For the third time in the conference’s long-standing history, the Rutgers School of Communication and Information will host the Organizational Communication Mini-Conference. It will be held from Friday, October 6 to Sunday, October 8, 2023 on the College Avenue campus in New Brunswick. 

The OCMC conference, which is “for students, by students,” is hosted annually by different universities, and provides a venue for doctoral and master’s students, as emerging scholars, to present their research in the field of organizational communication and receive feedback from faculty members.

“There are many opportunities for students to present their research at a variety of conferences, but what's unique about OCMC is the focus on students. We’re here to support each other and provide a platform to highlight our work in a comfortable environment that encourages networking,” said Rachel Acosta, a Ph.D. candidate in Communication at SC&I, and chair of the 2023 OCMC planning committee.

This year OCMC will host a record number of participants – 150 registrants will be visiting Rutgers from all over the country. 

Conference presenters were selected through a competitive process undertaken to ensure that all attendees or speakers are conducting research that is aligned with and represents cutting-edge research in organizational communication studies.

As a tradition for graduate students in the field of organizational communication, OCMC also provides a platform for scholars to connect with established faculty members, helping them to build their future as emerging academics and industry professionals. SC&I will be looking for candidates for open faculty positions in the Communication Department among the OCMC participants and presenters. 

SC&I Ph.D. Candidates Casey Randazzo and Rachel Acosta, and Ph.D. students Jordan D. Correia and Karen Joy, are proud to be among the presenters at the 2023 OCMC. Randazzo will be presenting her research on the influence of housing displacement on building connections with neighbors online after Hurricane Ida. Acosta’s work focuses on the experiences of employees who have gone back to work in person since the pandemic, their transition, and what that means for the future of work after two years of separation from the office. Correia will be presenting his scholarship on alleviating stigma and barriers for transgender people within medical and healthcare settings. Lastly, Joy will be sharing her work on medical emergency teams and their communicative practices. 

"A lot of faculty members at Rutgers, when they were once students at their universities, also participated in OCMC since it's a 35-year tradition since 1988," Randazzo said.

The Pre-Conference Workshops will be held on October 5, followed by a welcome reception at the Zimmerli Art Museum, one of the largest university-based art museums in the country. The workshops will be led by faculty members from Rutgers, with the goal of helping participants learn more about how to present their topics and research, make connections, and mentor others. This workshop will be focused on a variety of topics related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Intersectionality and Computational Methods. 

In addition to research presentations, this event will also include dinner, known as the “Scholar’s Soiree” at the Rutgers Club on Livingston campus.

The OCMC conference will provide a great way “for us to showcase Rutgers, what Rutgers has to offer, and why it's such a great place to be and to work,” said Acosta. The planning committee is “looking forward to continuing this great tradition and welcoming everyone to Rutgers,” said Randazzo. 

Learn more about the Communication Department at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information on the website. 

Image credit:  OCMC Conference website