Awards/Nomination

2027 ECA AWARD CALLS COMING SOON

Please see the specific award descriptions for further instructions.

All award submissions should be sent to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com

Submission Deadline: February 15, 2027

ECA CENTENNIAL SCHOLARSHIPS

Two ECA Centennial Scholarships may be awarded each year to one deserving Ph.D. student and one deserving M.A./M.S. student. The specific criteria for these awards include:

  1. Current ECA membership
  2. Enrollment in a Ph.D. or Master’s program in Communication

A committee consisting of the immediate past ECA president, the three ECA journal editors, and the current ECA president will work to select the recipients of the ECA Centennial Scholarships.

Nominations for the 2026 Centennial Scholarships must include:

  1. A letter of nomination from the thesis/dissertation advisor attesting to the nominee’s student status and ability to conduct original research
  2. A 4-page/1500-word project summary from the nominee

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jordan Atkinson

DONALD H. ECROYD & CAROLINE DRUMMOND ECROYD TEACHING EXCELLENCE AWARD

The Ecroyd Teaching Excellence Award is presented annually to recognize excellence in teaching. The specific criteria include:

  1. ECA membership for five continuous years
  2. A full-time teaching position at any level of education at the time of nomination
  3. A demonstrated record of employing communication principles as the foundation for constructing pedagogical principles applied in teaching practices

Nominations for the 2026 Ecroyd Award must include the following information:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. Five letters of support
  3. A complete, current curriculum vita
  4. Evidence of teaching competency and effectiveness for the last three years or more
  5. Additional materials as appropriate

The Ecroyd Award selection committee is composed of the past three winners of this award. 
All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.  
Award Coordinator: Sarah Delulis

PAST OFFICERS' AWARD

The Past Officers' Award is presented annually by the past officers of ECA to one outstanding ECA member who has not been a past ECA officer. To be considered for the award, the nominee must:

  1. Be a current member of ECA
  2. Be 7 to 10 years beyond the doctorate
  3. Have contributed a significant body of research to the communication discipline
  4. Possess a significant record of continuing service to ECA

All members of the Past Officers' Club as well as members of the Association at large are encouraged to submit nominations. Nominations for the 2026 Past Officers' Award must include:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. A copy of the nominee's current vita
  3. Additional supporting materials (e.g., books, reprints of articles, additional letters of endorsement, or other appropriate information)

ECA past officers are ineligible for the award. 
All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jennifer Waldeck

ECA RESEARCH FELLOWS

Research Fellow status may be awarded annually in recognition of distinguished research. The specific criteria include:

  1. A record of distinguished research in the field of communication
  2. A record of active and continuous engagement with ECA (e.g. editing an ECA journal, serving on an ECA editorial board, presenting research at ECA annual conventions, providing research-related leadership within ECA, and ECA interest group involvement)
  3. The nominee must be an ECA member for a minimum of ten years prior to the nomination
  4. The nominee must be a living ECA member at the time of nomination

Nominations for the 2026 ECA Distinguished Research Fellows must include the following information and materials:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. The nominee’s complete and current curriculum vita
  3. Additional supporting documentation of an outstanding record of research as appropriate

No more than 1% of the ECA membership will receive this award in any given year. All previous research fellows serve as the selection committee.
All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Timothy J. Brown 

ECA LEGACY AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED IDEA SCHOLARSHIP

The ECA Legacy Award for Distinguished IDEA Scholarship recognizes a scholar who has, over the course of a career and through a sustained body of work, demonstrated a firm commitment to inclusivity, diversity, equity, and access. Nominees should have a track record of successful publication and/or production of transformative scholarly work pertaining to social justice and community uplift. This scholarly work must be original research that involves synthesis of information across two or more sub-disciplines within the field of communication, and may be applied, critical-theoretic, theoretic, and/or reflective of the range of proven methods and methodologies within the field of communication (Boyer et al, 2016).

