TAMARA GILLIS, Ed.D., ABC

Associate Professor of Communications
Elizabethtown College
Office: (717) 361-1386

(This is an abridged document. For a full CV contact Dr. Tamara Gillis.)

Employment History:
The immediate past chairman of the Department of Communications, I've been a member of the faculty at Elizabethtown College since 1994. I served as chairman of the department from 2001 to 2006. I advise the student IABC chapter. I teach courses in public relations, organizational communication, journalism, and communication research.

Since working at Elizabethtown College, I have had the opportunity to serve as faculty in Swaziland, Namibia, and the Semester at Sea international educational exchange program. Research projects have led me to Namibia, Ecuador, Russia, Swaziland, and a number of other countries. My research in change management has included work with the CAO of the U.S. House of Representatives, private schools and county governments.

Prior to joining the faculty of Elizabethtown (Pa.) College, I taught communications courses in an adjunct capacity while serving as public relations director for organizations ranging from health care facilities to professional associations and colleges. My professional communication experience includes such titles as public relations director, communication consultant, staff writer and editor.

Education and Accreditation:
ABC, Accredited Business Communicator, IABC, December 1997

Ed.D., School of Education, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, 1997. Dissertation: "Change Agency and Public Relations Officers in Small Colleges and Universities."

M.S., Communications Studies, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA, 1988.

B.A., English, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, December 1983.

Current Professional Affiliations:
International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Research Foundation

• Member, Research Committee, IABC Research Foundation 2001-04, 2006-present
  
• Leader/Lead Judge, IABC Research Foundation Call for Papers Program 2002-03, 2003-04
  
• Member, IABC Research Foundation Think Tank 2002 & 2003
  
• Past Chairman of IABC Research Foundation, 2002-03
  
• Chairman of IABC Research Foundation, 2001-2002
  
• Vice Chairman of IABC Research Foundation, 2000-2001
  
• RFP Committee member, IABC Research Foundation, 2000-2003
  
• IABC Research Foundation Think Tank Chairperson, 1999-2000.
  
• Trustee of IABC (International) Foundation Board, 1998-99

• Accreditation Council, since 2005: ABC (Accredited Business Communicator) Accreditation Examiner, since 2005; Member Examination Development Task Force, 2007-2008.
  
• Contributing Editor, Communication World Magazine, March 2003 - June 2004
  
• Member, IABC Student Advisory Committee, 2002-03, 2003-04
  
• Member, 500 Club, since 2001
  
• Member, Program Advisory Committee to the 2002 IABC Conference
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Past Director, 1999-2000
  
• Member of IABC (International) Executive Board, 1998-99, 2001-2002
  
• Member of IABC (International) Executive Committee, 1998-99, 2001-2002
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Director, 1998-99
  
• Member of 1997 IABC (International) Chapter Mentor Corps
  
• Member of 1997 IABC (International) Organizational Effectiveness Team
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Winnerıs Circle Award Planning Committee, member 1997
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Deputy Director, 1997-98
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 1996 Conference Coordinator
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Assistant Director of Internal Operations, 1995-96
  
• IABC U.S. District 3 Chairman of Members-at-Large Activities, 1993-1995 & 1996-1997
  
• IABC/Harrisburg Chapter Vice President of Student Involvement - 1998
  
• IABC/Harrisburg Chapter National Delegate, District 3, 1990 - 1992
  
• IABC/Harrisburg Chapter Vice-President of Student Involvement - 1991 & 1992
  

• Judge, Small Programs Interest Group, GIFT (Great Ideas for Teachers) Program, 2006 AEJMC Annual Conference
  
• Reviewer, Visual Communication Division, 2007 AEJMC Annual Conference. Conference Logo Competition Reviewer, 2007, 2008.
  
• Reviewer, Newspapers Division, 2004, 2006 AEJMC Annual Conferences.
  
• Newsletter Editor, Small Programs Interest Group, 1998-2000.

International Communication Association, member since 1999.

• Reviewer, Public Relations Division, 2003-2007 ICA Annual Conferences
  
• Reviewer, Conference Theme Sessions, 2007 annual conference

Northeastern Popular Culture and American Culture Association, 2001-2002

Mechanicsburg Chamber of Commerce, since 2004

• Leadership roles: Vice President, 2007; President, 2008.
  
• Elected to Board of Directors, 2005.
  
• Member and volunteer since 2004.
  
• Foot Traffic Group (downtown merchants) volunteer since 2003

Gillis, T.L. & Donovan, D. (March, 2007). Ballroom to Boardroom: Interpersonal Communication and Interactive Performance Dimensions of Social Learning Environments, International Journal of the Arts in Society, Theme: Arts of Engagement.

