VITA Rama M. Tunuguntla Professor, Department of Mass Communication Grambling State University Office: Home: GSU Box 4292 122 Jefferson Oaks Dr. Grambling, LA 71245 Ruston, LA 71270 Education: Ph. D. (Mass Communication) University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (1982) M. A. (Mass Communication) University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (1978) M.A. (Philosophy/Psychology) Osmania University, Hyderabad, India (1967) Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism Osmania University, Hyderabad, India (1963) Awards - Carroll Binder Memorial Award for Distinguished International Student in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Minnesota, 1976 Fellow of the Institute of Journalism Excellence, sponsored by the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE), during the summer of 2006. As a Fellow, worked with The Advocate, Baton Rouge, LA, for six weeks at the copy desk and the online edition. Fellow of the Institute of Journalism Excellence, sponsored by the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE), during the summer of 2001. As a Fellow, worked with The Austin American- Statesman for six weeks at the national desk. Fulbright Fellow (Summer 2002). Visited China for five weeks to develop cultural and professional contacts and to develop curriculum and research in the areas communication. Awarded the endowed professorship The Cleo Fields Endowed Professorship in Mass Communication by the President of Grambling State University (for three years effective October 1, 2008)
Experience: Professor of Mass Communication (from Fall 2005) Grambling State University, Grambling, LA. Professor & Head, Dept. of Mass Communication (1988-2005) Grambling State University, Grambling, LA. Worked for The Advocate, Baton Rouge, LA, for the summer of 2006 as a Fellow of the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE). Worked for The Austin American-Statesman, Austin, Texas, for the summer of 2001 as a Fellow of the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE). Associate Professor of Journalism (1986-1988) Grambling State University Worked for The Times, Shreveport, LA, as a Faculty Fellow during the summer of 1987. Associate Professor of Journalism (1984-85) Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India Deputy Editor, The Deccan Chronicle (1982-84) Secunderabad, India Assistant Professor of Journalism (1980-1982) Grambling State University, Grambling, LA 71245. Graduate Research Assistant (1979-1980) Laboratory for Research in Scientific Communication University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. Research Intern (1978-1979) East-West Communication Institute East-West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii Graduate Teaching Assistant (1975-1978) School of Journalism and Mass Communication University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. Senior Lecturer in Journalism (1971-1974) Osmania University, Hyderabad, India
Senior Copy-editor, The Times of India (1968-1971) Ahmedabad, India Staff Reporter, United News of India (1965-1966) Hyderabad, India Senior Copy-editor/Night Editor (1961-1968) The Deccan Chronicle, Hyderabad, India Professional Development (Highlights only) Consultant to the Department of Mass Communication, Alcorn State University, Alcorn, MS, on its preparedness to seek accreditation by the Accrediting Council for Education Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC). Visited the Alcorn campus for three days, March 26-29, 2006, and submitted a comprehensive report on its current status and steps to be taken to seek accreditation. Participant: Fulbright Seminar in China -- a five-week study and educational visit to China, July 11-August 15, 2002. Participant: Technology Conference sponsored by The Freedom Forum at its Pacific Coast Center, San Francisco, CA, April 2000. Panel discussant: Technology s Influence on News Content: The Last Hundred Years/The Next Hundred Years, and Meeting the Challenges of Advancing Technology at Historically Black Colleges/Universities at the Broadcast Education Association (BEA) annual convention, Las Vegas, NV, April 2000. Panel discussant: Applications of New Media Technologies for Journalism and Mass Communications Education at the AEJMC convention, New Orleans, LA, August 1999. Participant: Seminar on Leading Technological Change, sponsored by the Poynter Institute for media Studies, St. Petersburg, FL, October 1996. Participant: Seminar on Teaching Intercultural Communication, Intercultural Communication Institute, Portland, OR, July 1996.
Presenter: Day-long seminars on interpersonal communication conducted by the U.S. Department of State at the Police Academy in New Orleans for police officers from Argentina (1994), from Ecuador (1993). Moderator: Session on Movement of Minorities and Women to Administrative Positions, AEJMC convention, Kansas. City, 1994. I also attended several ASJMC administrators workshops, BEA conventions, AEJMC conventions, Louisiana Press Association conventions, and Black College Communication Association (BCCA) meetings. Participated in seminars and workshops, among others, at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, the Journalism Educators Seminar at the American Press Institute, and The Freedom Forum Leadership Institute. Courses Taught: Graduate: MC 505: Theories of Mass Communication MC 510: Research Methods in Communication MC 515: Cross-Cultural Communication MC 520: History of Minority and Ethnic Media MC 535: Perspectives in Intercultural Communication MC 590: Comparative Communication Systems Undergraduate: MC 100: Introduction to Mass Communication (distance learning) MC 225: Mass Media Writing and Editing MC 299: Newswriting and Editing MC 310 Specialized Reporting Research, Publications and Professional Presentations Reviewer: Journalism and Mass Communication Monographs. Research Paper Judge: AEJMC Divisions of International Communication, Communication Technology & Policy, and Minorities & Communications 1997 2006. World Journalism Education Conference (SJEC), Singapore, 2007. Moderator/Discussant: AEJMC Divisions of International Communication and others. Presentations:
