CommArts debuts Foxtalk Magazine

The School of Communication & the Arts is practicing what it preaches. On Jan. 27 the school released Foxtalk Magazine, an online publication meant to inform the Marist community of its latest events and accomplishments. A publication solely for the School of Communication & the Arts, Foxtalk is a 22-page magazine that details the school's achievements in various departments. It highlights academic work by graduate and undergraduate students, as well as faculty members.

The magazine also includes updates on the school's alumni, dating back to the 1970s.

Originally the brainchild of Dr. Steven Ralston, the school's dean, Foxtalk was intended to be a brief newsletter. The faculty's inexperience in writing newsletters and its expertise in magazine writing gave it a new vision, however, and allowed it to take shape.

Dr. Keith Strudler and Dr. Lyn Lepre, of the Communication department, took the lead in recruiting writers and editing the final product. Alumni Geoff Decker, '05, and Victoria Banks,'09 and current junior Sabrina Clark contributed with writing, reporting and editing.

"It's definitely putting awareness out to alumni and the community on exactly what we're doing," Clark said. "People don't realize exactly how big the School of Communication is and how much we do every year. I think a lot of people don't associate the Fashion Department with the School of Communication, and some of the articles featured [its] faculty. Some students never got a chance to see what their professors are doing."

Lepre, who has a background in magazine writing, has taken over direction of Foxtalk and has big plans for the future.

"What you see now is just a tiny little taste of what I think it's going to become next issue," she said.

Although Foxtalk ended up being much longer than the original newsletter was intended to be, future editions will be even more extensive. Lepre plans on having next year's edition run between 50-55 pages long, with sections devoted to various campus publications and departments.

Lepre is in the process of recruiting students to write stories and take photographs for the next edition. She plans on adding more features on alumni, capping projects, faculty members and communication issues.

Lepre said there will be a more thorough representation of different departments and student groups, as well as potential stories from interns, journalism students, adjunct professors and local freelance writers.

Foxtalk was designed mainly to appeal to alumni and establish better communication between them and the School of Communication & the Arts. Similar publications have proven successful at other institutions.

"I saw how positively alumni and students responded to the magazines that I worked on at the university I previously worked at [University of Tennessee]," Lepre said. "One of my hopes for it is that we'll start hearing from our alumni and they'll become.more invested in what's still going on here."

Ralston said that potential students are another important audience for Foxtalk, which can be utilized by the Admission Office. Hard copies of the magazine could be made available by Admissions for use on off-campus recruiting trips and on-campus events.

The magazine will also be marketed by public relations classes, which will utilize Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
It has not been online for long, but students are already giving feedback on Foxtalk.

"I was very impressed when I saw Foxtalk," senior Amy Wheeler said. "I think it is a very well-designed and necessary addition to the Communications program. The publication is a great place to highlight the work that Communications students are doing and what there is to look forward to in the future."

There are still aspects of the magazine to improve upon, though.

"I think if I were to make one suggestion," Wheeler said, "it would be to ensure that each of the departments within the School of Communications & the Arts are featured. The Music Department seems to be missing from this issue."

Clark suggested that there could be a greater balance between coverage of undergrads and alumni.

"I would love to see current students be profiled a bit more," she said. "A lot of it is alumni-based. They could highlight individual people.