Karen Vuranch
Instructor of Theater and Communication Arts
Karen Vuranch brings decades of theater experience and extensive knowledge to Concord University. Vuranch has performed shows in every county in West Virginia, in 35 states and three foreign countries. She completed five performance tours of England and Wales, and toured China with 35 other storytellers. In 1982, she moved from Ohio to West Virginia to work for the Youth Museum of Southern West Virginia as a storyteller. Here, she met her husband and together, the couple eventually founded their own theater company, WV Enterprises. Vuranch has written many performance pieces, including Coal Camp Memories, a play she wrote based on oral histories she collected. She also has 12 living history characters – remarkable women in history – that she researched and performs. “Teaching is a culmination of my years of work,” Vuranch says. “I have had years of being on stage and accolades. Now, I am ready to share what I know and to see my students flourish.”
Faculty
Brian Arnold '09
Bluefield, WV
Brian Arnold, a screenwriter living in Los Angeles, is proof that your degree from CU can be a foundation for achieving your dreams. As a Communication Arts graduate, Brian worked in telecommunications and broadcast journalism before taking a chance with screenwriting. “I knew I wouldn’t be happy until I gave writing a real shot,” Brian says. And while his degree wasn’t in film study, he says the electives he took at Concord gave him practical production experience that has helped him in his current career. “I got to make live TV. I got to make my own short films. I got to study screenwriting and film. And, more than that, my time at Concord helped me grow into a more mature, professional person ready to give the real world a shot.”
Alumni
Adam Cook '18
Bradley, WV
From a young age Adam was always fascinated by the science of the human body. For as long as he can remember he wanted to pursue some sort of career in medicine. It was during his senior of high school at Greater Beckley Christian, that he went on a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic which in result allowed him to focus on pursuing medical school. However, to make it to medical school, Adam knew he needed a firm undergraduate education for his foundation. He loved the class sizes at Concord University as well as the proximity to his hometown of Bradley, WV. Adam was aware of Concord’s excellent reputation for pre-requisite classes for medical school and four years later, he earned his Bachelor of Science and graduated Cum Laude. Adam is now in medical school pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor. Adam was aware of Concord’s excellent reputation for pre-requisite classes for medical school. It Starts With You.
“To be able to make it to medical school, I knew I would need a firm undergraduate education for my foundation.”
Alumni