Graduate Students

Leysia Palen was awarded CU’s highest honor for faculty—the title of distinguished professor. She offers a deeper look into her groundbreaking research career, her mentorship methods and her goals for the future.

CMCI Dean Lori Bergen talked with three alumni from across the country—John Branch (MJour’89), Jackie Fortiér (MJour’13) and Vignesh Ramachandran (Jour’11)—over Zoom last summer about their day-to-day experiences as journalists.

Master’s student Audrey Mayes grew up in rural Texas and knows firsthand how hard it is for busy workers to consume news. So she created a podcast, Where the Aud Things Are, to elevate the rural perspective on wildlife issues in Colorado.

In 2022, the climate-action organization Mission Zero partnered with CMCI for the first time, donating $25,000 to further climate-focused work in the college. Faculty and students undertook seven grant projects, tackling climate issues through innovative storytelling.

CMCI graduate students worked with the state in their quest to map and track environmental injustice in Colorado. Through digital storytelling, students highlighted communities’ environmental concerns as well as the histories of people living in those places.

Samira Rajabi, assistant professor of media studies, spent years battling a brain tumor. Her experience of trauma and finding support through social media inspired research she hopes will help others.

Ever felt like your doctor’s questions missed the mark? Carey Candrian (Comm’04; MComm’07; PhDComm’11), associate professor of health communication at the CU School of Medicine, shares why healthcare needs to be reimagined one sentence at a time.

Personal brands are about building reputation, so how do you build yours online? Parisa Tashakori, a CMCI advertising, public relations and media design instructor, guides students through the process.

CU Boulder CMCI students and faculty from four departments represented 16 divisions and interest groups during this year’s Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication conference.

CMCI recently celebrated the first cohort of students to complete Connections: CMCI Summer Academy, a week-long summer experience that gives high school students a preview of college life and introduces them to current students, staff and faculty.