“I think I always had a knack for that kind of stuff” said Heather McLaughlin, chair of the Comm Department at ONU. Born in Colorado Springs, McLaughlin has spent a lifetime working with multimedia.
In high school, she realized just how much she loved multimedia through various projects. Whether it be creating schedules and rosters for her volleyball team, a highlight video on a mission trip, or even fun little videos with a rented camera alongside her brother. During this time, she found her love for graphic design, videography, and for pulling different elements together to tell stories.
“Media was a part of our life to capture moments,” said McLaughlin. She recounts the times when her father would bring out an audio recorder to capture interviews with her and her brother on important days in their lives. McLaughlin’s roots are certainly planted within the realm of multimedia, but where did those roots take her?
McLaughlin attended college at MidAmerica Nazarene University. McLaughlin sat at an interesting point in multimedia history. She attended college just as nonlinear, or digital media, started to become more prevalent within the field. This lead her to being proficient with both linear and nonlinear editing. She recalls being trained in photography, videography, and other forms of multimedia which prepared her for the real world.
“The time I spent in college was really formidable to what I’m doing today and some of the passions I have today,” said McLaughlin.
One day, Dr. Mark Hamilton, a mentor of McLaughlin’s, told her that she should teach. He told her that he could see her desire to learn and pass it along to others. McLaughlin was taken aback by this at first, she never really saw herself as a teacher.
But, upon thinking about it, and considering the impact her father had on her as a professor, McLaughlin decided to give it a try. It is now a great passion for her.
“It was an idea that was sparked in me by my mentor, but then I really ran with it and enjoyed it,” said McLaughlin. She then started teaching as an adjunct at the age of 22 while getting her masters and eventually, her doctorate. In 2014, McLaughlin heard about an open position within the Olivet Communication Department and immediately applied for the job upon realizing that it was her dream job.
She started teaching video production classes and started working with professors like BPT, Jay Martinson, and eventually Josh Johnson and Brian Utter. In 2020, McLaughlin became the chair of the department. She is still a professor in classes like Nonlinear Editing and Corporate Video Production, but she is also the chair, or head, of the department. She ensures that the department stays accredited, advises students, helps create class schedules, and a lot of other administrative work.
“She’s very committed to her students,” said BPT, another professor in the Communication Department, in reference to Dr. McLaughlin.
“She runs the department very well and is always focused on finding a process to do things better,” BPT continued.
“My favorite thing about Olivet is the camaraderie, the community, my peers, the students, quality people, the resources… we have a lot of fun,” said McLaughlin. McLaughlin takes deep pride with the quality work that ONU produces. She deeply enjoys the collegiality of this environment and loves it dearly.
McLaughlin doesn’t just teach here in the States. She has also brought her gifts and talents abroad to places like Guatamala and Central Asia via media camp trips through the Communication Department.
“Traveling gives me the opportunity to realize that not everything runs the same. Just because something’s different doesn’t mean it’s bad.” – Heather McLaughlin
