School of Liberal Arts and Education

Overview

The School of Liberal Arts and Education serves as the primary hub of general and liberal education at Saint Augustine’s University.  The School equips students with a strong foundation of critical skills in reading, writing, and verbal/nonverbal communication.  With such a foundation, our students delve into research and inquiry which prepares them for the work place and graduate study.  

The School is comprised of three interrelated departments - Humanities, Media & Communication and Education.  The Department of Humanities and the Department of Media & Communications foster student inquiry and learning through various avenues, including research, artistic expression, internships and multimodal instruction.  Such an interdisciplinary approach promotes the creation and exchange of knowledge about humanity and the human experience.

Because Saint Augustine’s University was founded with a purpose of teaching freedmen, our Department of Education continues the practice by preparing effective teachers for future generations of learners.  Our future teachers explore educational pedagogy as well as educational policies and reform before they even enter the classroom as student teachers.

Department of Humanities  

The mission for the Department of Humanities, through its five majors - English, Music, Theatre, Religion, and Visual Arts - is to offer a quality program while simultaneously providing a supportive and collaborative learning environment. Students can expand their intellectual and cultural horizons, realize their creative potential, and acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to help them build successful careers and make meaningful contributions to the world.   

The goals of the Department of Humanities are for students to:

1) Develop insight into humanity via a wide-ranging exploration of art, literature, music and theatre;

2) Emerge with the ability to read with comprehension, write and speak with clarity and correctness and articulate ideas and opinions and

3) Conduct independent research in a humanities discipline.

Majors in the Department of Humanities

• Visual Arts, BA (Visual Arts - Graphics - Concentration, BA (CIP 50.0701)  ; Visual Arts - Studio Concentration, BA (CIP 50.0701)  )
  • The mission of the Visual Arts program is to prepare competent professionals in the visual arts.  Specifically, the program assists in the development of sensitive and perceptive arts professionals who are aware of the growing interdependence of all the arts disciplines, preparing graduates with competence and understanding of practical and theoretical aspects of the visual arts; and acquaint students with the professional demands of careers in the arts.
• English, BA (CIP 23.0101)  
  • The English Department at Saint Augustine’s University is devoted to the critical study of literature and language, and the study of creative expression of many kinds, including film and other media. The department joins critics, scholars, and artists in an environment that fosters interactive learning and teaching, with extensive opportunities to work one-on-one with faculty mentors, in small and energetic classroom settings. Students will also have the opportunity to attend conferences, poetry readings, and pursue extracurricular activities that will give them access to a challenging world beyond the brick and mortar classroom.
• Music, BA (CIP 50.0901)  
  • The mission of the music program is to provide a program of study in which the student can acquire appropriate knowledge, skills, behaviors, as well as enhance their creative potential to the extent that successful careers are realized.
• Theatre, BA (CIP 50.0599)  
  • The Bachelor of Arts in theatre is a comprehensive degree with an emphasis in performance. Students gain academic knowledge and develop analytical skills from the critical study of classical and contemporary plays. Students develop their art while learning the crafts of directing, dramatic writing, and acting for the stage with opportunities to perform in student produced films. Practical experience is gained through active participation in theatrical productions, master classes, and internships.  Students may earn a Bachelor of Arts degree or a minor in theatre.
• Religious Studies, BA (CIP 38.0001)  

The purpose of this degree program is to equip adult learner who are pastors, ministers, deacons, elders or in some leadership capacity in their local church, to gain practical and academic insights into the work of the ministry.

Minors in the Department of Humanities 

• English Minor  
• Theatre
• Religious Studies Minor  

Department of Media and Communications  

• The Department of Media & Communications offers a competitive program of study that emphasizes the theory and cultural impact of media and provides students with the competencies to be successful in the global and digital world of communications.  Students can gain laboratory experience at the College’s commercial radio and television stations, WAUG AM 750 and TV-68, the student newspaper and documentary film. The department provides experiential laboratory through an extra-curricular initiative called Falcon Communication (FALCOM). FALCOM provides students with an opportunity to experience learning through hands-on projects that will be used by businesses and non-profit organizations in the Triangle community. The Film major through lecture and hand-on-learning gives students a deeper appreciation and utilization of the artistic and cultural implications. Internships are required for all majors. 

Goals

• Students completing the Media and Communications program will demonstrate:
  •    Skills of standard written and spoken English;
  •    Skills necessary to pursue graduate study and/or enter a related job field;
  •    Workplace experience through internships;
  •    Competency in writing and production techniques;
  •    Competency in reporting, research, writing, layout and design; and
  •    Competency in using various communications media.

