New Fall MCIS Students
Some of Our More Senior Students
Student Projects
- Project at Knowledge Institute
Jessica Castles
Jessica graduated Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Rutgers University in 2008, after receiving degrees in both English and Communication. Shortly after graduation, she began working as a Communication Specialist with Legends Hospitality, LLC, the food, beverage and merchandise provider for the Yankees’ and Cowboys’ new stadiums, and has been working there for over a year. Looking to further her career path as quickly as possible, and with a familiarity with the Communication Department at Rutgers, Jessica decided to apply to the MCIS program in February, and was accepted shortly thereafter.
With the goal of gaining more knowledge of communication as it pertains to the corporate world, Jessica is looking to focus on corporate communication and public relations while studying for her Master’s degree. She hopes that she will thrive in a high-level corporate communication setting in the near future, and that the MCIS program will give her the tools to do so.
Jessica also plays semi-professional beach volleyball on the Jersey shore. She can be found playing in tournaments anywhere from Point Pleasant to Seaside Heights to Atlantic City on any given Saturday between the first week in May and the last week in September. She is extremely passionate about the sport and brings this passion to her work, both in the office and the classroom.
Jayme Klein 
Jayme is a graduate of Drew University, where she majored in English with minors in Non-Fiction Writing and the Humanities. While a student, she was an Assistant Editor for the student newspaper, an Editor for the literary magazine, and a Student Assistant for the Women’s Studies Department.
She is currently the Prospect Management Associate at the Rutgers University Foundation in New Brunswick. Previously, she was involved in academic non-profit work in the Princeton area as well as freelance editorial work for magazines. She was drawn to the MCIS program for the variety of courses and small class sizes, as well as the concentration in Media Studies. In her spare time, she reads voraciously, listens to music enthusiastically, and drinks copious amounts of coffee with friends.
Evangelia Papamarkou
Evangelia joined Bank of America in 2007, as the Marketing Specialist serving all of New Jersey. As Market Specialist, she assists with a variety of aspects in the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility division, including the philanthropic, marketing and community relations programs delivered locally throughout New Jersey. Prior to Bank of America, Evangelia served in various sales and marketing positions with the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) in Edison, NJ. As the Associate Commissioner for Marketing and Sales, she oversaw all marketing operations for the conference, including the corporate partnership program, special marketing initiatives and the regional television package.
Evangelia graduated from Providence College with a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics/Finance. She is an avid sports fan and held several internships with local New England sports teams while an undergrad, in addition to working in the Athletic Communications department. Other interests include domestic and international travel. She is also an active volunteer with several non-profit agencies in Monmouth County, including Mercy Center & Sister's Academy, a small all-girls school serving high potential youths in Asbury Park, NJ.
Lora Appel 
Lora was born in Israel to eastern European parents. At the age of three, her family moved to Canada.
Lora graduated with an International Bachelor of Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business at York University in Toronto. As a requirement for her degree she studied a term at the ESADE School of Business in Barcelona. She received the Dean’s Motivation Award at her graduation.
Even before graduation, Lora was hired as a Sales Manager for Kraft Canada. There she managed the highest grossing territory in the province of Ontario. Her responsibilities included communicating with twenty clients in the food industry and managing a team of merchandisers. Lora was chosen to be a young spokesman for Kraft at their annual team conference.
Lora furthered her studies earning a postgraduate certificate in Corporate Communication at Seneca College@York University and its partner university in Ghent, Belgium. During the term in Toronto, she completed an internship in communications with the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants where she organized the Annual Corporate Reporting Awards. During the term in Belgium she helped plan and organize a 2-week International Pediatric Rehabilitation conference in association with the Universitair Ziekenhuis Ghent Hospital. Lora's exceptional results facilitated her admission to the Rutgers MCIS program.
Lora has chosen the MCIS program at Rutgers for its academic excellence. She intends to advance her career in communications in the health industry, and is interested in the possibility of pursuing a PhD.
Lora’s other accomplishments include starting and successfully running her own Business, CardAmigos. She also helped organize the Toronto Math high-school competition and the Toronto Piano Teachers Concerts.
Lora speaks French and Spanish and enjoys learning new languages and gaining more knowledge about different cultures. Lora studied at the National Ballet School of Canada for six years and continues to have a great passion for dance. In her free time, she also enjoys playing cello and painting.
