Meet the Team

Project Manager – Hayley Miller

Hayley Miller grew up in the small town of Abingdon, Va. After graduating from the local high school, she spent the next four years of her life in Blacksburg, Va., where she attended Virginia Tech. There, she finished early and graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Communication and a minor in Popular Culture. In college, she was lucky enough to study abroad for a summer in Switzerland and travel to various countries throughout Europe. Throughout her college career she was an active member of Gamma Beta Phi, an honor and service fraternity, as well as Phi Beta Delta, an honor and service organization dedicated to international scholarly achievement. She has always had a strong desire to work in the entertainment industry and has produced a few of her own documentaries at Virginia Tech. She hopes to learn more about video production and web design at Elon University to further her skills in this area. Hayley is excited about expanding her knowledge of these new and interactive media of communication and applying them to her passion and career goals in the future.

Graphic Designer – Bettina Johnson

Bettina Johnson is a returning Elon Phoenix. Raised in Chapel Hill, N.C., she graduated from Elon University in 2006 with a B.A. in Journalism and minor in digital art. Bettina discovered her passion for interactive media as a college senior while working on the Elon University and Pew Research development team for the “Imagining the Internet” predictions database. She presented the new Webby Awards Honoree site and related research at the Spring 2006 Elon University Student Undergraduate Research Forum (SURF). As an undergraduate, Bettina contributed to the Elon School of Communications accreditation process and held an international internship in London at a magazine publishing company during a semester abroad. Upon graduating she became the first Online Editor for The Gaston Gazette, a Freedom Communications newspaper located outside of Charlotte, N.C. Bettina helped steer the newsroom in a new online direction by training reporters and editors on new technologies, shooting and editing video, producing audio additions for print stories, creating and redesigning sub sites, exploring new marketing and advertising strategies and more. After two years she returned to the Chapel Hill area to sharpen her web skills working with a local web development company. Bettina managed new site builds and upgrades while also troubleshooting bugs and providing insight for clients on search engine optimization and content strategy. Following completion of Elon’s iMedia program, Bettina aspires to live and work abroad and create a successful career impacting the methods people use to engage with information and each other on a global scale.

Video Director – Chris Metzloff

hails from Durham, N.C. He graduated from Warren Wilson College, a small liberal arts college outside of Asheville, N.C., in 2007 with a bachelors degree in Psychology. After a year and a half stint working at a mental health facility, he found himself in Chestertown, Md., working for an online newspaper and creating video profiles of local artists, stores and community figures. The year spent producing video profiles from start to finish fueled his interest in video production and interactive media. Chris has a strong interest in sports broadcasting and documentary work, and hopes to add to his skill set during the iMedia program.

Video Editor – Alison Hydrick

Alison is from Mebane, N.C. She graduated from Elon’s School of Communications in May with a B.A. in both Journalism and Broadcast & New Media. Throughout Alison’s communications career, she interned at the Mebane Enterprise and chronicled the transition to digital television in Wilmington, N.C. During her four years as an undergrad, Alison was heavily involved in religious life, and she served in a leadership role for the Baptist Student Union from 2006-2009. Also during her time as an undergrad, she developed an interest in multimedia storytelling and citizen journalism. Following graduation, Alison hopes to combine her passions for new media, citizen journalism and religion and enter the religious media industry.

Photographer – Erika Nicole Holland

Erika was born and raised in Fayetteville, N.C., where she attended a private Christian school all 12 years. After graduating from Village Christian Academy in 2006, she attended Methodist University. As an undergrad, she found a passion for all Mass Communication courses, including Web Design, Photography, Audio and Video Production and Advertising. She interned with the local ESPN Radio Station, was the director of promotions for Methodist University’s radio station and was the president of the Communication Club. She will now be entering Elon’s iMedia program in the fall, with a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication. Besides being a full time student, Erika Nicole is also the music director for her home church in Fayetteville, where she plays the piano and directs the choir. She is interested in iMedia because she believes that it has the ability to bring together people from all walks of life in a way that has never before been seen.

Content Manager – Jordan Thorndyke

Jordan hails from Laurinburg, N.C. A 2010 graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, Jordan majored in Journalism and Mass Communication with an emphasis in public relations. Jordan has experience working with the media, having interned with NBC 17 in Raleigh, N.C., and with nonprofits, such as Rock Against Cancer, Wesley Campus Ministry and Community Home Trust in Chapel Hill. Jordan has also been published in various local media as a freelance feature writer. Currently, Jordan is living in Chapel Hill with her dog, Ozzie. After completing the iMedia program, she hopes to find a job merging her experience in public relations with the skills she will develop in interactive media, perhaps working in an agency or nonprofit setting.

Web Developer – Mollie Lambert

Mollie is from Burlington, N.C. She is a 2010 graduate of Furman University, where she earned a B.A. in Communication Studies, through which she had the opportunity to study at Universidad International in Cuernavaca, Mexico and Vesalius College in Brussels, Belgium. During her undergraduate career, she interned with the news program “North Carolina Now” at UNC-TV and with NBC affiliate WYFF in Greenville, S.C. Her special interests are news and broadcasting. Because journalism continues to evolve and demand the use of interactive media, she is excited to learn more about how to combine better the worlds of broadcasting and interactive media.

Web Developer – Mich Donovan

Mich Donavan is from Fairfax, Va. He graduated from Elon University in 2010 with a B.A. in Broadcast and New Media and a minor in Business Administration. At the start of his collegiate career, he participated in FreshTV, an accelerated learning program for communications students, where he produced one of the year-end projects. He later traveled to Los Angeles as part of Elon’s inaugural Elon in L.A. program. There, he completed an internship as a talent management assistant for Holder Management. Since then, he has worked as a freelance screenplay analyst for the organization. Other adventures included traveling to London for a semester, winning the 2008 N.C. GoVote competition and producing Elon’s first (and possibly only) action film, “Final Exam.” Frequently dabbling in all forms of media, Mich is excited to combine his diverse skills and experiences in this exciting and innovative form of communication and storytelling.

Translator – Victoria Cuza

Victoria Cuza is an Elon undergraduate student who accompanied “Team Rando” around Panama. Currently in her Junior year, Victoria is  Panama native, fluent in Spanish, English and French. Victoria is a Communications major and is completing an independent study with the iMedia program for her 2011 Winter Term.

 

 

Faculty Adviser – Randy Piland

Professor Piland provided guidance for the group both in the field and as we develop the website. Randy has years of experience as a photojournalist. He was recently named Elon’s first Faculty Fellow for Technology.

 

 

SPECIAL THANKS:

We would like to give a very special thanks to Justin Seifts and Monica Cuza for their help in translating content for our Website! Justin is a 2009 Elon graduate and currently teaches Spanish in the Alamance Burlington School System. Monica is Victoria’s little sister, and was also in Panama helping to translate for the other iMedia Panama group. Monica is a sophomore at Elon University. “Team Rando” appreciates all of the hard work and time that Justin and Monica put in to help us get the website finished on time! We couldn’t have done it without you!