For the Love of Art

There are a great number of professors at Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) and all of them are great educators with passion for what they do. However, this year we acknowledge one that has made out of TAMIU not only a career but also a part of her life, a professor that started from the bottom and worked her way up to being recognized not only for her first ten years teaching this year, but also for getting awarded “Teacher of the Year”.

Associate professor of communication for the department of Psychology and Communication, Marcela Moran, has come a long way to be where she is today. With her love for art, photography and film, she has inspired many students and professors throughout her career at TAMIU.

“I believe my first semester here was in 2003, photography class was the first” she said. “I was looking for a teaching job but my only experience was as grad student I was a teaching assistant for some film analysis, film history graduate courses and then I thought my own 16mm courses” they just needed a photo professor at TAMIU looking for someone that knew the technology and skills but could also understand art and teach it to others.  The class was intended for the areas of arts and communication. After her first year at the university, she came across the opportunity of creating a production course which the institution was missing; this represented a great opportunity not only for Moran, but also for all those students that during their professional lives were going to come across cameras and film, it was a chance to help them understand the process and not keep them from driving blind towards their careers. Making usage of her preparation on cinema and motion picture, Moran developed a course that was production but using digital filmmaking.

Without stopping there, Moran and the university developed a Media Production track. During this period, Moran was still a part time professor. However her drive and passion were more important that the title she carried. The Media Production track consisted of 18 hours of photo, video and media writing courses.

An opportunity to join as a full time professor with a communication program; during this period, Moran was being shared between the Art department and the Communication department. “The position was for media production which I had developed anyway so I landed a position” she says. This position would become a ten year track a year after she acquired it. “I have to say I am still being shared, now not only by Communications and Art but also by English and Literature with a Film and Literature course” she added. This way, Moran, having a specialized track, has the liberty of teaching in various areas of specialization without getting out of her main focus. “It is nice because I get to change the routine of things and meet students from different areas, so it is a nice change” She says.

During her student years, Moran assisted University of Texas (UT) in Austin where she joined the college of Communication to prepare herself on Radio, Television and Film. Then she pursued her terminal degree or Master in Fine Arts (MFA) at Ohio University with a concentration in Film “when you get you MFA you have to choose between Film, Painting, Drawing, Screen writing, etc.” she explained.

After all these ten years of career with TAMIU, Moran shares with us that recently she was awarded as Professor of the year under the department of Communications. This is the first time that she gets recognized for her teaching but not the first time being awarded in general. However, she doesn't consider this her most rewarding experience with TAMIU, “Teaching in general is rewarding. When you teach and you get the information across, and your students produce work that is of the caliber that can compete with other universities and other students from different places; that is even more rewarding, because that is proof that you are being successful and an effective teacher” she says. “Knowing that my students can compete nationally and internationally is even more rewarding” she added.

Moran is not only highly involved with her students and the school, but also with the community. She has collaborated with Literacy Volunteers of Laredo with service learning, giving her Film and Literature class students the opportunity of getting involved with the project by developing a short documentary focusing on the different places in Laredo where people are trying to make a difference by helping those who can't read or write to get better at it.

We asked Moran to share a piece of advice for all the students out there, whether they are at TAMIU or any other school. “The advice that was given to me was Do what you like.  I was always told choose something that you really like because you are going to do it for the rest of your life and if you like it, you will put all of your time and effort into it and you will be a happy person. Despite of all the hard work it takes because you actually like it” she said “I can tell you as an adult, I have seen many adults that aren't doing what they like, and even though they are making good money, they are miserable. I make a good living and I am doing what I like” she concluded.

