04/17/2024

CSCA Sports Communication Interest Group Election

Good afternoon all,

As members of the Sports Communication Interest Group at the Central States Communication Association, you are receiving this email to participate in the election of next year's officers. Information about those running is included in this email. Please use the link below to vote for our next Secretary and Vice Chair by Monday, April 22 at 5pm EST. Each person can vote one time. Thank you for your support of our interest group!

Link to Vote: https://forms.gle/scWmm9pEJ4P6fkbQ8

Candidates for Secretary:

Scarlett L. Hester 

Hello! My name is Scarlett and I am running for the position of Secretary for the CSCA Sports Communication Interest Group. I graduated with my PhD from the University of Memphis in 2017 and am currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Ball State University in Muncie, IN. My research sits at the intersections of critical rhetoric and critical/cultural studies. I primarily focus on the surveillant and disciplinary nature of professional sports culture in regard to historically marginalized identity. Pedagogically, I teach classes about communication and pop culture, communication and sport, and rhetoric. I have been a member of CSCA since 2021 and have been looking for my “home” in the organization. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the Sports Communication Business Meeting this year because I did not arrive to the conference until after it was held. However, I am excited by the opportunity to become more active, especially in the Sports Communication Interest Group.

Gayle Pohl

Gayle Pohl is an Associate Professor at the University of Northern Iowa, teaching public relations on the graduate and undergraduate level. She is an APR and an active member of PRSA, in addition was the faculty advisor for PRSSA and PRide (the student –run public relation agency) for 25 years. Pohl has also been a public relations practitioner for 28 years, specializing in nonprofit, special events, healthcare and entertainment, sports, and educational public relations. She owned her own public relations agency from 1991-1997. 

Recently, she revised the public relations curriculum at the University of Northern Iowa to include the emphases of strategic public relations, sports public relations and special events public relations. She teaches the sports and special events courses as well as the strategic courses. Formerly, Pohl did some work for the Buffalo Bills and the Buffalo Bisons. 

Her research includes books titled  No Mulligans allowed: Strategically Plotting your Public Relations Course, and Public Relations: Designing Effective Communication, articles on social media, autoethnographic study on healthcare and relationship management theory, healthcare and corporate social responsibility, the persuasive strategies used by home shopping networks, public relations strategies used by the US Census, organizational public relations in a global society, fund-raising on the Web and educational techniques used in teaching public relations, a book chapter on interpersonal attraction and biographies for the International Encyclopedia for Television. Some of the venues she is published in include the Journal of Communication, International Journal of Social and Behavioral Science, The Iowa Journal of Communication, The Journal of Promotion Management, Communication Reports and the Handbook of Public Relations. 

Pohl is an accredited member of PRSA and has served as the PRSA National Assembly Delegate and President for the Cedar Valley Chapter and Midwest District Chair, and member of the national PRSA nominating committee, Trustee for the Mind Research Network under the auspices of Senator Domenici and the United States Senate’s Department of Energy. Originally Pohl hales from the rolling hills of Louisville, Kentucky. The home of the Kentucky Derby!

Mac Williams

Mac is a doctoral candidate in the School of Media and Communication at Bowling Green State University where he serves as the Assistant Basic Course Director for the basic course program. He earned his B.A. and M.A from the University of Findlay in 2018 and 2021. His research focuses on the relationship between the world of sport, politics, and race. His dissertation examines strategic Whiteness and how partisan media coverage of sport figures who run for political office reinforces problematic and systemic issues of race. He also focuses on developing, implementing, and sharing inclusive pedagogical strategies and practices for teaching communication.

Candidate for Vice Chair:

Emily Sauter

Hello! My name is Emily Sauter, and I am currently the Basic Course Director at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Starting in the fall of 2024 I will be an Assistant Professor of critical rhetoric at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Touching on transnational media flows, digital rhetorics, and popular culture, my work explores the fascinating intersections of sports and fandom within online communities. My passion for sports communication drives both my academic pursuits, professional engagements, and personal hobbies. I am an avid fan of Minnesota sports and the NWSL, and play golf, hockey, and softball.

As a candidate for the Vice-Chair position of the Sports Communication Division, I'm dedicated to fostering collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity within the division. I hope to utilize my academic background and practical experiences as a professor, Basic Course Director, and avid sports fan and athlete to enhance the division's initiatives, amplify diverse voices, and create opportunities for scholarly exchange.

With a demonstrated commitment to scholarly excellence and a genuine enthusiasm for advancing the field, I'm excited about the prospect of serving the Central States Communication Association's Sports Communication Division. I look forward to the opportunity to contribute with dedication, integrity, and vision.