The 86th Pennsylvania Communication Association Conference
“Framing what Matters: Communication, Story, and the Human Condition”
September 18-19, 2026
University of Pittsburgh Johnstown
The Pennsylvania Communication Association invites paper and panel submissions for the 86th Annual Conference, themed “Framing what Matters: Communication, Story, and the Human Condition.” This conference seeks to explore how communication practices build and sustain—or erode and diminish—the communities that give meaning to human life. The 86th PCA conference will highlight work that focuses on community, culture, work, collective memory, health, media, education, ethics, and other challenges and opportunities we face as we navigate communication in the 21st century.
2026 CONVENTION PAPERS & PROPOSALS
Papers and proposals should be submitted to interest council chairs. The links for submission and further details on submission guidelines will be provided in near future. All research methodologies and philosophical perspectives are welcome. Papers, panels, and posters addressing related issues, thinkers, and theories are welcome.
The deadline for all submissions is May 15, 2026.
If you are submitting work to the following interest groups, please use these forms to submit your paper or panel:
- Applied Communication
- Communication Education
- Communication Ethics
- Communication Honor Societies
- Health Communication
- Interpersonal & Organizational Communication
- Intercultural Communication
- Media, Society & Technology
- Performance Studies
- Philosophy of Communication
- Rhetoric & Public Address
- Strategic Communication/IMC
- Undergraduate Student Research
- Poster Session
- 2026 Graduate and Undergraduate Writing Competition
Questions about the 86th PCA conference at University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown can be directed to Dr. Maryl Roberts McGinley, PCA Vice President and Conference Planner, at mrr53@pitt.edu.
Interest Council chair emails can be found on the association’s website.
In a historical moment marked by rapid changes in communication technologies, increasing social fragmentation, and competing narratives about the goods we protect and promote, this conference emphasizes the significance of the human element in communication. Reflective communication is anchored in attention to the human condition, embedded agency, and communication ethics. Thoughtful framing fosters intentional engagement with a diverse world and assists us in understanding how the stories we tell and buy into elucidate the goods we protect and promote for human flourishing.
Please click for the 2026 Conference Registration & PCA Membership Form.
CONTACTS
- Dr. Maryl Roberts McGinley, Pennsylvania Communication Association, VP, mrr53@pitt.edu.
- Dr. Janie Harden Fritz, Pennsylvania Communication Association, Executive Director