APU Alumni came to the Impact Conference to show support for undergraduates
The Communication Studies Department hosted the 31st annual Impact Conference on Feb. 3. In Wilden Hall. The purpose of the conference was to encourage and inspire undergraduates through student and faculty presentations on a variety of research topics.
The conference had presenters from several schools including APU, Biola, and Westmont. Each presenter had a concentration in journalism, communication studies, or public relations.
Arianna Shell, a senior journalism major, explained her presentation’s topic.
“I chose citizen journalism because I have always been interested on how citizens can impact our profession. I really wanted to see how I, as a professional, can encourage citizen journalists to be better,” Shell said.
Shell said she was encouraged to present on this topic by her professor, Jessica Sherer.
“Professor Sherer actually encouraged me to present when I wrote this as my final paper for her. She asked if I would be interested to present at either the Impact Conference,” Shell said. “Since this one was coming up next and she said it would be influential to my resume for my future job application, so I could not say no.”
Senior journalism major Noe Sotelo, another presenter, shared his passion for journalism.
“I am from Mexican descent, so I started this topic first on journalism of Mexico, and how the drug war there has affected journalists on how they report it,” Sotelo said. “I decided to expand it into Central America, because it is a bigger region that consists of different countries that have different statistics on murder rate, the danger, and severity of reporting.”
Sotelo spoke on the negative effects on media outlets by the government censorship in Central American countries.
“I may not be a Central American, but I am of Latin descent and a journalism major, and I see that regardless of race, this is the topic that affects journalism from everywhere. It is only a matter of time until the day we are censored as well,” Sotelo said.
Sotelo said he was also encouraged by Sherer to submit his research on this topic.
“It is all thanks to Professor Sherer, and I am really glad to be able to discuss this paper, because I feel that it is a huge thing going on in the world today, especially in the United States,” Sotelo said.
Cynthia Arroyo, a senior journalism major and the ZU Magazine Editor-in-Chief shared her motivation for her topic she presented on.
“I chose to present on the Native American representations in the press because it’s an issue that hits close to home; I live on the Chumash reservation in the Santa Ynez Valley,” Arroyo said. “I felt that the topic is under-discussed and that the attendees could benefit from hearing the research I completed over the course of a few months.”
Arroyo shared her goals for the presentation.
“I hope that all attendees leave with more connections to future employment, a piece of wisdom from those who have different experiences than them, and a newfound confidence,” Arroyo said.
Senior communication studies major Juliette Derbyshire said the Impact Conference helped guide her in networking.
“I think it helps me connect to people who could help guide me in thinking about what I am doing later, and figuring out a career,” Derbyshire said.
Derbyshire said that she enjoyed talking to alumni during the social networking activity and supporting her friends.
“I am going to continue to keep my networking options open and just remember to keep talking to people, and then talking about my schooling and how can I apply it to the classroom,” Derbyshire said.
Senior communication studies major Marissa Gilbert shared why she was driven to attend this conference.
“It’s my last semester here, so I really wanted to network with other alumni and other students, and just see what the workshops were about. I think this event just motivated me more to keep going and keep pushing to get to where I want to be,” Gilbert said.
Gilbert said students of all majors should attend this conference.
“Even if you are not in the communication department, I think it is still a cool opportunity to come and network with other people that have been out of college, have been where we are, and they can testify where we are at now and what is to come,” Gilbert said.
Courtney Correll, another presenter and senior communication studies major, shared how the conference has helped her in pursuing her dream career.
“I was chosen to present the research I had done in the previous semester,” Correll said. “This conference has helped me by giving me the opportunity to showcase what I have researched, which might connect me with professionals and alumni that could further my research or a future career path I might take.”
Correll explained how the speed networking activity made her feel encouraged.
“I enjoyed the speed networking the most because I was able to pick a few professionals and alumni based on what I would like to know, and sit down with them for an uninterrupted 20 minutes to get some guidance and connect with someone who had more experience than me,” Correll said.
Correll said she enjoyed all of the advice from the professionals and alumni at the conference.
“I was able to talk to an alumni that gave me guidance on graduate programs. I will use this information to further my research on getting my master degree and applying for graduate schools, scholarships, and how to balance work and life while in a graduate program,” Correll said. “I also learned the importance of knowing that you can be a driven and professional woman that has the space and time to do both a career and a life, it doesn’t have to be one or the other.”
Jenna Torrisi, an alumnus, said she was inspired to come back to APU for this conference.
“Ryan Montague approached me and asked me if I’d like to come do a networking event for the Comm department. I remember thinking how I really would have appreciated an event like this when I was in undergrad, and to have the opportunity to contribute to such a cool experience would be an honor,” Torrisi said. “I don’t think I was fully prepared to go into the workforce when I graduated and I had no idea what I wanted to do or who I could talk to about it. I would have loved someone to go to with questions and feel supported outside of APU and it’s faculty.”
Torrisi said that the conference can provide encouragement for students for their careers.
“It’s incredible! I think with a communication studies degree, there are so many options of fields to go into that it feels paralyzing. These tools that you gain in your academic career are absolutely beautiful and can be used in so many capacities, that it almost doesn’t matter what you choose, just so long as you commit to it,” Torrisi said. “I always want to encourage students to pursue something that they really love or have always wanted to do, because now is the time to do it.”
Torrisi said that reuniting with her old professors and friends was the best part of the conference.
“It’s incredible to have these relationships, and I love knowing that I am always welcome back in the arms of APU and it’s amazing faculty and student body. It was such an amazing thing to see the future of America in the room with difference makers from around the world who all have one thing in common: APU,” Torrisi said.
Theresa de los Santos, a communication professor from Pepperdine University, shared her thoughts of the conference.
“I came with my two undergrads who are also presenting their research today, mainly to support them. I also wanted to come to one of our local Christian colleges to offer my knowledge in the area of journalism and my research on emotional journalism through a workshop talk on that,” Santos said.
Santos shared her hopes for students after the conference.
“I would just hope that everybody is inspired to walk away with the projects that we do that seem so small,” Santos said. “Do not let the story stop here, but keep getting the information out, because these are such important issues that really inspire.”
Santos shared why she wanted to present her research.
“One of the topics that is important to everyone is emotional literacy when consuming news,” Santos said. “We all need to be more mindful of what we are experiencing, and how it is influencing how we act, to help get away from some of the negativity surrounding news. If we are more responsible of what we share and how we share it, it will make journalism much better.”
The Impact Conference concluded with the alumni networking and ice cream social, where students got to connect with alumni and faculty.