Jay Rosenstein (BS ’82, Grainger Engineering; MS ’98, journalism; MFA ’17, FAA), professor emeritus of media and cinema studies, recorded and released a new album with his band the Woke Mountain Boys titled Afraid of Leaving Home.The album was recently selected for two top ten Best Albums of 2024 lists from Illinois Entertainer.
Rosenstein plays guitar and harmonica on the 6-track album, in addition to singing vocals, and mixed and produced the album with Alex Poeppel.
The album was ranked #4 for Local Albums as selected by Illinois Entertainer staff and #10 for journalist Jeff Elbel’s top picks for 2024.
Join us for the College of Media’s 2026 Career Week, organized by Media Career Services. Events are scheduled on Monday, Feb. 23, through Friday, Feb. 27, featuring workshops, guest speakers, and media professionals who will offer great insights for students as they prepare for their post-graduation career!
Monday, February 23
Rapid Resume Review
1:30-3:30 p.m. 18 Gregory Hall Presented by Media Career Services
Conquer career fair season by visiting Media Career Services and getting your resume reviewed during our Rapid Resume Review drop-in hours. Experienced media professionals, including a Broadcast Creative Director, Digital Media Associate Director, and Communication Coordinator will be participating and meeting with students.
This event will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Please be sure to bring a printed copy of your resume.
Join us for Media Career Night where College of Media alumni share stories about their career path and offer career advice. Students will have the opportunity to hear about their career journey and ask them questions. We are excited to have the following alumni panelists participating in the event:
Penny Bradford (BS ’25, journalism) Marketing & Digital Content Manager at Parkland College
Olivia Moffitt (BS ’21, media and cinema studies) Influencer and Founder & Tour Guide at A Girl About Champaign-Urbana
Tuesday, February 24
Pop-Up Headshot Lab
11 a.m.-1 p.m. 29 Gregory Hall Brought to you by The Career Center and Media Career Services
Get career ready by getting FREE professional headshots. Join us on a first-come, first-serve basis as you prepare for the job and internship market. Each session should take 3-5 minutes. Students are encouraged to come early as the cut-off will be 15 minutes prior to closing. Professional dress suggested.
Aaron Anastos, senior in journalism and anthropology
Reis Glover, senior inadvertising
Shirley Ma, senior in CS + advertising
Ella Yoder, junior in media and cinema studies
Join your fellow Media peers as they share stories about their past internship experiences, including at business such as Ogilvy and GE Appliances. The student panelists will discuss internship search tips, the interview experience, skills they learned, and much more!
Wednesday, February 25
Resume Print and Go Drop-Ins
2:30-4 p.m. 13 Gregory Hall Presented by Media Career Services / Sponsored by College of Media Student Services
College of Media students are invited to print up to 10 copies of their resume in preparation for the Hire Illini Career and Internship Fair. Resume paper will be provided by College of Media Student Services Center. This is a FREE event for College of Media students.
Resume Revamp: AI Strategies to Level Up Your Resume
5-6 p.m. Gallery of Siebel Center for Design Presented by Media Career Services / Sponsored by American Advertising Federation
Join our interactive workshop to learn practical strategies for using AI tools to revise and enhance your resume. Whether you’re starting from scratch or refining an existing resume, you will learn how to leverage AI platforms to create a strong, results driven resume that highlights your skills.
Thursday, February 26
Hire Illini Career and Internship Fair
1-5 p.m. Illini Union Presented by The Career Center
Unlock your future and join us at the Hire Illini Career and Internship Fair. This is an excellent opportunity for you to explore a vast array of career and internship opportunities at 100+ of the nation’s leading employers (and the list is still growing). Open to Illinois students of all majors and class levels, this event promises to connect you with recruiters who are eager to engage with talent like you! Whether you are seeking an internship, a full-time position, or just eager to expand your network and knowledge of your chosen field, this fair is the perfect platform for you to kickstart your professional journey. Registration is encouraged but not required.
On the day of the fair, feel free to stop at the Career Coaching Corner (located in the Pine Lounge of the Illini Union) for any last-minute advice. Our expert career coaches will be available to assist you with any last-minute questions you may have as you navigate your career fair experience.
Friday, February 27
Frank Center Student Workshop: Q&A with Alum Joe Sargis, Senior Producer at Fox News
12-1:30 p.m. Frank Newsroom at Richmond Studio RSVP to Colleen King, cck@illinois.edu, Frank Center Director Presented by the Richard and Leslie Frank Center for Leadership and Innovation in Media
Learn more about the career journey of Joe Sargis (BS ’13, journalism) and his time at Fox News as a senior producer.
