Senior communication studies major, Rachel Morrell, is hard at work finishing her honors thesis project. Her project involves studying the Anti-Vietnam War movement at Kent State University and it’s analogy to early Christianity. Morrell’s examination of the movement involves the Guilt-Redemption Cycle by Kenneth Burke as well as the Theory of Collective Behavior by Neil Smelser.
In addition to her major, Morrell is also pursuing a minor in public communication.
Morrell is passionate about rhetorical analysis, culture, Kent State University, politics, history and above all, her faith.
“This project has given me the opportunity to marry all those things together in an academic way” Morrell adds, “It’s pretty exciting.”
Certain communication classes influenced Morrell’s curiosity during the early stages of her thesis work, these classes included: Intercultural Communication; Communication and Terrorism; Gender and Communication; and Public Communication in Society. The Criticism of Public Discourse class introduced Morrell to Kenneth Burke's work and got her hooked on rhetoric. Media, War, and Propaganda and Freedom of Speech classes both had a strong influence on choosing a topic.
Morrell is currently a student ambassador for the College of Communication and Information and the student recruitment representative for the School of Communication Studies. She is a student in the honors college as well as works on campus as a supplemental instruction leader for Human Biology.
After graduation Morrell plans to attend graduate school to study rhetoric and eventually become a professor.