Quinnipiac University’s School of Communications (SoC) celebrated its 25th anniversary by inducting three new members into the Hall of Fame.
The SoC Hall of Fame was started in 2020, with inductions occurring every two years. However, Dean of the SoC Nadine Barnett Cosby decided to push back the 2024 induction.
“With me coming in June of 24 that only gave me a few months until it was time to have the 2024 induction… I hadn’t even really met a lot of our alumni yet,” Barnett Cosby said. “So between that and also finding out that we were about to hit a historic year, 25 years, it made sense to me to hold off… and wait to have an induction in 2025 in conjunction with our 25- year celebration.”
Those inducted were SoC alumni Ike Ejiochi, Mercy A. Quaye and Tim Beach.
Ejiochi graduated from Quinnipiac in 2015, as part of the sports broadcast journalism graduate program. Ejiochi has continued his relationship with Quinnipiac by teaching at the university as an adjunct professor.
Ejiochi currently works as a correspondent for ABC News.
Ejiochi said he first learned he was being inducted during lunch with Dean Nadine Barnett Cosby.
“I was surprised because, when you think of the word Hall of Fame, it’s almost like a big top down look of everything you’ve done in your life so far… I was like, ‘What have I done to even be considered for such an honor?’” Ejiochi said. “Then it was more of a really just an immense feeling of gratitude.”
For aspiring SoC students, Ejiochi advises, “If there’s one skill that I can tell you to cultivate and strengthen every day, is your writing skills. I cannot tell you how important it is, especially now in the time of AI,” he said.
Quaye graduated from Quinnipiac in 2013 with her undergraduate degree in journalism. Then earned her graduate degree in public relations in 2018 with a focus on applied social media.
This is not the first time Quaye has received an award from Quinnipiac. In 2023, she was the recipient of the MLK Dream Award, honoring her work as a justice advocate.
However, Quaye finds her hall of fame induction “huge and different, because it recognizes me, not just as a justice advocate, but a communications professional,” she said.
Quaye teaches at Southern Connecticut State University and Quinnipiac, focusing on digital journalism, public relations and branding.
When Quaye first discovered she was being inducted into the Hall of Fame, she was away in Paris for work.
“It was a complete surprise. I think that something about print journalists that is somewhat different than broadcast journalists is we’re not used to being in front of the camera, and we’re not used to getting the attention on ourselves,” Quaye said.
For SoC journalism students, Quaye advises them to “think of a new angle. Anytime you’re able to think of a new angle, you are challenging your brain to be a problem solver as much as you are challenging your brain to be a storyteller,” she said.
Beach graduated from Quinnipiac in 1990 as a mass communications major.
Beach currently works as director of business development at D3 LED, a computer and electronics manufacturing company.
This is not the first time Beach has been inducted into a Hall of Fame, having been inducted into the Information Display & Entertainment Association Hall of Fame in 2018.
Beach has continued his working relationships with Quinnipiac by serving on the SoC advisory board.
Much like Quaye, Beach’s experience feels different from the last.
“My Information Display and Entertainment Association Hall of Fame induction in 2018 was being honored by my industry and come back to Quinnipiac and receive this, this honor for representing the school that I started at, where it all started, is certainly an honor,” Beach said.
When Beach learned of his induction into the Hall of Fame, in August, he was “overjoyed with emotion,” he said.
Beach’s advice for SoC students is “to always say yes,” as they go through their career.
Each of the Hall of Fame inductees attributed their successes to Quinnipiac SoC staff and faculty.
