Department of Communication and Fine Arts
Department of Communication and Fine Arts
Welcome
The Department of Communication and Fine Arts consists of five unique and innovative academic areas: Art, Communication, Music, Foreign Language, and Theatre. Each program is designed to help students develop skills in the expression of ideas, which are highly valued in today’s ever-changing marketplace. Bachelor's degrees are offered in each area and several options for minors are also available. Please feel free to contact us at any time to learn more about what we have to offer, and be sure to check us out on social media as well!
Department of Communication and Fine Arts Programs
The department of Communication and Fine Arts not only provides students professional development in Art, Music, and Theater, but also provides an education in Communication, Mass Media, and Spanish Education to prepare graduates for careers in the ever changing marketplace.
Dr. Doyle completed her Bachelor of Arts in Music at LCC in 1982, and then went on to Texas Tech to receive a Master of Music in Vocal Performance degree in 1985. She has served at LCU since 1983, where her assignments have included Director of Student Activities and Associate Professor. She completed her Ph.D. in Fine Arts with an emphasis in Theatre in 2002. She has directed over 40 plays and musicals and has won awards from the American College Theatre Festival and the Christian University Theatre Festival. She continues to perform as a vocalist and actor when her schedule will allow. She has been Chair of the Communication and Fine Arts Department since 2006.
Dr. Philip Camp serves as Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities for Lubbock Christian University. He received the Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Abilene Christian University and the Master's Degree in Choral Music from Arizona State University. He began teaching at LCU in the fall of 1996 as an adjunct professor and co-director of the Meistersinger Chorus, becoming their full time director in the 1997-98 academic year. In the fall of 1998, he became the Director of Choral Activities, and the choral program was re-established with the Praise Choir, an ensemble that emphasized church concerts and originally resulted as a merger of the A Cappella and Meistersinger Choruses, and the Chamber Singers, a newly founded ensemble that presented concerts of classical choral literature. He began serving as director for LCU’s award winning contemporary a cappella ensemble, Best Friends, in 2018.
LCU choirs under Dr. Camp's direction have performed throughout the Southwestern United States as well as Ireland, Eastern Australia, and Eastern Europe. Aside from traveling with the choir, Dr. Camp maintains interests in church activities, photography, and snow skiing, and has recently taken up swimming and bicycling. He serves as a Deacon for the 12th Street Church of Christ in Shallowater, where he is active in worship leading, education, local outreach, and world missions. He is married to Dr. Tammy Camp, and they have two young adult children, Landon, a recent graduate of LCU and band director for Seminole ISD, and Lauren, a current senior majoring in Pre-Music Therapy.
Ronelle Howell serves as the Program Coordinator for the Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree for Visual Arts in the Communication/Fine Arts Department at Lubbock Christian University. She completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Art at Lubbock Christian College and then a Master of Fine Arts Degree in Painting and Drawing at Texas Tech University in 1986. She has taught Studio and Graphic Design courses at LCU, South Plains College and Texas Tech University. After adding a Master’s in education at LCU, she taught K-12 -Elementary through High School - for 15 wonderful years. She returned to LCU in 2018, to teach courses in Art and Graphic Design History, Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, 3-D Design, Sculpture and Art Education. Ronelle manages several galleries on campus, namely CAA Galleries 1 and 2, Art Studio Gallery, and the Pioneer Gallery in the Library and sponsors the growing and active Student Art Association. She continues to create and exhibit 2-D and 3-D paintings, drawings and glass fused wall pieces. Ronelle is active in art advocacy and Professional Art Organizations.
Dr. Abraham Mata holds a B.A. in Spanish, a M.Sc. in Interdisciplinary Studies (Spanish, Bilingual Education, Computer Science), and a Ph.D. in Spanish from Texas Tech University. A native Spanish speaker, he has taught languages in Mexico, Spain and the United States. Dr. Mata has research interests in both literature and language instruction. In literature, his research centers on Spanish and Luso-Brazilian colonial sermons and the transatlantic religious discourse in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In language instruction, he studies the application of distance learning technology to language teaching and learning.
Dr. Mata teaches a variety of courses in the Spanish Education Program, from Beginning Spanish to Advanced Grammar and Composition. In addition, he teaches Portuguese and oversees German, Chinese and French courses as part of the Texas Language Consortium, an inter-institutional project between LCU, Texas Wesleyan, Schreiner, Concordia, and Texas Lutheran University.
