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USCA Student and Faculty Member Win Prestigious Awards at Regional Communications Conference

Aiken, SC (10/01/2021) — Representatives from the University of South Carolina Aiken's (USCA) Department of Communication and Emerging Media won big at the annual Carolina Communications Association (CCA) Conference, held on September 25. CCA promotes the discipline of communication studies in the Carolinas and across the region by hosting conferences, publishing a journal, and providing resources for instructors and students.

Dr. Jason Munsell, associate professor, won the prestigious Lloyd Rohler Career Teaching Award, an award given to a CCA member who has demonstrated excellence in teaching throughout their career. Dr. Munsell was nominated for the award by Dr. Charmaine E. Wilson, USCA professor emeritus. In her nomination, Dr. Wilson attested, "He is awesome with students, he has done a great job at adapting, and so much more!" Dr. Peter Gloviczki, president of the CCA, said, "Dr. Munsell looks for ways to help his students shine. We are all better teachers by his example."

Grace Fulton, a USCA Spring 2021 graduate, won the Mary E. Jarrard Prize for outstanding student paper. She is the first USCA student to win the award. Her paper was titled: "On the Offensive: Applying the Functional Analysis Theory of Political Television Advertisements to Analyze the 2020 South Carolina Senatorial Race."

In an interview, Grace said, "I was ecstatic to be recognized by the CCA for this award, and for the opportunity to present at the conference. The process of researching and writing this paper allowed me to immerse myself in the field of political communication and learn about the campaign rhetoric within the SC election. I will definitely be taking what I learned through this project with me in my future research and classes.

"My time at USCA was incredibly rewarding, and I already miss the people and professors that made my time there so special. I am lucky to have had such great mentors throughout my undergrad, including Dr. Jason Munsell. He was my advisor for this project and was instrumental in helping me shape the paper and see it through to the end. I'm so glad he was recognized at the conference as well for his commitment to his students over the years. I know any student lucky enough to have been in his classroom would agree that this award was well deserved."

USCA students Natalie Bowers, Anna-Grace Langley, Madison Self, and Eva Slagle also presented their advocacy projects from the USCA course, "Communication and Public Advocacy." Dr. Munsell expressed his pride. "These students did an amazing job. They stepped up in front of a virtual audience, presented their material well, and did a great job at answering questions during the question and answer segment. I was very proud of them - they gave all the right answers. I could tell that they really learned and retained the course content." Dr. Munsell also stressed that the Department of Communication and Emerging Media is putting continued and increasing emphasis on undergraduate scholarship, a high-impact teaching practice.

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Dr. Jason Munsell, associate professor, won the prestigious Lloyd Rohler Career Teaching Award, an award given to a member who has demonstrated excellence in teaching throughout their career.

Grace Fulton, a USCA Spring 2021 graduate, won the Mary E. Jarrard Prize for outstanding student paper. She is the first USCA student to win the award.