Faculty and staff from the UF/IFAS Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (PIE Center) were recognized at a national conference for achieving excellence in communications research and practice.

The Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) provides opportunities for networking and professional development to communicators in the fields of agriculture, natural resources and human sciences. ACE members convened for the annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri from June 12 to 15, 2022.

At the ACE conference, representatives from the PIE Center presented research, facilitated workshops and fulfilled leadership positions within the association. PIE Center director Ricky Telg was installed as the 2022-2023 ACE president. Lauri Baker, associate professor of agricultural education and communication, will continue to serve as chair of the Journal of Applied Communications board.

Excellence in Communications Research

Each year, the ACE Academic and Research learning community acknowledges accomplishments in communications research. PIE Center research received multiple awards this year for academic papers, research proposals and journal articles.

Awards were also presented on behalf of the Journal of Applied Communications (JAC). PIE Center researchers won Article of the Year for a paper titled Challenges and Motivations of Science Communication: An Administrative Perspective at Land-Grant Universities. Authors included Ashley McLeod-Morin, Joy Rumble and Ricky Telg.

McLeod-Morin, associate director of strategic communication for the Southeastern Coastal Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, received the Outstanding Dissertation award and JAC Article of the Year.

“I am extremely honored to receive these awards, but even more thankful for the PIE Center for supporting this research,” said McLeod-Morin. “These awards exemplify all of the work that occurs behind the scenes by faculty and staff – from securing funding and developing instruments to extending this research to communities.”

Learn more about the award-winning research projects below.

Outstanding Dissertation

Title: Strong Societal Connection, Stronger Health Direction: Investigating the Organization-Public Relationship and Science Communication Perceptions Toward the CDC During a Pandemic

Author: Ashley McLeod-Morin

Outstanding Thesis

Title: Public Perceptions of Food Purchasing Habits and Food Safety Behaviors as They Relate to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author: Michaela Kandzer

Runner-Up Outstanding Paper

Title: Rural Redemption: A model to help understand the perspectives of rural Americans related to vaccine science

Authors: Lauri M. Baker, Ashley McLeod Morin, Cheng-Xian Yang, Audrey E. H. King, Shelby O. Thomas & Kristina Boone

Runner-Up Outstanding Proposal

Title: Breaking Down Barriers: Identifying Florida Producers’ Knowledge, Perceptions, and Barriers of Compliance with Regulatory Best Management Practices

Author: Valentina Castano

People’s Choice Research Poster

Title: Feeding Families: Understanding Challenges and Perceptions of Food Insecure Households during COVID-19

Author: Meredith Oglesby, Lauri Baker, Hikaru Peterson, Catherine Campbell, Angie B. Lindsey & Ricky Telg

JAC Article of the Year

Title: Challenges and Motivations of Science Communication: An Administrative Perspective at Land-Grant Universities

Author: Ashley McLeod-Morin, Joy Rumble & Ricky Telg

Excellence in Communications Practice

In addition to research awards, the PIE Center was honored to receive recognition for producing high quality communication deliverables.

The PIE Center submitted several entries to the ACE Critique and Awards (C&A) program, which provides professional feedback on communication materials. The PIE Center and its partner programs received four gold awards, three silver awards and five bronze awards for a variety of multimedia projects.

The PIE Center’s podcast Science by the Slice received a gold award and was the Outstanding Professional Skill (OPS) winner for the electronic media category. As an OPS winner, Science by the Slice was highlighted during the awards ceremony at the ACE conference.