Books and Book Chapters
Gillis, T.L. and Finney, J. (2008). Essentials of Employee Communication: Building relationships that create business success, San Francisco: IABC Knowledge Centre.

Gillis, T.L. (2008). Employee Communication Practices in Small Businesses, San Francisco: IABC Research Foundation.

Gillis, T.L. (2006). Instructor's Guide to "The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication," San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Gillis, T.L. (Ed.), (2006). The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication: A guide to internal communication, public relations, marketing and leadership, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Gillis, T.L. (2006). Internal Communications Media.In T.L. Gillis (Ed.) The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Conference Presentations (Refereed/Juried Acceptances)
Gillis, T.L. (August 9, 2007). "let's Play Ball" Best Practices in the Teaching of Ethics Panel, sponsored by the Elected Committee on Teaching, 2007 AEJMC Annual Conference, Washington, D.C. Second place award winning entry.

Gillis, T.L. (August 15-18, 2006). Public Art in Corporate Spaces: Enhancing Corporate Environments and Employee Engagement, accepted for presentation and publication in conference proceedings journal, 2006 International Conference on the Arts in Society: Arts of Engagement, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Gillis, T.L. & Donovan, D. (August 15-18, 2006). Ballroom to Boardroom: Interpersonal Communication and Interactive Performance Dimensions of Social Learning Environments, accepted for presentation and publication in conference proceedings journal, 2006 International Conference on the Arts in Society: Arts of Engagement, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Gillis, T.L. & Moore, R.C. (July 17-20, 2006). Managing Curriculum Development: Designing for Success, 2006 Association for the Study of Evaluation and Assessment in Southern Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Gillis, T.L. & Moore, R.C. (July 17-20, 2006). Using the Capstone Course as a Tool of Assessment in Achieving Curriculum Outcomes, 2006 Association for the Study of Evaluation and Assessment in Southern Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Invited/Guest Research Presentations
Gillis, T.L. (November 14, 2007)."Employee Communication in Small Businesses" and"All Companies Big and Small: Employee Communication Planning, Implementation and Measurement," IABC/Orlando Chapter meeting and fall workshop, respectively.

Gillis, T.L. & Donovan, D. (March 1, 2006). Faculty Forum (Wednesday at 11): "Ballroom to Boardroom: Applying Interpersonal Communication and Interactive Performance Dimensions to a Social Learning Environment."

Gillis, T.L. (April 6, 2005). "The Challenge of Change," Spring 2005 Faculty Forums, Elizabethtown College. This presentation reviewed a change management initiative for the U.S. House of Representatives for which I was a principal researcher.

Recent Service Presentations/Projects: (Please request a CV.)
Presenter, "Features Tell, Benefits Sell: Target Marketing to Women." A presentation to the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce Women in Business Program, July 19, 2007.

Participant/Mock Reporter, Three Mile Island/NRC/PEMA Graded Crisis Drill Exercise, Joint Public Information Center, Harrisburg, PA, April 17, 2007.

Presenter, Who Wants My Job? A panel presentation on jobs for future communicators, IABC Heritage Region 2006 Conference, co-presenters with Barbara Puffer, ABC, of Puffer PR Strategies, Guilford, Connecticut, and Pat Valdata of Cloudstreet Communications, Elkton, Maryland, Washington, D.C., October 9, 2006.

Volunteer, One-of-a-kind Art Auction, Habitat for Humanity, Harrisburg/Central PA Chapter, Zembo Shrine, Harrisburg, PA, March 4, 2006.

Roundtable Facilitator, Student Chapter Development, Leader Institute of IABC, Charlotte, NC, February 25, 2006.

Presenter, Student Chapter Development: The Young and the Restless, Leader Institute of IABC, co-presenter with Dan Dillon, Cerner Corporation of Kansas City, Charlotte, NC, February 24, 2006.

Recent Honors
Collaborative Interdisciplinary Scholarship Program Grant, Converged Media Site (Moving the Communications Capstone Experience to the Cutting Edge to Improve Student Performance and Opportunities for Advancement), 2007-08.

Exceptional Performance Award, Elizabethtown College, 2004, 2006.

2004 Foundation Lifetime Friend Award, IABC Research Foundation.

Measurement Maven for February, by K.D. Paine & Partners. The Measurement Standard, v. 1, n 12, February 27, 2003. Available online: http://www.themeasurementstandard.com.

Rex Mix Award for Programs of Excellence, National Communication Association, November, 2003.

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