A research paper, Language and Culture: A Study of their Relationship, presented at the 2009 Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities Conference, Honolulu, HI, January 9-12, 2009. A research paper, Cultural Variences in Non-verbal Communication, presented at the 2008 Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities Conference, Honolulu, HI, January 10-14, 2008. A research paper, Ethnic Media: A Case Study of South Asian Press in the United States, presented at the 2007 Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities Conference, Honolulu, HI, January 9-13, 2007. A research paper, China and India: Two Asian Giants and Two Differing Communication Policies, presented at the 2006 Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities Conference, Honolulu, HI, January 10-14, 2006. This paper was also accepted for presentation at the Xiamen Conference on Chinese Communication Studies held in Xiamen, China, in December 2005. Panel presentation on The State of the Telecommunication Industry at the National Association of Black Telecommunications Professionals (NABTP) 12 th Annual Meeting and Leadership Conference, New Orleans, LA, July 31-August 2, 2003. Analysis of International Information Flow: A Structural Approach. Presented (in absentia) at the annual convention of the Asian Mass Communication Information and Research Center (AMIC), Singapore, May 1996. In Progress: Co-authoring (with a faculty from Middle Tennessee State University) a book on international communication and the right-to-know concept. It deals with the issues in international communication flow and new world order. Continue to study the status of the freedom of information and the status of the media in China (the post- Olympics era). Continue my exploratory research in communication policy studies by taking a sample of Asian countries as case studies to analyze
the interrelationships between political ideologies and communication policies. Research (unpublished): Communication Teaching and Research in India: Its Relevance to Mass Media. Why Do Some People Prefer Larger Families. -- an exploratory study on attitude-behavior inconsistencies in family planning. Differing Perspectives on Communication Policy. A case study of communication policies of countries with ideological variations. Publications: Training in Educational Journalism, Vidura, Press Institute of India s mass media monthly. China s Media: What Do They Say About the US and the USSR, Selected Symposium Papers, Grambling State University. This paper also won the first place as the top international research paper at the AEJMC competitions. Journalism Education -- Why? Vidura, Press Institute of India s mass media monthly. Proposals (fund-raising, grants and new programs) Instrumental in the planning and creation of the Department of Mass Communication at Grambling State University in 1988 by bringing together the programs in journalism and broadcasting. Was the head of the department since its inception in fall1988 until the end of spring 2005. Developed the mass communication program by revising and restructuring the curriculum, strengthening the faculty/staff, developing the computer and other laboratory facilities, etc. The result is that the mass communication program received the prestigious national accreditation by the Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) in 1993 within a record period of five years. The program also gained reaccreditation in 1999 and 2005 with Compliance on all 12 Standards set by the Council. Recognizing the phenomenal growth and success of the mass communication program with national accreditation and a successful master s program, the Board of Supervisors of the
University of Louisiana System in 1999 designated the mass communication program at Grambling State University as a Unique Area of Excellence. It is one of only five programs on the campus to be designated for such distinct honor. Wrote a proposal entitled, Enhancing the Quality of Journalism Education, for the Louisiana Educational Quality Trust Fund (LEQSF). The proposal was funded for $52,059 for 1988-89. Submitted a proposal to The Freedom Forum for a Journalist-in- Residence Program for 1999-2000 school year. Submitted a proposal to the Louisiana Educational Quality Trust Fund (LEQSF) for Graduate Fellows in Mass Communication for fellowships for the newly-developed master s program. The proposal was funded for two years, 1998-99 and 1999-2000. During the 1995-96 and 1996-97 school years, developed a proposal for the Master of Arts degree program in Mass Communication. The Curriculum Proposal for the M.A. degree was approved by the University of Louisiana System Board of Trustees in March 1996, and by the Board of Regents in September 1996. The department started the master s program from the fall semester of 1997. Wrote a proposal for $660,000 for five years (1987-92) under Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education for Strengthening and Expanding Academic Programs in Journalism and the Humanities. The proposal was funded for the first year (1987-88) for $32,000; for 1988-89: $104,000; 1889-90: $135,000; 1990-91: $157,000; and 1991-92: $235,000. Submitted the proposal, Strengthening the Mass Communication Program to be Eligible for Accreditation for another five-year (1992-97) cycle of the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education. The proposal was funded for 1992-93: $218,912; 1993-94: $195,000; 1994-95: $200,000; 1995-96: $220,000; and 1996-97: $210,000. Submitted the proposal for Enhancing and Strengthening the Mass Communication Program to Maintain the Accreditation Status under the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education was funded for 1997-98: $210,000; 1998-99: $247,329; and 1999-2000: $247,000. Submitted the proposal, Maintain and Strengthen the Mass
Communication Program as a Unique Area of Excellence, under the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education was funded for $220,000 for 2000-01 fiscal year, and another $220,000 for 2001-02 fiscal year. Co-coordinator, along with Dr. Williams, for a proposal entitled, Enhancing the Ten Departments in the College of Liberal Arts in the Age of Technology under the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education which was funded for $720,000 for fiscal year 2002-03. Wrote the proposal, Enhancing the Technological Capability of Training Facilities in the Department of Mass Communication, for the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education. It was funded for $350,000 for fiscal year 2005-06. Wrote the proposal, Strengthening the Mass Communication Program to meet its Professional Needs, for the Title III Programs of the U.S. Department of Education. It was funded for $237,500 for fiscal year 2006-07. Public Service University Service Member, Lions Club of Grambling for several years (not current) President and active member, India Association of North Louisiana. Also, participate in a number of local community activities. Member, University Curriculum Committee Member, Curriculum, Advising and Program Planning (CAPP) Committee Coordinator, Title Activity 1, Component C for 2005-06 Professional Membership Founding Member, Black College Communication Association (BCCA). Editor of The BCCA News Journal for 1997-98. Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication (ASJMC). Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).