NEWS

NEWBERRY — The Newberry College Communications Program has declared the second week of October to be Communications Week, to celebrate distinguished program alumni in conjunction with Homecoming 2019.

The week will feature a series of on-campus events Oct. 10-11 with a slate of successful former students, to include class visits, a special newscast, awards dinner and panel discussion.

“We could not be more excited, nor more honored, to welcome back this group of distinguished alumni,” said Dr. Jodie Peeler, professor of communications, program coordinator and the event’s organizer. “This is an opportunity not only to recognize their success as Newberry graduates, but to show them the advancements we’ve made since they graduated, and to show our current students what is possible with initiative and a good education.”

The group of honored communications alumni includes:

• Kyle Grainger ’02, an Emmy-winning meteorologist with WVLT in Knoxville, Tennessee
• Victoria Connelly Kennedy ’01, a producer for CNN in Atlanta
• Justin Machado ’02, director of creative services at Katz Networks in Atlanta
• Andrew Wigger ’13, editor of The Newberry Observer

The group will visit communications classes Thursday and Friday. On Thursday afternoon, they will join communications lab students in the Langford Center television studio to produce a mock newscast, with students comprising the production crew. That evening, Grainger, Kennedy, Machado and Wigger will each receive distinguished alumni awards at a dinner in their honor.

At 7 p.m. Thursday, Peeler will moderate an alumni panel discussion, covering professional skills, lessons learned and keys to success. Free and open to the public, the event will be held in the Gnann Conference Room of the Center for Teacher Education, 1121 Speers St. in Newberry.

The event comes after the College cut the ribbon last month on upgrades to the Langford Center, home of the communications program. Improvements included repairs and upgrades to the television studio’s main set, the installation of high-definition control room equipment, the creation of a new classroom and renovation of a seminar room.