Class of 2007-2008

Keunmin Bae
Received bachelor's degree in English literature from Yonsei University in 1996 and master's degree in journalism, with a focus on business managers' media uses and needs, from University of Georgia in 2000. Worked as a print journalist for five years until June 2007. Research interests include the issues of media effects in different communities, the influence of new technologies such as computer-mediated communication on cross-cultural exchanges, and the information production and consumption patterns of media in various settings. Born and raised in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Pamela Brubaker
Received a master’s degree in mass communication and a bachelor’s degree in public relations from Brigham Young University. With more than six years of small business, corporate and agency public relations experience in the high-tech industry, she has had the opportunity to work with technology companies ranging from small startups to one of the world’s largest independent software companies. Intends to her studies on media effects. Native of Provo, Utah.

Nivedita Chatterjee
Worked with India's premier news agency, Press Trust of India, for over 18 months. Also worked with one of India's largest media organizations, HT Media Ltd, in its newspaper's online division, Hindustantimes.com. Have interned with Ivision, a television news agency, and Aaj Tak, which was a news channel. Earned bachelor's degree from Delhi University in English Literature and master's in English from Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University. Then pursued two post-graduate programs in English Journalism from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. Focused on journalism becasue of fascination of different media of communication and its influence on targetted audience. Interested in exploring this further in my Ph.D.

Thomas (TC) Corrigan
Received both my bachelor’s degree in communication and my master’s degree in media and communication studies from Florida State University. While at FSU, studied in London as part of the British Studies Summer Program, completed an internship at The Stowe Reporter, a local weekly in my birthtown of Stowe, Vt., and created two student publications – Renegade and StatelyOnline.com. My interests include the political economy of communications and sports & media.

Lauren DeCarvalho
Received a bachelor's degree in journalism from Penn State. After graduating in 2006, spent time learning various media outlets while acting as project coordinator and copywriter at a digital advertising firm in Bucks County, Pa. Primary research interest focuses on the media's portrayal of women and its effects on the gender cross-continentally.

Laura Drews
Originally from rural Maryland, I graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and media from Juniata College in spring 2007. The crowning achievement of my undergraduate degree was my Honors Thesis, titled "Audience Specific Advertising by Genre: A Rhetorical Analysis of Video Game Trailers." I presented both this research and another paper on the vocalics of confidence at the 2007 National Conference for Undergraduate Research and my College’s Research Symposium. While in pursuit of my masters and hopefully my Ph.D. at Penn State, I plan to continue research in the area of video game advertisements, dealing with some of the many questions that my thesis raised.

Aaron Heresco
Earned bachelor’s degree in Letters, Arts, and Sciences from Penn State in 2005. Minored in history. My focus within the LAS degree was English and philosophy. After graduation I was accepted to American University’s international affairs program, but financial concerns and a new marriage kept me in the State College area. During my year off, in the process of keeping up with national and international events, I became deeply interested in the inner workings of the media and the manners and methods in which information in conveyed. I am also becoming interested in the effect developing technology has on the distribution of information, so I am planning on obtaining a Science, Technology and Society graduate minor.

Michael Horning
Received my bachelor's degree in English education from Liberty University in 1995. Since then, have spent the last 12 years teaching both English and journalism in private and public high schools in Virginia and New York. Have also taken a few detours away from teaching, working as a reporter for a local newspaper and as a web/graphics designer. In 2006, earned master's of science in communication and media technology from Rochester Institute of Technology. My background in media has led me to see the tremendous potential that media technologies can have on the future of democracy. As a result, my research interests will focus on using computer-mediated communication to enhance the political processes as well as issues relevant to communication law and policy.

Bushra Jani
Earned a bachelor's degree (English language and literature) and a master's degree (English literature) from the University of Mustansiriya, Iraq. Spent more than seven years teaching English literature at the University of Mustansiriya and have worked for the Associated Press in Iraq since 2003. Grew up in Iraq during a very turbulent time in its long history. My desire to pursue doctoral work in the College of Communications grows out of my experience both as a teacher of Iraqi students and a reporter for the Associated Press. In the latter role, I have tried to report farily and accurately on the tumultuous events since the war began.  As a doctoral student, I anticipate studying the role of reporters and popular media in conflict.

Hyunjin Kang
From Seoul, South Korea. Has a bachelor's of advertising and public relations and business administration degrees from Ewha Womans University in Seoul. Worked for Samsung Credit Card Co., Ltd. as an associate in the Public Relations Division for two years. From 2005 to 2007, studied at Michigan State University for a master's degree, and majored in public relations. Now I am planning to expand my academic interest, public relations in the Internet environment, at Penn State as a Ph.D. student.  

Hyangsook Kim
Received my bachelor's and master's degrees in mass communications from Sogang University in South Korea. Spent about two years achieving practical experience in marketing and public relations in a unit of a film making production, marketing research firm, and online education company in South Korea. Then started a second master's program in Kansas State University from 2005 and received that degree in May 2007. M.S. thesis was about the assessment of the informational and metaphoric message technique effectiveness in antismoking campaign advertising. Research interests are health campaign message techniques, obesity prevention for teens, and persuasion in general.

Anthony Limperos
Received a BA (interpersonal communication) and an MA (mass communication) from Kent State University. Also served as a part-time faculty member at Kent State, teaching introduction to human communication, interpersonal communication and communication theory.  Main research interests involve motives for media use, media violence and Internet addiction/dependency. Have presented research on violent video games at two meetings of the National Communication Association and have also presented research on blogs at the Eastern Communication Association. Native of Warren, Ohio.

