"Relax, rest, and give thought to your life." At a time when it's hard to see past the midterms that stand in the way of spring break, these words are just what Boston College students need to hear. They come from a woman who can relate to the uncertainty of being a young college student. She is Dr. Lisa Cuklanz - chair of the communication department and professor of Gender Roles and Communication - and she has found success and happiness.
She completed her undergraduate study at Duke University where she majored in computer science and French. Upon graduating, she felt drawn toward a career in public interest law, and looked forward to law school. She was accepted at such schools as Duke, Michigan, University of Iowa, and the University of Pennsylvania. With grandparents and extended family in Iowa and Minnesota, she decided to take a deferral from Iowa in order to have the time to settle some personal reservations about the next big step in pursuit of a career.
"I asked around and met many others who also went to law school intending to get involved with public interest law. But, they had gotten channeled into accepting high-paying corporate jobs to make ends meet. I didn't want that," she says.
She sought out the help of an advisor, a film studies professor, who sparked her interest in the field of communication. From that meeting, she went on to attain her masters and doctorate in communication from the University of Iowa. The rest was uphill.
In terms of her research, Cuklanz has always let her fascinations dictate her focus. She recalled her women's studies certification from Duke and began analyzing news coverage of rape trials. She wrote two books published by the University of Pennsylvania Press. Her most recent book, titled Rape on Prime Time, "is about sexual assault, masculinity, and detective dramas." Perhaps, that background provides the natural segue into her current project, a book focused solely on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.
"I have been working on SVU with my co-author Sujata Moorti, chair of women's studies at Middlebury College, for several years. We have published an article on the show in Critical Studies in Media Communication (October 2006). We originally started working on the show because it is an entire primetime drama series ostensibly devoted to sexual violence."
As she sits back in her chair, she exudes the peaceful calm of someone who is satisfied with what she has accomplished. Her easy smile says that she is content with where she is in life. Since arriving at BC in 1991, she has always had her hands full. She started out teaching the rhetoric classes in the communication department. With a chuckle, she recalls when her "large classes constituted of 50 kids, not anything like it is now." She is referring to, for example, Bonnie Jefferson's Rhetorical Tradition class that fills nearly every seat of Devlin 008.
Despite the changes, BC has had one constant. "BC students are the University's asset. They've always been outgoing and bright, but as the academic quality has improved and the numbers climbed, the student body still is still as outgoing and friendly, which I appreciate."
Cuklanz heads what is currently the largest-enrolled major in the college of Arts and Sciences. She says, "Our highest growth period was between '96 and '02, and we've leveled off right around 1,000 each semester. It's really part of a national trend … [The growth] is due to developments in new media, importance in daily life, the realization that the media is more obviously important."
With more students comes more responsibility. She lists the requirements of her position as department chair with apparent enthusiasm. What is the best part of her job? "The department selects their own colleagues which is a wonderful way of approaching professional life. We're able to build a friendly department that carries over into our interactions with students. We've got a good thing going," she says.
Beyond her life on the Heights, Cuklanz resides in Arlington, Mass. with her partner and 7-year-old son. She is originally from Burlington, Vt., and professes that New England will always be her home. Nowadays, she plays tennis for enjoyment and reveals that she actually used to play for Duke.
From exploring computer science and French to women's studies and communication, Cuklanz has done her fair share of branching out - she credits this to finding her niche among the life's myriad offerings.
To BC students she says, "Keep an open mind if you haven't found what you're interested in. Don't feel pressured to find that specific salary job right off the bat. Collect opinions, and take it from me; I once took a year off and worked as a secretary in a law office." In other words, look past this week's stack of books and you too will "have a good thing going."
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