Kevin Bijas
Kevin Bijas is currently a Rutgers University CSR Fellow at Ortho-McNeil Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a division of Johnson & Johnson. In this role, Kevin works in the corporate contributions and community affairs department and focuses primarily on product donations, expanding employee volunteerism, and internal communications.
Prior to this, Kevin spent two years as a headhunter at executive search firm, Daversa Partners based in San Francisco. There Kevin recruited VP and C-level executives for a variety of venture-backed companies in the high technology sector. He placed executives at companies including Pure Digital, makers of the Flip Video camcorder and Zynga, the leading online, social gaming company.
Kevin holds a B.A. in Communication with high honors from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. He is currently pursuing his MCIS Degree through the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers and will be completing his coursework in the Fall 2010 semester. Kevin has a keen interest in the complexities of communicating in global corporations and will focus his studies on organizational and leadership communication.
Lindsey Hanlon 
Lindsey is a graduate of the University of Miami, FL, where she double majored in Advertising and Economics. Lindsey's academic accomplishments include being named 2006 National Finalists in the National Student Advertising Competition, held in San Francsico, CA, and acting as the President of Ad2 Miami, a local advertising association geared towards teaching students and young professionals the desired skills in order to have a successful advertising career.
Currently, Lindsey is the Executive Regional Director for AMG Worldwide, a global, integrated marketing and communications firm based out of Miami, FL. She is the Regional Director for the NYC office and is directly involved in marketing and media plans for numerous luxury clients, including Trump Toronto and Trump Ocean Club (Panama).
Lindsey's long term goal is to teach on the college level. When Lindsey is not working, you can find her at the gym. Up until February, she was a Certified Personal Trainer and helped people to achieve their fitness goals. Now, she focuses on her own fitness and strength goals.
Cassandra Oliver 
Cassandra holds a BA in Communication, Art and Science, with a minor in business, from Penn State University.
Presently, Cassandra is employed at Frazier Industrial in the Marketing department, where her responsibilities include creating and maintaining a new customer database system.
Cassandra loves the beach, and hopes to pursue her Ph.D. and teach at the college level.
Matthieu Hertilus
Matthieu received his BA in Communication from Rutgers University, where he often made the Dean’s List.
Matthieu has worked numerous jobs within the health and fitness field, such as personal trainer and head trainer, and is also a writer for the on-line publications T-Nation & EliteFTS.
In his spare time, Matthieu loves to write about fitness and exercise.
Richard Dzioba 
Richard holds a BA in Communication, with a minor in psychology, from Rutgers University. Richard has been inducted into Lambda Pi Eta, Delta Epsilon Iota, and Phi Theta Kappa.
Richard has been employed as a Fitness Supervisor at Inman Sports Club Inc, and was a Marketing Communications Intern at ICIMS Inc.
Richard’s interests include fitness, sports, music, and the outdoors.
Laura Schneebacher 
Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Media Studies from Rutgers University. Laura’s professional accomplishments include published articles in The Daily Targum, holding a managerial position in the production department of RU-tv and interning at My9 News and mtvU in the investigative reporting and production departments.
Laura has had an exciting summer, which included backpacking through Europe.
Jacob Lepairz 
Jacob completed his undergraduate degree at Livingston College in psychology, where he received both college and departmental honors, and completed an honors thesis.
Jacob has worked as the Hunger and Homelessness Coordinator for New Jersey Public Interest Research Group, as well as interning at UMDNJ as a research assistant. Currently, Jacob is employed as the Banquet manager at the Palace, a catering hall in Somerset, New Jersey.
Jacob hopes to eventually work for NGOs specializing in human rights. Interestingly, Jacob works as a freelance stilt walker and magician, although he admits to being better at impressing five year olds than adults.
Christina Hreshko 
Christina majored in Communication Studies at The College of New Jersey, with a specialization in Public and Mass Communication, and a minor in Professional Writing.
Christina, a member of both Lambda Pi Eta and Phi Kappa Phi, excelled in event planning while at TCNJ, and was responsible for planning both the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross Mercer Cup event, and The Festival of the Arts.
Christina has been involved in television production, contributing to a student-produced news show through news, writing, and on-air reporting. She also has five years of sales experience, and has been a store manager for two years.
Alicia Silver 
Alicia was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and spent the last five years in Toronto, ON while attaining an Honors Bachelor of Arts in English and Women Studies. Subsequently, Alicia received a college certificate from Seneca College in Public Relations and Corporate Communication.
