Dates : October 2-4, 2025
Location : Marriott Dallas Allen Hotel & Convention
Center
777 Watters Creek Boulevard
Allen, TX 75013
(469) 675-0800
Dates : October 10-12, 2024
Location : Embassy Suites by Hilton Amarillo Downtown
550 S Buchanan Street
Amarillo, TX. 79101
(806) 803-5500
The deadline for reservations is Sept. 18. All rooms are suites. This includes a hot complimentary breakfast and free appetizers and a cocktail in the afternoon. Free coffee is available all day as well.
We will again be electing new officers at convention. The Nominating Committee has presented two candidates to consider as Vice President-Elect. Click the links below to read the nomination packets for each candidate.
An integral part of the communication discipline is the connection of high level skills in presentation and advocacy to the needs of new and emerging leaders. The 2024 convention will center around the theme of leadership as both a key component and key outcome of the communication disciplines.
From the advocacy, performance, and research skills developed in forensic activities and the acquisition of presentation skills in the classroom to the study of ways the humans interact and understand each other, there is no academic discipline that is as important in developing leadership as communication.
We invite panel ideas, discussions, presented papers, and general business connected to the development of leadership, with the goal of documenting the impact of speech communication education on leadership development and generating best practices and new ideas.
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2024 TSCA Conference in Amarillo, TX. October 10-12, 2024 at the Embassy Suites Amarillo.
Send all program questions and comments to Rory McKenzie mckenziera@lisdeagles.net. Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson OR send directly to Rory McKenzie.
Deadline for Initial Program Submissions: December 15, 2023
Dates : October 12-14, 2023
Location : Hilton Houston Post Oak by the Galleria
2001 Post Oak Blvd
Houston, TX. 77056-4401
(713) 968-1346
Parking at the hotel will be $10 per day for hotel guests, $8 per day for guests attending convention.
While trying to decide on a theme, my mind was drawn back to the themes of the past few years. In 2021 we focused on functioning in a world that had been turned upside down by the pandemic. We explored how the more things change, the more grounded we need to be in our pedagogy while at the same time being highly ϐlexible and open to new ideas and technologies. This year we took a step back to focus on perfecting the basics as we kept it simple. Next year we will build on these lessons and embrace an era for development and change: truly, a time to grow.
How can we grow in our practice and performance in the classroom? How can we donate our talents to improving our professional community? What do we need to do to continue to grow as an organization? How can we bring others into our fold?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2023 TSCA Conference in Houston, TX. October 12-14, 2023.
Send all program questions and comments to Randy Cox mrcox@austin.utexas.edu Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson OR send directly to Randy Cox December 15, 2022
Deadline for Program Submissions: December 15, 2022
Dates : October 6-8, 2022
Location : Hilton Dallas/Rockwall Lakefront
2055 Sumer Lee Drive
Rockwall, TX 75032
(214) 771-3700
22 miles east of downtown Dallas off Interstate I-30
Group rate for the hotel is $129/night Click here to reserve rooms
Deadline for reservations (for guaranteed rate): September 14
Parking: complimentary and 50% off valet available
The Texas Speech Communication Association invites submissions of scholarly papers and panel presentations by undergraduate and graduate students for its 2022 annual convention. We invite individuals to submit a variety of projects from the Communication Studies discipline, and also from other intersecting disciplines such as Public Relations, Mass Communication, etc.
The Conference will be held in conjunction with the Texas Speech Communication Association's annual convention, October 6-8, in Rockwall, TX.
Click here for the complete call for papers.
Sometimes, we need to get back to the basics -- focus on the foundations and explore elements we have not looked at in a while. Working our way through all the challenges and changes that a global pandemic has brought about has left us communicators and educators understanding the importance of getting back to the basics. We have evaluated and decided what is important. We need to use those decisions in moving forward.
While trying to decide on a theme, my mind kept taking me back to my high school speech teacher. One of the things she said, (and still says) is "Keep It Simple." Sometimes she reminded us to use the KISS Method (Keep It Simple Stupid -- or Speaker; no one in this organization is dumb). Sometimes I think we just make things too complicated.
How can we reconnect to the basics of communication? What are simple things that we can do to help our classrooms, teams and tournaments run more smoothly? How can our connections and relationships lead to an uncomplicated advancement of the field?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2022 TSCA Conference in Rockwall, TX. October 5-8, 2022.
Send all program questions and comments to Ryan Lovell ryan.lovell@amaisd.org
Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson OR send directly to Ryan Lovell.
