LSU Department of Communication Studies

This week, PhD alum and Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University, Rico Self begins his summer residency with the National Humanities Center. The NHC is one of the most prestigious organizations in the US supporting humanities research. During the residency, for which he was competitively selected, Dr. Self will work on research and also benefit from the Center's immense resources. Congratulations, Dr. Self!

Last month, the department hosted another successful art show for students enrolled in CMST 1061: Fundamentals of Communication. You can still see students' excellent work on the second floor of the LSU Library. Many thanks to Professors Joni Butcher and Lisa Hebert for organizing this event!

On Friday, several departmental faculty had the honor of celebrating with graduating CMST undergraduate and graduate students at the College of Humanities and Social Sciences commencement ceremony. In particular, Autumn Passman and Emmy Reedy graduated with their master's degrees. Congrats, everyone!

And, as you may have heard, they shared the occasion with basketball great Shaquille O'Neill, who earned his master's degree!

This semester, the LSU Speech and Debate team concluded a remarkably successful season, including impressive runs at four national tournaments! This year's senior cohort, consisting of Roan Guidry, Cade Savoy, Landon Terro, and Sam Theriot, in particular have helped establish LSU's program as a highly respected and nationally-competitive team.

Below, please find the team's results from the National Forensics Association's national tournament. You can find more results at the team's Instagram page, linked in the comments below.

Thanks so much to the competitors and coaching staff for representing the department so well!

Recently, in recognition of her fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies and the National Endowment for the Humanities, faculty member Dr. Raquel Robvais received top honors at LSU's inaugural Gold Standard of Excellence reception. Dr. Robvais's book project on the rhetoric of sickle cell anemia is an ambitious study whose capacity to secure such prestigious financial support reflects its thoughtful and cutting-edge engagement with a deeply important topic. Congratulations, Dr. Robvais!

Last week, the department held its annual awards banquet to honor outstanding scholarship, teaching, and service by instructors and graduate students. Congratulations to all the recipients!

Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student
Jessica Kintigh

Excellence in Research by a Graduate Student
Jackie Carroll
Ocean Wang

Innovative Pedagogy Award
Joni Butcher

Instructor of the Year Award
Lisa Hebert

John LeBret Community Award
Mitchell Kahalley

Congratulations to PhD alum Dr. Stephanie Colin! In her capacity as the Associate Director of Northeastern University's LGBTQA Resource Center, Dr. Colin was a co-recipient of the university's 2026 Office of the Chancellor Team Member Award. This recognition reflects the exceptional contributions Dr. Colin has made to students, colleagues, and the Northeastern community as a whole through her work developing and implementing gender affirming resources.

Last weekend, LSU faculty and graduate students represented the Department of Communication Studies incredibly well at the annual Southern States Communication Association Conference in Birmingham, AL. Accolades included a top student paper award for graduate student Sharifa Shirina and top student performance recognition for Andrew Ho--both in the performance studies division. Also, Dr. Travis Brisini's show Far Halcyon Days was featured in the prestigious Page to Stage Session. Lastly, Professor Emerita Tracy Stephenson Shaffer was the subject of a career retrospective panel honoring her impact on performance studies. Congratulations, everyone!

Next week, Emeritus Professor Andy King will speak at St. Alban's Chapel on LSU's campus! Dr. King is one of the last living academics to hold an in-person interview with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He will share memories of their exchanges that ranged from speech preparation to the tensions between religious and political discourse.

LSU PhD alums Ariel Gratch and Lyndsay Michalik Gratch, both faculty at Syracuse University, are doing excellent work in the area of communication pedagogy. Between the two of them, they've recently published two textbooks: Communication Activities for the Classroom: Embodied Pedagogy Across The Curriculum (Springer, 2025) and Speech Performance: Public Speaking for All Occasions (Cognella, 2026). Links to both are in the comments below!