West Virginia University, West Virginia. (August 21st, 2014) – The newly named West Virginia University Reed College of Media (formerly the P.I. Reed School of Journalism) begins its 75th year on the WVU campus with a new name, upgraded facilities and new curriculum.
On Monday (Aug. 18), College of Media students were the first to use the new Alexis and Jim Pugh Media Innovation Lab on the second floor of Martin Hall. Built this summer, the lab is an open, flexible environment that offers students access to the latest media technology and fosters creativity, ideation and product development.
The lab houses a customized teaching wall, collaboration tables and a digital media bridge. The multi-screen system features streaming data, multimedia and social media content that faculty can integrate into their teaching.
In addition to a classroom space, the lab will serve as an incubator where students and faculty will develop, test and deploy new media applications, platforms and strategies.
UPDATED JOURNALISM MAJOR
The college also launched its revamped journalism major this fall. The updated major replaces the current areas of emphasis in print, television and visual journalism with a more flexible and adaptive course of study that empowers each student to design an individualized career path.
Rather than taking a prescribed list of courses in a single area of emphasis, journalism students will have a wider selection of courses to take among three “skill areas” of writing, media creation and audience engagement, as well as a converged capstone course and at least one major elective. The college’s in-house advising team will provide students with suggested coursework based on professional tracks, such as reporting and editing, television journalism, magazine journalism, media design, sports reporting, documentary journalism and more.
Students will also be able to design a professional track of their own making based on their career goals and interests. In all cases, students will gain the knowledge and skills to be professional communicators across a variety of modern media platforms.
NEW MINOR: INTERACTIVE MEDIA DESIGN
Announced in spring, the new minor in interactive design is now available for students in the College of Media and the College of Creative Arts. The minor allows students to acquire skills in interactive design, visual narrative and new technologies that will enable them to compete in an increasingly digital and visual medial environment.
Students may take courses such as Game Design and Digital Narrative, which use game theory to build interactive stories; and Designing for Multimedia, which emphasizes visual design for digital and multimedia platforms.
Throughout the year, the College of Media will host a series of activities to commemorate its 75th anniversary, beginning with a celebratory event on September 30 from 4-6 p.m. in Woodburn Circle. More details will be provided at a later date.