JSU Communication Department Head
Invited to Oxford University

The University of Oxford in England has invited Dr. Kingsley O. Harbor, head of the Department of Communication at JSU, to serve as a member of its 2009 Oxford Round Table with the option of presenting a paper. Dr. Harbor's paper is titled, "Postmodernism and the Decline of Ethics: Proposing a Model for Moral Restoration in the Mass Media."

Each year, the University of Oxford selects a group of professors, scholars, government officials, lawyers, physicians, clergy, and other professionals from across the world to assemble on its campus to discuss issues of global import. The general theme for this year's Round Table is, "Ethics: The Convolution of Contemporary Values." The papers presented at the meeting are eventually peer-reviewed for possible publication in the Forum on Public Policy, a journal of the Oxford Round Table. Membership on the Round Table is selected through several screening processes-- nomination from previous participants in the Round Table, recommendations to the Round Table directors, recognized presentations and awards by state and national organizations, and by invitation to individuals from a successful organization, university or school district. Shenette McCandless, coordinator of the Round Table, USA branch, explains: "The foundation of the Round Table's success is the assurance that this academic forum will be composed of outstanding leaders."

Dr. Harbor, who currently teaches media ethics, plans to integrate the knowledge and materials he gains from the Round Table into his teaching, and to seize the opportunity at the Round Table to network with other scholars at the meeting. Past JSU alumnae of the Round Table include Dr. Rebecca Turner, the Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, and Dr. Cynthia Harper, retired dean of the College of Education and Professional Studies.

 

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