The Central States Communication Association presented its association awards at its 92nd annual meeting in St. Louis, MO. During the CSCA Hall of Fame Awards, Luncheon, and Business Meeting, the following awards were presented:
CSCA Hall of Fame: Christina S. Beck, Ohio University; Alberto González, Bowling Green State University; Edward A. Hinck, Central Michigan University; Roberta Davilla Robbins, United Methodist Church
Cooper Award: Iruoma Ezumba, Ph.D. Student, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Cem İsmail Addemir, M.A. Student, Illinois State University
Communication Studies Article of the Year Award: “Well, I’m Going to Have a Baby”: Navigating Safety, Stakeholders, and Strategy in Workplace Pregnancy Disclosures. China Billotte Verhoff, Ohio University; Patrice M. Buzzanell, University of South Florida
Federation Prize: Stigma Management Communication Scale Development. Sydney O'Shay, Utah State University; Kaitlin E. Phillips, Baylor University; Jennifer Anderson, South Dakota State University
Inclusive Scholarship Award: La Inclusión Relacional: Understanding Neoliberal Tensions, Relational Opportunities, and Fixed Understandings in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Work in the Global South. Astrid M. Villamil, University of Missouri-Columbia; Pilar Mendoza, University of Missouri-Columbia; Maryluz Hoyos Ensuncho, University of Missouri-Columbia; Juanita Reina Zambrano, Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios UNIMINUTO
Journal of Communication Pedagogy Article of the Year Award: Sounds About White: Critiquing the NCA Standards for Public Speaking Competency. Adam Key, University of Arkansas at Monticello
Kay Award for Community Engagement and Applied Communication Scholarship: Amy Aldridge Sanford, Middle Tennessee State University
Outstanding State Journal Award: Journal of the Speech and Theatre Association of Missouri. Editor: Gina Jensen, Webster University
Outstanding State Manuscript Award: The Working World is a Minefield: Counterstories of Loss, Iowa Journal of Communication. Rachel Collier Murdock, Des Moines Area Community College; Matthew J. Baker, Brigham Young University; Stacy Tye-Williams, Iowa State University
Past Officers Debut Paper Award: I am Worthy - (Re)Embodying Black Self. Sarah Elizabeth Keeton, Arizona State University
Pearson & Nelson Outstanding New Teacher Award: Dakota C. Horn, Bradley University
Warren Mentorship Award: Maria K. Venetis, Rutgers University
The association will meet April 2 – 7, 2024 in Grand Rapids, MI. You are invited to submit competitive papers, panel discussions, and performance sessions for our 93rd Annual Convention. Members are encouraged to reflect on the theme of "Incoherence."
Our lives are filled with moments of incoherence. Some segments of incoherence occur at the individual level, as we explore how shared meaning is missed. Other sites of incoherence come from systems and structures working to obfuscate our understanding of ourselves, our relational partners, our communities, and our organizations. Sometimes, as our theories tell us, incoherence can be beneficial, illuminating, or productive.
At times our narratives fail to make sense as they are missing the perspectives of portions of the community. Other moments of incoherence exist as individuals attempt to rewrite history as we know it, be it in our families or at the national level. Beyond exploring the incoherence of others' lives, we need to explore the incoherence within knowledge claims. How is the work we are doing misinterpreted or misappropriated so that what is shared with the larger community no longer makes sense? How do we push back on commonly accepted scripts when they do not cohere with our research or best practices? How do we assert scholarly and artistic knowledge and worth in a post-truth era of uncertainty where competing “truths” are the norm? We often return to struggles in our own relationships, organizations, and communities due to the failure to make sense of the communication and experiences of others. Additionally, incoherence may be felt at the individual level when happy objects fail to fulfill their promise. As we move from the intersections and transitions of the current year, let us continue our work, attending to marginalized voices as they help us make sense of our fractured meanings.
In embracing the theme of incoherence, we are invited to explore the instances of incoherence in our community as well as within our research. How do we as scholars approach results that fail to fit within existing frameworks that we build? How do we negotiate replication studies to consider our more intersectional perspectives? How do we move forward as theorists when theory fails to work within more diverse populations? As teachers, do we take time to reflect on norms of the field when they are rooted in biases that no longer make sense for our students and our future? Or as mentors, how do we respond when the feedback we offer our students does not land? Finally, how can we redress the incoherence in the structural practices of our institutional homes? What is incoherent about instructional and administrative labor, resource allocation, or curricular development vis a vis changing student need?
This conference is an invitation to argue, articulate, narrate, perform, and question these moments of incoherence.
Faculty, students, independent scholars, K-12 educators, and community members are encouraged to submit and attend the convention. Institutional and community partnerships are particularly welcome. Submissions inclusive of all methodological perspectives in the communication discipline are expected and embraced.
Submitters for the 2024 Central States conference may take part in the Equity and Inclusive Scholarship Award process. If your paper should be considered for this award, the paper must clearly articulate how the respective scholarship explicitly addresses equity and inclusion. Additionally, select the Equity and Inclusion Scholarship option when submitting. Look for specific calls and submission information from each of the 27 CSCA Interest Groups, Caucuses, and Sections.
Questions about the general call or the 2024 conference:
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Contact Kathy Denker, 2024 primary program planner, kjdenker@bsu.edu.
Deadline for Submissions: October 7, 2023, 11:59 pm CDT
Directions for using the online system: Online Submission Directions
The Western States Communication Association Executive Council is pleased to announce that Eric Wilson, Elliott School of Communication at Wichita State University, has been appointed to serve as the next WSCA Executive Director. He will shadow current Executive Director, Sara Hayden, from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024. His three-year term will begin July 1, 2024. Eric has extensive academic leadership experience in professional organizations, most recently with the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) From 2019 to 2021, he held the positions of chair-elect, chair, and past chair of the PRSA Southwest District, which comprises six states and has 2,000 members. During this three-year period, he led meetings, served on the national board nomination committee, hired and evaluated bookkeepers and administrators, oversaw nonprofit tax filings and financial operations, and drafted and updated policies and procedures manuals and organizational bylaws. He has planned and hosted national and regional conferences, including panelist and keynote speaker selection, logistics, and contingency planning. Eric’s research, teaching and speaking interests include public relations, media training, intercultural communication, student success, mental health and selfcare, and Generation Z students and professionals.
Now is the time to prepare submissions for the WSCA 2024 annual convention in Reno, NV. President-Elect Shinsuke Eguchi and University of Nevada, Reno Local Hosts Jimmie Manning and Jim Cherney invite you to visit the WSCA website to read about the conference theme, Possibilities, and the beautiful convention location. The deadline for regular submissions is September 1, 2023, and the deadline for submissions to the Undergraduate Scholars Research Conference is December 1, 2023.