Mississippi College to host statewide communication association conference

John H. Saunders, a lecturer in communication arts at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, will give the keynote address at the 2025 Mississippi Communication Association Conference at Mississippi College.

Communication professionals and students from throughout the state will convene at Mississippi College on Friday, Feb. 7, to attend the 2025 Mississippi Communication Association Conference.

The one-day conference will include informative panels and lively roundtable discussions. It will feature presentations by Brad Bailey, associate vice president of enrollment strategy and communication at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and one of the state’s leading communication experts. John H. Saunders, a lecturer in communication arts at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, is scheduled to give the keynote address, “Carpe Kairos,” during lunch.

“The MCA is a 99-year organization designed to promote the study, criticism, research, teaching and appreciation of various aspects of communication,” said J. Mignon Kucia, MC professor of communication and executive director of the association. “We seek to create unity among high school, community college and university communication departments in the state.

“Members and guests will gather to network, share their research and learn about what is going on in the field of communication. This meeting provides an opportunity for students to present work, learn more about the field and network with professionals.”

Mississippi College and Hinds Community College co-founded what would become the MCA almost a century ago.

The association welcomes practitioners, researchers, teachers and students in the field of communication to participate in the association and conference. Student membership costs only $1 and conference registration for students is $10.

Kucia, Reid Vance, MC associate professor and chair of communication, and several other MC faculty members have served the MCA in prominent leadership roles through the years. Lindsey Dancy, assistant professor of communication, is currently the executive secretary/treasurer of the organization.

“The faculty of the Mississippi College Communication Department are delighted to host this event again this year,” Kucia said. “It provides a great opportunity for our students.”

Saunders earned his Ph.D. in speech communication at the Pennsylvania State University. His recent research focuses on the rhetorical functions of personal and public memory and how public texts interpret and curate the past for a present audience for future application.

Bailey obtained his Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Southern Mississippi. He was the sole proprietor of Vocationally Speaking, a business that provides workshops to assist individuals entering or re-entering the professional workforce in landing their preferred job, from 2009-20.

For more information about MCA membership or to register for the conference, click here.