The Division of Communication begins the fall semester with three new faculty members bringing their academic and professional expertise to the classroom.
Dr. Katie Wampler joins as Assistant Professor of Theatre and Artistic Director for the IWU Theatre Guild. Wampler just completed her Ph.D. in Theatre at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. She has worked in professional and Christian settings with a variety of ages. Wampler says, “I feel so blessed to be doing my dream job: teaching theatre at a Christian university. IWU has many exciting opportunities and passionate people.” She is already directing her first IWU production, “Tuesdays With Morrie” which debuts during IWU homecoming on September 30.
Also joining as Assistant Professor of Public Relations is Dr. YoungAh Lee. She recently completed her Ph.D. at the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri and is a native of South Korea where she worked professionally for one of the major public relations firms in that country. Her clients included Haagen-Daaz, Levi’s and Microsoft. In her role as principal PR instructor, Lee says, “I hope to be an window for my students to different cultures and perspectives. I’m more than willing to share my experience working with multinational companies, research expertise in public relations, and cultural heritage of Korea. ” Lee will also be faculty advisor to IWU’s accredited chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America.
Rounding out the new faculty is Dr. Deborah Nyabuti, who recently completed her Ph.D. at Purdue University and will be a Visiting Assistant Professor of Communication. Nyabuti is a graduate of Calvin College who looks forward to returning to a Christian college campus. “I love that I get to give back by teaching at a Christian university like IWU. I’m thrilled to be here and can’t wait to chat in the classroom about how our relationship with the Word interacts with the way we should view and use words and images,” she says. Nyabuti also worked professionally in publishing for Zondervan and will be teaching courses in Communication Theory and Interpersonal Communication. The rest of the communication faculty are excited to welcome these new scholars and teachers to the IWU Communication classrooms and know they will make an immediate impact on students. As for meetings and other faculty gatherings, Division Chair Dr. Randall King says, “We welcome the change, but now we’re going to have to find more to talk about at faculty lunch besides football.”