Events
News
J-Term trip to Belize exposes students to new cultures and styles of communication - URI students across various majors studied abroad in Belize over the 2024 J-term where they were immersed in the Garifuna culture. 
URI public relations professor says actions speak louder than words when companies respond to social, political issues - Harrington School public relations professor investigates the relationship between corporate social advocacy and customer behavior. 
Katy Wilkey ’28 - Film/Media, class of 2028
Greta Williams ’28 - Film/Media & Studio Arts, class of 2028
Janeya Bailey Smith ’28 - Film/Media, class of 2028
Chairman of the Executive Advisory Council, Andrew Fleischer - Welcome the new Chairman of the Executive Advisory Council at the Harrington school!
URI professor, Molly Yanity, set to release new book - Yanity's new book is titled, "Media, Communication and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup"
Faculty Spotlight: Gail Alofsin - Gail Alofsin, professor in the Communication department at the Harrington School, reflects on her time experience as a professor and keynote speaker. 
Faculty Spotlight: Dan Hunt - Dan Hunt, chair of journalism and public relations, reflects on his time as a URI alum and his new role as faculty.
Meta will end fact-checking of social media posts; URI expert says it’s not a surprise
Fall 2024 Faculty Publications, Conferences, and Grants - Harrington faculty members have continued to conduct cutting-edge research that they have published, presented, and received awards for this semester. Here are some of the highlights from their work:
2024 Year in Review - This year has been another exciting and productive year for the Harrington School, filled with many events and opportunities for our students, faculty, staff, and community at large. Looking back at the year, these are some of our highlights:
Women in Sports has entered the chat - A new club on campus, Women in Sports Group, where all genders interested in sports (regardless of their major) are welcome.
MC Brickell ’24- Faculty Spotlight: Molly Yanity - Molly Yanity, professor and director of sports media and communications, joined URI after several years as a journalism professor at Quinnipiac University.
Kat Billo ’24
Brittney Darcy ’21
Justin Wyatt publishes eighth book, 3 Women, in BFI Film Classics Series
Faculty Spotlight: Kathleen Torrens
Former TIME editor-in-chief Nancy Gibbs gives annual Amanpour lecture
Could things be looking up for Gov. McKee? URI poll results suggest the answer is yes.
Is Governor McKee finally seeing some momentum, or is the latest poll an outlier?- URI poll: Confidence in R.I. election system is high, but voters concerned about political violence, A.I.
URI poll: R.I. residents split on economy, have various election season concerns
URI poll measures Rhode Islanders’ opinions on election ‘hot topics’
Alumni Stories
- Chairman of the Executive Advisory Council, Andrew Fleischer - Welcome the new Chairman of the Executive Advisory Council at the Harrington school!
- MC Brickell ’24
- Brittney Darcy ’21
Rick McGuire ’07 - Rick Mcguire ’07, communication studies, discovered his passion for communication at the beginning of his junior year after switching majors to communication studies. After graduating, McGuire worked in television production for companies, and went on to found two social media companies, SubwayCreatures and WhatIsNewYork.
Abigail Amatucci ’22 - Abigail Amatucci ’22, film/media, took advantage of a range of experiences during her time at the Harrington School, from filming projects for class and being a part of the Daily Ram to working in the Harrington School Social Media Agency. Since graduating, Amatucci has worked as a Digital Content Creator at the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. 
Michele Edelman ’89 - Michele Edelman, journalism, looks back fondly on her time at the University of Rhode Island. Edelman has been instrumental in realizing Premiere Digital's vision and strategically positioning it for sustained success in the realm of digital distribution. 
Scott Levine ’90 - Scott Levine, communication studies, was an active student during his time at URI, being involved in the Student Alumni Association during the 1988 basketball season. Today he is the Director of Human Capital at Parthenon Capital.
Michael Benadon ’93 - Michael Benadon, communication studies and public relations, is the Vice President of Talent Acquisition for Capital One. At URI, Benadon took advantage of his courses at URI to become a proficient public speaker.
Jason Askew ’01 - Jason Askew, public relations and communication studies, discovered his passion for communication his sophomore year after learning about the opportunities for communication majors. Today, he is a Senior Product Marketing Manager at Cvent.
David Goldman ’98 - David Goldman, journalism and Spanish, came to URI to pursue his love of surfing but developed a passion for photojournalism at the Good Five Cent Cigar. Today, Goldman is a photojournalist for the Associated Press.
Aniekan Okon ’23 - Aniekan Okon, journalism and sports media & communication, was part of the inaugural class of graduates from the sports media program. Today, he works as a Sports Anchor and Reporter at CBS19 News in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Nikki Noya ’00 - Nikki Noya, communication studies, was an A10-winning volleyball player and dedicated student during her time at URI. Today, she is a co-owner of On It Media and a co-host on “The Jet Set.”
Bill Loveless ’73 - Bill Loveless, journalism, has been a reporter and correspondent for more than 40 years. During his time at URI, Loveless was one of the founding members and the third editor of the Good Five Cent Cigar.
Aria Mia Loberti ’20 - “I’m an academic, so I have to use what I know to prepare. I did a lot of research into what makes a person behave the way they do and what life factors contribute to certain behaviors.”
Kate LeBlanc ’22 - “I always say that studying journalism was the best decision I could've made. It teaches you how to act on curiosity, how to talk with anyone, and how to distill information and communicate.”
Naleen Camara ’21 - “I really enjoyed the flexibility that I had within the Harrington School because I felt like I was always one interesting class away from changing my whole life.”
Valerie Shields ’06 - “Work hard, but also be a little patient... you're gonna work for a long time. It'll come. Enjoy the journey because you're gonna learn a lot on your way there.”
Ted Daniel ’96 - “I grew up watching ABC World News... I liked the idea of being able to share information with people and help them learn and understand what's going on in their world.”
Katie Siegle ’22 - “Harrington is great because a lot of the majors interact with one another. You can be any major, and you're doing similar things. It's all part of one school.”
Sherrie Session ’12 - “Think Big, We Do- is a motto I continue to live by today... I love the study of communications and hope to continue impacting the world through this lens.”
Theresa Brown ’21 - “If it were up to me, I would have majored in all the programs. Everything crosses over. You don't just use PR, journalism, writing, or film. It's one school for a reason.”
Kevin Lopes ’05 - “The more involved you are the better your lifelong friendships will be, the better your network will be, and more fun you’ll have during your time in Rhode Island.”
Isobel McCullough ’22 - For her undergraduate honors thesis, Isobel McCullough recorded the sonic profiles of seven Rhode Island beaches. The result is an artistic investigation inspired by science.
Alyssa Botelho ’21 - A film produced as part of a senior capstone project has earned a URI Film/Media alum two college Emmy awards from National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences’ New England Chapter.
Vianka Brito ’20 - Vianka Brito ’20 used her communications to show underrepresented and marginalized student in her community that they can succeed in college and make an impact through their careers.