A complete call for papers will be available online at www.etsca.com
Deadline for Program Submissions: December 15, 2021
Dates : October 13-16, 2021
Location : San Antonio Colonnade Hotel (formerly the Omni San Antonio at the Colonnade)
9821 Colonnade Boulevard
San Antonio, TX 78230
(210) 691-8888
Reservations may be made by mentioning "TSCA Convention" through email at sacolonnadehotel@gmail.com -OR- calling (210) 691-8888
In the election for Vice President-Elect, Randy Cox won. In the election for Executive Secretary-Elect, Mellessa Denny won. Wade Hescht will remain as Comptroller.
2019-2020 was certainly a year for the books! Most notably, a global pandemic that shut down most of the world and our schools taught us that school and life will never really be the same. Truly, the only constant IS change. Perhaps the saying should now read, "The more things change, the more they keep changing." Adaptation, flexibility, and preparedness, our new personal norms, demand that we must follow suit in the classroom to fit the immense diversity and educational challenges we face on a daily basis.
The inability of educators to diversify stagnates education. Resistance to the digital classroom or to differentiate learning in the physical classroom explain why Individualized Education Plans, proficiency in technology, and truly diversified education lacked widespread effectiveness prior to the event that changed everything. In the Covid-19 world, Zoom meetings, Google Classroom assignments, Canvas, and online competitions led the way. Now, more than in almost any other curriculum, communication education and forensics coaching and competitions are thrust headlong into the 21st Century digital world, never to return to whatever "normal" was before.
Covid-19 and the George Floyd murder and response brought things to a head and taught us that we must embrace change and diversity readily. Exercising creativity and flexibility in both traditional and remote learning techniques and tools, changing our educational tactics abruptly, having backup plans for Plan A and B and C, and preparing ourselves for anything adversity throws our way should replace the status quo. Because after all, "What truly IS 'normal' now, anyway?"
Change is good! Embrace it! Let this convention's theme inspire those already proficient and talented in alternative educational platforms, strategies, and differentiation to share your gifts. Celebrate the idea that change is and always has been a GOOD thing, educationally speaking. Celebrate diversity. With an emphasis on creativity and active modeling in our panels and programs, I hope that we find inspiration in featuring:
Join us by sharing your research, ideas, and strategies at the 2021 TSCA Conference in San Antonio, Texas October 13-16, 2021.
Send all program questions and comments to Lacy Cannon at lcannon@wtamu.edu
Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson, District Chairs, OR send directly to Lacy Cannon at lcannon@wtamu.edu
Deadline for Program Submissions: December 15, 2020
Dates : October 7-10, 2020
Location : Convention will be held Virtually
Call for Papers and Panels
I remember video rental stores. I remember going in, choosing from the available
videos, taking it home, and watching the movie. For just a few days, this was our
video. One specific part I remember was the rental store label, on each video. The
label suggested to "Be Kind and Rewind." Why did we follow this request "to be
kind?"
Sometimes, in our busy lives, we as communication scholars, can forget this simple, yet thoughtful message. Perhaps we forget because sometimes the simplest parts of great communication are the easiest to forget. Perhaps we expect others to know what we are thinking, without any directions. Perhaps we cannot find the words to express our needs.
I believe successful communication and kindness have a lot in common. From the moment we began to communicate as children, through today as communication scholars, we communicate and our words have meaning. At the end of this decade and into the new one, the basic communication skills we first learned have been worked and re-worked to fit the need of our changing audience over the years.
What we have lost is the ability to be kind. We fall into greed, selfishness, and competition which can lead to poor relationships, negative conflict, and possibly someone feeling not included or dismissed.
For this convention, I want us to rewind and use the communication skills designed by our predecessors, and learn to be kind, once again. Let's use the basic communication skills that we were first taught to refresh our relationships and ways we communicate with our colleagues and students.
Some examples of using long-lasting communication skills in order to be kind are:
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2020 TSCA Conference in Rockwall, Texas on October 8-10, 2020
Send all program questions and comments to Aimee Kasprzyk @ akaspryzk@bgrove.org.
Submit panels through your interest group chairperson or send directly to Aimee Kasprzyk akaspryzk@bgrove.org
Deadline for Program Submissions: December 15, 2019
Date : October 3-5, 2019
Location : Embassy Suites Hotel
500 Buchanan St
Amarillo, TX 79101
(806) 803-5500
For reservations, members may call the main hotel number, or even Hilton reservations.
The code is TSC or TX Speech Comm Assn.
Lacy Cannon won the election for Vice President-Elect. Carolyn Baum will remain as our Executive Secretary. Amanda Jo Ratcliff will be the
Journal Editor-Elect. Stef Cambra will be the Newsletter Editor-Elect.
