NCA Doctoral Honors Seminar

The 2024 Doctoral Honors Seminar was held Tuesday, June 4 – Friday, June 7 at the University of Utah. The seminar theme was "Elevating Communication Research." There were three tracks: Critical/Cultural (research), Rhetoric (and performance research), and Social Science (research).

Mentors included:

Critical/Cultural: Derek Buescher, (University of Puget Sound); Yea-Wen Chen (San Diego State University); and Aisha Durham (University of South Florida)

Rhetoric and Performance: Josue David Cisneros (University of Illinois); Michelle Holling (California State University-San Marcos); and Billie Murray (Villanova University)

Social Science: Leanne Knobloch (University of Illinois); Patricia Moy (University of Washington); and Ronald Rice (University of California-Santa Barbara)

Students selected to participate in the 2024 Doctoral Honors Seminar were:

Divine Narkotey Aboagye, University of Maryland

Adenike Adegoke, Howard University

Emerson Kai Armstrong, University of New Mexico

Roshni Ashiq, Ohio University

Lauren Buisker, Colorado State University

Xu Chen, University of Missouri

Huai-yu Chen, University of Kentucky

Christine Choi, University of Pittsburgh

Blake Cravey, University of Maryland

Haley Decker, University of Nebraska Lincoln

Sophie Downing, Ohio University

Max Erdemandi, University of Maryland

Heather Gahler, University of Arizona

Maxwell Groznik, University of Kentucky

Jacqueline Gunning, University of Connecticut

Dafna Kaufman, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

Azmat Khan, Ohio University

Lyounghee (Lian) Kim, University of New Mexico

Sunah Lee, Florida State University

Sai Datta Mikkilineni, University of Alabama

Kaylee Mulholland, Arizona State University

Ifeoluwatobi (Tobi) Odunsi, Ohio University

E.M. Pollard,  University of New Mexico

Kailin Regutti, University of South Florida

Nathaniel Repay, University of Texas-Austin

Kory Riemensperger, University of Pittsburgh

Kalin Schultz, University of Maryland

Jiayu Sun, University of Texas-Austin

Ryan Wen, Syracuse University

Not held.

The 2022 Doctoral Honors Seminar took place Wednesday, June 8 – Friday, June 10 at George Mason University. The seminar theme was “Communication Scholarship in a Fractured World: Relevance and Redemption.” There were three tracks: Media Theory and Research, Communication Theory and Research, and Rhetorical and Performance Theory and Research.

Mentors included: 

Rhetorical and Performance Theory and Research: Josh Gunn (University of Texas – Austin), Jade C. Huell (California State University, Northridge) and Charles E. Morris, III (Syracuse University)

Media Theory and Research: Tia Tyree (Howard University), Srividya Ramasubramanian (Syracuse University), and Richard Craig (George Mason University)

Communication Theory and Research: Dawna Ballard (University of Texas – Austin), Iccha Basnyat (George Mason University), and Monique Turner (Michigan State University)

The NCA Doctoral Honors Seminar (DHS) brings together promising doctoral students and distinguished faculty members from across the discipline and around the nation to discuss current topics in Communication. The 2021 seminar took place virtually Wednesday, July 14 – Friday, July 16. Twenty-eight doctoral students represented 25 colleges and universities across 17 states and four countries including Canada, India, South Africa, and the United States.

There were three seminar tracts: Mass Media/Mass Communication, Social Science, and Rhetoric and Performance Studies. Faculty mentors for the 2021 DHS included: Omotayo Banjo (University of Cincinnati), Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz (University of Missouri), Byran Denham (Clemson University), Victoria J. Gallagher (North Carolina State University), Jakob D. Jensen (University of Utah), Andre E. Johnson (University of Memphis), Yeonsoo Kim (James Madison University), Carol Mills (Florida Atlantic University), Ashley Muddiman (University of Kansas), Vincent N. Pham (Willamette University), Heidi M. Rose (Villanova University), and Xiaoquan Zhao (George Mason University).