Dr. Mata and his wife served as missionaries in Chihuahua, Mexico, and they are the proud parents of high-energy, multilingual toddlers.
I can hardly remember not being a part of the Lubbock Christian family. I applied to Lubbock Christian University (College, at the time) as a Pre-Med major in 1977. After a short stint in the College of Education, I graduated four years later in May of 1981 with a B.S. in Chemistry, got married 12 days later to the beautiful Karen Craigmiles, and moved to College Station to attend graduate school at Texas A&M University. I earned my Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from TAMU in August of 1986 and began teaching at LCU that September. Now,nearly thirty later, I'm still here. My son (Kime) and his wife (my lovely daughter-in-law Whitney) are also graduates of LCU. He teaches chemistry at North Hills Preparatory School in Irving, Texas and his wife, now happy at home, has worked there as well. My daughter Kalyssa met her husband Brian while a student at LCU. They live in Colorado with my two grandsons. My wife (Karen, Director of Accounting) and my brother (Dr. Keith Rogers, Assoc. Professor of Mathematics and Chair of the department) all work here at Lubbock Christian as well. We are truly an LCU family.
I am blessed to work with a number of musical groups on campus, writing and arranging for Best Friends, Forte, Praise Choir, Chamber Singers, and most recently the Chamber Ensemble. I've also been privileged in the last few years to arrange for the Master Follies hosts and hostesses and the Master Follies Band. I received a Masters in Music Composition degree from Texas Tech University in May, 2014.
While I certainly hope to continue to teach chemistry at LCU, I am no longer a "chemist who does music," but rather a "musician who teaches chemistry." I am blessed to be able to start teaching Music Theory in the Fall of 2014, Lord willing, and look forward to sharing time in both of my passions.
Melanie Grellhesl teaches in the Communication and Fine Arts Department at LCU. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications from Angelo State University in 1996 and went on to earn her Master of Arts degree in Communication Studies from Texas Tech in 2010. While at Tech, Melanie earned the award of Graduate Student of the Year as well as Outstanding Teaching Assistant.
Melanie began her teaching career in 2000, teaching junior high Speech and Theatre classes for Arlington ISD. In 2002, she moved to teaching English, Speech, and Theatre at the high school level. Melanie was the One Act Play director as well as the UIL speech director for Colorado ISD until 2008. She directed several students to the state UIL level speech competitions during that time.
Melanie has been involved with LCU since 2010, when she began teaching classes as an adjunct instructor. She has since taken a full-time role as Lecturer in Residence. She is also LCU’s yearbook advisor.
Melanie is married to Derrick and they have two kids, Drew and Axel, who both attend Lubbock Christian School.
Shawn Hughes is an Assistant Professor in the Communication and Fine Arts Department at LCU. He has a BA in Communications from LCU, Masters from Texas Tech, and a PhD in Mass Communications from Texas Tech. Shawn has worked in the radio industry, was Director of Marketing for LCU, and as CEO of the Roswell Chamber of Commerce. He was the founder of Image Group Marketing, focusing on High Definition commercial production and full advertising campaigns.
He has served as Campaign Chair for United Way in Chaves County, the New Mexico Business Roundtable, Tourism Association of NM, and as Chair of Chaves County Zoning Commission. In 2003 Shawn was named the New Mexico Chamber Director of the Year by the state Association of Commerce and Industry.
Shawn received his Ph.D. in Media Communication from Texas Tech University in 2015. His dissertation was on the 2012 Televised Presidential Debates, and provided a groundbreaking methodology for analysis of presidential debates in the media age. He presented a paper on this methodology at the International Communication Association in Japan in 2016, and published a book chapter as well on the topic.
Michelle Kraft retired as Professor of Art in 2017, having taught at Lubbock Christian University since 1994. She served as Assistant Dean of the Hancock College of Liberal Arts & Education from 2008-2017, and she was Chair of the Department of Communication & Fine Arts from 2001-2005. Prior to her tenure at LCU, Kraft taught art at Dunbar High School (and later, Dunbar Junior High School) in the Lubbock Independent School District. Currently, Dr. Kraft serves part-time as On-site director for LCU’s Study Abroad program in Ávila, Spain, and as a Lecturer in the areas of art history and art pedagogy.
