News Archive

EXCITE grant furthers adult vaccine education

Mississippi adults will continue to be offered science-based vaccine information by the Mississippi State University Extension Service with help from a national grant. MSU Extension received the Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching and Engagement, or EXCITE, grant to provide adult vaccine education in Mississippi. MSU was one of 37 institutions chosen for this award.

Aug 17, 2023

CO Connection: Jessica Collier

Mississippi State University's Department of Communication Head Dr. Terry Likes interviews Dr. Jessica Collier, an assistant professor in Communication and Media Studies. Collier discusses her recent publications on the topic of fake news. Collier also specializes in political communication and has conducted research on the impact of news trust, scandal, and political efficacy. Her publication in the Center for Media Engagement is entitled, “Even in “news deserts,” people still get news.” Finally, Collier, who teaches courses in Communication Leadership, Elements of Persuasion, and Political Communication, offers advice for students.

Mar 20, 2023

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Health Promotion Practice

Associate Professor Holli Seitz and colleagues Antonio Gardner and Leah Pylate recently published a scholarly article on formative research they conducted with MSU students and parents to inform COVID-19 health communication efforts. The article, "Formative Research to Inform College Health Communication Campaigns About COVID-19 Prevention Behaviors," was published in Health Promotion Practice.

Mar 14, 2023

Dr. Holli Seitz presents at 2023 Association of SNAP Nutrition Education Administrators Conference

Dr. Seitz and colleagues from the HappyHealthy project (Dr. Laura Downey, Dr. Sylvia Byrd, and Drew Cole) presented results from an evaluation of the HappyHealthy social marketing campaign at the 2023 Association of SNAP Nutrition Education Administrators (ASNNA) Conference. This virtual oral presentation, "Effects of a social marketing campaign (SMC) on campaign awareness, fruit and vegetable consumption, and physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic," highlighted self-reported effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity and nutrition among Mississippians eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Mar 01, 2023

Dr. John Nicholson presents keynote for MCA

Associate Communication Professor Dr. John Nicholson presented "Engaged Learning and the Future of Communication" as the keynote address at the Mississippi Communication Association 96th Annual Convention in Jackson in February.

Feb 17, 2023

Dr. Holli Seitz presents at 2023 AAC&U Conference

Associate Professor Dr. Holli Seitz and Department of Communication student Sarah Rendon presented their collaborative research on community-engaged learning at the 2023 American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) Conference on General Education, Pedagogy, and Assessment. Their work, titled "Transforming health communication pedagogy through community engagement and experiential learning," reports on results from a recent implementation of community-engaged learning in Dr. Seitz's Health Communication course.

Feb 10, 2023

Smith named MSU’s Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher of the Year

Pete Smith, an associate professor of communication at Mississippi State University, is MSU’s 2023 Mississippi Humanities Council Teacher of the Year. Smith will receive his award at the MHC’s annual ceremony in Jackson on March 24. Approximately 30 awards will be given to Mississippians whose work is recognized for bringing insights of the humanities to public audiences.

Feb 01, 2023

CO Connection: Carrie McCormick

Mississippi State University's Department of Communication Head Dr. Terry Likes interviews Carrie McCormick. Carrie graduated from State, went on to earn a graduate degree, law degree and teach internationally. She is an Instructor in the Communication and Media Studies concentration teaching Communication Theory, Elements of Persuasion, Intro to Communication, Media Law and more.

Dec 13, 2022

Knight named MSU’s first Luckyday Scholars Program Faculty Fellow

Mississippi State Department of Communication Instructor Amy Knight is the university’s first Luckyday Scholars Program Faculty Fellow. Knight’s career has deep roots with the Luckyday Program, having begun her service with the initiative in 2004 as a graduate assistant and then as assistant director in 2006 for two years at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Nov 15, 2022

Carrie McCormick presents at writing symposium

Carrie McCormick presented, ""Hey Y'all, Let's Talk About Dialect!," to educators from across Mississippi at the University of Mississippi's Transitioning to College Writing Symposium, providing an interactive workshop focused on integrating dialect into speaking and writing assignments.

Oct 21, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz and PROMISE initiative receive another national award

A Mississippi State University Extension Service mental health campaign continues to receive national recognition, this time from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The PROMISE Initiative was awarded the National Innovative Programs and Projects Partnership Award from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Oct 06, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Health Communication

Dr. Holli Seitz, an associate professor in the Department of Communication, and colleagues were recently published in the journal Health Communication. Their article, "Development and Pretesting of Prescription Opioid Misuse Prevention Messages: Results and Implications for Practice," presents results from two studies conducted to inform the development of messages for a statewide campaign for the PROMISE Initiative (Preventing Opioid Misuse in the Southeast). Their work has valuable implications for those planning health communication campaigns.

Sep 21, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Journal of Public Health in the Deep South

Together with her colleagues, Mmesoma Okafor, Dr. Laura Downey, and Dr. David Buys, Dr. Holli Seitz recently published their article, "Formative research to inform COVID-19 vaccine education in Mississippi," in Journal of Public Health in the Deep South. This article presents work from the Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching & Engagement (EXCITE) project, which aims to address health disparities among rural and other under-served communities through vaccine education.

Sep 21, 2022

Dr. Holli Seitz & co-authors publish article in Health Education & Behavior

Associate Professor Dr. Holli Seitz is part of a team that recently had their article, "Increasing Uptake of Prescription Drug Take-Back Boxes: Eliciting Preferences and Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior to Predict Use," accepted for publication in the journal Health Education & Behavior. The article, led by Dr. Mary Nelson Robertson, an assistant professor in the School of Human Sciences, represents research conducted to inform the PROMISE Initiative (Preventing Opioid Misuse in the Southeast).

Sep 20, 2022

Dr. Pete Smith named chair of AJHA Blanchard Prize Committee

Dr. Pete Smith was named chair of the Margaret A. Blanchard Prize committee, the top graduate student award given by the American Journalism Historians' Association. The award recognizes the top dissertation in the area of mass communication history. Pete won the award in 2005 for his dissertation, "'It's Your America': Gertrude Berg and American Broadcasting, 1929-1956."

Aug 15, 2022