Department merging: Help or harm?

LEXIE THAYER
GRAPHIC DESIGNER

JAMIE DIEDRICH
STAFF WRITER

1/26/2026

A proposed merger of the Communication Department and English Department is possible for 2026. The proposed new program, English Communication and Language, will house both an English and Communication Major option.

“I think students will see that the new requirements are not strikingly different than the old ones. We kept it open so that English majors can get a degree in ECL – English, and a Communication Major could do the same for their major. It is an umbrella department. Moreover, for students who are currently going through the major programs, there will be very little impact on them. We will work very closely with them to make the process as easy as possible,” said Dr. Cicci, Chair of the Communication and English Departments.

In my opinion, as a communications major, the two majors are different enough that this change has an impact and is, at the very least, an adjustment. While I recognize this was not a choice on behalf of this institution, I still wish we had more options for the required course substitutions this merger has implemented so far, aside from just Critical Theory in place of Seminar in Communication Inquiry.

The new required course, Critical Theory, is much more text-focused than projects that prioritize interacting with other students, usually observing a poem or short story and discussing ways to interpret it. A poetry course requirement might also be useful, and this should have been sorted out before changes were implemented for students graduating after this semester.

“I’m not an English major, and there’s a big difference in the study of text and how it is presented. With communications, it’s a lot more research-based in terms of what’s happening in the real world, PR, stuff like that. With English courses, you’re looking at more books, specific books, famous writings, poetry, short stories, stuff that makes you think about philosophy, compared to maybe more of just like your daily current events,” said Owen Blackport (‘26), a communications major affected by this change.

“It’s going to be a lot of paper writing, which I’m fine with. At the end of the day, it’ll be alright. I just wish I had that opportunity to continue that public speaking aspect because I feel like I always want to get better at public speaking. I mean, it is my degree; I’m here to get better at it,” said Blackport.

I began to suspect that part of the reason this merger happened wasn’t out of choice, but due to having only two individuals in the communications department. There is one professor and the department head, whereas English has quite a few.

“We saw in both departments a way forward to better serve the students. And, yes, in COM, one of those struggles we had was providing students with regular, stable faculty. This merger addresses that concern directly,” said Cicci.

This change is a win for the more introverted students, as this course requires less public speaking, something I tried to avoid doing in the courses I was required to take for my major. Having said that, I also took poetry on my own, so courses like Critical Theory may be more difficult for the new students going in blind.

“I can definitely tell that the people who are in this English class who have had classes with this English professor before are very well prepared (for the course material). I can tell they’re well prepared, and they understand the content that’s being placed in front of them, and the discussions they’re having are good. And I’m trying to add the discussions the best I can,” said Blackport.