Olivet Nazarene University has a diverse Communication department that offers students a chance to explore their interests, ranging from something specific like public relations to a more general communication studies degree. But one area draws students in for being just broad enough, yet tailored to the needs of a modern job market: multimedia communication. An interdisciplinary major, it does have a number of concentrations within it, but sometimes students opt just to take the more general route for their own reasons. It’s a decision that not only lets students have the freedom to find their own passions, but sets them up as a jack of all trades in a growing career field. Theodoros “Teddy” Vardaros and Hope Meadows are two of these students about to graduate from Olivet.
Theodoros “Teddy” Vardaros
Vardaros began Olivet in a major radically different than multimedia communication. Originally a biology major, he stuck through it until his sophomore year genetics class.
“No matter how hard I paid attention in that class, I could never like absorb the material that was being presented and I would fail every exam,” he said. “So I switched my major to environmental science, trying to stay in STEM. But I was sitting in the library one day looking at the classes for my next semester, and they all just looked like genetics.”
He knew then that he needed to make a change, and it was here that he rediscovered his passion for filmmaking.
“I was in the car with my dad and he asked, what do you want to do after college? I couldn’t answer. He didn’t understand what environmental science was, and I didn’t understand it either. So I said, what am I doing in this major?”
Having Professor Mark Bishop as one of his led to him finding out more about the Communication department, and once Teddy made the switch, he never looked back. During his time as a multimedia communication major, he’s worked on class projects and more personal ones, like “Where’s the Quad?”, a project that he was able to have Olivet President Dr. Gregg Chenoweth star in. He initially thought that getting Chenoweth to work with him might be too big an ask, but much to his surprise Chenoweth was more than happy to help.
“If you think something’s too ambitious, chances are it might be less ambitious than you think. You never know how easy a door can open, but it’s also important to make sure the door is unlocked to see if you can open it yourself.”
Hope Meadows
For Hope Meadows, photography has long been more than an interest. Having grown up in the Nazarene world and living close to Mount Vernon Nazarene University, she said attending there would have felt expected.
“Everyone would have known me, and I wanted something new. Coming to Olivet was something that was still safe, but able to give me my own college experience away from home.”
Her passion for photography began in high school, where she studied the subject in depth. By the end of high school had earned an associates degree in photography. Even with that strong background, she said she didn’t want to lock herself into only one path.
“I knew that was my passion, but if I studied it in college it would force me to go into that world. Multimedia gave me a chance to look at other mediums and explore what I want to do, and it provides more opportunities for careers after collage.”
That exploration came during one class she had Professor Bishop, who much like Vardaros had a hand in helping her discover her calling. It was here working on Tonight at Olivet, the school’s take on a show in the style of Jimmy Kimmel Live and other talk hosts, that she found something that she liked outside of photography.
“One of my favorite classes was studio production with Professor Bishop, when we did Tonight at Olivet. It was so fun, and also showed me that working in live media is something that I really enjoy.”
But Meadows will be taking some time to herself after graduation, choosing to relax and utilize that freedom that the multimedia degree gives her to explore her options.
“After graduation I’m traveling to Italy for a couple of weeks and getting married in October. As far as jobs go, I am interviewing at a lot of places, but haven’t decided yet what work will look like just yet.”