During his time at U of I he was an on-air personality at WPGU-FM, an active member at UI7 News, and a Student U broadcaster for the Big Ten Network. Sargis worked at WCIU-TV in Chicago as a production assistant, associate producer, and then line producer. He began his career at Fox News as an associate producer for Special Report with Bret Baier and is currently the senior producer.
Three experiential learning opportunities are being offered to students this spring including two new trips—one to the nation’s capital and another to two Scandinavian countries—as well as a return visit to the West African country of Sierra Leone.
Washington, D.C., March 19-22
Colleen King, clinical assistant professor of journalism and director of the Richard and Leslie Frank Center for Leadership and Innovation in Media, will be taking eight students to Washington, D.C., to visit news outlets and key government locations.
In addition to participating in newsroom tours, students will receive journalism advice for coursework and career planning; learn to identify local journalism beats; and understand the basics of how professional newsrooms and control rooms operate.
The trip is designed to help students gain invaluable knowledge about U.S. history and the First Amendment to better cover politics, campaigns, and elections, as well as the day-to-day workings of the U.S. government.
Some of the sites the students will visit include the NBC News/MSNBC Washington bureau, the CBS News Washington bureau, Politico, the Albritton Journalism Institute and its website NOTUS (News of the United States), a tour of Capitol Hill, and a visit to the National Archives.
Students film in Sierra Leone in Spring 2024. (Photo by Charles “Stretch” Ledford.)
Charles “Stretch” Ledford, associate professor of journalism, and Alison Davis, lecturer in journalism, will lead a return trip back to Freetown, Sierra Leone, with six students in the “Globally Focused Advanced Documentary Filmmaking” class.
Under the supervision of Ledford, Davis, and Dr. Francis Sowa, dean of communications, media, and information studies at the University of Sierra Leone’s Fourah Bay College, Illinois and Fourah Bay journalism students will continue production of the documentary film Uman Tok: Tailoring Hope, Reclaiming Futures. An early cut of the film won first place in the 2024 Illinois Broadcasters Association Student Silver Dome Award for Television Photojournalism.
The multi-year international reporting project tells the story of Uman Tok, a small, woman-led nonprofit in Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital city. Uman Tok (“woman talk” in the local language) employs 15 marginalized women at a living wage to produce reusable, washable menstrual pads for schoolgirls around the country who otherwise would not have a means of managing their monthly periods.
In addition to collaborating on the documentary film, students will be working on a virtual reality experience, a podcast, and an ink-on-paper comic book for readers of any level.
The media the journalism students produce will be used in an advertising campaign for Uman Tok created by students in the Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising’s capstone course this spring.
This year, both Illinois journalism students and their peers from Fourah Bay College will not only work together in the field, but also live together on the same compound, in an environment designed to foster organic collaboration, shared learning, and more authentic and deeply reported stories.
Marisa Peacock, senior lecturer in advertising, is planning a 10-day study abroad trip for 21 students to Copenhagen, Denmark, and Stockholm, Sweden.
Designed to give students a deep dive into the branding, advertising, and cultural strategies of major global companies, the trip will also provide a broader exploration of Scandinavian design, architecture, and culture.
Students will visit corporate headquarters of iconic companies like LEGO, IKEA, H&M, and UNIQLO to understand their global marketing strategies and meet with alumni working with these brands in fields of design, marketing, and communication.
Additionally, the itinerary includes visits to renowned cultural and design sites such as the Swedish Museum of Architecture and Design, Nyhavn harbor, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art.
Peacock said she pitched the idea of visiting the area due to an interest in Scandinavian design, which blends functionality with simplicity and modernity, and because brands like IKEA, LEGO, and UNIQLO incorporate corporate responsibility with a dedication to diversity, inclusion, and sustainability, which is also an important hallmark of brand building.
Nicole Anderson Cobb (MS ’16, journalism) shared her experience with historical research and theater-making in the newly released edited volume Dramaturgy & History: Staging The Archive.
Dramaturgy and History provides a practical account of an aspect of dramaturgical practice that is often taken for granted: dramaturgs’ engagements with history and historiography.
Anderson Cobb’s chapter centers on her time as an artist-in-residence at Allerton Park & Retreat Center in Monticello, Illinois, in collaboration with Latrelle Bright.
