More than 100 new members were inducted into the Elon University School of Communications chapter of Lambda Pi Eta at a May 7 ceremony in McKinnon Hall.
Adviser and Communications associate department chair Frances Ward-Johnson introduced chapter president Elena Pipino and her fellow officers Sam Warren, Alison Schiffli, Farley Fitzgerald and Jordan Scahill. They led all new LPE students through the induction ritual. Of the 104 who were inducted, 70 were on hand for the ceremony.
Keynote speaker Don Grady, an associate dean in the School of Communications, discussed Aristotle’s musings on persuasive discourse, or “rhetoric,” and how they relate the future jobs and opportunities for Communications students. Specifically, Grady emphasized the importance of credibility, logical thinking and ethics.
“Some scholars believe at the core of all communications is persuasion,” Grady said. “They argue that the very reason we learned to communicate is to get something that we want or need. So whether you are in journalism, strategic (communications), broadcast, cinema or (communication) science, you are engaged in an activity to relay a view of the world to the best of your ability to understand it. That is a persuasive act.”
At the end of the ceremony, the new LPE officers were announced. Hannah Nelson will become president, and Jacob Selzer will serve as vice president. Kristen Greene was named secretary, Alex Zubak will be the scholarship chair and Gretchen Cundiff will serve as event coordinator.
Senior media arts & entertainment major Dan Koehler was named the winner of the Senior Scholarship Award. Senior journalism major Jacquie Adams was named the runner up.
Koehler, a Lumen Scholar, recently completed his short documentary “The Tobacco King,” which shares the story of George Botha, a white farmer in Zambia who relocated to the African nation after he lost his land in neighboring Zimbabwe. Koehler explores the racial complexities at play between Botha and his 200-strong black workforce. The film has been screened nationwide and has won several national awards. After he graduates in May, Koehler will go to work for two-time Academy Award nominated documentary filmmaker Marshall Curry.
Adams has been an active member of Phoenix14News, Elon University’s weekly newscast, since her first year on campus. She has reported, produced and anchored. Adams has had four internships, two at a local television station in Richmond, Va., one with “NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams” and another with NBC News in London.
The Elon chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, an organization affiliated with the National Communication Association, got its start in 1998. Any School of Communications student is eligible for membership when he or she has completed at least 60 hours of university credit, with at least 12 of those hours in the School of Communications. Members must possess no less than a 3.0 overall GPA, and a GPA of at least 3.25 in the School of Communications. Also, students must be in the upper 20 percent of their graduating class.
The new inductees are:
Angela Aiello
Natalie Allison
William Anderson
Brittany Barbieri
Hannah Barry
David Batchelder
Justin Bellucci
Hannah Berg
Christian Binder
Merissa Blitz
Parker Brown
Stephanie Butzer
Julia Caplan
Jill Capotosto
Madeline Carlin
Heather Cassano
Nicole Chadwick
Kendal Cinnamon
Alexandra Circle
Kierstin Coatney
Dean Coots
Madeline Cragin
Anna Crenshaw
Gretchen Cundiff
Diana Davis
Elise Delmerico
Sarah Dodge
Sean Dolan
Bonnie Efird
Elizabeth Feindel
Jeffrey Flitter
Catherine Gambrell
Kyra Gemberling
Maria Georgiadis
Emily Giegerich
Michelle Gill
Maxwell Gongaware
Heather Harder
Julie Hart
Laura Hashem
Sydney Hass
Kathryn Holt
Meaghan Howard
Rebecca Iannucci
Leight Jacobs
Catherine Janssen
Lindsay Kimble
Shannon King
Gregory Krzysiak
Kathleen Li
Melissa Lockley
Lauren Ludlow
Rebecca Luz
Jennifer Mammel
Jayme Mantos
William McAbee
Ashlee McCullock
Patrick McIntyre
Alexandra Melnick
Ariel Miller
Julie Morse
Meaghan Murphy
Caitlin O’Donnell
Tyler Oberle
Emily Ojerholm
Louise Orr
Samantha Parker
Lina Patton
Lauren Ramsdell
Madeline Renner
Dallas Reynolds
Anastasia Romanowicz
Richard Rosenbaum
Rebecca Rubin
Julia Sayers
Danielle Schwartz
Jacob Selzer
Mason Sklut
Berkeley Smith
Shannon Smith
Jenna Sonlin
Michael Soucy
Katlyn Steele
Brittany Sullivan
Grace Sweeney
Rachel Taff
Rachel Taravella
Patricia Teter
Nicole Tower
Davod Tregde
Davod Turner
Rebecca Tynes
Delaney Vanderhoof
Victoria Veight
Ashton Vincenty
Elizabeth Vozella
Allison Wade
Deirdre Walsh
Courtney Whiting
Douglas Williams
Megan Wright
Monica Yantosh
Alexandra Zubak