Stone in the Echo office. Editor Lovemore Masakadza is in the background. (Photo credit: Wyconda Sanders/Echo staff photographer)

N.C. Central University’s English and mass communication faculty brainstormed the future of the communications program Thursday with veteran journalist Chuck Stone in the departments’ faculty lounge.

Stone, the Walter Spearman Professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, visited NCCU at the invitation of Chancellor James H. Ammons and Provost Lucy J. Reuben. Stone was the first president of the National Association of Black Journalists.

Stone said he was impressed with the direction the university is taking in improving the mass communication department, but he recognized that the program has a long way to go.

“You have a good chancellor. He has good vision, and he is in the right track. You will see some changes because he has vision for changes,” said Stone.

Stone said the current communications major needs to develop into an independent department and then into a school of communications.

“They should incorporate courses that leading schools, such as North Western, Missouri and UNC have. Courses like media law, constitutional law and magazine writing,” he said.

Department of English chair Louise C. Maynor said the faculty learned a lot in the meeting.

“We had a very fruitful conversation about developing a full program in journalism and mass communications ... perhaps even growing to department status and eventually school status,” said Maynor.

Campus Echo adviser and associate professor Bruce dePyssler was also impressed with the knowledge shared by Stone.

“I thought it was a very productive meeting. Chuck Stone has a wealth of experience to bring to the table. He had a lot of useful suggestions,” said dePyssler.