JUD TALKS 2021

NOTE FROM THE CHAIR Communication Arts at Gordon is about communication for the common good. The JUD Talks honor the life and legacy of A.J. Gordon, providing students the opportunity to inspire and motivate the campus community to lead lives worthy

of God’s calling. I’m delighted you can join us!

—Christine J. Gardner, Ph.D.Associate Professor and Chair,

Department of Communication Arts, Theatre, and Art

SPECIAL THANKS The CTS Video Crew, Nick Hammes, Daniel Ensign, Dr. Christine Gardner, Dr. Rachel Yoo, Ryan Cannister, Julia Murphy, Barrington Faculty & Staff, Physical

Planet, Public Safety, Gordon College Covid-19 Support Team, and the Design Center.

UPCOMING FINE ARTS EVENTS

Fine Arts Salon, Hosted by Dan Stevens | April 29, 4:45pmReconnecting: Art Senior Thesis Exhibitions | April 10 - May 15

Beauty from Ashes: Theatre Arts Senior Showcases | April 30 - May 8CASE: Communication Arts Senior Exhibits | May 11, 5pm

Fine Arts Festival | Summer 2021

More Details Available at Gordon.edu/FineArts

FINALISTSRachel Bovee ‘21Communication Arts & Music

“Let’s Talk About Communication”

Communication is part of our everyday life! We use our words and actions to interact with others. Do we always use our communication skills to the best of our ability? Let’s explore how we can effectively steward our communication to better engage with the world around us!

Q Cole ‘24 Communication Arts

“Love Thy Neighbor”

My talk is on how to effectively love members of the LGBTQ+ community as Christians; how to show effective love to people that are different from us.

Sofia Jeanes ‘21 Communication Arts, Theatre Arts, Psychology

“Embracing The Unknown”

Shift to a growth mindset and go afraid, go joyful, go into The Unknown.

FINALISTS

Peter (Daeho) Lee ‘22 Business Administration

“The Pursuit of Positivity”

I will be talking about how we are all try-ing to pursue positivity in our own terms in the world of negativity where I’ll be incorporating my story and show how we can practice positivity for changing the world for better.

Nick Markham ‘23 Communication Arts

“CALCULATING ROUTE… Finding Peace When You Don’t Know Your Life Destination”

We’ve all asked ourselves at some point in our lives, “What am I supposed to do with my life? What if I don’t find the right job? Where should I end up in my ca-reer?” These questions all imply the same idea: “I need to know where I end up in my career.” Instead of asking these ques-tions, what if instead we focused less on our career destination and more on life direction? In this speech, we will explore why we ought think this way, how faith plays into our decision making, and new mindsets to apply throughout the rest of our college career.

JUDGESRebecca Minasian‘18Filmmaker/Photographer

Rebecca Minasian is a 2018 graduate of Gordon College, where she majored in Communication Arts and Theatre Arts. At Gordon, she participated in many on-campus productions on and off the stage, using her creative skills whenever she could. After graduation, she began teaching theatre at Mount Hope Christian School, taught courses in Comedy TV at Lexington Christian Academy, and has worked on the production team at Arlington Children’s Theatre. Currently, Rebec-ca works as a freelance filmmaker and pho-tographer, and is earning her Master of Arts in Comedy Writing at Falmouth University.

Samuel Florez ‘19Implementation Support SpecialistModo Labs

Samuel Florez majored in English Language and Literature as well as Philosophy while at Gordon and worked a wide variety of jobs on campus from serving in the dining hall to assisting at the CTS helpdesk. The latter helped Samuel transition from a humanities-focused degree to a career in software, working with EBSCO Information Services for his first year and a half out of college and with Modo Labs since early March of this year. Despite the technical nature of his work, Samuel daily relies on the commu-nication skills honed at Gordon and elsewhere. All throughout high school, Samuel competed in policy debate and a variety of speech events, qualifying for both regional and national cham-pionships. At Gordon, Samuel was a finalist in the inaugural JUD Talks.

Shaulita Isla Francis ‘18Communication and Marketing CoordinatorLouis D. Brown Peace Institute

Shaulita Francis is an aluma of Gordon Col-lege’s Communication Arts program. In her time at Gordon, she played for the Gordon College Women’s Basketball team and served as a MIO Ambassador. Shaulita believes that storytelling is vital to human connection and has the power to create shared understand-ing and spark conversations that break down barriers.

In the past six years, she has worked with several non-profits in the Boston area to help develop and improve their online presence. In 2018, she received a B.A. in Communication Arts and Business Administration at Gordon College. During her undergraduate career, she was awarded the Humanitarian Award for her work with youth in the City of Boston. The work she does is driven by her passion for community.

JUDGES