►CONTACT US at the DEPARTMENT of COMMUNICATION         

As an Alumnus of the Department of Communication you are of great interest to us and we would like you to tell us how your communication degree has influenced your life and career.  Many of our new students seek out their advisors hoping to find a satisfying answer to that age-old question, "What can I do with a Communication Degree?"
     If you are compelled to share news of recent or important events in your life as they pertain to your Comm degree, please send it to us along with your permission to post it on our web-site.  We encourage you to send photos; especially creative ones like the time you went skydiving, greeted a new family member, or trekked in the wilderness.  Formal headshots will be appreciated too.  Your contact person for submitting your information is Chris Peterson.  She can be reached at 426-3320/426-1069 (fax)   or   cpeters@boisestate.edu.

 

Comm Grad · Gretchen Warthen
January 2006
     Gretchen Warthen, director of photography on Starting Over has a busy schedule. Not only does she work six days a week on Starting Over Los Angeles, but her day begins at the SO Hollywood hilltop house at 6:30 a.m. and ends around 7:30pm at her pad after she finishes watching the SO episode that aired while she was at work. Watching the episode is one of the many ways that Gretchen provides feedback for her crew and their work. She is constantly striving to do her job to the best of her ability and to help her staffers do the same.
     Gretchen is a Bunim/Murray veteran and has worked on 18 BMP shows, beginning with Real World Seattle. We thought we’d give her another task to add to her list and asked her to share some insights about her job for the BMP e-newsletter. She complied, so keep reading.
What are the challenges of your job?
     Probably one of the biggest challenges is keeping crew motivated who are shooting six days a week, an hour episode every day for seven months. Putting crew on a shift they want and with whom they want to work with helps a lot. I open up the crew schedule for changes almost every month. Instead of making random choices, I begin the schedule three weeks in advance to hear out all of the issues each person has so I can come up with a schedule most crew members can be happy with.
     In addition to production issues, a large challenge comes from the focus of the show. Rhonda Britten often says, "You have to feel it before you can heal it." Empathy and dialogue driven coverage of emotional periods in some of the women’s lives can be painful and draining. I cry while shooting at some point almost everyday.

What is the most rewarding aspect of working on a show like STARTING OVER?
     By far, without question, the aspect that binds me to this show is that Starting Over actually helps people. We make a difference to these women. What I do matters. Starting Over is a show I can be completely proud of.   
                            

 Alums Win Prestigious Broadcast Awards
                                          Two Boise State alums were recently awarded prestigious regional  Edward R.
                                          Murrow Awards for work produced for KTVB Channel 7.  Winners will advance to
                                          the national competition and those results will be announced in late spring.
                                          Photographers Lisa Beukelman Chavez (communication) and Paul Boehlke (visual
                                          arts) won for continuing coverage with “Idaho Guard Deploys.” This series of
                                          stories focused on the deployment of the 116^th Brigade combat team to Iraq.
                                          In addition, Chavez won for sports reporting with “The Longest Mile.” The story was about Skyview High School student Carlos Rendon, who overcame cerebral palsy to become a long-distance runner.
     The Radio-Television News Directors Association has been honoring outstanding achievements in electronic journalism with the Edward R. Murrow Awards since 1971. Legendary CBS anchor Murrow’s pursuit of excellence in journalism embodies the spirit of the awards that carry his name.

Joann Barton – Class of 1975 writes: 
     I am delighted to respond to your postcard asking how my Interpersonal Communication degree from BSU affected my life and career.  It affected my life and career in every way.  I had a secondary ed emphasis and initially planned to teach in Idaho.  But teaching jobs were scarce back then.  My only offer was teaching remedial English to air force men at Mountain Home Air force base.  I turned them down for fear I’d end up marrying into the military and be permanently stationed in the desert. So, I cast aside any hope of teaching and headed to San Francisco seeking a bit of glamour and excitement.  So what does one do with a Comm Degree and no other skills?  I had no practical skills.  I couldn’t even type or handle a switchboard or do ten-key.  I soon ran low on funds, and  when I went into my bank to make my last withdrawal, there was a “help wanted” sign in the window.  I knew nothing about banking, but luckily I had minored in Drama. So I knew how to pretend to be a banker.  My interpersonal skills and self-confidence carried me through that interview and many other significant interviews in the years to come.  I never intended to be a Banker. And I certainly didn’t have any “banking skills”.  But  it became a niche for me because a lot of my fellow bankers didn’t have very good “people skills” and it evened the playing field.  Typical bank executives (mostly males at that time) tended to think analytically, had a hard time expressing themselves and thinking outside the box.  It seems that I brought a fresh perspective to the banking community.  To this day, I have never focused on the numbers, only on the needs of customers and staff.  
     In 1985, I left Union Bank in SF for the opportunity to be head of Administration for a start- up Bank in Santa Rosa, Sonoma National Bank, where I am still  employed as Senior Vice President, and Chief Administrative Officer.  In January, we celebrated our 20th Anniversary and the reaching of our $Billion dollar goal.  I married one of my remarkable employees and have a beautiful daughter.  I have seen a  lot of change in business culture throughout the years, and am always in awe of the progression of new technologies.  However, I remain steadfast and focused now more than ever on the increasing importance of the art and essence of  in-person interpersonal communication.
     I have sat here trying to recall the names of my extraordinary professors at Boise State: Leonard French, James DeMoux... I simply can’t recall the names of  the others, but I am grateful for their teaching and mentoring skills.  I cherish the experience I had at BSU,  and the way it helped to shape my life.   Thank you for asking.

