Five students from the Penn State College of Communications were recognized with Davis Awards for their commitment to an ethical approach, integrity and service as the 2014-15 academic year came to a close.
The Don Davis Program in Ethical Leadership recognizes communications students who distinguish themselves in the classroom, in activities around campus and in the community. Faculty members nominate students who have displayed an above-and-beyond commitment to “doing the right thing,” and who deserved to be recognized as ethical leaders or role models.
This year’s honorees were: Marielena Balouris, Stevie Berberick, Molly Daley, Jennifer Hoewe and Donghee Lee.
Balouris, a broadcast journalism major, was nominated for her unrelenting commitment to helping others inside and outside the Penn State community. She carried a full course load, participated in several extracurricular activities and, when she had time, met with prospective students and their families. She also sat on the College of Communications Alumni Society Board as a student representative and participated in the college’s dean search last year.
Balouris served as an executive director for the weekly “Centre County Report” newscast and was a driving force in the Penn State Dance Marathon (THON) webcast, which was rebranded this past year as 46 LIVE. Balouris, a senior who started working for WTAJ-TV in Altoona even before commencement, will spend two months this summer in Greece as a camp counselor with the Ionian Village, which aims to enrich the lives of participants by bringing campers and staff into close contact with their Orthodox faith and Hellenic heritage.
Berberick, a doctoral student, was nominated for her strong advocacy against campus sexual assault and her advocacy for the ethical treatment of every person. Berberick raised awareness about the extent of the problem of sexual assault through columns in Voices of Central PA. Separately, to foster a productive scholarly community among her peers, Berberick started a weekly graduate student meeting where students come together to write and share their writings. Her essays focus on feminist topics such as how visibly tattooed women are perceived. She is co-authoring an essay on internship labor.
Daley, a media studies major, strongly believes in paying it forward. She learned about generosity, perseverance and tenacity from her older sister and mother when growing up. She also started working as a teenager to help her mother pay the family's bills, and Daley has worked throughout her career at Penn State to pay for her education. In the process, she earned promotions at work and remained committed, despite her busy schedule, to raising money for THON. She’s also an active member in the student philanthropy group on campus.
Hoewe, a doctoral degree candidate in mass communications, was nominated for her commitment to ethics and integrity through her research and teachings. Hoewe focuses her research on media stereotyping. Her additional scholarship examined the stereotyping of Arabs and their assumed connection to terrorism and how journalism can reduce the likelihood of prejudice.
Hoewe was elected as president of the Graduate Students in Communication group on campus. She served as the sole instructor for a mass lecture course, COMM 118 Introduction to Media Effects. In the course, Hoewe focused on the importance of critical analysis of media content and the ways it may create, heighten, reduce or sustain social harms such as prejudices and stereotypes.
Lee, who is finishing her master’s and her bachelor’s at the same time, has served as communications manager for EcoCAR, a competition featuring collaborators from the College of Engineering and the College of Communications as they strive to make stock vehicle model more eco-friendly. Lee has worked to promote sustainability in the community. She has also completed internships with Warner Bros. Entertainment and has written for The Daily Collegian, Fly Magazine, Critique Magazine of the Smeal College of Business. Lee has presented at several and was among the first undergraduates to present at the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication in its 101-year history.
The Don Davis Program in Ethical Leadership falls under the auspices of the Don Davis Professorship, which was created by Don Davis Jr. in honor of his father, Don Davis Sr., who established the advertising curriculum at Penn State in 1936. Davis Sr. taught most of his 37 years as a college educator at Penn State. The younger Davis, a Penn State Distinguished Alumnus, was the longtime CEO of Stanley Works who spent his life emphasizing the importance of “doing the right thing.”