A recent modification to the second floor of the Jesse Jones Center has resulted in significantly improved wheelchair access to the auditorium. It also created the addition of a much-needed clinical research suite that has dramatically improved our ability to enhance services provided to our communicatively impaired clients. Thomas Marquardt has replaced Rodger Dalston as chair of the Department, effective September 1. Tom's new assignment will be for the coming year, during which time future chair options will be explored. Journalism Maggie Rivas Rodriguez's spring 2000 Community Journalism course produced the second issue of the periodical Narratives, dedicated to the stories of Latinos and Latinas of the World War II generation.
Narratives is part of a national oral history project.
Mercedes de Uriate received the Academic Excellence Award in Journalism from the National Association of Hispanic Journalism. The new sports journalism emphasis in the Department continues with a second offering of the course originated and conducted by Griff Singer and featuring visiting professional Melanie Hauser. The course offers a multimedia perspective on sports coverage and its role in society. The investigative reporting partnership between Master's students and newspapers continued in the spring in Nick Lasorsa's seminar. Following their work with the Brazosport Facts, students collaborated with publisher Wanda Cash and the Baytown Sun to produce professional level computer-assisted reporting.