Alumni Profile:
Alan Vandermolen Class of ‘87
By Ken Kuwabara
During a period of economic instability, when it comes to public relations, “The time is now for this industry,” says Alan Vandermolen. “I think we’re growing and I think as credibility in advertising decreases and trust in mainstream media goes down, public relations is very well positioned to grow.”
Vandermolen, an Ohio State graduate, is the president of the Asia Pacific region APAC of Edelman, one of the world’s largest PR firms and PR Week’s 2008 Large Agency of the Year. He currently oversees 18 different Edelman offices in 10 markets and in 2005 he was awarded PR Week’s Asia Pacific professional of the year. In 2007, under Vandermolen’s tutelage, Edelman APAC became PR Week Asia’s Network of the Year.
Receiving awards and expanding the company may seem routine for Vandermolen. But routine is hardly a word to describe his day. Vandermolen says that he could be anywhere doing anything on any given day with about a third of his time towards client work with names such as Coca-cola and Microsoft, a third towards managing the business and marketing the firm, and a third on intellectual capital and investing in research and development. His job also requires him to travel half way around the world quite frequently. His main office for Edelman APAC is located in Hong Kong and he may also be spotted in Japan, mainland China, Singapore, and India.
“I’m probably gone about 60 percent of the time,” Vandermolen says. “About six out of 10 working days I’m away from home.”
Vandermolen says Ohio State helped prepare him for his globetrotting lifestyle. “Ohio State has always had a great program. I think a lot of people really don’t realize the benefit they can get from the multicultural aspect of the student body. It’s really something. It gives you the chance to understand multiple cultures in the microcosm that is the university.”
Born in Columbus, Ohio, Vandermolen grew up in neighboring Grove City. When his freshman year of high school rolled around, he moved with his parents to Washington, D.C. As it came time to pick a college, he chose where his roots lay. He came to Ohio State in the general Arts and Sciences program and in the end, he chose journalism with a minor in political science.
Vandermolen stresses the importance of internships for undergraduates. During his time at Ohio State, he held several internships through the school, which led to his first real-world job upon graduation. “You have to do lots of internships,” he says. “Get the basics and practical work experience as much as possible. I had a lot of internships and that served me very well. It was the best thing that I did while I was there. My first job was actually a direct result of an internship that I had at school.”
Even with all the school activities, it is not to say that Vandermolen did not have a good time while he was in Columbus. Vandermolen also led a fairly active social life and participated in recreational sports and views these experiences as an important part of his career at the university.
“One of my fondest memories is when the PR sequence beat The Lantern in flag football,” he says. “Some of my other stories probably shouldn’t be printed. All in all you could say my time at Ohio State was great. You can’t just focus on the educational side of your life. Get a well rounded experience. As silly as it sounds, you have to hit the High Street bars, meet new people, just get out and do social things on top of your academics.”
Vandermolen says students aspiring to a career in public relations, especially those who graduate from Ohio State, stand to do very well in today’s world. Ohio State offers a great number of internship and educational opportunities, and, according to Vandermolen, the diversity and strength of the university’s program can prepare students to engage in a shifting market.
Alan Vandermolen is married and has one son. To read more on his thoughts about the industry go to edelmanapac.com and read his blog, Uncorked.
O’Hara leading new direction of The Lantern
By Maryann Augustine
“The ink-on-paper model of distributing information is dying, and has been for years—it’s only an accelerating phenomenon,” says Tom O'Hara about the changing face of print journalism. As the new advisor this fall for The Lantern, the Ohio State student newspaper, O’Hara brings a direct and focused perspective to adapting the newspaper with the rapid changes of journalism—online and off.
Reigniting The Lantern
O’Hara describes his main priority for improvement to The Lantern as logistical. Currently every quarter the staff of the newspaper is comprised of individuals who have never been given experience in news writing and are required to take the course for their major. The students responsible for reporting and editing change every quarter, which lacks the consistency of a real newspaper, O’Hara says.
"In order for the quality of The Lantern to improve, we need people who are here for three quarters, and want to do it. We need people from all different areas of academics— economics, public relations, art, international studies—to work at The Lantern for credit," says O'Hara.
O’Hara also says the newspaper needs to begin covering more substantive matter. Although the content of the paper is generated by students, some of the major stories are wired from the Associated Press and, while the entirety of those stories cannot yet be eliminated, O’Hara says they are working on increasing the number of student produced stories. O’Hara would also like to see more breaking news stories featured in The Lantern, and with a permanent staff who can also cover continuous stories, these areas can be reached. A longer term goal O’Hara is working towards is changing The Lantern to a tabloid-sized format that would make it more convenient for students to read.
“It will be easier for students to read in class and not pay attention to their professors,” he quips.
Fledgling reporters tackle tough job market
With many newspapers across the nation already being forced out of business due to the changing landscape of print journalism, O’Hara is trying to address these concerns in the classroom as well.
“How do you pay the reporters? That’s the $64,000 question. Why would people pay $100 for subscriptions when they can get the information online for free?” O'Hara notes.