This award is named to both reflect ECA’s legacy of excellence in communication scholarship and praxis, and to regard the world’s dire need to celebrate a legacy of scholarly contributions that have shown us the importance of positive progressive radical change while bringing us even closer to realizing the greatest of our human potential.

Nominees must be current members of ECA and current advanced rank (e.g., associate/full professors or senior fixed term faculty) or retired faculty members at colleges or universities. Nominations must be submitted by someone well acquainted with the nominee’s scholarship. Self-nominations are encouraged.

The nomination must include the following materials:

  1. A cover letter describing the diversity-related scholarly contributions the nominee has made over the course of their career. This should reflect a high quality and sustained body of work rather than one or two articles or one scholarly product over an entire career. The nomination package should clearly outline a track record of scholarly activity pertaining to inclusivity, diversity, equity, access, and/or social justice.
  2. Two accompanying letters supporting the nomination. Each letter should be limited to two pages and provide a detailed rationale for why the nomination receive the award.
  3. The nominee’s curriculum vita.

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Dr. Angela Putman 

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

The Distinguished Service Award honors an individual ECA member for his/her contributions to the field of communication in general and to ECA in particular. A committee appointed by the President, who acts as chair, selects the recipient.

Nominations for the Distinguished Service Award must include:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. A copy of the nominee's current curriculum vita
  3. Additional support materials as appropriate

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jessica Papajcik

ECA ARTICLE OF THE YEAR AWARD 

The ECA Article of the Year Award is presented annually to the most outstanding journal article published during the previous calendar year (2022) in Communication Quarterly, Communication Research Reports, or Qualitative Research Reports in Communication.

Nominations for the 2026 ECA Article of the Year Award must include:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. A copy of the article

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jessica Papajcik

EVERETT LEE HUNT AWARD

The Everett Lee Hunt Award is presented annually at the discretion of the ECA Committee of Scholars. The Hunt Award reflects the philosophic commitment and scholarly contributions of Everett Lee Hunt, one of the founders of the discipline of communication and the eighth president of ECA (1927-1929).

The nominee should have provided a major contribution to the understanding of rhetoric and communication as a human function in the contemporary world; a means of explaining and realizing public responsibilities beyond the discipline of communication; and/or an intellectual and humane instrument for merging diverse fields of knowledge in a way that infuses them with moral purpose and public significance.

The guidelines for the Hunt Award include:

  1. The nominee must be a member of ECA at the time of nomination
  2. The nominee's published work (e.g., an article, book, position paper or monograph) must be dated in the previous calendar year
  3. Nominations must be for scholarly (including creative) work

Nominations for the 2026 Everett Lee Hunt Award should include:

  1. A letter of nomination
  2. Additional materials as appropriate

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jordan Atkinson

APPLIED URBAN COMMUNICATION RESEARCH GRANT

The Applied Urban Communication Research Grant is funded annually by the Urban Communication Foundation and given to foster and promote significant inter-disciplinary communication research contributions that extend the boundaries of "applied research" by investigating real-life communication phenomena affecting urban communities. The prize is to be awarded to fund the development of original research that meaningfully centralizes the concerns of everyday citizens and their struggle to define, identify with, and/or construct "spaces" for discourse and/or engagement within cities. 

The recipient of the prize will receive a $2,500 grant-in-aid to be awarded to fund communication research related to urban communication. Nominees must be members of ECA. Nominees will be evaluated based on the potential impact of their work as well as the quality and rigor of their contribution. The award will be presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Communication Association. 

