Student Participation

Undergraduate Scholars Conference
Competitive Graduate Posters
Student Ambassador Program

 

James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond
Undergraduate Scholars Conference

Call for Submissions
James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond Undergraduate Scholars Conference
held concurrently with the

The 117th Annual Convention of the Eastern Communication Association
Emergence
Sheraton Station Square, Pittsburgh, PA

April 9 – April 12, 2026

Submission Deadline: December 15, 2025, 11:59pm PST

Call for undergraduate submissions: We invite you to attend and present your scholarly work at the 16th annual James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond Undergraduate Scholars Conference (USC), to be held concurrently with the ECA’s 117th annual convention. The USC runs from Thursday evening through Saturday evening.

The 2026 USC will incorporate the convention theme, Emergence. In recognition of Pittsburgh's rich history and evolution, "Emergence" has been chosen as the theme for the 2026 ECA Convention. This theme invites reflection on the emergence of new perspectives, enlightenment, or awakening; the rise of cultural or societal trends, movements, or norms; and the emergence of creative ideas, movements, or transformative works. We encourage submissions that creatively, innovatively, and openly engage with this theme, drawing on your unique experiences. We also encourage exploration of the following:

  • How can/will/must our discipline emerge in the context of the current political landscape?
  • What ideas, transformative works, and best practices are emerging in teaching, learning, practicing, researching, and theorizing? How should we respond?
  • How can we best support students as they emerge from academics?
  • How can we encourage emergence within ourselves? 
  • What is not emerging that should, and what should we do about it? 

There are two submission options for this year’s conference: paper submissions and poster presentation submissions, which are explained below. All submissions, whether a paper or a poster presentation, will be blind reviewed as part of the selection process for the USC. You can submit a maximum of one paper and a maximum of one poster presentation.

Paper submissions should be finished papers (i.e., NOT a work in progress & NOT a research paper prospectus). Accepted paper submissions will require a 10 – 12-minute oral presentation and will be scheduled as part of a panel consisting of 4-5 papers. These presentations will be followed by a brief question/answer discussion or a response from a communication scholar who has read each submitted paper.

Each paper should (a) be a maximum of 25 double-spaced pages (not including the references and any tables or figures), (b) be typed in Times Roman 12-point font with 1-inch margins, and (c) follow the American Psychological Association style for reference citation.

In conjunction with the National Communication Association, the USC will recognize the Lambda Pi Eta Top Paper Award. Created in 2017, the Lambda Pi Eta Top Paper Award recognizes the outstanding research of undergraduates at the regional level. This award will be presented to the highest ranked student paper authored by a current member(s) of Lambda Pi Eta.

Poster presentation submissions can be a finished research paper OR a research project currently in progress. Poster presentations are ideal for those research projects that would benefit from a visual display. Accepted poster presentation submissions will be scheduled as part of a poster session of 15-20 posters.

For all submissions, make sure that any identifying information (i.e., your name, school, faculty mentor or course instructor, contact information) is NOT contained anywhere within the document. Be sure to also inspect the document and remove all personal information from the document properties, including file names, before submitting for review; but of course, this information is encouraged to be on your poster you submit at the conference.

Submission Guidelines: All submissions must be uploaded through Attendee Interactive, which can be accessed at https://ww4.aievolution.com/eca2601/. If you do not already have an ECA Attendee Interactive account, you will be prompted to create an account with a new User ID and Password to submit your work.

When submitting a paper for consideration through Attendee Interactive, the following fields must be completed:

  • Title (select Undergraduate Paper as the option);
  • Author(s);
  • A 100-150 word abstract of your paper, followed verbatim by the ECA Statement of Professional Responsibility: In submitting the attached paper or poster presentation, I/We recognize that this submission is considered a professional I/We agree to present this paper or poster if it is accepted and programmed. I/We further recognize that all who attend and present at ECA’s annual meeting must register and pay required fees;
  • Categories, which is where you indicate whether you (and any coauthors) are all members of Lambda Pi Eta;
  • Presentation Requests (e.g., projector, Internet access; audio capabilities,   at this time, please note that any technology request is not guaranteed, please see the note below);
  • Documents (i.e., the paper; accepted file types are Word and PDF);
  • Preview, which enables you to review the information you provided in the prior fields; and
  • Finalize, which directs you to upload your submission

Technology Note

The 2026 Convention will be fully equipped with technology capabilities. A projector, screen, sound, wireless mouse and slide advancer, and Wi-Fi will be available in all breakout rooms. Presenters must supply their own laptop. Google Slides and PowerPoint templates featuring the convention theme and logo are available on the convention tab of the website. We encourage all attendees to take full advantage of these resources to create engaging paper presentations!

When submitting a poster presentation for consideration through Attendee Interactive, the following fields must be completed:

  • Title (select Undergraduate Poster as the option);
  • Author(s);
  • A 100-150 word abstract of your poster, followed verbatim by the ECA Statement of Professional Responsibility: In submitting the attached paper or poster presentation, I/We recognize that this submission is considered a professional I/We agree to present this paper or poster if it is accepted and programmed. I/We further recognize that all who attend and present at ECA’s annual meeting must register and pay required fees;
  • Additional Information (e.g., any special request; please note that this request is not guaranteed);
  • Documents (i.e., a 1-2 page outline of the major points you plan to display on your poster; accepted file types are Word and PDF);
  • Preview, which enables you to review the information you provided in the prior fields; and
  • Finalize, which directs you to upload your submission

If you have questions about the submission process or the conference, contact Dr. Kerry Byrnes-Loinette (kloinette@collin.edu) and Dr. Steve Granelli (s.granelli@northeastern.edu), the 2026 Undergraduate Scholars Conference Planners.

