Welcome Back Fall 2024

The department kicked off the academic year with an event on August 30 to introduce ourselves to the new graduate student cohort and to welcome back all the familiar faces in our community. Following fun introductions and a group picture, we had an opening reception at Moody’s Kitchen. Thanks to the department staff for all their work organizing the event.

Department Chair Craig Scott updated those in attendance at the Fall Kickoff event about several things coming this academic year:

• We’re over 90% of the way to our $50K goal for the Barry Brummett Endowed Lecture and hope to wrap that up in the coming month.
• We’re planning to bring Organizational Communication and Technology assistant professor job candidates to campus this fall for interviews. 
• We’re all set for NCA, including our booth at the Graduate Open House and our Texas Party on Saturday evening of the conference at the Crescent City Brewhouse. 
• In the spring, we’ll have our colloquium series, our annual Communication Studies Week, and our graduate recruitment event.
• On October 25 we’ll be celebrating our quasquicentennial as the department turns 125 years old! John Caughlin will be back to accept his outstanding grad alum award in person and a host of others from our past and present will be on hand as we celebrate this anniversary of the oldest part of what is now Moody College. 

Scott also recognized several in our community for recent honors/promotions. 

• Dr. Eva Margarita has joined us as a full-time Assistant Professor of Instruction and Director of the defending national champion Texas Speech Team. Welcome Eva!
• Dr. Maddie Holland is now officially an Associate Professor of Instruction. Congrats Maddie on your promotion!
• Dr. Keri Stephens became a Fellow of the International Communication Association, joining seven other Fellows in the department. Well done, Keri! 

The biggest welcome was for the department’s new graduate student cohort. Graduate Coordinator Jenn Porras and Graduate Advisor René Dailey planned a series of events the week prior to the department kickoff event to help orient new students. On Monday, our students joined Shelly Furness, Director of Moody College’s Center for Advancing Teaching Excellence (CATE), for the New Teaching Assistant (TA) Training. On Wednesday, our new students joined us in CMA for a full day orientation specifically geared towards the CMS graduate program. New students heard from and met with department/program staff and other leadership, faculty in each research area, as well as leaders and members of the CommSGC before everyone met for our traditional Amy’s Ice Cream social hour. The orientation week also included various sessions sponsored by the Graduate School.