Thaylene Rogers succeeded Scott Boyter as Assistant Dean and Controller for the College of Fine Arts and Communications beginning September 2019. Rogers’ responsibilities include overseeing the college’s budgets and finances, as well as facilities. She also works directly with the business managers and accountants throughout the college. “I see my role as helping with whatever is needed in the college — working through resource issues to facilitate the wonderful creative work that goes on within the college,” said Rogers. Rogers received her degree in accounting in 1981 at BYU and returned to receive an executive MBA in 2015. She credits her time spent studying at BYU with opening doors to rewarding work and service opportunities throughout her life. After receiving her undergraduate degree in accounting, Rogers began working for Arthur Andersen & Co in both the Portland and San Francisco offices. She was a public accountant for the first five years of her career — primarily in tax practice — and then left the public sphere to do private industry work. Rogers chose to step back from her career for a time after the birth of her second child. She stayed current through financial volunteer work for local schools and community organizations. When the time was right, Rogers stepped back into the accounting world and began working as a CPA for various companies in Utah. Eventually, Rogers came back to BYU to work — drawn to the unique work environment at her alma mater. “There is a culture that respects and incorporates the sacred as we approach all aspects of our work,” said Rogers. Rogers began her BYU career in the financial office for Arts Production. After four years, she became the business manager for the Departments of Theatre and Media Arts, Art and Design — during which time she received her executive MBA. In 2015, Rogers accepted the position of Controller for BYU Technology Transfer. As the new Controller for the College of Fine Arts and Communications, Rogers specifically looks forward to the opportunity to serve those within the college. “The College of Fine Arts and Communications is a remarkable community,” said Rogers. “I’m inspired by the great work that comes out of this college. I appreciate the opportunity to contribute in my way to the impactful work produced. There’s something very special about the College of Fine Arts and Communications, and I feel blessed to be a part of it.”

Students from the College of Fine Arts and Communications travel to gain real-world experience and share their talents while studying abroad, competing, performing and interning

Jamie Kalama Wood is honored to accept the new role and hopes the community knows how much the group has affected her life for good

Dance Professor Highlights Relationship Between Physical Movement and Nature in Film

BYU Theatre and Media Arts professor Dennis Wright designed over 400 costumes for the 2019 China Spectacular! BYU Department of Theatre and Media Arts professor Dennis Wright developed a love for costume design while he was in junior high. What started out as a unique fashion sense and a knack for homemade Halloween costumes has turned into a successful career that has taken Wright all over the world. Mostly recently, costume designing took Wright to China on BYU’s China Spectacular! 40th anniversary tour. Inevitably on the largest tour BYU has ever done, there was a high demand for costumes — over 400. Wright alongside a small team of cutters, drapers and stitchers, was responsible for the costumes worn by 160 student performers in eight performing groups. “At times, the scale of this production was certainly overwhelming,” said Wright. “However, I truly enjoyed bringing the vision and purpose of this show to reality. China Spectacular! was a fantastic experience! Having the opportunity to work with eight different performing groups and their directors was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Read the full story at tma.byu.edu.

Students from the College of Fine Arts and Communications travel internationally to gain real-world experience and share their talents while studying abroad, competing, performing and interning

In February, BYU media arts major Nathan Young was playing Dungeons and Dragons with some friends when one suggested that Young start a role-playing game (RPG) show and take on the role of Dungeon Master. Young said most of his friends laughed it off, but he stayed up all night thinking about the idea. Over the next few months, Young rounded up volunteers from the media arts major to help him with this project. Young said since the idea for the web series was sparked in February, all the grant deadlines had already passed. “We had no budget. Fortunately, we were able to scrape together enough willing people who think the idea is cool from all over campus to help put this together,” Young said. Young’s show ‘Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die’ was live-streamed on July 18 through Youtube. Read the full story at universe.byu.edu.

BYU dance professor Pam Musil addressed students about the path of transformative change during a devotional on Tuesday, August 6. Musil shared the apostle Paul’s words in Romans 12:2, “Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed (through the) perfect will of God.” “The type of transformation that Paul speaks of implies a change from our carnal, natural state to a more godlike state wherein we can abide God’s presence,” said Musil. Musil discussed five principles she believes are requisite to take part in that kind of transformative change. Read the full article at universe.byu.edu or see the highlight video at speeches.byu.edu. Read additional coverage at news.byu.edu.

Few people can claim that a 3 a.m. prank phone call changed their life, but for La Donna Pratt Forsgren (MA ’05), heaven had the last laugh. La Donna and her sister, Monica, had seen a late-night ad for a free copy of the Book of Mormon.

With a boost from BYU’s top-ranked advertising program, students are blasting off—creating iconic campaigns and landing at the world’s most-respected agencies.

Being pregnant felt like a door closing on a big part of her life and identity, says dance professor Keely Song Glenn (BA ’08). She remembers not knowing how to “navigate moving from a dance identity to then a dance-and-a-mother identity.” Now a mother of three, she’s found that mother and dancer aren’t mutually exclusive roles, and she’s opening the door for other expecting mothers to keep dancing. Last March Glenn choreographed a dance titled “Claim” and brought together seven pregnant dancers at BYU to perform it. “A lot of times with my pregnancies, I just wanted the pregnant part to be over,” says Glenn. She hopes the project helps the dancers “claim where they are at right now within their bodies . . . both as a dancer and an expectant new mother.” Read the article and watch the video at magazine.byu.edu.

BYU Department of Theatre and Media Arts professor Benjamin Thevenin and alumnus Max Johnson create podcast to discuss societal and political issues in constructive ways BYU professor Benjamin Thevenin and TMA graduate Max Johnson hoped to open a larger conversation about diversity and issues faced by marginalized communities when they created their podcast “Movies as Mirrors.” “We've been trying as faculty in the media arts program to try to integrate more talk about identity, politics, race, class, gender, and sexuality into our curriculum,” said Thevenin. “I think we've made some progress in that area — but we could be doing a much better job of preparing BYU students to engage in effective ways in these conversations.” In order to more fully open the conversation, Thevenin and Johnson invite a guest to each podcast to talk about a movie of their choosing. Most guests are people from Thevenin’s classes, colleagues at BYU and others they know who are passionate about what they think a movie has to say. “We're not particularly interested in talking about what we have to say about these movies,” said Thevenin. “We wanted the podcast to be an opportunity for us to hear what others have to say about their experiences — how the movie resonates with them.” Read the full story at tma.byu.edu.