Mass Communications awaits equipment

Southern University’s mass communication department is awaiting funds to purchase new cameras to solve the equipment shortage.
The department expected new cameras and editing machines to arrive in June but only received the editing equipment and is still waiting for new cameras.
Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Dr. Brenda Birkett said the department missed the fiscal year deadline in 2002 for the purchasing of new equipment.
“I feel as if we are overlooked by the university when we are one of the most popular majors,” said Nancy Sterrill, senior mass communication major from Washington D.C.
The school is planning to reallocate money to the mass communications department this year.
“We have students coming from high school using computer editing and when they come here we don’t have it,” said Darrel Roberson, media engineer of mass communications.
Until up-dated cameras arrive, the 50 students in the 300 & 400 level Broadcast courses have seven cameras to use.
” The sad thing is that the order for cameras was approved but when we reapplied they said funds weren’t available,” said Michael Kable, associate professor of mass communications. “It’s just not fair to the students, often times students are forgotten and left at the bottom of the totem pole.”
Louisiana Board of Regents has a state-wide policy for accreditation for various programs across the state. The SU Mass Communications Department is accredited until 2005, then it will seek reaccreditation.
“We’ll lose our accreditation if we don’t get equipment. The Board of Regents said they will close the department down if we don’t,” Kable said.
“A program may be discredited for lack of equipment, funds or small number of students,” according to Jerard Killebrew, associate commissioner for academic affairs of The Louisiana Board of Regents.
Birkett said a review team was very impressed with the facilities and thought the department was much better than other schools when the department went through accreditation two years ago.
“The equipment in the department isn’t up to par. Being such a big university, the department needs to have better equipment so we can be prepared to compete in the market,” said Morgan Bruke, a senior mass communications major from LaPlace.