Dr. Kraft’s research interests include disability studies and art education and the intersections of art theory and practice. She has authored and co-authored over 30 scholarly articles and book chapters, as well as a co-authored book, Including Difference: A Communitarian Approach to Art Education in the Least Restrictive Environment (with Dr. Karen Keifer-Boyd). Michelle served as a visual arts reviewer on the John F. Kennedy Center’s Office of VSA/Accessibility’s National Coalition for Core Arts Standards. She is a recipient of the Lubbock YWCA’s Women of Excellence Award for Fine Arts, and LCU’s L.R. Wilson Teaching Award and Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year Award. She is married to Albert Kraft, who retired as Lieutenant from City of Lubbock Fire Rescue in 2017. Michelle and Albert attend church at the Broadway church of Christ. Michelle enjoys cooking, reading, and writing, as well as traveling and hiking with Albert.
Dr. Don Williams, a graduate of LCC, began teaching at LCU in 1969 after completing his Masters degree at Texas Tech. He completed his Ph.D. at Texas Tech in 1980. In 1982, he became Dean of the College. After the change to university status in 1987, he began his tenure as Dean of the Hancock College of Liberal Arts and Education.
"I believe it is important to maintain contact with students, and so I continue to teach in Communication and in Theatre. Contact in the classroom allows me to get to know the students and to be certain we are meeting their needs. From my first year I have been impressed by the quality of students attending LCU. We have talented students who develop their strengths not only in the classroom, but also by assuming leadership roles in campus activities."
Dr. Williams' work as a teacher received recognition on campus as he received the F.W. Mattox Teaching award in 1976, as well as the L.R. Wilson Teaching award in 2003/2004. His work as a teacher also received state recognition as he received the Texas Educational Theatre Award as outstanding college/university teacher in Texas in 1994. For his work as a director in theatre, he received an award for directing from the American College Theatre Festival in 2003.
Since 1979, the theatre area has participated in the ACTF Festivals. This activity provides the students with the opportunity to participate as well as to watch the work of other colleges and universities in theatre. Dr. Williams for the past 22 years has worked with the Texas production in Palo Duro. In addition to the Texas production, Dr. Williams directed God’s Country, an outdoor production at Crosbyton for 8 years. He serves as an assistant director to David Yirak, the director of Texas - and one of Dr. Williams' theatre students from the 1970s.
Dr. Williams served as Chair of the National Conference of Academic Deans in 1989. "We try to model the teacher's role in the classroom as we focus on the students, develop their skills, and care for them. It is so important that students understand that their teacher sees them as individuals and wants to help them mature not only in the academic discipline, but also as an individual. We have graduates who are impacting the lives of their students in junior high and senior high programs.”
“I believe that we, as teachers, are investing in the future as we work with these young people. Teachers are rich not because of their salaries, but because they receive a return from each student in seeing them succeed and in the relationships they develop as mentors of the students. I still have students from my first years who contact me and ask for assistance.”
Dr. James Hood serves as Adjunct Instructor of Guitar for Lubbock Christian University. He earned a Bachelor of Music with a Church Music Emphasis from Wayland Baptist University, a both a Master of Music in Piano Pedagogy and a Ph.D. in Fine Arts from Texas Tech University. He began teaching Guitar at LCU fairly recently during the Spring Semester of 2020.
During his varied career, Dr. Hood has travelled throughout the United States and Europe as pianist for Up With People, Cast A 1986. He served multiple churches as a Music Minister/Worship Pastor/Worship Team Leader. He ministered as a Hospice Spiritual Care Coordinator (Chaplain) in Albuquerque, NM until 2013, when he began pursuing creative endeavors as an independent musician, artist, and photographer. It was while working as a Worship Pastor at LifeWay Fellowship Church in Amarillo, that Dr. Hood first began learning guitar. He was largely self-taught for several years focusing his guitar interests on worship music and bluegrass flatpicking. Currently, he is taking Classical guitar lessons with David Brandon at Brandon Guitar Studio in Lubbock. He also works as an Adjunct Instructor in Music and Photography at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, TX. He is married to June Hood who is a kindergarten teacher in Hale Center, TX.
