Time Out! with Professor of CommunicationLynn Brownson

Steve Horton
Staff Reporter

I contacted Lynn Brownson, Associate Professor of Communication and Digital Media, about her involvement with the Right of Rhetoric Freedom of Speech Week, and these are her responses.

The Current: What is your involvement in this eventful week?

Lynn Brownson: As faculty adviser to Lambda Pi Eta, our local chapter of the national communication honor society, my involvement in Right of Rhetoric, Freedom of Speech week included lending support, attending and moderating events, hosting a guest speaker in my Rhetoric and Persuasion class, and I also came up with the idea for the duct tape fundraiser.

TC: How does free speech and censorship affect classes that you teach?

LB: Carthage College allows for what we call academic freedom--the right to say pretty much whatever we want to in class. However, it’s really important to remember that with such a right comes great responsibility--just like in any other communication setting. So with that responsibility comes some self-censorship. What surprises me the most is how students remember all the goofy or questionable stuff I say (sometimes instead of important theories or concepts). And a few years ago, a student of mine told me she was putting Brownson quotes on her Facebook page. So out there in the universe was my saying, “I never text while I’m driving...because I just end up spilling my beer.” For the record, I don’t do either of those activities... any more. See... a person needs to know the context of the message, including when it’s just humor or sarcasm.

TC: Where do you think censorship is at its worst?

LB: I would have to say censorship is at its worst in cultures or countries where those in power work to silence any voice that is in opposition. However, I’m a bit concerned about censorship issues in the U.S., including possible limits on technology, political correctness that prohibits free discussion and actually solving problems, and the litigious nature of our culture that scares people into silence.

TC: Is there anything you would like to see this campus do in the future to encourage free speech more?

LB: Does that include trying to get my students to talk more in class? Then I’m all for it. But seriously, I sincerely think Carthage fosters a positive environment for a plurality of perspectives. I’m impressed and encouraged by the diversity of messages out there on campus, from art displays to messages on Kissing Rock, from letters to the editor to political and religious dialogue. I would just echo what has already been said to students, faculty and staff alike: get involved, be heard, stand up for what you believe.

TC: On a lighter note, what is your favorite holiday?

LB: Definitely Thanksgiving. A time to reflect and remember what I’m grateful for, the beautiful fall colors, a crispness in the air, and way too many carbohydrates. What’s not to love?!?

TC: If you could live in any historical time period, when would you live?

LB: Yikes! I’ve never even considered this. But I would have to say that when I watch movies from other historical periods, I’m always thinking to myself, “When did they bathe? Did they ever floss? How did they ever survive without a cell phone and the internet?” I’m a big fan of indoor plumbing, so I don’t think I’d want to live in any other time. But I think I could rock a renaissance-era outfit and cool boots...and hopefully would be able to carry a weapon.

TC: Favorite book?

LB: “Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid” by Dr. Denis Leary (who’s not a doctor, but he plays one in his book). You want freedom of expression? There’s your man! He doesn’t pull any punches about the current state of the country and the people in it.

India reunion resurrects laughs and tears

Dylan Tate
Copy Editor

Last May, a group of students, along with Director of the Asian Studies program and Director of the Global Heritage program James Lochtefeld and Chair of the Department of Geography and Earth Science Julio Rivera, departed for a J-Term trip to India.
That trip was a physically taxing one, as students had to hike at a fairly steep incline on various occasions, weather the elements and battle the redoubtable native cuisine. For those who went on the trip though, they were rewarded with the beauty and majesty of the Himalayas and a singularly personal religious experience. Last Thursday, Oct. 22, many of those students scheduled a reunion that was open to the public.
At the gathering, a few slideshows were shown, including one put together by a student studying abroad in France for the entire school year, Caroline Dolan, ‘11, evoking strong memories from the people who had attended the trip.
There was a photo of monsoon rains in Haridwar that brought back horrifying memories of wading through, depending upon one’s height, knee-deep sewage water. The said refuse was literally erupting from the streets like a fecal Old Faithful. The irony of the situation was that everyone had just bathed in the Ganges River, which supposedly cleanses one’s soul and body despite empirical evidence to the contrary in the corporeal sense.
Along with that were photos of gods such as Shiva, Ganesh and Kali. Those pictures helped the students remember the reverence that was paid to the idols whom are omnipresent in India. It would not be unusual to see a 80 foot tall statue of the Ganga in India, but to this day, I have not seen one of Jesus or any of the apostles or saints anywhere near those epic proportions.
However, what was most striking was seeing the photos of the actual students’ time in India. Whether it was a shot of Dan Gerber, ’11, risking life and limb as a he climbed ever higher up a mountain despite the pleas from various Hindu pilgrims; or an image of Carthage alum Derek Thieme, ’09, floating down the Ganges River, an unforgettable memory was put to the forefront of one’s mind.
These pictures that were shown are perfect encapsulations of a single moment in time that can never be replicated or forgotten.
While the description of the event might seem exclusive, it is not. That reunion and the images that were shown are representative of the The very fact that a person has to spend the next month with so many people forces them to get closer than they might have originally desired.
This bond, formed over shared circumstances, allows them to share in an experience that is theirs alone. As a result, they, too, might be able to laugh rather than cry about navigating the septic sea that flooded the streets as the students from the India trip did. They could then take comfort in the fact that at least they were not in it alone.

Networking dinner, repeats the three-peat

Carmelo Chimera
Managing Editor

“When employers are looking for students out of school, they’re not looking for the technical skills—the most relevant work,” said John Gouveia, `02, at last Thursday’s Alumni Networking Dinner.
“They’re looking for people who have leadership skills, people who are motivated and are hard working. As long as you display any ability to learn hands-on, they’re going to teach you everything you need to know.” This year marked the sixth annual Alumni Networking Dinner. While this is only one of the many events Career Services holds every year to help Carthage students in the inevitable search for employment, Jean Frederick, Director of Career Services, calls the event her favorite.
“I look forward to it,” said Frederick, “because I love bringing the alumni and students together and watching them interact.” The student-alumni organization TORCH helped out with the event, staffing check-in and acting as liaisons between the students and alumni to facilitate the “mingling.”
Even students who did not connect with specific alumni had access to a wealth of real-world advice and experience.
Laura Lipton, `10, shared what she learned at the dinner: “I rekindled a friendship with Nicole [Rakers], `09...I learned that you shouldn’t beat yourself up if you don’t get a job right away out of college. It doesn’t mean you’re incapable; you just need to be patient.”
At dinner, I had the pleasure of sitting with Gouveia, who works as a financial analyst for Hospira. He had some terrific advice on handling the job hunt right out of college.
Gouveia shared his own experience of hitting the job market with “sub-par technical skills…. My resume was packed with grocery store work,” said Gouveia, “but it didn’t matter, because I could go to the interviews and tell them about real-world experiences, leadership positions... things where I demonstrated initiative.”
Gouveia also had some warning for soon-to-be graduates: “There’s nothing wrse there than a gap you can’t explain. The mystery hole in a resume without any explanation behind it is always a tough one to defend.”
Gouveia was not the only accountant present—far from it. In past years, the Carthage Accounting Association held its own alumni night specifically for graduates employed in financial areas. This year, though, the CAA’s event followed the general Networking Dinner. According to Professor of Business Administration Dave Brunn, “Not too many years ago we came to the realization we were often asking the same alums to come back for our alumni evening and for the Alumni Networking Dinner. We quickly realized we’ll get a better response from the alums if we piggyback our event so it immediately follows the dinner portion of the earlier program.”
Brunn called the group of alumni that stayed for the CAA event “pretty representative of a typical graduating class of accounting and finance majors.”