Mississippi College Department of Communication dedicates new student media center, honors distinguished alumni during Homecoming weekend

Dr. Beth Baker-Janser, center, visits with Mississippi College Department of Communication students Cole Benoit, agency director of Big River Strategies, and Emma Ellard, Blue and Gold Media editor-in-chief.

Mississippi College’s Department of Communication dedicated its newest amenity, the Baker-Janser Student Media Center, as part of 2024 Homecoming activities on Oct. 25-26.

The support of Dr. Beth Baker-Janser ‘85 and her husband, Kevin Janser, made the creation of this new amenity possible. “Students can now make connections with clients and further develop their communication skills in that space, and knowing that our support will help them in their academic, professional, and spiritual lives is especially rewarding to us,” stated Dr. Janser.

“The gift from Dr. Beth Baker-Janser and her husband, Kevin, was essential to the creation of our new student media center,” said Reid Vance, department chair. “We have many other alumni making a difference in their communities and giving back to our department, and we are grateful for them all.”

In addition to their giving to the media suite, the couple has also established an endowed scholarship at Mississippi College.

The dedication followed the department’s annual Distinguished Alumni reception. Micheal Walley ‘14 was honored as the Distinguished Young Alumnus alongside Dr. Dylan McLemore ’08, ‘10, the recipient of the Cliff Fortenberry Distinguished Alumnus award.

Walley currently works as a team leader for Live Creative for camps and events at Lifeway Christian Resources in Nashville, Tennessee. He leads in developing, writing, and producing live-stage content for Lifeway camps, including CentriKid, Fuge, and Student Life, that serve more than 120,000 young people from churches across the nation. As part of his work, Walley has served as the emcee and host of Lifeway’s company-wide biannual conference.

He spoke at the Homecoming event about the years that have passed since he graduated from MC in 2014, emphasizing the Department of Communication's essential role in shaping his career. Walley said that his degree allowed God to lead him to incredible opportunities throughout his career.

“Find the intersection of where your skills and passions intersect, then find someone to pay you for it,” Walley said.

He noted that God has gifted him with that intersection in his current job, where every day is different and where he gets to apply his degree to do what he loves.

McLemore is an associate professor of sports media in the School of Media and Strategic Communications at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. He is a public scholar focusing on media law, innovation, and impact for news outlets in the U.S. and around the world. Before arriving at Oklahoma State, he taught at the University of Central Arkansas.

His passion for sportscasting, which began at MC, has led him to work as a play-by-play announcer for ESPN+, calling college football, basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, and soccer. His game calls have aired on ESPN SportsCenter. He was a 2023 finalist for the Golden Mic Award, which recognizes the top college softball broadcasters in America.

McLemore spoke to current MC students about balance in professional life. He noted that every professional should have a strong support system and charged the students to not sacrifice their desire for family in pursuit of a career but to nurture both.

MC’s Department of Communication is focused on preparing students to be successful communicators with their words, skills, and lives.

“Our alumni are an invaluable resource in helping our students succeed,” Vance said. “Having Micheal and Dylan on campus gave our students a chance to hear from professionals with much wisdom to share.”