Alicia has been employed as the Event & Accreditation Assistant for WorldSkills Calgary, a Communications and Strategic Planning intern for Canadian Hadassah WIZO, and as a competitive synchronized swimming coach for girls aged 10-16.
Eager to expand her theoretical knowledge of Corporate Communication and to study in the US, Alicia enjoys being active in her spare time. Previously, Alicia was a nationally competitive synchronized swimmer and water polo player, currently is a certified spin instructor, and loves to read.
Rhaman Johnson 
Rhaman was born and raised in NJ, not far from Rutgers University. Rhaman received his BS in Accounting from North Carolina A&T, located in Greensboro, NC, in 1999.
Currently, Rhaman spends his days working for Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula (D, District 17), and trains amateur boxers at night.
Rhaman enjoys working out, keeping up with current events via the internet, and trying to rest, when his schedule allows. Rhaman is looking forward to getting back into the classroom, a place he has not been for over ten years.
Jennifer Grimm
After year and a half in the workforce, 23-year-old Jennifer Grimm returned to the classroom to join the MCIS program at Rutgers University.
Grimm graduated from Rutgers in January 2007 with a degree in Linguistics and Psychology. She went on to become Administrative Assistant in the School of Arts and Sciences Scholarship Office at Rutgers, and now serves as Senior Administrative Assistant to the Dean of Rutgers College.
Grimm always wanted to pursue a master’s degree but was not sure which field to study. Grimm had taken only one communication course as an undergraduate and really liked it. After researching the MCIS program at Rutgers, she decided it was a good fit for her.
“When I was looking at graduate programs I decided on communication because it applies to so many fields and is useful for almost anything,” said Grimm. “I also like that there are so many electives offered that you can easily tailor the program to suit your own interests.”
Fall 2008 was Grimm’s first semester in the MCIS program. So far she has taken Communication Research; Communication and Society: Corporate Social Responsibility; and Media Studies: Theory and Practice. Her favorite of these is Corporate Social Responsibility.
“In the CSR class we worked in groups to analyze what corporations are doing to combat climate change,” reported Grimm. “That was a really interesting project.”
Grimm says what attracted her to the MCIS program the most were the faculty.
“Because Rutgers is a big research university, most of the professors have done extensive research in the fields that they teach, which is a huge help in the classroom.” said Grimm. “Then there are other professors who have another career related to communication, which brings another very interesting point of view.”
Although she does not know what she wants to pursue after completing the MCIS program, she knows she has plenty of time to decide .
“I really like the people here,” Grimm stated. “Both the professors and the students are all so helpful and friendly.”
Grimm highly recommends the MCIS program because of the curriculum’s relativity to the real world. However, she does caution, “Go to graduate school if and when you really want to; you'll get much more out of it if you want to be there.”
By Shereen Hassanein
Steven Shie
With a journalism degree from Peking University in China and invaluable internship experience at CNN’s Beijing Bureau, Steven Shie obtained the academic and professional competence to take him anywhere in the world.
In fall 2008, Shie found himself in New Jersey to become a part of Rutgers University’s MCIS program and an integral member of the Johnson and Johnson Fellowship Program that is offered to a few qualified MCIS students. 
How did he get from China to the Banks? A visit from Dr. James E. Katz, chair of the Rutgers Department of Communication and director of the Center for Mobile Communication Studies, played a major role in Shie’s international journey.
“I knew Dr. Katz when he visited my college,” Shie said. “I was inspired by his speech there and was very interested in his studies on mobile communication. I then did some research about Rutgers and its Master of Communication program.”
Upon acceptance into the MCIS program, Shie learned that he was eligible for the Johnson and Johnson fellowship program. Excited by the opportunity, Shie applied and was accepted there as well. His admittance into the fellowship solidified Shie’s decision to come to Rutgers.
“I finally got the fellowship and decided to come,” Shie said. “One thing I can be pretty sure of is that the fellowship will have a huge influence on my future career.”
Shie currently works for Johnson and Johnson’s Corporate Communications’ Contribution Team. He puts his journalism experience to work as he writes corporate social responsibility stories for the company’s internal newsletters. Shie is also involved with external communication in his public relations work for the company.
For Shie, the interaction between the Johnson and Johnson fellows and their superiors has been something very recognizable.