I fear our community has fallen victim to a very simple principle - we have become trapped in an echo chamber. The state of Texas boasts one of the best communications programs in the world and is home to, if not the strongest high school and collegiate forensics circuit in the country, one of the strongest. This convention, every year, is an opportunity to reinvest in ourselves and laud ourselves for the growth and excellence in our community. Despite our continued success in the academic field of communications scholarship and our continued competitive success at the middle school, high school, and collegiate levels, we continue to face challenges to our positions within schools.
With the recent publication of the Long-Range Planning Public Input Survey Final Results, the Texas Comprehensive Center at American Institutes for Research confirmed what we have known for years - this discipline is essential to student success. It's time to break out of our echo chamber and fight to secure our place in schools once again. In addition to focusing on teaching communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking, panels should focus on the cross curricular components of a well-rounded communication education.
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2019 TSCA Conference in West Texas on October 3-5, 2019.
Send all program questions and comments to Mendy Meurer at mmeurer@delmar.edu.
Deadline for program submissions: December 15, 2018.
Date : October 4-6, 2018
Location : Omni Corpus Christi Hotel
900 North Shoreline Boulevard
Corpus Christi, TX 78401
(361) 887-1600
Single Room Rate : $101
Double Room Rate : $125
Triple Room Rate : $145
Quard Room Rate : $165
EXTENDED Room Reservation Deadline : 5:00pm on Monday, September 17, 2018
Phone: 1-800-843-6664 (Please ask for TSCA convention room rate block code 14500814543 when making your reservation.
Click here to reserve rooms at the Omni in CORPUS CHRISTI
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Registration deadline for convention: October 4, 2018 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
In 2006, the dictionary people at Merriam-Webster performed a great public service by bestowing its "Word of the Year" award to "truthiness." A phrase coined by Stephen Colbert just moments before airing an episode of The Colbert Report. Colbert explained that truthiness is not about "truth, we're talking about something that seems like truth - the truth we want to exist." A decade later, the Oxford Dictionaries chose "post-truth" as its word of the year for 2016. Oxford describes post-truth as "relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief."
We can assume that neither Merriam-Webster nor Oxford was thinking about teachers and students when choosing the words, but the dawning of a truthiness/post-truth era illuminates a number of major challenges for progressive-minded teachers. As Communication professionals, these facts demand that we reevaluate how we teach media literacy, but it also makes clear the work we must do to reinvigorate our approaches to inspiring students. How will we adapt to this new era? How will we inspire them to become more patient, open-minded readers? How will we inspire them to become more patient, active listeners? How will we inspire them to become more patient, critical thinkers?
How will we teach them to identify and respond to the truth?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2018 TSCA Conference in Corpus Christi, TX. October 4-6, 2018.
Send all program questions and comments to Colin Malinak
cmalinak@smhall.org
Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson OR send directly to Colin Malinak.
Deadline for Program Submissions: December 15, 2017
We will be voting for new officers at convention. Seats are up for Comptroller and Vice President-Elect. One nomination has been received for Comptroller:
For Vice President-Elect, we have two nominations:
On August 25th, Hurricane Harvey struck the coast of Texas as a category 4 storm with sustained winds of up to 130 mph. The wind and flooding ravaged coastal communities from Corpus Christi up through Louisiana and poured massive amounts of rain in areas far inland. In Houston, where we were scheduled to hold the 2017 TSCA convention, the flooding was extensive throughout the city. Among those buildings that were flooded was the Omni Houston Hotel-Westside. While we held out hope that the damage could be repaired in time for the convention, we were not so fortunate. The hotel contacted TSCA after their adjusters inspected the property to inform us that they would be closed until September 30th and possibly longer. They released us from our convention contract and helped us to find another location that could quickly assume the obligations of serving as a site for our annual conference.
The Omni San Antonio at the Colonnade, our location from the 2016 conference, quickly stepped up to help. Please note that with such a quick venue change, there will need to be some flexibility. Vice President Wade Hescht and Comptroller Mike Jones have been working with the hotel to arrange all available space and to revise the convention program. There are other organizations also holding functions in the hotel that weekend and we will be working around them.
InFusion: Inspiring Minds Want to Grow
Date : October 5-7, 2017
Location : Omni San Antonio at the Colonnade
9821 Colonnade Blvd
San Antonio, TX 78230
(210) 691-8888
Room Rate : $118
Room Reservation Deadline : 5:00pm on Friday, September 29, 2017
Please ask for TSCA convention room rate when making your reservation.
Click here to reserve rooms at the Omni in SAN ANTONIO (Updated link 9/12/17)
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Registration deadline for convention: October 5, 2017 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
Faculty Convention Package
We are pleased to offer 2 complimentary Convention Packages to faculty members in Texas to attend Convention in Houston, October 5-7, 2017.
