06/26/2025

CSCA 2026 Convention - Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity (SOGI) Caucus Call for Submissions

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Caucus
Call for Papers and Panels

Central States Communication Association (CSCA)
Annual Convention-Minneapolis, MN
April 14-19, 2026

Translate!

The Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity (SOGI) Caucus invites submissions of competitive papers and panel proposals for the 2026 Central States Communication Association (CSCA) convention in Minneapolis. In 2025, we marked 20 years of the caucus. Let’s celebrate the beginning of the next decade of SOGI in 2026! We have a variety of queer programming in the works. In the meantime, please check out these LGBTQ community resources to plan your visit.

The purpose of the SOGI Caucus is to promote dialogue and scholarship on engaging issues related to sexual orientation and gender identities in the communication discipline. The caucus is interdisciplinary in nature, and a range of topics are welcome, including rhetorical, interpersonal, organizational, inter/cultural, performance, auto/ethnographic, media, and/or critical scholarship. We encourage, but do not require, members to address issues related to the convention theme, Translate!

Research that centers lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, trans, non-binary, or gender non- conforming perspectives, orientations, and populations, and moreover, translates these findings to communities outside of the academy, is more important than ever.

Guidelines for Submissions

• Papers: Only completed papers will be accepted for the SOGI Caucus. We highly encourage scholars at all levels, including new graduate students, to submit their work.
  • Include a title and a brief abstract (required).
  • Graduate students should type “STUDENT” on the upper right-hand corner of the title page.
  • If the paper will be a graduate student debut, please type “DEBUT STUDENT” in the upper right-hand corner of the title page.
    • To be considered a graduate student debut paper
      • the author must be a graduate student
      • the paper must have single authorship, and
      • the paper must be the author’s first paper to be presented at CSCA.
• If you would like your paper to be considered for the Inclusive Scholarship Award, type “INCLUSIVE SCHOLARSHIP” in the upper right-hand corner of the title page.
  • To be considered as an exemplar of inclusive scholarship, the paper must demonstrate academic rigor in the examination of communication and historically marginalized communities/populations.
  • If you would like to be considered for this award, please clearly articulate, in at least one paragraph in your abstract, how the respective scholarship explicitly addresses equity and
  • Additionally, be sure to select the Inclusive Scholarship option when you submit your paper.
• Panels: Panel submissions should include a panel rationale (maximum 500 words) and a brief abstract for the conference program (maximum 75 words), and should identify a Chair, Respondent, and panelists, along with institutional affiliations. Strong preference will be given to submissions with panelists from multiple institutions.
• Awards: The Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity Caucus issues several awards, including multiple Outstanding Scholarship awards and the Jimmie Manning Top Paper Award. The Manning Top Paper Award is selected from all fully completed papers submitted to the Caucus. Calls for additional award nominations will be announced at a later date.

Any and all technology requests must be made at the time of submission. Submitters will have the opportunity to make technology requests as part of the submission process.

Submissions must be received by 11:59 PM, CDT, October 10, 2025. Please submit electronically via the CSCA online submission system site.

Have questions? Please direct them to program planner Danielle Stern (Christopher Newport University) by emailing danielle.stern@cnu.edu