Without stories, could a culture truly exist? Throughout the course of history, stories have shifted grave decisions, conquered the hearts of countless men and women, and captured the reality seldom capable of being expressed by raw emotions alone.
Storytelling carries within its foundation, a reverence and a predisposition of listening. The art of storytelling is both an act of courage and vulnerability, strength and gentleness, magnanimity and humility. What is required of a storyteller is an integrity beyond what one might expect.
Kyle Belanger, newest associate professor of Journalism and Mass Communications at Benedictine College, recognizes that storytelling is more than just writing down facts in a specific order. Belanger says that storytelling is, “the ability to help someone heal or grow through narrative.”
For most of his professional career, Belanger has been providing the landscape for people to tell their stories for the first time. Whether through audio or written narratives, Belanger’s keen sense of “asking the first question and then listening,” forms his philosophy on storytelling.
“Enabling someone to feel and unlock and begin to decipher their own sadness and also joy- all the complexities of our narratives. If we can allow them to unlock it, start to unpack it, and understand that it deserves to be unpacked, then we can be the ones as the storytellers or as the facilitators of the story, to allow them to see that they are worthy of understanding themselves,” says Belanger, whose extensive career in journalism, particularly sports journalism, brought him to cover media at the Naismith Hall of Fame and the Super Bowl Radio Row.
Belanger relocated to Lansing, Kan. three months ago after fourteen years of teaching at Springfield College in Springfield, Mass. The change in geography has also resulted in a change of pace and peace for Belanger, giving him a renewed sense of the gift of the present moment.
Benedictine College surprised Belanger by its similarities to his previous educational institution with the school size, emphasis on community and hospitality, and even landscaping layout.
Furthermore, Benedictine College’s foundation as a private faith-based institution has opened another door in Belanger’s life.
“It has changed me. I feel so free and it’s beautiful. And you know, it’s not a life that everyone can live- some people aren’t ready for it. Some people will never be ready. It feels like the windows are open and all of the air is rushing into my life, you know? Like I am able to finally draw that first breath… I didn’t know I needed it until I got it,” said Belanger.
During the hiring process, Dr. Kevin Page, department head of the Journalism and Mass Communications department, witnessed Belanger standing out among dozens of applicants. “He has a very easygoing demeanor, very friendly, very open, and very pleasant. I felt that he fit the faculty very well, so I knew he would be a good addition in terms of the skill sets that he could bring, the curriculum he could develop, and, he’s just a nice guy to work with,” Page said.
Olivia Burtis, a senior from Bentonville, Ark. studying Journalism and Mass Communications, is currently in Belanger’s “Multimedia Storytelling” class. She appreciates the modernity and creativity that Belanger brings. “You can tell that he’s very excited to be here and he’s going to fit into our community very well,” said Burtis.
Belanger is currently teaching multiple courses at Benedictine College including Media and Society, Sports Journalism, and Multimedia Storytelling. In addition to advocating for the vitality of storytelling within our culture and communities, he hopes that his students will particularly know how the necessity of embracing their own stories with the lens of gentleness and dignity.
“Something that I live by is that I really do think that stories will save us. I think that stories, listening, and honoring each other’s truths will save us. I’m not the first person to say that, but I really believe, that to care, to love each other enough is to listen to each other. It’s not to disparage any other disciplines, but there’s no other discipline that I know of that’s predicated at its foundation on listening and hearing each other. And that’s, I think, what keeps me so excited about what we do as a profession,” said Belanger.
