06/28/2024

2025 CSCA Convention - Graduate Student Caucus (GSC) ... Call for Papers and Panels

GRADUATE STUDENT CAUCUS

Call for Papers and Panels

Central States Communication Association (CSCA)

94th Annual Convention – Cincinnati, Ohio 

April 1 – 6, 2025

Widening the Scope

 Submission deadline: October 5, 2024, 11:59 PM, CDT

The Graduate Student Caucus (GSC) invites all graduate student members of CSCA to submit competitive papers, programs, and interactive panels to be considered for programming at the 2025 CSCA conference in Cincinnati, Ohio. GSC focuses on celebrating graduate student work, offering development opportunities regarding teaching, service, & scholarship, and providing a supportive and affirming place for the unique situations of being a graduate student. 

This year we encourage members to embrace the convention theme, Widening the Scope. Widening the scope of our natural thinking about our engagement in the communication discipline can bring unique insights and perspectives to understanding communication issues, concerns, and problems. Practices associated with widening our scope include attending an interest group or caucus that you would not attend ordinarily. Learn something about an aspect of the field that will push your thinking and understanding of the communication discipline. Collect a sample that is less typical of practice in your area. Collaborate with a peer scholar who pursues inquiry into a related topic or area of interest from a different theoretical, disciplinary, or methodological vantage point than yours. Teach a course in a way that is different from how others might teach it. Brainstorm ways to help students in the classroom broaden their scope and understanding of communication studies.

Ideas generated at our 2024 business meeting illuminate this theme well, with ideas such as a panel about non-academic job opportunities (e.g., non-academic administrative jobs in universities, considering industry positions), a panel in collaboration with relevant caucuses and interest groups for discourses about creating spaces for other voices in academia beyond WEIRD, and collaborating with intercultural division, DEI; it can be paper panel or discussion panels. We encourage members to run with these themes among others—let’s widen the scope.

We have a Facebook page for brainstorming, planning, and networking opportunities, to encourage collaboration among graduate students. Please visit, join, and participate in the conversations about the upcoming convention at https://www.facebook.com/groups/cscagradcaucus/

GSC accepts completed competitive papers, extended abstracts, and discussion panels. Programming (papers and panels) will only be accepted from students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program at the time of submission; submissions co-authored with faculty mentors/advisors will not be accepted.

Completed Competitive Papers

• Must include a title and a brief abstract (required).
• Author name(s) and identifying information should be removed.
• Papers should be a maximum of 25 pages double-spaced with 12 pt. font. This excludes the title page, abstract, references, figures, and tables. 
• If the paper will be a graduate student debut, please type “DEBUT STUDENT” in the upper right-hand corner of the title page. To be considered a graduate student debut paper, (1) the author must be a graduate student, (2) the paper must have single authorship, and (3) the paper must be the author’s first paper to be presented at CSCA.

Extended Abstracts

We encourage members to submit extended abstracts with the expectation that extended abstracts are amended to complete research projects by the time of presentation. If you do not think that you will be able to complete the project by the conference (April 1-6), you should abstain from submitting it. These completed projects should be sent to the caucus Chair no later than one month before the conference to ensure compliance. Extended abstracts are not eligible for the Paul D. Skalski Top Paper Award. 

Extended abstracts must abide by the following:

• Must include a title and a brief abstract (required).
• Author name(s) and identifying information should be removed.
• Extended abstracts should be between 5 and 12 pages double-spaced with 12 pt. font. This excludes the title page, abstract, references, figures, and tables.
• Provide pertinent information (intro, lit, methods, etc.) relevant to the stage your project is at

Panels

A panel submission is a format that engages a group of panelists in a formal interactive discussion about a topic related to the GSC. Panel session submissions do not undergo anonymous review. These sessions are reviewed based on overall quality, interest to the caucus, relevance of the topic to the theme, innovativeness, and overall contribution. We strongly recommend collaboration with graduate students from multiple institutions. Panel submissions must include the following: 

• Title 
• Description/rationale (no more than 1 page)
• Complete list of participants along with their institutional affiliations, contact information (address, email, and telephone), and if they are CSCA members. 

Graduate Student Caucus Award Information

The Graduate Student Caucus presents certificates to the top competitive graduate student papers and the top graduate student panel at the annual Business Meeting. $50 awards are given to the Paul D. Skalski Top Paper and top graduate student panel.

Inclusive Scholarship Award

The Inclusive Scholarship Award is sponsored by the CSCA Equity & Inclusion Committee (EIC). Its purpose is to highlight the most promising work by scholars in the areas of equity and inclusion. The papers will be delivered both during the programming of the respective interest groups/caucuses to which they were submitted & during the EIC-sponsored paper panel.  

The Graduate Student Caucus is happy to be part of the Inclusive Scholarship Award process. If your paper should be considered for this award, the paper must clearly articulate, in at least one paragraph in the abstract, how the respective scholarship explicitly addresses equity and inclusion. Additionally, make sure to select the “Inclusive Scholarship” option when submitting said paper.

Final Important Information

• All technology requests must be made at the time of submission.
• Submissions must be received by 11:59 PM, CDT, October 5, 2024.
• Send submissions electronically through our online system via the CSCA website. 

Interest Group Planner & Chair: Gertrude Misornu Nartey (preferred name: Misornu), gertrude@uwm.edu