Ernest Rollins
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CCI Faculty, Graduate Students Shine at Annual NCA Convention
While exploring booths at the 2025 National Communication Association (NCA) Convention last month, College of Communication and Information (CCI) master’s student Md Ibnun Sarwar Rafi made an interesting discovery. His first published article, “Barriers to discussing comprehensive sexuality education: a qualitative study of home tutor-student interpersonal communication in Bangladesh,” which investigated barriers home tutors faced when discussing comprehensive sexuality education with their students,…
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Graduating PhD Candidate Shreenandan Rajarathnam Ready to Carry His Research Experience into the Cybersecurity Industry
The pursuit of knowledge is a well-appreciated endeavor in Shreenandan Rajarathnam’s family, with both his parents earning doctoral degrees and his younger brother planning to do the same in a few years. The soon-to-be alumnus is proud to carry on the family tradition of valuing research and academics as he graduates with his doctoral…
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CCI Faculty Recognized for Their Commitment to Improve Online Education
College of Communication and Information faculty were recognized for their innovative approaches in online learning during the Digital Learning Faculty Recognition Lunch in October. Hosted by Digital Learning at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the event honored faculty and staff members “who demonstrated exceptional creativity and dedication in developing online coursework over the past year.” …
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CCI PhD Students Share Research In 3MT Competition
College of Communication and Information doctoral students Byron Keys and Md Uzzal Talukder rose to the challenge of quickly distilling their research as part of this year’s Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition hosted by the Graduate School at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Both Keys and Talukder, who are conducting doctoral research at CCI with…
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CCI PhD Student Earns Top Paper Honor at PRSA ICON 2025
College of Communication and Information doctoral student Carla White received the 2025 Betsy Ann Plank Award for the Top Graduate Student Paper from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) at the ICON 2025 conference in October. The Betsy Ann Plank awards recognize educators, public relations graduate students, and professionals for work that expands upon…
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CCI PhD Student Wins TCA Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award
College of Communication and Information doctoral candidate Traci Lively recently won the Tennessee Communication Association (TCA) Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award. The award recognizes outstanding graduate student research in communication. TCA is a professional organization comprised of leading communication scholars, faculty, and students within the state. “I was a little shocked,” Lively said. “This is…
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CCI Taking Networking Trips to the ‘Next Level’
Senior Sana Boghani always wanted to attend an industry networking trip, but there was always a scheduling conflict—until the most recent networking trip. The communication studies major joined more than 90 students and faculty from the College of Communication and Information on a two-day industry networking trip to Nashville, Tennessee in October. “As a senior…
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Students Gain Hands-on Investigative Reporting Experience through News21 Fellowship
Gracyn Thatcher knows very little Spanish. This made the journalism and media major anxious about conducting an interview using an interpreter. But the editorial staff at the 2025 Carnegie-Knight News21 Fellowship had faith in her abilities to tell the story. “At the end of the day, I’m still in shock that I was able to…
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Student Launches Tennessee Club Sports Network, Expands Vision to The Media Center
When Charlie Sarafian transferred to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to double major in journalism and media and business, he wanted to be a sports broadcaster but was unsure how to achieve that goal. Fortunately, he met former Voice of the Vols and College Communication and Information alumnus Bob Kesling (‘77), who gave the senior…
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CCI Faculty and Undergraduate Student Paper Wins Award At 2025 AEJMC Conference
Assistant Professor Shannon Scovel loves sharing her passion for research with her undergraduate students. So, she invited students in her spring 2024 JMED 175 Introduction to Journalism and Creative Media class to contact her to learn more about and/or to work on a research project together. Senior public relations major Katy Niedling accepted that invitation.…