Ryan Lizardi
In 2003, received bachelor's degree from Penn State in the film-video program. Then spent three years working at a post house in Burbank, Calif., as a tape operator and telecine edit assist for shows like "Smallville", "The O.C." and many feature-length films.

Christopher Perkins
Received a bachelor's degree in journalism, and a Center for Sports Journalism emphasis, with minor in psychology from Penn State in 2006. Spent a semester at Drexel University's College of Law before deciding law school was not for me. Am very interested in media ethics and media law. Love sports and usually find a way to relate whatever I'm studying to the realm of sports. Originally from suburban Chicago, but have spent most of my life in the Philadelphia area. Ultimate goal is to earn a Ph.D. in something similar to Penn State's Media Law Policy program and then move on to teach media theory at a major university.

Jason Ramesar
Earned my B.A. in psychology with a minor in sociology from Penn State in 2001.  Am currently enrolled in the M.A. media studies program. Since graduating, have held various positions in higher education.  At Penn State, ran a school-age program at the Bennett Family Center while working on an internship with Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics.  Soon after, accepted a position at Fairfield University in Connecticut as the Coordinator of Multicultural Recruitment and Admissions Counselor. While at Fairfield, sat on various committees to design a five-year strategic plan to create a more diverse climate.  Returned to Penn State in 2005 as an admissions counselor.  Recently accepted the position of Assistant Director of Alumni Relations for the Eberly College of Science.

Dorian Randall
Received my bachelor's degree in journalsm from the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. Wrote for campus newspaper, The Student Printz. Also interned at the Pine Belt Mental Healthcare Resource Public Information area where I learned the basics in newswriting, PR, advertising and editing large projects. Article covering three survivors of Hurricane Katrina was recently published online with the After Katrina Wire started by USM Mass Communication faculty and students. As a junior and senior, engaged in undergraduate research under the guidance of the McNair Scholars Program.  Study focused on the fluctuation in the employment rates of Black journalists in mainstream newsrooms from the Civil Rights Era to present day. Am enrolling at Penn State to receive my master's in media studies. Am also interested in the representations of women and minorities in our nation's media. A native of Jackson, Mississippi.

Zachary Roman
Graduated from Penn State in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in film-video. Moved to New York City and have been working in television and film as a production assistant for the past three years. Worked for "Law & Order Criminal Intent" for two seasons, the CBS medical drama "3 lbs," as well as some feature films. Am excited to be returning to Penn State to pursue my master's degree.

Rachel Ruben
Received my bachelor's degree in anthropology and philosophy from Bucknell University, and my master's degree in the communication, culture and technology program at Georgetown University.  Research has largely focused on the impact of media upon individuals and society, and on the effectiveness of different advertising and media strategies used by animal welfare organizations. Plan to explore these areas further at Penn State. Am originally from Wilmington, Del., and have most recently lived in Washington, DC.

Daniel Tamul
Received bachelor's degree in communications from Berry College in 2004 and have since been working on my master's degree in media studies at Syracuse University. Thesis examined whether there were any perceived differences in themes between high and low violence versions of the same film adaptation. Plan to focus on how the movie industry changes a narrative when adapting it to film but am also interested in a wide variety of topics ranging from communications law to pop culture. 

Christopher Toula
Received my BA with honors in film studies, creative writing and video production from Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College in the United Kingdom in 2004. Spent the next three years traveling and working around Europe and the United States. After working odd jobs and seeing more of the world and attending Northeastern University for a semester, am attending Penn State as a graduate student with a focus on new and alternative media such as video entertainment and graphic novels. Originally from Miami, and have been residing in Boston and Savannah, Ga., for the past two years.

Caryn Winters
Graduate of Loyola University in New Orleans, earning a bachelor's degrees in political science and communication studies. After graduation, served with the AmeriCorps Vista program, but longed for the challenging environment of academia. Consequently, undertook studies at The University of Louisiana at Lafayette in pursuit of a master's degree in communication. During this time, have had opportunities to research and present papers on Internet uses and gratifications following hurricanes Rita and Katrina, critical race theory, and interpretive communities. At Penn State, plan to continue research in critical/cultural communication and focus on the political economy of communications. A native of New Iberia, La.

Julia Wooley
Graduated from Wellesley College in 2005 with a BA in psychology, and have spent the last two years working in unrelated fields in my hometown of Santa Barbara, CA.  Am very excited to enter the mass communication Ph.D. program, which I view as a step towards a career in academia. My primary interests are in the realm of media psychology and media effects, but extend also to critical-cultural studies of advertising/persuasive communication and film. Am particularly interested in an interdisciplinary approach to media research, grounded in quantitative social-scientific methodology and informed by qualitative methods of analysis

Sarah Worley
Received a bachelor’s degree in communication and philosophy in 2000 from Juniata College, then spent a year working as the assistant program director for SCORE! Educational Centers in Baltimore. Following that, completed a year’s worth of course work in media studies at the College of Communications at Penn State, but transferred to the University of Colorado at Denver and earned a master's in public administration. While in Colorado, returned to SCORE! Educational Centers and worked for the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce in advertising sales and member services. In 2004, returned to central Pennsylvania and for the last three years I have been working as an instructor of communication at Juniata College. Academic interests thus far have focused on leadership, political rhetoric and media ownership regulations, as well as work on film documentaries.         

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