O’Hara worries that with this increasing trend of online news reporting, eventually major American cities will be without major papers that report on school boards, city hall, local and state governments, and important issues facing the country and state, as reporters will be out of jobs. “No one will be asking people the questions they don’t want to answer. The biggest problem is people want and need quality information, but right now, there aren’t ways to pay people to provide it,” he says.
O’Hara says that when you are reading the news online, you miss other important news. “We call it serendipity: while you’re reading the newspaper you’re more likely to stumble on news in your experience of reading the newspaper than you ever would online,” he notes. “I personally don’t find it as satisfying as sitting with a coffee in a comfortable chair reading a magazine, but who wants to pay for that these days?”
O’Hara tries to take these lessons to the classroom but is also encouraging teaching about online journalism. Photo galleries, comments, polls, pod casts, and videos are all items that can be accessed for students online through The Lantern. O’Hara is motivated to impart upon students the skills they will need to survive when they graduate while the face of journalism changes.
With all of these changes, O’Hara is looking out for The Lantern’s future. “The Lantern will survive,” he says, “You know when you’re waiting for class to start, you’ll pick up a Lantern, and you’ll read it because it’s there, and because it’s free, not like The Columbus Dispatch.”
More on Tom O’Hara
O'Hara is a former managing editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, 2000-2007 and most recently served as a professional in residence at the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Kent State University where he taught journalism ethics and news writing.
Prior to working for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, O’Hara worked at the Palm Beach Post, where he served for 11 years as the newspaper’s managing editor. O’Hara earned a bachelor's degree with honors in humanities from Rutgers University-Camden, N.J., in 1972 and a master's degree in communications from the University of Florida in 1974. O'Hara is past president and a current member of the board of the National Freedom of Information Coalition and past president of both the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors and the Florida First Amendment Foundation.
He and his wife, Pam, have two children.
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Internship program enhances
student experience
By Maryann Augustine
Internships play a vital role for communication majors, helping supplement knowledge garnered in the classroom with business savvy. But, in today’s struggling economy, interns can help businesses and nonprofits, as well.
As the coordinator for the internship program in the School of Communication, Ronda Baldwin oversees the many students who opt to participate in internships through their academic career at Ohio State. “It is really great to see students getting academic credit, but also gaining real-world experience that enhances what they’ve learned in the classroom,” she says.
Internships enhance classroom experience:
The internship program helps students bolster their classroom education with relevant business skills, establish networking connections, and build their resumes with professional experience in their desired fields. Baldwin says that internships provide a well-rounded experience for the academic study of communication.
Baldwin says students do not have to look too far to gain real-world experience. Being in the state capital there are countless opportunities available even within local and state governments, nonprofit organizations, health care establishments, and even dozens of media outlets.
Alex Morando, a third-year journalism major, was able to take his experience with the Big Ten Network to enhance his knowledge of the journalism field that he felt he would not have learned in a classroom setting. “I enjoyed every minute of it and I highly recommend it to students seeking a journalism degree at Ohio State,” he says.
Students intern beyond Columbus:
Companies and organizations interested in interns from the School of Communication need not be local. Students are often looking for opportunities outside of Columbus and the Midwest in general. Baldwin says, "Our students are resourceful and open to opportunities. Alumni are a huge resource because they are able to create the connection with our students to broaden their opportunities.”
Recent graduate Serena Ditty took her experience abroad with CBS News in London, England. “I was given an opportunity to observe and assist in all aspects of the news reporting process in an international bureau environment. Ohio State has prepared me with excellent educational opportunities both in and out of the classroom,” she says.
Alumni encouraged to support internship program:
Baldwin encourages alumni to get involved within the internship program. Alumni can provide internship opportunities through their current place of employment, make a monetary contribution to the school to enhance the program or even provide personal stories of how internship experiences have furthered their career development or education. She says co-op experiences for a student, or a position for two alternating quarters, is a progressing opportunity many students have been choosing to do.
Get involved with our internship program today:
Each quarter the School of Communication has a variety of students seeking internships with focus areas of strategic communication, public relations, marketing, advertising, journalism, and communication technology.
Getting started is easy. Here’s how:
- Provide our internship coordinator with a job description for the internship position outlining duties, skills needed, location of internship site, hour requirements, and application submission information.
- We’ll post the internship opportunity to students on our web site and collect applications.
- We’ll filter through the applicants looking for a good match and pass them on to you.
What’s expected from the employer:
- Employer will be asked to complete a student evaluation at the end of the quarter as well as sign off on the student's time sheet.
- Employer should provide student with a well-structured and effectively managed internship opportunity.
- Student should be provided with constructive feedback and mentoring opportunities during the internship experience.
- Internship can be paid or unpaid.
About our students:
Our students complete basic course work in communication history, theory, and research. Depending on their individual focus areas, they then take classes in graphic design, strategic communication, advertising, research, journalism, public relations, and specialty communication areas such as political, health, interpersonal, and organizational.
