on a research team funded by the “Ready to Learn” initiative which examined young children’s television-viewing and language learning. Following her graduate studies, she completed post-doctoral fellowships in industry and academia. Dr. Vaala is a Senior Fellow at the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop. She currently directs an undergraduate research scholar program at High Point University in partnership with the Cooney Center. 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