The College of Communication and Information Sciences (C&IS), in partnership with the Alabama Program in Sports Communication (APSC), welcomes Justin Ching, one of Forbes Magazine’s “30 Under 30” Millennials Changing Media to campus for the 10th Discerning Diverse Voices Symposium February 28-March 1.
Ching, 29, is the founder of j-school, a production company dedicated to empowering underrepresented communities to tell their own stories in their own voices. As part of his keynote presentation, Ching will screen some of his projects such as the sports shows “Ritual,” “@TheBuzzer” and “Deportes @TheBuzzer.”
“He’s definitely the youngest keynote presenter we’ve had in the 10-year-old history of the symposium,” said George Daniels, assistant dean for administration. “We’re excited to have him on campus to inspire our students to see their potential to make an impact very early in their careers.”
In addition to his keynote presentation, Ching will participate in a special keynote panel discussion on “Constructing the Narrative of the Activist Athlete,” along with Rashad Johnson, former NFL Player and UA alumnus and others. The panel will be moderated by Caryl Cooper, who originally launched the Discerning Diverse Voices Symposium in 2010.
“One of the symposium’s objectives was to create an intellectual environment that appreciates, advances and supports scholarly research and creative activities that focus on the communication of stories, experiences and issues that impact diverse populations,” said Cooper. “As senior faculty, I believed that it’s our duty to visit with our new colleagues, find out their research interests and goals, and demonstrate how diversity intersects with teaching and research productivity.”
Cooper’s panel on the activist athlete exemplifies the sports-focus of this year’s event, which is being co-sponsored with the APSC. Other sports-related research projects are among the more than 30 diversity-related research paper and poster presentations slated to be made during the symposium that feature both undergraduate and graduate students and faculty.
Over the years, the symposium has continued to attract presenters from other universities. This year, scholars from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the University of Mississippi will appear on the program.
The symposium begins at 8 a.m. on Feb. 28 and continues through 4:45 p.m. Lunch will be provided. Attendee registration info to follow.
Contact: Dr. George Daniels, gdaniels@ua.edu
