Department Honors

Department Honors

Communication Student Honors Fall 2024

Grace McCracken
High Distinction

Grace McCracken is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication on the Digital Filmmaking track and a Mathematics minor after just two and a half years of college. She is being awarded the honor of High Distinction in Communication for her screenplay, Noise. This project demonstrates her ability to craft compelling narratives tailored for a visual medium. Grace developed an interest in filmmaking when she started creating videos for fun at age 10. While at UCCS, Grace wrote, directed and edited Boppy: a comedic short film that discusses the influence of artificial intelligence in the present day. Boppy screened at The Bluffs Film Festival and The Colorado Short Circuit Film Festival. Grace has crewed on various other short film projects. This conveys her proficiency in collaboration on professional sets. Grace interned at the Lyda Hill Institute of Human Resilience at UCCS as the social media analyst, which allowed her to combine her communication and technical skills by displaying data visually. In her free time, Grace creates YouTube videos, travels, reads and spends time outdoors. After graduating, Grace hopes to gain more filmmaking experience and is currently looking into graduate school opportunities.

Diana Muntean Cameron
High Distinction
Diana is graduating with a degree in Communication, specializing in Leadership. Her honors project examined her college experiences and demonstrated how her education translates into real-world applications. By integrating practical scenarios, she highlighted her deep understanding of communication theories and their role in reducing miscommunication, strengthening connections, and building lasting relationships. Her personal and professional experiences have shaped her understanding of communication and prepared her to lead her own team with the knowledge gained during her tenure at UCCS.

In her personal life, Diana has been married for over ten years and has three wonderful (but feral) children. She is a US Army veteran and has deployed to Afghanistan, as an intelligence analyst, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Currently, Diana serves her country as a civilian for the US Space Force empowering young analysts through training, expertise, and commitment to her craft. Diana intends to utilize her communications degree to drive intelligence operations in the Space Force through the collaboration and communication methods taught during her time at UCCS.

Honors Program Criteria & Overview

To qualify for departmental honors in Communication, students are expected to have completed a senior audit and must have maintained an overall GPA of 3.5 in their UCCS coursework. Students who qualify for departmental honors will be contacted via e-mail by the Department of Communication Honors Committee approximately one month into their final semester and invited to test for honors by completing an honors project.

Evaluation Process:

The honors evaluation process provides an opportunity for you to select a project for submission in accordance with the guidelines below. It is important to recognize that additional work must be completed during your final semester but achieving this goal will provide you with a unique distinction of honors as well as the opportunity to complete work intended to help your career growth upon graduation. Additionally, the process is intended to provide you with critical feedback from members of the Communications department faculty.

Once a student elects to complete an honors project, they will be asked to share the status of their capstone coursework (current enrollment or successful completion) and a brief summary/description of their project. Once a project has been approved the student will have approximately two weeks to complete and submit their project. Students may not submit projects or project ideas they have done for other classes or assignments. Students will be notified of their awarded honors designation and will be given instructions to pick up their honors cord for commencement.

Quality of work submitted will be evaluated for the following three merits: Distinction, High Distinction, and Highest Distinction. Finally, those who accept our invitation will also be eligible to be nominated as the UCCS LAS Outstanding Undergraduate Student. 

Members of the Honors Committee include Dr. Carmen Stavrositu (Chair), Dr. Liesl Eberhardt, Dr. Maja Krakowiak, Matthew Morgan, and M.J. Arjomandi.

Project Selection & Submission Process:

Please select an option from one of the three categories below: Written, Oral, or Creative. Provide a summary of your project choice and option on your honors contract along with a summary of your current or completed capstone project. Submit via email for approval before the deadline to begin your honors project.

Choice #1 (WRITTEN): For this category, you will write a paper/essay meant to synthesize information from a minimum of two-three courses in your degree program. Considering the courses and their respective topic areas, you should provide a clear introduction, a well-organized body (must include scholarly references cited in APA format), and a meaningful conclusion. (10-pg. minimum and 5 scholarly sources/references minimum). Written topic options

Choice #2 (ORAL): For this category, you will prepare and deliver a recorded video presentation meant to synthesize information from your cumulative coursework/research interests as appropriate. Recorded presentations should be shared via a playable link so the committee members can access your work. The finished presentation should include visuals (video clips, portions of your interview – with permission, PowerPoint slides). (20 min. +/- 5 minutes and 5 scholarly sources/references minimum on slides). Oral topic options

Choice #3 (CREATIVE): For Digital Film/Media students. For creative project submissions, students should complete one of the following creative documents demonstrating technical proficiency in your field of study. The body of work must exhibit both technical and artistic merits that demonstrate an advanced level of skill and understanding in your primary major or area of discipline. Works may be either fiction or non-fiction within any genre of your choosing. Creative topic options

Project restrictions: Previously developed work may not be submitted for honors credit.