Furman hosts Carolinas Communication Association conference

Furman University recently hosted a two-day conference of the Carolinas Communication Association Oct. 3-4 at the Greenville Hilton with the theme, “Communicating Civic Responsibility and Reconciliation.”

Courtney German, Dr. Sean O’Rourke, and Micaela Hamakawa

Five students, including Melissa Temple, Jack McNeill, Emilee O’Brien, Kayla Wiles and Jun Hyun Yoon ’17, presented papers from their First Year Writing seminars. Four others, Courtney German ’15, Micaela Hamakawa ’16, Caroline Walters ’15 and Kolby Merryman ’15, presented work completed in upper-division Communication Studies courses and Luke Christie ’15 co-authored a paper with Professor Brandon Inabinet. More than 30 other Furman students conducting research in Communication Studies also attended.

German won the Mary E. Jarrard Award for Top Undergraduate Paper and Hamakawa was the runner-up for the same award.

Inabinet chaired and responded to a panel of papers. He also helped plan the conference with Professor Sean O’Rourke as the local host, with support from the Office of Undergraduate Research and the Office of Academic Affairs. Professor Cynthia King presented a paper that was a finalist for the Ray Camp Research Award for top paper at the conference. O’Rourke also delivered a paper, chaired a panel and gave the “keynote conversation” with Ben Downs and Dorothy Franks, two of the Greenville Seven who led the Sit-In Movement locally.