In This IssueWSCA Annual Meeting, February 18-22, 2011, Monterey, CaliforniaMoving Down the CoastMonterey 2011From the Local HostInterest Groups/Affilates Issue Calls for MontereyNever Too Early to Begin Thinking about ResearchAnchorage 2010Interest Group/ Affiliate News from Anchorage |
WSCA Annual Meeting, February 18-22, 2011, Monterey, California
Moving Down the Coast
by Heather Hundley, President
Now that our Anchorage conference is behind us, we look forward to moving southbound down the Pacific coast to Monterey, California. Having recently travelled to Monterey I noticed the similarities between Anchorage and Monterey - both locations are cool (in multiple ways), both feature seafood, and both host WSCA.
If you are not familiar with Monterey, it is west of Fresno, south of San Francisco and north of Carmel. It is famous for its Cannery Row, home of John Steinbeck, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Fisherman’s Wharf. It is a beautiful setting for a conference and offers many fun things to do in the area. Since it is on the ocean, it is very chilly, particularly in February and when the sun goes down. Our conference hotel, the Hyatt Regency Monterey, is an oasis on its own. The famous Del Monte Golf Course is adjacent to the hotel offering golfers easy access for teeing it up. For non golfers, the course offers sprawling views of grassy fairways, Canadian geese 
grazing in the morning, and an alternative option for breakfast or lunch in the clubhouse. The airport is quite small and is easy to navigate. I was pleasantly surprised at the cost – flying out of Ontario, CA to Monterey was only $230 round trip!
With the school year quickly ending what else do we do in the summer but prepare our paper submissions for the September deadline! I’m excited to see the conference take shape between President Elect Pat Ganer, the local hosts at CSU Fresno, and the interest group planners.
Monterey 2011
From the Local Host
by Marnel Niles, California State University, Fresno
The 2011 Western States Communication Convention will be February 18-22 in Monterey, California. Monterey is 100 miles south of San Francisco and is located on the Central Coast. It is also a short drive to other unique California cities and towns, including San Jose, Big Sur, Carmel, Del Ray Oaks, Pebble Beach, Salinas, Moss Landing, Seaside, Soledad, and Sand City.
As a Philadelphia native, I, along with a student, made my first trip to Monterey in February and was immediately impressed with the city. Monterey is a cozy place with tourist attractions for all ages. In less than two days, I visited the world-renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium (where I touched a crab and starfish), Old Fisherman’s Wharf, Cannery Row, Dennis the Menace Park, and several restaurants, stores, and boutiques. Besides these activities, there was also the opportunity to kayak, whale watch, golf (there are 20 world-class golf courses in Monterey alone), spend time at the beach, go wine tasting, exercise on the walking and biking trails, take scenic drives, and visit the historic sites.
The Convention will be held at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa. It is newly renovated and has an upscale spa and full-service salon, in addition to a health club, heated pools, a hot tub, sports bar, restaurant, and Camp Hyatt (for children only). It is also on (literally!) a golf course, which can be viewed from many of the guest rooms. The guest rooms are comfortable, with wireless internet access, flat screen televisions, and spacious bathrooms. The Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa is less than ten minutes from downtown Monterey.
As you begin to plan your trip, please note that note that the faculty and students in the Department of Communication at California State University, Fresno will serve as your local hosts for next year’s Convention. Please feel free to contact the local host chair, Dr. Marnel Niles, if you have any questions at mnniles@csufresno.edu. See you in Monterey!
Monterey 2011
Interest Groups/Affilates Issue Calls for Monterey
Freedom of Expression
The Freedom of Expression and Legal Communication Interest Group welcomes papers or panel submissions that analyze freedom of expression and legal communication issues from a scholarly perspective or discuss pedagogy for teaching in these areas. The interest group accepts diverse research methodologies and welcomes alternative panel formats such as debates or simulations.
Details about paper or panel submissions are on the WSCA website:
Please submit papers or panel proposals (electronically or by mail) by September 1, 2010:
Doug Fraleigh
Department of Communication, MS JA46
CSU Fresno
Fresno, California 93740
Email: douglasf@csufresno.edu
Office Phone: (559)278-4292
ORWAC
The Organization for Research on Women and Communication invites submissions for program proposals and competitive papers for the Western States Communication Association conference to be held in Monterey, CA (February 18-22, 2011). ORWAC seeks submissions that speak to both its emphasis on research regarding women and intersectionality, gender, feminism, and the convention theme of “communication and community.” Of particular interest are papers and programs that address the processes of community and coalition building and civic social engagement, as well contemporary issues such as transnational feminism, citizenship, and globalization, and new media technologies as they relate to women, gender, and feminist activism.
Paper submission guidelines: ORWAC does not accept works in progress nor should papers have been previously presented or published, or be accepted for presentation or publication. Authors who have not previously presented a paper at a conference or published in a journal should mark their papers as “Debut” in the upper right-hand corner of the title page as well as indicate their status (e.g., bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral student). All student submissions should be marked as “Student” for consideration of the “Top Student Paper” award.
Paper submissions should adhere to the following: 1) A title page that includes the paper’s title, names of all authors, affiliation(s), email address(es), phone number(s) as well an abstract of 250-500 words; 2) A paper not to exceed 30 pages, including references; 3) No information identifying the author(s) should appear beyond that which appears on the title page; and 4) Save each document—title page and paper—as a separate pdf file.
Program Panel submission guidelines: 1) Thematic title of the program; 2) Description and rationale of program; 3) Title and brief description of each presentation or questions to be pursued by panelists; 4) Names, affiliations, email addresses and phone numbers of all participants. Alternative formats are encouraged as are innovative program proposals that provide opportunities for engaged interaction among participants and attendees; and 5) Save as a pdf file.
