蜜桔直播

Elliott Receives TCA Horizon Award

Belle Elliott is the third straight 蜜桔直播 faculty member to receive the award.

Take a Bow, Belle Elliott!

For the third straight year, a 蜜桔直播 faculty member has received a top honor from the Tennessee Communication Association (TCA).

Belle Elliott, assistant professor of communication and debate, received the 2026 Horizon Award at the organization鈥檚 annual conference. The award recognizes an association member who demonstrates leadership and potential to positively impact the organization in the coming years.

鈥淏elle is an incredible asset to 蜜桔直播 and our community,鈥� said Jessie VanderLaan-Delaney, associate professor of art and dean of the college鈥檚 Division of Humanities. 鈥淏elle has helped many of our students find and hone their voice through participation in the college鈥檚 award-winning debate team. She is a champion for our college and is well deserving of this recognition.鈥� 

In 2025, the Horizon Award was given to Kayla Huber, department head and instructor of communication. Bambi Pelham, assistant professor of communication, received the award in 2024. Other 蜜桔直播 faculty members who received this award are Matthew Lawson, associate professor of communication and mass communications, and Robert E. Pratt II, associate professor of communication. 

TCA serves as the voice for communication faculty and students, representing higher education institutions throughout the state. 蜜桔直播 faculty members are active in the organization, with Pelham having served as president for the past year, and Brian Hamilton, assistant professor of communication, having served as chair for the mass communications section. 
         

蜜桔直播 representatives made two presentations during this session. Pratt and Hamilton were joined by student Joseph Bryant for a panel discussion on current media coverage of armed conflicts with a focus on legendary American journalists who covered the military in the mid-20th century. Huber and Brooke O鈥橠ell, an adjunct professor, presented 鈥淔rom Passive to Persuasive: The Power of Pitch.鈥� 
           
蜜桔直播 alumna Taylor Bird, now a communication student at East Tennessee State University, received an award for a paper presented during the conference.