From popular music to the top sports plays of any given day or season, Top 10 lists are synonymous with excellence. I witnessed accolades worthy of applause during my first full school year at Butler University as Dean of the College of Communication. There was a whirlwind of excitement, accomplishment, partnership, growing pains, and most importantly learning experiences and enhanced relationships for students, faculty, alumni, staff, and the entire Butler community.

These 10 highlights from the 2023-2024 school year are not in any order of significance but are impactful in my eyes. I’d love to hear about your favorite memories and experiences that didn’t make my list (I know there will be some that I curse myself about not including) but here we go. So imagine your favorite voice actor, as you see the transition frame with a huge one and zero on it. I’ve got the voice of Amy Dichter ‘98 in my head starting us off with an energetic and powerful, “NUMBER 10!” vocalization.

#10 – COMMENCEMENT CELEBRATION WEEKEND

Graduation is the most significant moment of any college student’s career. On Saturday, May 11, 2024, we celebrated 138 CCOM graduates from our undergraduate programs. They were accompanied by another dozen or so students from our Strategic Communication graduate program. In CCOM we like to have fun so we expanded a memorable event into a full Commencement Celebration Weekend. Thursday night kicked-off with the inaugural CCOM Senior Dinner, where about 80% of our seniors, approximately 60 parents, 25 faculty and staff, and six alumni from our Dean’s Advisory Board came to celebrate this year’s graduating class.  Experiencing families getting to meet the faculty who shepherded their loved ones to the precipice of graduation was special for everyone and a reminder of why we work so hard for student success! On Friday, our very own Scott Bridge gave a moving and inspirational speech as this year’s University Commencement Faculty Speaker. Finally, on Saturday, students received their well-earned diplomas in Clowes Hall after hearing reflections and advice from senior Micah Horne ‘24, and Professor Amanda Stevenson-Holmes. This was a graduation weekend I will never forget!

#9 – AWARD WINNING STUDENT GROUPS

The Intercollegiate Speech and Debate Team earned 153 different awards throughout the ‘23-’24 season. These awards include a first place overall debate ranking at State, senior Abby Kom’s All-American award, and our overall 8^th ranking in the nation in combined speech and debate at Pi Kappa Delta. The Collegian student-run newspaper brought home 32 awards from the Indiana Collegiate Journalism Association, while also taking home more hardware in the form of Mark of Excellence awards from the Society of Professional Journalism. 

#8 – RESEARCH, SCHOLARSHIP, AND A TED TALK

The trophies and medals do not even begin to capture all the cool things our students accomplished this past year.  Six students (Eva Hallman, Arie Lihktman, Lauren Browning, Sarah Mahnesmith, Elaine Stribley & Abigail Dame) attended four different major academic conferences this year to both learn about and deliver research. Abby Kom, previously mentioned and now on her way to the graduate program at the University of Tennessee, also delivered a TED Talk entitled “So You’ve Been Called Aggressive.” These students continue to amaze me with their drive to make meaningful contributions to a wide array of fields.

#7 – ELITE ALUMNI

Our current students are not alone in the recognition department.  This past Homecoming we celebrated two CCOM alumni who have made significant contributions to their professions, our communities, and Butler. Jacqueline Eckhardt ‘13 was presented the Joseph Irwin Sweeney Alumni Service Award, while John Doyle ‘74 exhibited grace and humility in accepting the Butler Medal, the university’s highest honor. I can’t wait to see this year’s graduates take home these awards in the future.

#6 – THE FAIRWAYS AT FAIRBANKS

It was a moment of pride and joy when CCOM again led the academic pack on the Day of Giving this past February. We didn’t just receive the most gifts among the colleges, nor simply raise the most money among that group. As we strive to do, we led the way in fun too. We turned our classroom building into a miniature golf course with eight unique putt-putt holes created by faculty and student organizations within the college. The bar has been raised for next year.

#5 – BELL RINGS TRUE

The Butler Early Language Literacy program (BELL), spearheaded by Associate Dean Dr. Suzanne Reading and the faculty and students of the Speech Language and Hearing Sciences department received a huge boost this year. Their program received a major leading gift to establish an endowment, ensuring this vitally important, community-facing, clinical opportunity for our students will be a part of CCOM and Butler forever. Additionally, the SLHS students continued their trend of attaining 50-60% more graduate placements for seniors than the national average.  

#4 – FAIRBANKS “FOMO”

Fairbanks Center, the home of CCOM, proved that even though we are on the edge of campus, we are a huge part of its heartbeat. From our first “Dogs with the Dean” event to the aforementioned Fairways at Fairbanks, we produced successful events all year. We’ll only grow from this year’s inaugural Chili Cook-Off (who puts peanut butter in Chili, anyway?!), a March Madness viewing party, and even an appearance by the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Dean himself during our Halloween office decorating party. The word is out, and people have a fear of missing out on the fun that is Fairbanks. 

#3 – WAJC RADIO REUNION

WAJC Radio was THE experiential learning lab for students in communication for a long time at Butler. The university sold the station in 1993 and unfortunately the station and the students who staffed it seemed to float away like lost radio waves. This year, however, we invited these trailblazers of experiential learning back for a very special reunion in April. I like to think it proved their legacy is a critical piece of CCOM and that the spirit of WAJC lives on today in the DNA of the college. Sharing time with these alumni, from seven different decades, who returned to campus from as far away as California, Texas, and Minnesota to celebrate and reminisce was special. We’ll work on more ways to keep the band back together.

#2 – DOWNTOWN BIKE TOUR (AKA: GOLF CART OFF-ROADING)

No year is complete without something that makes you laugh every time you think about it.  For me, it was in Professor Bob Schultz’s Fall Hospitality and Tourism Promotion class. He regularly hosts a bike tour of downtown Indy but had two students who could not bike due to injury. So I stepped up to drive them around the route on a golf cart. What could go wrong? Well, near Centennial Park there were metal pylons that the bikes could get through, but the golf cart? Not so much. It got stuck, and everyone had to push the golf cart back out—a memory that will always make me smile.

#1 – BUTLER ALL STARS WITH THE NBA

CCOM is nimble and hungry to provide unique opportunities for our students. This was epitomized by the same Bob Schultz who got me stuck in the golf cart. 😉  Bob spearheaded an effort to offer 100 students a one-credit experience where they served as hospitality ambassadors for the city of Indianapolis while hosting the 2024 NBA All-Star Game. The weekend was frigid, but these students gave a warm embrace to visitors and finished with stories that will last them a lifetime. This is just the tip of the iceberg for what is possible for students in CCOM going forward.

As I reflect on the year and these wonderful accomplishments, I am so humbled by the hard work, dedication, and care our students, faculty and staff bring every day. CCOM continues to build momentum, and I am eager to see where things go next academic year.  But for now, we all can take a short breather. Have a great summer! 😊