Majors in the Department of Media & Communications

• Communications - Digital Journalism - Concentration, BA (CIP 09.0799)  
  • Digital Journalism is designed to prepare students to become skillful reporters, researchers, and writers for print media, including newspapers and magazines. The course of study provides both theoretical studies and hands-on experience with computer-based editing equipment. Additionally, students will have opportunities to gain work-related experience in the mass media.
• Communications - Strategic Communication - Concentration, BA (CIP 09.0900)  
  • In the study of Strategic Communications students are introduced to the ways organizations communicate with their constituencies, such as clients, employees, and the media. This sequence prepares students to use sound technical and managerial skills to meet communication needs within organizations. Students who complete this course of study will have the skills to function in organizations as public relations practitioners, public information officers, and communications managers in fields as diverse as sports, entertainment, government, and business.
• Communications - Broadcast Concentration, BA (CIP 09.0402  
  • Students in Broadcast Media learn about the operation and management of radio and television stations. This sequence provides students with a mastery of basic skills, including writing for radio and television, the fundamentals of audio and video production, broadcast editing, and broadcast management. The coursework prepares students to enter the field of broadcasting to pursue careers in news, production, programming, management and sales. In addition to a strong theoretical foundation, students also obtain practical experience at the campus radio and television stations and through internships with commercial and noncommercial broadcast companies in the community.
• Film, BA (CIP 50.0601)   
  • In the Film and Interactive Media program, students will learn the function of motion picture cameras and how to implement them creatively to create compelling visuals, which will be assessed through a hands on demonstration of these skill sets. Also, they will Participate in the production of a narrative short film by assuming various production roles and Synthesis of conventions and skill sets used by film directors through production of short student film projects

Department of Education  

Majors in the Department of Education

• Elementary Education, BA (CIP 13.1202)  

The Elementary Education curriculum is designed to prepare pre-service teachers to teach effectively in the content areas, using efficient strategies and up-to-date techniques in grades K-6. Moreover, an understanding of child development, learner behavior and attitude adjustment is imperative for teacher success in classroom settings. The curriculum provides developmentally appropriate learning experiences so that candidates are prepared to meet the needs, capabilities and interests of children in kindergarten through grade six.

• Health and Physical Education, BS (CIP 13.1314)  

 

School of Liberal Arts and Education Faculty

Department of Humanities

Zackary Clark, Instructor, English, BA, UNC-Chapel Hill, MA, MAT, East Carolina University

K. Celeste Evans, Assistant Professor, Theatre

Linda Dallas, Assistant Professor, Art

Alfred Davis, Jr., Band Director, Assistant Professor, Music, BA, Hampton University, MA, Hampton University

Kimberly Dunn, Instructor, Music, BA, Wichita State University, MA, UNC-Greensboro

Margarett Herder- Hill, Director of Writing Center, Instructor, English, BA, Winston-Salem State University, MA, NC A& T University

Emily Howson, Instructor, English, BA, University of Dayton, MA, NC State University

George Jack, Professor, Theatre

Lynne T. Jefferson, Dean, Associate Professor, English, M.A. North Carolina Central University, PhD Indiana University of  Pennsylvania

Harold Jeffreys, PhD, Professor, Music

Ophelia Johnson, Instructor, English

Robyn Luney, Assistant Professor, English, B.A., M.A.

Alissa McElreath, Assistant Professor, English, M.A. University of Binghamton, M.A. University of Rochester

Joyce Russell, PhD, Interim Chair, Humanities, Assistant Professor, English, BA, Bennett College for Women, MA, North Carolina Central University, PhD, Emory University

Department of Media & Communications

Natalie Bullock-Brown, Assistant Professor, Film

Moses A. Greene, Assistant Professor, Communications

Janet Gustafson, Staff, Communications

Dan Holly, Assistant Professor, Communications

Shawn Lewis, PhD, Chair, Media & Communications, Assistant Professor, Communications

Marjorie Newman, Assistant Professor, Communications

Department of Education

Darnell Bethel, EdD, Chair, Education, Assistant Professor, Education

Renee Swain, Assistant Professor, Education

Donald Watson, Assistant Professor, Education, BS, Kutztown University, MEd, Kutztown University, PhD, University of Pittsboro

Katrina Williams, MEd, Assistant Professor, Education

 

Programs

Non-Degree

• •  Religious Studies Minor