With a rapidly changing industry as photography and film is, Moran has been able to stay tuned by teaching her students the basic foundation of these areas while keeping herself updated on the changes that technology has brought up on the concentrations. “Before TV people and Film people where very apart from each other, but today you can see that both industries are merging together” She said. “I find it a benefit for both students and professors” She added. As for her future, Moran is peripherally involved with plans of expanding the Media Production track to get the funds to get an actual Television studio that students can use. “The plan is that KLRN, which is the PBS station in San Antonio, they want to sort of partner with TAMIU to have production in Laredo, to air art and culture. I can't tell you exactly what they would air but they do want to have Laredo represented at KLRN and they want to do something with us as well as have the students benefit from that partnership” She commented “They are currently on the fundraising process to build a studio and to be able to grow the Media Production track into broadcast” she concluded.

To learn more about Moran, visit her website www.marcelamoran.com

(Alejandro Meza may be reached at jalexmeza9@gmail.com)

Photo Courtesy

Aspire to Inspire

From her humble beginnings at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), passing by The Post in New York and MTV.com, all the way to Laredo, TX, appears a hard working reporter that has proven that we do not need years of training or experience to excel in our professional life. Elizabeth Keatinge is a young reporter at KGNS-Laredo who has come a long way to be where she is at. She was born in LA and grew up to study English Literature at UCLA. However, her dream was to become a great reporter. One of her main inspiration to chase this dream was her grandmother, Mrs. Keatinge, who was a journalist. She warned Elizabeth that if money was what she was looking for, she was not going to find it in the news world. Nonetheless, this did not frustrate her aspirations since she was well aware that newspapers and television news was what her heart strived for.

Back in UCLA, she learned that if she wanted to pursue her dream she would soon have to leave home and move to a city where the opportunities would take her farther. That is when she decided to move to New York and chase her dreams. She began to work at The New York Post, an entertainment newspaper in NY City, where she covered mainly soft stories. However, that was not enough. She acquired a job at MTV.com where she wrote about music and films. It was through this experience that she got her first exposure to the usage of video production equipment. She also decided to increase her academic preparation and enroll at Georgetown University, where she would get a master’s degree in Journalism. After four or five years of working hard at The Post and mtv.com, Elizabeth decided that it was time for something different.

With little to none experience over Border City matters, Keatinge was hired in Laredo, TX where she learned that the culture was not the only factor she needed to get acquainted with, she needed to learn how to speak Spanish; but this would not stop her, “If something scares you, you should try it” she said. However, the struggle was not over for Keatinge, the position that she had gotten at KGNS Laredo was not only as a reporter, but also as the “cameraman”, who is in charge of filming the story as well as doing edits on it, and prepares it for every show, for her own stories.  She soon learned that having control over the images and the story gives the reporter the full power of creating a story according to how she imagines it should be seen. However, not everything was great news for her; she began to realize that this kind of career can get really stressful at times.

Keatinge gives us a little heads up about what other factors that young reporters should look out for in order to get great and informative stories. “The one and most important of them is that preparation is key” She said. For instance, to always know where to look and under what rock to dig in order to find good stories. She says that “little facts can spawn a whole story” and that is “always good to be in the lookout for those details”. One of the greatest things that Keatinge has learned is that it is “a great honor to have people share their lives and stories with her”. Her advice to journalists in border cities is that they should be aware of the language barriers and try their best to prepare to be at least 80% fluent in Spanish, and that’s just to be competitive.  

Some of Keatinge´s favorite topics are Small Businesses, the Farmers Market and humanitarian and social events at TAMIU. Finally, Keatinge gives us a reminder that even when hard, competition is healthy. As for her, even when she values every experience she has had, “she would never plan ahead” she says, meaning she enjoys every job she gets and hopes to keep it as long as she is needed to. However, she does have aspirations to get farther. Specifically, she would like to cover war stories, work overseas, and basically any story that involves traveling and getting international exposure.

Her visit to TAMIU has helped students in the Communication Department to better understand the professional environment for what they are preparing for. This makes the experience more valuable for those who are interested in pursuing a journalism career in Laredo or any other Border city. More information about Keatinge and other reporters in Laredo can be found at www.pro8news.com or at the KGNS offices located in Del Mar Boulevard.

Beats and Pieces