by Matt Walstatter, undergrad

A native of Montreal, Canada, COLEEN EBERT joined the School as office manager in June, bringing with her 10 years of teaching and administrative experience at UO. In her new position, she gets to put her interest in cooperative work dynamics to the test every day, providing support services for students and faculty.

Coleen has an M.A. in Comparative Literature (1994) and a B.A. in English (1992) from the University and is a member of the board of the UO Bookstore and the Blue Stocking Literary Guild. In 1991, she received a National Feature Writing Award; she has also served as an editor for Comparative Literature Journal. "Joining the School's staff is a great avenue for my continued commitment to support quality education," she says. "I love the electricity of interaction -- sparks fly in a myriad of directions, keeping creative juices 'on the churn.'"

DAVID KORANDA brings 18 years of experience in advertising to his position as visiting professor of advertising. Koranda, who holds a B.S. (1978) from the University of Oregon and a B.A. (1970) from Wilkes University, is the owner of Koranda Communications (a media-buying service), and media director at Baden & Co. (an advertising agency in Eugene). Among his many advertising awards are the McDonald's Media Award of Excellence in 1994, the 7UP "Best in the West" in 1996, and the Mid-Oregon Ad Club Award of Excellence.

Koranda researches qualitative and quantitative data assessing the evolving nature of media patterns in the United States. He is also interested in exploring the role of advertising in American culture.

"It is my goal each term to create an environment where the students and I can comfortably engage in a dialogue," he says. "I share with them what I and others in the field have learned -- and I learn from the students."

DENISE MATTHEWS left a position as coordinator of media services for the Institute for Child Health Policy in Gainesville, Fla. to join the faculty as an assistant professor this fall. Matthews, who will teach courses in electronic media, has produced, written and directed over twenty programs for public television and public outreach programs, including "Tomes and Talismans," a thirteen-part instructional series broadcast nationally on PBS. The series won several awards including the International Film and Television Festival of New York's Silver Medal.

Matthews research examines how family mediation can affect young children's understanding of television advertising. She is also studying the implementation of the evolving Children's Television Act. "The digital revolution is transforming video production from an elite professional domain to an egalitarian communication tool," she says. My goal is to teach the lessons learned from that elite domain to students who will use their expertise to excel in the video democracy."

WARREN PEASE is the School's new electronic media technology coordinator, designing, installing and repairing audio and video equipment and teaching students how to use field, studio and post-production equipment. He will also serve as technical adviser for faculty and student projects.

Pease has worked in production and engineering for networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, NPR) as well as nine radio and television stations. He taught video and audio production courses for 17 years at the university level and has presented numerous papers and chaired panels (on new technology and on teaching/learning electronic-mediated communication) at national and international conventions.

"For me, students come first," Pease says. "My challenge is to help others use the technology to communicate. The technology is a tool -- a complicated tool, to be sure -- but still, just a tool."