Students generally need to work between 3 to 15 hours per week in a quarter, depending on the number of credit hours they are seeking. Flexible work hours allow students to continue with their course work while they are interning but can be established at the beginning of a student's quarter.
For more information about our internship program, contact Ronda Baldwn.
School welcomes four new professors
By Ken Kuwabara
The School of Communication welcomed four new faculty autumn quarter:
 Erik Nisbet
Erik Nisbet came to Ohio State after graduating from Cornell with a bachelor's degree in government/international relations and a master's and doctorate in communication. Nisbet lived in Upstate New York for most of his life and says that one of the reasons he chose Ohio State was, “I wanted something different. My brother Matt also taught here for three years so I knew the campus and the school fairly well. But most importantly, Ohio State has an extremely strong reputation in political communication. It also has many opportunities for teaching and research, which is good news for any scholar. It was the best fit overall, and that’s what put Ohio State at the top of my list.”
Nisbet’s primary research interest is comparative political communication and the media psychology of international relations, which examines the effects of media on public opinion about international conflict. His main focus is on American-Islamic relations. His other research interests include the link between media and political behavior in developing democracies in South America and Africa and strategic framing and public opinion about global climate change.
 Ray Pingree
Assistant professor Ray Pingree joins Ohio State after earning his bachelor's degree in computer science, his master's in life science communication, and a doctorate in mass communication, all from the University of Wisconsin.
Pingree says that the graduate students and research that come out of Ohio State were what impressed him and finally drew him to come to Columbus.
Pingree’s main focus is on the effects of communication on the quality of collective decisions in democracies of all sizes, from small groups to democratic organizations to whole societies. He is currently studying the effects of news coverage of the presidential candidates and how passive journalism can lead to a decrease in self-efficacy of the audience.
Pingree explains that self-efficacy is the confidence level of, in this case, one's own ability to determine the truth, or lack thereof, about political claims, which may in turn lead either to tuning out, becoming involved, or just accepting the candidates’ false statements.
“It’s an area that I believe is important but not much research has been done,” says Pingree. “I’m hoping to help expand this area of study and I believe that Ohio State will help me achieve that.”
 Kim Rios-Morrison
Kim Rios-Morrison joins the school from California, where she earned her doctorate from the business school at Stanford University in organizational behavior.
Her research focuses on the ways in which personal and group identity can affect communication processes, including social influence and opinion expression. More specifically, she focuses on why people conform to the norms of social groups. “My research tries to explain what state of mind people are in that makes one conform or not conform to a social group,” Rios-Morrison says. “I’m also interested in looking at how minority status can affect this as well, such as being the only minority in a certain group and how one reacts to that specific situation.”
Rios-Morrison says that the research done at Ohio State is what ultimately brought her to the university. “The way the research is interdisciplinary and put into real-world context here is amazing,” she notes. “The amount of care that everyone in this department puts forth towards their research is also what drew me here. The members of the faculty are so helpful to me as well as to each other and that’s what I want to be a part of.”
 Dongyoung Sohn
Dongyoung Sohn earned his bachelor's degree in Seoul, South Korea at Hanyang University. He then went to the University of Texas at Austin to earn his master's and doctorate. After working in Florida for three years, he decided to come to Ohio State.
“Ohio State is one of the most well respected universities in the country,” says Sohn. “It was definitely a factor when I went searching for a school. The research environment is great and the amount of collaboration between professors as well as students is one of a kind.”
Sohn has two main focuses of research. The first is the impact of the Internet on people’s social interactions. He is trying to observe what makes people more prone to interact within virtual communities such as blogs, Facebook, and other common interest web sites. His second area of study focuses on the impact of communication technology on people, mainly consumers.
“The Internet is a powerful new medium to send persuasive messages,” says Sohn. “My goal is to see how the Internet impacts a person’s ability to process information and how it facilitates or hinders information exchange.”
Nominations sought for
Distinguished Alumni Award
Each year the School of Communication recognizes alumni with outstanding records of achievement and service to a discipline, organization, or cause. We are currently accepting nominations for this Distinguished Alumni Award.
Requirements:
- Nominees must be graduates from the School of Communication or School of Journalism.
- Nominees must be living at the time of their nomination.
- Current school faculty, staff, and other employees are not eligible for consideration.
How to nominate Distinguished Alumni:
Submit a nomination letter that includes:
- Lifetime achievements of the nominee
- An explanation of why this individual should be recognized
- Evidence of national or international recognition and other accomplishments, if applicable
- Contact information of the individual submitting the Distinguished Alumni Nomination
- Contact information for the nominee
Nominations can be submitted via e-mail to Renda Radcliffe-Sullivan at radcliffe-sulliv.1@osu.edu or mailed to:
Distinguished Alumni Award Nomination
School of Communication
The Ohio State University
3016 Derby Hall
154 North Oval Mall
Columbus, OH 43210
Nominations must be received by noon on Friday, March 6, 2009, to be eligible for consideration. |
