Dr. Kristina Drumheller, professor of communication studies, has become the new department head of  communication. For clarity to those reading, the department of communication has two undergraduate programs: Media Communication and Communication studies. The two departments are different, but they are under the same umbrella. The structure is that of the study of the transference of information.

West Texas A&M University is always happy to have new department heads, as it adds some exciting news, especially at the beginning of a new academic year. To start off, some general information about what being a department head at a university is like will be useful.

According to an article by Times Higher Education, being a department head comes with multiple responsibilities. Of course, the number of responsibilities also depends on the class size. Here are some sources from university professors from other colleges talking about their experiences.

“Being a head of department is nerve-wracking and – despite the teaching relief – time consuming,” said Lennard J. Davis, Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago as quoted by Times Higher Education.

Now, not everyone will share the same point of view, and there are examples of more positive spins on being a director of an academic department. According to US News Report, “Chairs can lean on an instructor in their department.”

This is a very accurate depiction of what it is like to be a department head. A department head is not all on their own, and they are able to cooperate with the rest of the faculty to ensure that everything is running as it should.

Now, onto the interview with Drumheller, the new department head of communication.

Drumheller has been a part of WTAMU since 2006. She has been active in the WTAMU community working with Buff Allies, teaching, doing research and at one point, she was even the head of the department of history.

Being the new department head of communication comes with some exciting new prospects.

“You continue teaching and research. But it does get scaled back a little bit.” Drumheller said. “So, I won’t teach as many classes, and I do have to think about the number of research studies I will take on.”

As with many different projects, taking on new responsibilities creates less time for the things that you are used to doing. For Drumheller, this is teaching. What was also interesting was how she managed her balance of work and life.

“I have been committed to finding days where I am going to keep exercising,” Drumheller said. This is one of the ways that Drumheller helps keep her work and life balance together, making sure that her overall well-being is where it needs to be.

Drumheller is absolutely ready to do an amazing job.

“There are some learning curves, I have already talked to Randy Ray, and I need to learn about the radio,” Drumheller said.

Media Communication and Communication studies students should all be excited that they have a new department head that is ready to take the time to make both divisions of communications go from success to success.