Nominations for the Applied Urban Communication Research Grant should include:

  1. A cover letter explaining why the nominee is deserving of the award;
  2. A 500-word description of the work the nominee plans to do, outlining the anticipated outcomes, intended mode of dissemination of the research as well as how the research will translate in such a way that it addresses urban community needs and/or concerns;
  3. Anticipated budget and timetable for completion of the project;
  4. A copy of the nominee's CV
  5. At least one supporting letter from someone well-acquainted with the nominee

Self-nominations are encouraged.
All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Jordan Atkinson

RICHARD E. VATZ AGENDA-SPIN PERSUASION AWARD

The Eastern Communication Association is now accepting nominations and self-nominations for the "Richard E. Vatz Agenda-Spin Persuasion Award," which will be granted to a current member of ECA who indicates by their writing and/or media work a dedication to persuasion or political persuasion consistent with  the rhetorical perspective argued in Dr. Vatz's “The Myth of the Rhetorical Situation” and The Only Authentic Book of Persuasion: The Agenda-Spin Model (LAD Custom Publishing, 2021: Buy.ladportal.com/course-pack/view/id/121).

The member’s work must make an effort to make rhetorical study more relevant and not just an appendage of political study. 

Applications for the award must include the following:

  1. The work focusing on rhetor-as-creative-agent, the work focusing on rhetor-as-creative-agent and the rhetor’s responsibility in a persuasion model
  2. A one-page rationale explaining how the work embodies the award criteria
  3. Curriculum vitae

An award of $2,000 will be granted yearly by the award committee.
All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Richard E. Vatz

DR. JAMES W. CHESEBRO MARGINALIZED COMMUNITY SCHOLARSHIP FUND

The Dr. James W. Chesebro Marginalized Community Scholarship Fund honors his lifetime dedication to research and diversity. The purpose of this scholarship is to encourage scholarly activities in all individuals who have felt marginalized by decreasing financial barriers. The Eastern Communication Association recognizes that existing power structures and architectures may create barriers for individuals of marginalized communities when these individuals attempt to engage in traditional paths such as participation in research conferences.  The maximum amount awarded each year will be $2,000, Each year, faculty applicants may apply for any amount up to $1000. Students may apply for up to $500.

  • An MLA/APA/Chicago formatted research paper
  • 1-2 page rationale explaining the need for the scholarship and how the scholarship might impact the individuals future
  • C.V. or Resume

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Katherine S. Thweatt

ECA TEACHING FELLOWS

The Eastern Communication Association (ECA) is now soliciting nominations for 2027 Distinguished Teaching Fellows recognition. The Distinguished Teaching Fellows program recognizes a distinguished career of teaching excellence in the field of communication and is limited to colleagues who have active and ongoing service to ECA. Please note that the Distinguished Teaching Fellows committee revised criteria and requirements in 2022, to start with the 2026 year.

A potential candidate must be a living member of ECA at the time of nomination and have a minimum of ten (10) years of consecutive ECA membership. There are no self-nominations for the Distinguished Teaching Fellows.

The nomination is comprised of one (1) PDF file that includes the following information and materials, not to exceed forty-five (45) total pages:

  1. The nominator’s letter of nomination,
  2. The nominee’s current curriculum vitae,
  3. Up to three (3) letters of professional support (beyond the nomination letter), and an expectation of up to two (2) student letters of support,
  4. Evidence of engagement with ECA as a convention participant and as an active contributor and long-term supporter of the organization, and
  5. Up to fifteen (15) pages of representative supporting materials that document at least ten (10) years of excellent teaching activity. Materials in support of teaching excellence may include:
    1. A diversity of evidence of impactful teaching practices, mentoring and engagement with students;
    2. An impact beyond the classroom across different types of communities;
    3. Engagement with the scholarship of teaching and learning;
    4. Accolades and awards reflecting external recognition;
    5. Teaching evaluations. The Teaching Fellows will review up to five (5) years of teaching evaluations (summary required), but the Fellows are equally focused on the variety of illustrations of powerful, creative, and engaged teaching.

No more than 1% of the Association membership can be given this award in any given year. All previous Teaching Fellows serve as the selection committee for annual nominations. If a nomination packet does not adhere to the guidelines listed above, the chair will return it to the nominator for an opportunity to re-submit, provided there is time before the due date; otherwise, the nominator may be asked to re-submit the next year.

All nominations and materials must be sent by February 15, 2027 to ecaawardssubs@gmail.com.
Award Coordinator: Janie Harden Fritz