Rachel Mazzucco has been teaching applied harp at Lubbock Christian University since 2018. She has also taught music theory and aural skills courses at Texas Tech University since 2011, and joined the performance music faculty of Texas Tech as instructor of harp in 2016. Pedagogically, she seeks to provide articulate instruction and suggestions, without hindering the student's personal musical voice and growth. She has been playing Principal Harp for Lubbock Symphony Orchestra with David Cho since 2013 and the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra under Jacomo Bairos since 2014. She also plays with community groups such as Ballet Lubbock and the Lubbock Chorale.
Along with her orchestral engagements, she maintains an active performance schedule of both solo and chamber works, specializing in 20th-century music. Though harp is her primary instrument, Ms. Mazzucco also studied voice at TCU, is active in her church choir, and on special occasions, she accompanies herself.
Ms. Mazzucco holds a B.M. in Music Performance and a B.S. in Mathematics from Texas Christian University, and a M.M. in Music Performance from Texas Tech University. She has studied under many renowned harpists, including Susan Pejovich of the Dallas Symphony and Gail Barber of local and international fame. She is currently finishing coursework to earn her Ph.D. in Music Theory at Texas Tech. Her research interests include musical form and 20th century harp music, and she is currently exploring the applications of set theory and pattern completion in the works of Paul Hindemith. She has presented her research in local, regional, and international venues.
Ms. Mazzucco is a member of several prestigious national honor societies, including Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, and Phi Kappa Lambda. She is also a charter member and President of the West Texas Harp Society, the local chapter of the American Harp Society.
Originally from Lubbock, Texas, Robert Meinecke has served as an adjunct instructor of applied strings and string methods at LCU since 2015. In his nearly 50-year career, he has also taught at South Plains College and several public school districts throughout the state of Texas, including Texas Tech ISD, Lubbock ISD, Dallas ISD, and Amarillo ISD. He is also an active private lessons instructor, with string students in Lubbock, Amarillo, Tucson, Dallas, Irving, and Levelland ranging from ages 6 to 64.
Mr. Meinecke’s performance experience is vast, and he has notably served in the Lubbock Symphony for 31 years and the Lubbock Ballet for 28 years. He has also performed with the Amarillo Symphony (one year as Principal Viola), Tucson Symphony, Tucson Opera, Tucson Ballet, Roswell Symphony, Midland-Odessa Symphony, Plainview Symphony, Big Spring Symphony, San Angelo Symphony, Richardson Symphony, Wichita Falls Symphony, East Texas Symphony, Hobbs Symphony, and Irving Symphony (two years as Principal Viola and one year as assistant conductor). Additionally, he has served as the Personnel Manager for the Plainview Symphony since 2009 and the Big Spring Symphony since 2014.
Robert is an active music judge, serving in the Texas Music Adjudicator Association for 36 years. He has judged orchestra and solo and ensemble events in Texas and Oklahoma, also serving as the state level judge for the latter. He is a certified Suzuki teacher, and has also performed in local events such as musicals, church services, weddings, and receptions, and is a member of the Opus Four Quartet (violist) and the Ellsworth Quartet (violist and substitute violinist).
Kerry Miller is an adjunct instructor in the Communication and Fine Arts Department at LCU. He brings more than 30 years of corporate experience into the classroom, most of which was with Texas Instruments Incorporated, a global maker of semiconductor chips and a Fortune 500 company. Starting as a part-time site newspaper editor at TI’s Lubbock plant, Kerry was leading TI’s worldwide internal communications function within seven years, overseeing company communications to thousands of employees. He ended his career at TI as director of communications for mergers, divestitures, and acquisitions.
Kerry has been a featured speaker/panelist for multiple professional communication conferences, served on a presidential task force for former President George H. W. Bush, and spent decades teaching adults in church settings and small groups.
Kerry is married to Pam (Zahn), a 1981 LCU graduate. Their daughter, Rynn Day, graduated from LCU in 2008 with an organizational communication degree and in her career has specialized in nonprofit marketing/communications. Their son, Zane, graduated from Pepperdine University in 2011 with a degree in advertising and has worked for several ad agencies in Los Angeles and New York City.
Kerry believes a degree in communications from LCU can provide solid grounding in a wide variety of fields, from corporate to nonprofit to academia. If you’re a prospective or current student considering a career in communications, feel free to connect with Kerry through his LinkedIn profile, linkedin.com/in/kerrycmiller/.