Eligibility: Applicants must be full-time faculty members in a speech communications department at an accredited college or university who are not members
of TSCA and have never attended convention. Click here for application.
2017 Convention: Call for Papers and Panels
InFusion: Inspiring Minds Want to Grow
Deadline: December 15, 2016
Our organization is a combination of creative, colorful, controversial, committed educators who are changing lives in communities across the state every single day. We bring passion, devotion, and energy into our classrooms and inspire the students in our charge. Our membership includes brand new teachers fresh out of college armed with the latest research, best practices, and technology tools; seasoned veterans who have contributed to the latest research, established award-winning programs and published research; and leaders of various educational and civic organizations.
It has never been more important to our membership, to the students and communities we serve, that we clarify our vision and actively begin to work toward it.
How can we maximize the benefits of membership in the Texas Speech Communication Association? Where do you fit in the organizational structure of TSCA? How can we support and encourage one another in meaningful ways, so that our members are prepared to thrive, not just survive? How can TSCA best utilize our varied gifts and roles to establish an effective advocacy within the state? How can we bring our individual visions together to infuse the organization and propel Speech Education forward?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2017 TSCA Conference in Houston. October 5-7, 2017.
Send all program questions and comments to Wade Hescht wade.hescht@lonestar.edu
Submit panels through your Interest Group Chairperson OR send directly to Wade Hescht.
Shaping the Future
Date : October 6-8, 2016
Location : Omni San Antonio at the Colonnade
9821 Colonnade Boulevard
San Antonio, TX 78230
(210) 691-8888
Room Rate : $115 single/double occupancy; $125 triple/quadruple occupancy
Room Reservation Deadline : 5:00pm on Monday, September 12, 2016
Please ask for TSCA convention room rate when making your reservation.
Click here to reserve rooms at the Omni
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Registration deadline for convention: October 6, 2016 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
Register for Open Auditions here.
Register for the Career Expo here.
2016 Convention: Call for Programs
Deadline: December 15, 2015
Countless movies and novels have tried to predict what the future will look like, with varied levels of success. The one certainty is that the future will bring about change. As Communication educators, we have the ability to both shape the change and to prepare our students for the future. In 2014, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Humanities Indicator Assessment noted a rise in Communication Studies majors at Universities in the United States. However, Michael Wesch, Associate Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University, notes, "communication has taken on a vastly different landscape than it previously did." So how do we educate students who will face situations we cannot imagine, and use communication technology that has yet to be invented? How do we adapt? How do our institutions and schools adapt? How does our organization adapt?
As Communication teachers and professionals, what are we doing to influence the future members of our field? How will communication, technology, students, and our field change in the future? How are we shaping those changes? How are we preparing our students and ourselves for these changes?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2016 TSCA Conference in Dallas. October 3-6, 2016.
You Matter: The Ripple Effect
Date : October 1-3, 2015
Location : Westin DFW Airport
4545 W. John Carpenter Freeway
Irving, TX 75063
(972) 929-4500
Room Rate : $109 (single and double), $119 triple, and $129 quad
Reservation Deadline : Monday, September 14, 2015
Please ask for TSCA convention room rate when making your reservation.
You may also use the following link:
https://www.starwoodmeeting.com/StarGroupsWeb/res?id=1412309714&key=37260C9B
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Registration deadline for convention: October 1, 2015 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
2015 Convention: Call for Programs
Deadline: December 15, 2014
In his book, The Butterfly Effect, Andy Andrews contends that we each have the power to change the world with even the slightest interactions with the world around us. As educators, the leverage we have goes beyond simply completing tasks or transferring knowledge. Long-term relationships are built, previously unexplored values are learned, and foreign culture is shared. The ripple effect occurs.
As teachers, how does the way in which we communicate with students, parents and colleagues impact generations to come? How should we monitor our communication because of the ripple effect? And how can we pass on the importance of the power of choice to our students so they strive to make positive ripples in the world around them?
Everything we do matters. YOU matter.
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2015 TSCA Conference in Dallas. October 1-3, 2015.
Teaching Responsibility in an Irresponsible World
Date: October 2-4, 2014
Location:The Overton
2322 Mac Davis Lane
Lubbock, TX 79401
(806) 776-7000
http://www.overtonhotel.com
Rate: $85/night
Ask for the TSCA block.
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Click here to register for convention.