                               James (Bud) Humphrey - Class of 1981 writes:
     My communication degree (with journalism emphasis) definitely helped steer my life's course. Three months after graduation in 1981, I launched a daily newspaper career that continued for 16 years in Idaho and Texas. Since 1997 I have been editor of The American Baha'i, the national monthly news publication of the Baha'i Faith.
     My communication education at Boise State provided a firm grounding in the simple acts of looking at the root of things, distinguishing facts from hope and speculation, and stating the result boldly but fairly. This is not only essential for newspeople. The planet in general needs more of it right now.
     Now, if you're a JEOPARDY! fan, you might have noticed lately that this newspaper career thing has helped me in another way. I was a three-day champion in January (losing my fourth game by $1). As I quipped in an interview by the weekly paper in my current home town of Park Ridge, Illinois, years of copy editing gives one "an amazing breadth of knowledge that is only useful in newspapering and quiz shows." This echoed a comment by a disabled veteran I talked with while I was registering for my first reporting class in 1977: "You wanna be a journalist, huh? That means you know a little about everything and not much about anything."   Oddly, I am comfortable with this. At least there's a constructive use for it.
     I shouldn't forget to note that my advisor was Rosalyn Oakes Barry. Her watchword, an old (but valid) journalism saw, stays with me to this day: "If your mother says she loves you, check it out."

 Local Documentary Wins Silver Telly Award
    A local documentary focusing on the history of the Jewish community and human
rights issues in Idaho has received international recognition as the winner of a Silver Telly
in the 26^th Annual Telly Awards. The documentary, Rivers in the Desert, produced by
Jody Tee Creative Services and their independent production company, Edenbridge
Productions, premiered at the Flicks Theatre and aired on Idaho Public Television in
May 2004. 
     According to Writer/Director Jody Tee, the program used the move of Boise’s
Synagogue (Ahavath Beth Israel) in October 2003 as a visual
metaphor to follow the journey of Jews in Boise from pioneer
days to the present. Rivers in the Desert included the story of Moses Alexander, the first Jewish governor in the United States, and the tumultuous years when Jews (and other minorities) throughout the state felt the threat of the Aryan Nations’ (Nazi) presence in Idaho. The program gave viewers an opportunity to find out what it’s like to be Jewish in Boise, and was produced in cooperation with the Idaho Human Rights Education Center.
     The Telly Awards represent the premier awards honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions. This international competition receives over 10,000 entries annually from all 50 states and 5 continents. Winners and Finalists represent the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators, and corporate video departments in the world, such as ABCNEWS.com, ESPN, Miramax Films, MSNBC, and Microsoft Corporation. The Silver Telly indicates Award Winners and a Bronze Telly indicates an Award Finalist.
     As a small production company, Jody and Mark Tee took a large step out of their comfort zone to produce Rivers in the Desert, a documentary they truly poured their hearts into. To be honored with a Silver Telly gives them an enormous sense of pride and accomplishment, according to Tee. Their hope is that this award will provide opportunities to receive funds for other independent productions.
     Jody Tee, a 1992 Communications Graduate of Boise State University, has owned and operated her own business since 1997.                 
Peppershock Media Productions, LLC    

Rhea Allen (B.A., 2001) has been busy working in the communication field and obtaining a Master's degree in Business Administration. She was a Newscast Director for KTRV-FOX 12, then moved to Seattle and was the Weekend Newscast Director for KCPQ-13, another Fox affiliate. In 2003 she and her husband, Drew Allen, moved back to Boise to be closer to family and start their own video and media production company. Not only have they got married, moved, bought a house and started a business within the last 2 years, but now they're also planning for a baby due in July. Peppershock Media Productions, LLC has been going strong since October of 2003.  They provide commercials, corporate video & other non-broadcast video productions for organizations all over the Treasure Valley.  Some of their clients include Zamzows, ShapeExpress, Boogie Woogies, Idaho Commission on the Arts, Snake River Stampede and a lot more. You can find out more about Rhea and Drew's company by visiting them at  www.peppershock.com  

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