Michael Mixtacki is a percussionist, vocalist and educator based out of Lubbock, Texas. Michael is currently teaching Percussion Methods at LCU, and is also on faculty at Texas Tech University, teaching percussion and drum set lessons and co-directing the TTU Percussion Ensemble. Prior to his move to West Texas, Michael taught percussion and drum set at the University of Texas at San Antonio, and was the founder and director of the UTSA Summer Percussion Camp. While living in San Antonio, Michael enjoyed performing with a wide variety of ensembles including the San Antonio Symphony, Mid-Texas Symphony, UTSA Faculty Jazz Quintet, South Texas Jazz Quartet, and the Katchie Cartwright Brazilian Jazz Trio.
Prior to his appointment at UTSA, Michael taught at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois. While living in the Midwest, Michael performed with a variety of different groups, including Ire Elese Abure (Chicago, Illinois), Ritmos Unidos (Bloomington, Indiana), and Grupo Balança and the Madison Symphony Orchestra (Madison, Wisconsin). He had the honor of participating on two Grammy-nominated recordings with Wayne Wallace and Michael Spiro, and recorded on drum set, lead vocals, and percussion on two albums with Ritmos Unidos. Michael continues to be a guest artist at many colleges, high schools, and summer workshops across the country, and has participated in numerous clinics and performances at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, the Jazz Education Network Convention, and TMEA.
Michael earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master’s degree from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He is an official clinician for the Latin Percussion Department of Education and is a Yamaha Performing artist. Michael also endorses Sabian cymbals, Remo drumheads, and Innovative Percussion sticks and mallets.
Lynda Reid is a native of Dallas, Texas and serves as the director of the Jazz Band and instructor of applied woodwinds and woodwind methods at LCU. She has served as an adjunct instructor in the music area since 2015. She earned her Bachelor of Music Education (with Academic Distinction) in 1985 and Master of Music in 1986 from East Texas State University (now Texas A&M University - Commerce). There, she also served as Graduate Assistant of University Bands. She studied conducting with Gary Hill, and saxophone with Cynthia Sikes and Tom Myer. She also spent several summers at the renowned Interlochen Arts Camp in Interlochen, Michigan, where she studied conducting with Larry Rachleff and Elizabeth A.H. Green.
In 1995, Lynda earned her Associate of Applied Science in Audio Engineering from South Plains College, with additional studies in applied mathematics. She has served for 28 years at South Plains College as Professor of Music and Director of Bands, with her duties including overseeing the symphonic band, basketball pep band, woodwind ensembles, and pit orchestra, as well as courses in applied woodwinds, music fundamentals, music theory, and elementary music education. An active musician, Ms. Reid has appeared locally with several ensembles and organizations, such as the Lubbock Civic Orchestra, Lubbock Moonlight Musicals, Texas Tech University Department of Theatre and Dance, Lubbock Christian University, Lubbock ISD, and more.
Ms. Reid holds memberships in the Texas Music Educators Association, International Association of Jazz Educators, College Band Directors National Association, and the Texas Community College Band Directors Association. In 2014, Lynda took an early retirement to pursue an interest in veterinary medicine. Since that time, she has also worked at a local veterinary clinic as a veterinary technician and office manager. In addition, she has served as the audio engineer at the First Methodist Church Lubbock (2002-2014) and First Christian Church Lubbock (2014-present).
Soprano Allison Kindscher Smith began teaching at LCU in 2009. She received her BA at John Brown University and graduated with her Masters of Music in Opera Performance from Wichita State University. Smith studied and sang in Italy with Canta in Italia. As an apprentice artist with Opera in the Ozarks, she sang the roles of Musetta in La Boheme and Yum-Yum in The Mikado. At OIO she met her husband, baritone Matthew Smith.
Here in Lubbock, Mrs. Smith was Betty Haynes in White Christmas with Mr. Smith as Bob Wallace, and Irene Molloy in Hello Dolly. Smith has also performed the roles of Amy in Little Women by Mark Adamo, Asteria in Tamerlano by Handel, Constance in Dialogues des Carmelites by Poulenc, Mabel in Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan, and Lucy in You\'re A Good Man Charlie Brown by Gesner.
She was also the vocal competition winner of Wichita State University\'s concerto-aria regional tour and concerts, the soprano soloist in Opera Kansas\' performances of A Most Ingenious Paradox, scenes from Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, and a soloist in Handel\'s Messiah with the Chorale of the Ozarks. She won her divisions of state NATS three of her four competing years and went on to win the graduate women\'s division at NATS.
