Issue #3 Spring 2009
Faculty Focus - Troy Oldham, Lecturer, Journalism and Communication Department

One of the great focuses of Utah State University as a land-grant institution is the broad base of practical hands-on learning our students receive.  In much the same way our journalism majors have an outlet to gain experience writing, editing, and publishing the Utah Statesman, JCOM Public Relations majors have their choice of two capstone courses designed to give PR majors the same real-life experience they need to be successful in their own careers.

While attending graduate school, and later as a manager at Microsoft, I noticed that students and people learn quicker and with more retention when they are able to apply their learning to actual work.  During my last semester of graduate school, I was selected to participate in a field-study course where our semester-long assignment was to launch the Hershey’s Symphony chocolate bar in South Korea. 

Our team worked hard, we converged on the country of South Korea, and we built a comprehensive plan.  The end result was the Hershey Co. implemented many of our strategies as they released the product into the market.  The experience had such an impact on my career that one of my desires was to teach a class like this, if I was ever given the opportunity to teach at a major university.

In 2003 I found myself back in Logan, Utah and thanks to the leadership of the JCOM Department and the College of HASS, I was able to implement a similar program for the public relations students at USU.  Today, I teach two capstone courses (JCOM 5300 and 5320) that pair actual business clients with student teams to develop a comprehensive public relations and marketing strategy.  Our students interact with clients to research, plan, and implement comprehensive public relations strategies. Clients for the courses have come from a wide range of industries, including software technology, botanical pharmaceutical, recreation, hearing technology, biotechnology, entertainment, craft, and online consumer service.

Together with the capstone courses, I also teach Introduction to Public Relations (JCOM 2300), and I enjoy being able to introduce students to public relations and then two years later turn them loose on the profession with well-developed skills and confidence.   I firmly believe that great public relations start with great research and well-written goals.  I also teach that the best creative ideas come from a systematic approach to targeted messages, images, and themes that benefit the customer.   Our students are taught to respect and build their relationship with the media through honest and ethical communication, great writing, and creative ideas that help journalists tell great stories.

The USU public relations program has become recognized as one of the top programs in the state.  Our graduates currently hold great jobs with some of the best public relations firms, corporations, and nonprofit organizations across the U.S.   USU public relations students are consistently recognized in public relations Student of the Year contests, and I am very pleased to be associated with these future leaders of our profession.

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