From the Executive Director: Excited for the fall and what change will bring 

I want to take a moment to highlight two seminal sessions:

NCA’s Opening Session

Lifting as We Climb: Extending the PhD Pipeline and Elevating the Next Generation of Communication Scholars

Thursday, November 20 from 5:30 p.m. – 6:45 p.m. in Colorado Ballroom A – Level 3

Presenters and Panelists

• Ronald L. Jackson II, University of Miami
• Kelly Merrill, University of Cincinnati
• Javon Johnson, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
• Scott Bandy, Bethune-Cookman University
• Priscilla Cotton, Georgia State University
• Kimberly P. Johnson, Tennessee State University
• Precious Johnson, Texas Southern University
• Marquese McFerguson, Florida Atlantic University
• Yulani Rodgers, New York University

This uplifting, multigenerational opening session will explore the transformative power of mentoring within communication studies, spotlighting a national Ph.D. pipeline initiative designed to recruit and support future scholars. With engaging stories of success and struggle, heartfelt tributes, and dynamic dialogue, panelists will celebrate those who have selflessly mentored others while inspiring a new generation to pursue the Ph.D. Aligned with the convention theme, Communicate to Elevate, this session will inform, entertain, and honor the lasting legacy of mentorship in academe.

Carroll C. Arnold Distinguished Lecture

Suturing Solidarities that Sustain our Capacities to Imagine

Friday, November 21, 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. in Colorado Ballroom A – Level 3

Mohan J. Dutta, Massey University

Amidst the global consolidation of power in the hands of economic and political elites, our collective capacities to imagine just futures are our sources of sustenance. The destruction being deployed across global registers at an accelerated pace is juxtaposed in the backdrop of the transformative capacities of love, connection, and community to heal, and to mobilize together to build just futures. The sadness and despair felt across global spaces amidst the proliferation of different forms of supremacies offer invitational openings for turning to our diverse ancestral stories that show us ways of connecting with each other to challenge oppression. That the return of Indigenous land, abolition of racist carceral structures that grew out of slavery, securing of migrant rights, redistribution of resources, and dismantling of the militarized technologies of imperialism are intricately connected with each other forms the basis for weaving together solidarities. The lecture will explore the communicative processes through which the turn to connection draws us into ways of seeing beyond specific struggles. Such solidarities have deep historical roots. That our ancestors found ways of turning to their contextually situated stories of resistance to seek and build connections across struggles, across contexts, and across geographic spaces teaches us the radical possibilities of solidarity. Such radical solidarity turns outward even as it organizes the inner spaces of struggle, gently guiding us toward building our collective capacities to imagine. The power of communication as fostering connections lies at the core of the everyday work of suturing solidarities to build just futures.

In such uncertain times, these are just two of the many sessions that will surely spark your interest and lift your spirits. We look forward to seeing you at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center in under a month!

National Office Update

It’s a bittersweet announcement, but after eight years, NCA’s CFO, Joe Ritchie, has made the difficult decision to move to a new opportunity with the American Hotel and Lodging Association.

For those who do not know about the inner workings for NCA finances, we outsource our CFO functions to Cbiz, one of the largest accounting, financial, and advisory service providers in the country. Joe has overseen various changes to our accounting processes over the last several years. Joe, as a Director of Client Accounting and Advisory Services at Cbiz, oversaw a massive modernization of NCA’s billing processes by transitioning many of our accounting functions from paper files to digital. I would like to personally thank Joe for his support over the last eight years and wish him nothing but the best in his new professional journey. He leaves NCA in a much better position than when he became CFO in 2017.

As an association, we will be staying with Cbiz and have transitioned to a new CFO, Jake Greene. Jake has over 22 years working with not-for-profits with 16 being in the financial services industry. Jake has taken the helm as NCA’s CFO and has already contributed in budget discussions with the Finance Committee. I am excited about the fresh perspective Jake has brought to the table and look forward to working with him and the rest of the Finance Committee as we present the proposed budget to the Legislative Assembly in November.