“I hope my essay ‘Beyond Land Acknowledgement: Rendering Central Illinois History along the Potawatomi Trail of Death’ will be useful for other scholars, and theater-makers and those interested in remembering complex histories in their local spaces,” she said.
Stuart Lieberman (BS ’10, journalism; BA ’10, LAS) was named head of communications at SailGP, overseeing media, public relations, and communications in North and South America.
SailGP is an international sailing competition that features high-performance F50 foiling catamarans, where teams compete across a season of multiple grands prix around the world.
Before Lieberman joined SailGP, he spent 10 yeas as a freelance writer for the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.
Lieberman also co-wrote a book with U.S. Paralympian Melissa Stockwell, The Power of Choice: My Journey from Wounded Warrior to World Champion.
PhD in Mass Communications, 2024, Pennsylvania State University
MS in Communication, 2018, Purdue University
Graduate Certificate in Strategic Communication Management, 2018, Purdue University
BFA in Communication Arts, 2014, Virginia Commonwealth University
BA in Foreign Language (German), 2014, Virginia Commonwealth University
Certificate in Product Innovation, 2014, Virginia Commonwealth University
Course Specialties
JOUR 460: Environmental Journalism
Background
Dr. Troy is an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism. Prior to earning her PhD, she worked in nonprofit and sustainability communication. These professional experiences gave her the opportunity to work on a range of educational and strategic communication efforts, such as explanatory signage design, newsletter writing, social media management, and crisis communication planning. That same work also impressed upon her the urgency and complexity involved in communicating environmental issues like climate change to a wide range of audiences. Ultimately, a desire to better understand how to communicate about pressing environmental topics for constructive societal impact motivated her to pursue a PhD at Penn State and a career in academia.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Dr. Troy’s research focuses broadly on strategic environmental communication. Much of her work focuses on climate change in particular and she is specifically interested in examining positive or solutions-oriented environmental messaging as well as psychological drivers and inhibitors of collective pro-environmental and pro-social action in response to such content. She conducts both quantitative and qualitative research.
Ph.D. in Mass Communications, Pennsylvania State University
Course Specialties
ADV 310: Introduction to Public Relations
Background
Yang joined the Sandage Department of Advertising in the fall of 2024. She has been actively engaged in academia, teaching a diverse range of advertising and public relations courses. Yang serves as a committee member on the American Academy of Advertising (AAA) Research Committee and as a reviewer for several advertising and marketing journals. She is on the editorial review board of the International Journal of Advertising.
Research and Creative Endeavor
By and large, Yang’s research interest focuses on persuasive communication with a keen focus on social media advertising and influencer marketing. Specifically, Yang investigates how message appeals (e.g., storytelling, humor, comparison) can be consolidated with innovative features of digital technologies to enhance the effectiveness of persuasive communication. Additionally, Yang’s work examines the role of sponsorship disclosures in how consumers react to covert advertising messages on social media.
Yang has recently published research in the International Journal of Advertising, Journal of Interactive Advertising, Journal of Media Psychology, Journal of Health Communication, Corporate Communications, and more.
Jiyeon is a Ph.D. student at the Institute of Communications Research. Jiyeon studies media psychology and technology-mediated communication. Her research explores cognitive frameworks to understand perceptions that influence information processing and online behaviors.
Prior to joining ICR, Jiyeon received her M.A. and B.A. in communication and media from the Ewha Womans University in Korea.
Haochen is a Ph.D. student at the Institute of Communication Research. Before joining ICR, she earned her master’s degree in communication from Northwestern University and her bachelor’s degree in public relations with a minor in applied statistics from Boston University. Her primary academic interests focus on the impact of emerging technologies on communication, aiming to promote human-centered technology designs and proactively shaping positive digital communication. She is passionate about exploring how technologies like AI, video games, and interactive media influence people’s online behaviors and psychological well-being. She is also highly interested in utilizing mixed methods, especially computational approaches, to investigate specific problems.
Williams, K., McKoy, C. D. (2023, November 17). Abbott Elementary: Utilizing Critical Communication Pedagogy, Intercultural Communication, and Social Justice within the Classroom to Decenter Whiteness. National Communication Association, National Harbor, MD.
Williams, K. (2023, April, 13). If Beale Street Could Talk: Representation, Colorism & Black Womanhood. Southern States Communication Association Conference, Tampa, FL.
