Mission & Learning Goals

The field of communication focuses on how people use messages to generate meanings within and across various contexts, cultures, channels, and media.  As a discipline, we explore the human condition by studying how we communicate and how that communication constructs social reality, shapes human communities, influences relationships, and defines our physical environment.

Communication courses are designed to provide students with the communication theory and skills necessary for college work and for personal and professional development after graduation.

The Communication Department uses a variety of assessment measures to determine the abilities of our students and the effectiveness of our teaching.  These include:

• Senior exit interviews
• Portfolios of papers collected across the lower and upper division courses
• Videotapes of speeches and presentations
• Self-assessment instruments
• Internship performance
• Communication competence