To all submitters, please stipulate any requests for equipment. For additional details about the WSCA convention, please consult www.westcomm.org.
Finally, all submissions must be received by Diane M. Blair, Ph.D., President of ORWAC no later than September 1, 2010 in order to be considered. Forward documents electronically to: dblair@csufresno.edu (office phone 559-278-8578).
Community College
Community colleges are in tune with the significance of quality, local communication. At WSCA’s annual conference in Anchorage, Alaska the CCIG brainstormed some possible panels around this theme. If you are interested in chairing one of these panels, participating or presenting or adding insight on one of these panels, or responding to the panel participants, please contact the interest group chair, Patricia O’Keefe or vice-chair for GIFTS panels Amy (London) Edwards listed below. You do not need to be a member of the CCIG to have a voice in our community. All WSCA participants are welcome.
Thematic Panels: contact Patricia O’Keefe, College of Marin, patricia.okeefe@marin.edu
- Reaching out to the Community through Service Learning: Communication Course Assignments and Assessment Techniques.
- Assessing the Needs of Our Local Community: How Community Colleges Adapt to their Local Demographics to Create Unique Student Learning Outcomes.
- Economic Times: Are Community Colleges Singing the Blues?
- Articulation and Transfer: Do we create courses to meet the needs of the community or do we focus on transferability?
- Communication in the Virtual Community: How does technology help or hinder the sense of community?
- Post-deployment Students: Welcoming Veterans Back to the Classroom Community.
- Beyond the Silos: Service and Leadership Opportunities at the Community College. What Does Our Discipline Mean to the Larger Campus Community?
Great Ideas for Teaching Speech (GIFTS) Panels: contact Amy Edwards, Oxnard College, aedwards@vcccd.edu.
- Gifts for the theme “Communication and Community”
- Gifts for Public Speaking or Hybrid Course
- Gifts for Interpersonal Communication Course
- Gifts for Small Group Communication Course
- Gifts for Intercultural Communication Course
Please send the following information to either O’Keefe (Thematic Panels) or Edwards (GIFTS Panels) on or before September 1, 2010.
- Title of Presentation (please include the name of panel your presentation fits into)
- Name (as you would like it to appear in the program) and Affiliation (school)
- Contact information: including an address, telephone number and email
Note: Complete panels may also be submitted to O’Keefe on or before September 1, 2010.
Monterey 2011
Never Too Early to Begin Thinking about Research
by Michelle A. Holling, Second Vice President
I look forward to planning the 8th Annual Undergraduate Student Research Competition (USRC). However, I need everyone’s help to spread the word. As your semester winds down, I ask you to encourage your students to save their final papers and consider revising them over the summer for submission to the competition.
What is USRC? It’s an extraordinary opportunity for undergraduate scholars and researchers. Students share original research in the form of critical investigation, experimentation, or analysis at our annual Western States Communication Association convention. We welcome papers from a diverse range of philosophical, theoretical, and methodological approaches to the study of communication. And, the USRC gives undergraduate scholars a place in which to showcase their work and receive feedback from experienced scholars!
Why participate? Undergraduate students benefit from participating in the research conference by crafting and sharing a professional presentation, meeting other undergraduate scholars from the Western region and the U.S., learning about each others’ research interests, receiving supportive feedback from scholars in the field and learning about graduate studies in communication.
When and where? The WSCA 2011 convention will be in Monterey, California, February 18-22, 2011. The USRC typically is held at the start of that convention. More specific dates will be available on the WSCA website.
Deadlines and particulars: The deadline for paper submissions will be late in the fall semester. However, it’s not too early to let students know of this fantastic opportunity and to begin helping them plan their submissions. Papers should be between 18-25 pages in length. Students who submit must be undergraduate students at the time of submission. Students should not submit more than one paper for which they serve as primary author. Co-authored papers are welcome.
Anchorage 2010
Interest Group/Affiliate News from Anchorage
by Heather Canary, Health Comm IG Chair, and Diane Blair, ORWAC President
Here are the top 4 Health Communication papers presented at Anchorage:
The Top Paper was “Predicting Pediatricians’ Communication with Parents about the HPV Vaccine: An Application of the Extended Parallel Process Model” by Tony Roberto, Ryan Goei, Janice Krieger, and Mira Katz. The Top Student Paper was “A Model for Training for Client Satisfaction through Role Conflict Reduction” by A. David Nalos. The Top Four Paper Panel also included “The Power of Parent Communication: Exploring the Relationships between Family Communication Patterns and Intimate Partner Violence” by Kellie Palazzolo and Beth Babin, and “Labeling and Personal Stories in Mental Illness Stigma Reduction” by Ginny McDermott and Lance Rintamaki.
ORWAC announced that Diane M. Blair (California State University, Fresno) is the new President and Stacey Sowards (University of Texas, El Paso) is the new Vice President of the organization. Valeria Fabj, Lynn University, has been named the new editor of Women’s Studies in Communication.
ORWAC recognized Robert Mack (University of Texas at Austin) with the Top Student Paper Award for his essay titled, “Shutting Out Cutting: Title, Text, and Meaning and Reading in Valerie Solanas’s SCUM Manifesto.”
In addition, two essays were selected to receive the Feminist Scholar Award, and both were provocative selections from the special issue of Women’s Studies in Communication: Aimee Carillo Rowe “Subject to Power: Feminism Without Victims” and Sonja and Karen Foss “Our Journey to Repowered Feminism: Expanding the Feminist Toolbox.”