Students selected to participate in the 2021 Doctoral Honors Seminar included:

Irena Acic, University of California – Davis
Bernadette A. Bowen, Bowling Green State University
Chelsea Butkowski, Cornell University
Leah Dajches, University of Arizona
Daniel J. DeVinney, University of Illinois
Christopher Garcia, Florida State University
Molly Han, University of Kansas
Sophie Jones, University of New Mexico
Keisuke Kimura, University of New Mexico
Madison Krall, University of Utah
Kristina Lee, Colorado State University
Danni Liao, University of Illinois
Timothy P. Luisi, University of Missouri
Anthony T. Machette, University of Oklahoma
Seth P. McCullock, Purdue University
Arti A. Nadkarni, Texas A&M University
Beatriz Nieto-Fernandez, University of South Florida
Sisandra Nkoala, University of Cape Town
Dakota Park-Ozee, University of Texas
Jessica Rauchberg, McMaster University
Shilpa Sawant, S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research
Susanna F. Scott, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
Soo Young Shin, Michigan State University
Corrine M. Sugino, University of Pittsburgh
Michael Vosburg, North Dakota State University
Kelly M. Weikle, Ohio University
Weimiao Zhou, University of Kansas
Yanmengqian Zhou, Pennsylvania State University

In light of the Coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak, NCA and our hosts at Colorado State University postponed the 2020 Doctoral Honors Seminar.  

The annual Doctoral Honors Seminar was held July 21–24, 2019 and hosted by the Department of Communication at the University of South Florida. Thirty doctoral students from more than 20 Communication doctoral programs attended the DHS, where they worked with distinguished researchers to discuss current topics and research within Communication Studies, Media and Society, and Rhetoric and/or Performance Studies.

This year’s DHS, themed “Communication, Engagement, and Social Justice” was led by faculty seminar leaders Erin Donovan (University of Texas), Rachel Griffin (University of Utah), Matt McAllister (The Pennsylvania State University), Mark McPhail (Indiana University), James Olufowote (University of Oklahoma), Belinda Stillion Southard (University of Georgia), Tracy Stephenson Shaffer (Louisiana State University), Jan Van den Bulck (University of Michigan), and Heather Zoller (University of Cincinnati).

The annual Doctoral Honors Seminar (DHS) was hosted by the Department of Communication Studies at Vanderbilt University, July 23-26, 2018. The theme of the 2018 DHS is “Communicating Intersections” and faculty leaders included Carlos Alemán (James Madison University), Jiyeon Kang (University of Iowa), Claire Sisco King (Vanderbilt), Kate Magsamen-Conrad (University of Iowa), Roopali Mukherjee (Queens College), Cindy Koenig Richards (Willamette University), Paul Stob (Vanderbilt), Dave Tell (University of Kansas), and Steven Wilson (University of South Florida).

Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

July 23-26, 2018

• 2021—Virtual (Due to COVID-19 Pandemic)
• 2020—Colorado State University (Postponed due to COVID-19 Pandemic)
• 2019—University of South Florida
• 2018—Vanderbilt University
• 2017—Bowling Green State University 
• 2016—Ohio University 
• 2015—University of Missouri  
• 2014—University of Maryland 
• 2013—University of Maine
• 2012—University of Southern California 
• 2011—North Dakota State University 
• 2010—University of Utah 
• 2009—West Virginia University
• 2008—University of Alabama 
• 2007—University of Colorado
• 2006—Purdue University
• 2005—University of Oklahoma 
• 2004—University of New Mexico 
• 2003—Bowling Green State University
• 2002—No DHS 
• 2001—University of Texas
• 2000—Northwestern University
• 1999—University of Illinois 
• 1998—Northwestern University
• 1992—Indiana University
• 1989—University of Georgia
• 1988—University of Massachusetts
• 1987—University of Georgia
• 1984—Ohio University
• 1983—Kent State University
• 1982 (Spring)—Ohio University
• 1982 (Fall)—Louisiana State University
• 1981—Bowling Green State University
• 1979—The Pennsylvania State University
• 1978—University of Michigan
• 1976—University of Massachusetts
• 1975—Michigan State University
• 1974—University of Massachusetts
• 1973—Northwestern University; Purdue University
• 1972 (Spring)—University of Denver; University of Wisconsin
• 1971 (Spring)—University of Iowa; University of Texas
• 1971 (Fall)—The Pennsylvania State University; Florida State University
• 1970 (Fall)—Michigan State University