Registration deadline for convention: October 2, 2014 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
2014 Convention: Call for Programs
Deadline: December 15, 2013
Educators on all levels are expected to teach more than the outcomes in their field. With new state requirements Social Responsibility and Personal Responsibility are expected to be taught in core courses taught at the college and/or university level beginning Fall 2014. How is this effecting us as educators not only on the college level but in high schools and middle schools as well? How do we teach this generation of students? What lessons are we learning about ourselves as Educators? And most of all can responsibility be taught?
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2014 TSCA Conference in Lubbock.
Adapting in a World of Diversity Download convention program
Date: October 10-12, 2013
Location: Omni Bayfront Tower
900 N. Shoreline Blvd.
Corpus Christi, TX 78401
(800) 843-6664
(361) 887-1600
Cost : $150 (Sustaining Membership)
Luncheon : $20
Click here to register for convention.
Registration deadline for convention: October 10, 2013 (first day of convention). Pre-registration is not required.
2013 Convention: Call for Programs
Deadline: March 8, 2013
A fundamental concern of rhetoric is the adaptation of the message to the audience. Aristotle noted that "People always think well of speeches adapted to, and reflecting, their own character..." However, in our increasingly diverse, multimodal existence, we must think even more deeply about the meaning of adaptation, not just in the classroom, but within our entire professional world.
Join us by sharing your research and ideas at the 2013 TSCA Conference in Corpus Christi.
Click to download Convention Program
Facing Challenges and Making Choices
Officer elections were held:
Date: October 11-14, 2012
Location: Omni Colonnade in San Antonio
Click to download Convention Program
It's All a Matter of Perspective
Officer
elections for Journal Editor, Comptroller and Vice President-Elect were held.
Date: October 13-16, 2011
Location: Omni Dallas Mandalay
Click to download Convention Program
Cultural Commnication:
Creating Chaos or
Community?
Date: October 6-9, 2010
Location: Omni Houston Hotel Westside
Click to download Convention Program
Click to download Program Addendum
Beyond Words:
Nonverbal Communication A Second Language
Date: October 7-10, 2009
Location: Omni Mandalay Hotel at Las Colinas
Officer elections were held and Connie McKee will serve as Vice President-Elect.
2009 Convention Program (Updated 9/29/09 9:00am)
View
Program Addendum (10/6/09 @ 12:30pm)
View
Click to download Convention Program
Media Morphology:
Examining How Technology
Has Impacted Our Communication Process
Date: October 8-11, 2008
Location: Omni Bayfront Tower in Corpus Christi
Officer elections were held. Kandi King will serve as Vice President Elect. Mike Jones will be the new Comptroller.
2008 Convention Program
View
Click to download Convention Program
Listening:
Decoding Messages in the 21st
Century
Date: October 3-6, 2007
Location: Omni Bayfront Tower in San Antonio
Officer elections were held. Ralph Long will serve as Vice President Elect. Amy Tilton Jones will continue to serve as Newsletter Editor.
2007 Convention Program
View
Click to download Convention Program
The Rise of Incivility:
Establishing
Respectful Communication
Date: October 4-7, 2006
Location: Ambassador Hotel in Amarillo
Officer elections were held. Lois Davis won the election for Vice President Elect. Bill Schuetz will remain as Comptroller. Brent Hinkle will be Secretary Elect. Shawn Wahl will be Journal Editor Elect.
2006 Convention Program
View
Click to download Convention Program
Date: Oct 5-8, 2005
Location: Moody Gardens in Galveston
Officer elections were held. Barbara Mayo won the election for Vice President Elect. Bill Schuetz will remain as Comptroller.
2005 Convention Program
View
Click to download Convention Program
Date: Sept 29 - Oct 2, 2004
Location: Omni Park West in Dallas
Officer elections were held. Joe Trevino won the election for Vice President Elect. Bill Schuetz will remain as Comptroller. Jana Riggins will be the new Archivist.
Documents
Family Conflict Roles,
Chelsea Stow
Hosting a Middle
School Festival, Mrs. Holly Reineking
Ropes Course, Natalie Bryant
Ropes Course Manual, Natalie
Bryant
Climb Outside the
Box, Dr. Leann Ellis
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12/16/24 The College/University Division of the Texas Speech Communication Association invites faculty submissions dealing with all areas of communication for the 2025 annual convention. Click here to view the full call and find the online submission form. |
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12/2/24 The Texas Speech Communication Association invites submissions of papers, panels, posters and speeches by undergraduate and graduate students for its 2025 annual convention. Click here to view the full call and find the online submission form. |
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10/12/24 Congratulations go to Heather Soltero our new Vice-President Elect. Read more about Heather here. |
Navigating Complexity: Equipping educators and students with the tools to navigate and communicate
in a complex world. Date:October 2-4, 2025 |
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