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You can donate to the USC Scholarship fund here.

Poster Guidelines and Examples

Call for Competitive Graduate Posters

The 117th Annual Convention of the Eastern Communication Association  
Emergence  
Sheraton Station Square, Pittsburgh, PA  

April 9 – 12, 2026  

 2026 ECA Graduate Poster Session Planner: Jon Judy, Stark State College

 Planner Email: jjudy@starkstate.edu

Submission Deadline: December 15, 2025, 11:59pm PST

Call for graduate submissions: Submissions are now open for competitive Graduate Poster sessions at the 2026 Eastern Communication Association convention.

Although not required, it is strongly encouraged that your poster submission relate to the theme of this year’s convention, Emergence. 

The selection of “Emergence” as our theme was inspired by the city hosting the convention, Pittsburgh. Following decades of economic hardship tied to declines in manufacturing, Pittsburgh has emerged anew as a bustling hub for technology, healthcare, and education. Its affordability; robust sports culture; and bustling arts, entertainment, and food scenes have now made it one of the country’s “most livable” cities.  

As a theme, "Emergence" invites reflection on: the emergence of new perspectives, enlightenment, or awakening; the rise of cultural or societal trends, movements, or norms; and the emergence of creative ideas, movements, or transformative works. We encourage submissions that creatively, innovatively, and openly engage with this theme, drawing on your unique experiences. We also encourage exploration of the following:  

  • How can/will/must our discipline emerge in the context of the current political landscape? 
  • What ideas, transformative works, and best practices are emerging in teaching, learning, practicing, researching, and theorizing? How should we respond? 
  • How can we best support our students as they emerge from academics?
  • In what ways is our emergence as communication educators, researchers, and practitioners nurtured, encouraged, or strengthened? How can this be celebrated? Alternatively, in what ways is our emergence as communication educators, researchers, and practitioners impeded, stifled, or silenced? How should we respond? 
  • How can we encourage our own emergence within ourselves? 
  • What is not emerging that should, and what should we do about it? 

Poster presentation submissions can be a finished research paper OR a research project currently in progress. Poster presentations are ideal for those research projects that would benefit from a visual display. Accepted poster presentation submissions will be scheduled as part of a poster session of 15-20 posters.

All submissions will be blind reviewed, so there should be no identifying information anywhere within the uploaded document (i.e., your name, school, faculty mentor or course instructor, contact information). Be sure to also inspect the document and remove all personal information from the document properties, including file names, before submitting for review; but of course, this information is encouraged to be on the poster you present at the conference.

Submission Guidelines: All submissions must be uploaded through Attendee Interactive, which can be accessed at https://ww4.aievolution.com/eca2601/. If you do not already have an ECA Attendee Interactive account, you will be prompted to create an account with a new User ID and Password to submit your work.

You can submit a maximum of one poster presentation.

The following fields must be completed in your Attendee Interactive Graduate Poster submission:

  • Title
  • Author(s)
  • Abstract: A 100-150 word abstract of your poster, followed verbatim by the ECA Statement of Professional Responsibility: In submitting the attached poster, I/we recognize that this submission is considered a professional responsibility. I/we agree to present this poster if it is accepted and programmed. I/we further recognize that all who attend and present at ECA’s annual meeting must register and pay required fees.
  • Categories: Indicate debut paper or Lambda Pi Eta Membership
  • Additional Information:
    • Scheduling & Special Requests: Please identify any accommodations associated with physical or religious needs that may impact scheduling. Special requests related to other needs such as weddings, births, etc. will be considered on a case-by-case basis.  
  • Documents: Upload a 1-2 page outline of the major points you plan to display on your poster. (Must be BLIND. Accepted file types are Word and PDF.) 
  • Preview, which enables you to review the information you provided in the prior fields; and
  • Finalize, which directs you to upload your submission.

If you have questions about the submission process or the conference, contact the 2026 Graduate Poster Sessions Planner, Jon Judy, at jjudy@starkstate.edu.

Convention Acceptance Notifications: January, 2026

If you have questions about the submission process or the conference, contact Jon Judy jjudy@starkstate.edu the 2026 Graduate Posters Session Director. 

Poster guideline materials will be updated here shortly. Please check back soon.

Poster Guidelines and Examples

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Application for Student Ambassador Program

The ECA Student Ambassador Program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to attend and participate in the ECA convention without paying registration fees, and to experience an academic service opportunity. It is a wonderful chance to learn about academia while adding a service element to the Ambassador’s résumé or graduate school application.

Student ambassadors can expect to work the convention for a few hours each day. Tasks can vary from greeting attendees, assisting attendees with finding rooms, poster session setup, registration assistance, photography, videography, etc.

This is a competitive selection process and a limited number of Ambassador slots are available.

Complete your application today!

Submission Deadline: Sunday, March 1, 2026, at 11:59 PM PST

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