“I directly work with the director of corporate communication, Mr. Shaun Mickus,” Shie said. “He is a great person, and I just feel he is like my mentor there. He answers all my questions, encourages me to take more responsibilities, and shares many of his very insightful ideas with me as well as the team.”
With such high ambitions, Shie has a very bright future indeed.
“I’m still trying to figure out what I want to do in the future, but I'm interested in both academics and business,” Shie said. “Applying for a Ph.D program or going into the business world are both my options.”
By Mike Plunkett
Jon McCue
For Scarlet Knights baseball standout Jon McCue, MCIS was an obvious choice for continuing his education.
"I came to the MCIS program because of baseball," Jon said. "Let me explain: I was, and still am, a member of the Rutgers baseball team. I graduated from Rutgers as an undergrad a semester early. Plus, because of an injury, I still had two full seasons of baseball eligibility left at the time. I looked into pursuing graduate work so I could continue to chase my dream of being a ballplayer. I’m very glad I did."
Prior to being injured, McCue had many standout performances. In 2008 he started and recorded the win of the game against NJIT. He struck out six Highlanders that game. McCue was also a part of the Big East Championship team in 2007.
McCue brought several accolades with him upon entering the MCIS program mid-year, including the 2007-08 Big East/Aeropostale Institutional Male Scholar-Athlete Award.
Because the classroom standout entered mid-year, he depended a lot upon the good counsel of the MCIS program staff.
"The staff was extremely helpful with the transition," McCue added.
He recalls his first experiences with the program: “The small classes provided a comfortable atmosphere, and I found there was a pleasant sense of camaraderie and respect that both the students and instructors feel.”
Now that he’s no longer an MCIS “rookie,” McCue said he appreciates the variety of course offerings and the timeliness of the material taught in those courses. He found it particularly interesting to learn about coded email communication and mobile phone technology. He also enjoyed increasing pressures put on corporations to act responsibly.
"I feel like I'm on the cutting edge of the information age when I take classes here,” said McCue. “What makes this program stand out to me is how up-to-date and practical it is. I learn things here that actually apply to the real world. Many other areas of graduate study deal primarily in theory. Everyone needs to be good at communication. Here, we excel at it."
His favorite class was a leadership course he took from Professor Brent Ruben during his first semester. McCue was one of four students in the class, which made it possible to link their projects to their interests. He appreciated the fact that he wasn't treated like a subordinate.
"Dr. Ruben made me feel like an equal rather than just a student,” noted McCue. “I learned a tremendous amount about what true leadership is in that class."
Add his enthusiasm for learning to his passion for baseball and McCue has the recipe for success. He says he is still chasing his dream of being a professional baseball player. However, he would also like to be a sports information director at a sports franchise or university.
“I think I would be happy to go to work every morning," he said.
By Sarah Kalka
Project at Knowledge Institute
Knowledge is created and shared when information is communicated. In today’s networked world it is vital that we understand both the theory and the practice of managing knowledge. In recognition of this dynamic, SCI founded the Knowledge Institute (KI) in 2008. The KI’s vision is to be one of the world’s leading university based resources for the KM research community.
We unite people who share an interest in understanding knowledge management’s role in the transformation of work and society in the Digital Age. We do this by facilitating individual and organizational learning about knowledge processes and their application through professional development programs, publication of research findings, and through presentations at meetings and conferences. With a rapidly growing membership the KI provides SCI students with the opportunity to engage with internationally known scholars, SCI professors, KM subject matter experts and business leaders in conversation about knowledge management and active collaboration in conducing knowledge management research.
SCI students are involved in testing new KM theories, validating cause and effect, helping organizations establish KM benchmarks and providing educational resources to the academic community. SCI students involved with the KI gain valuable hands-on experience in knowledge management practices and technologies by participating in a variety of projects including:
The design, management and administration of the KI web portal. The KI website is an interactive portal that provides access to KM research, news, events and educational resources.
Publication of an edited book of original KM student research. This year we will be including papers from the MCIS and MLIS Graduate students as well as the PhD students.
Graduate students in KM are developing a KI SharePoint site to manage research content and resources.
Planning and facilitating KI events, meetings, Knowledge Cafes, and the KM in Action lecture series.
The 2009 – 2010 year is shaping up to be an exciting one for the KI community as we expect to initiate several important research endeavors, continue to build value in our web portal and launch our symposia series. Membership in the KI is open to all Rutgers students and faculty.
By Connie Pascal
