MC grad to keynote communication association centennial conference at Mississippi College

MC alum Walt Grayson will serve as keynote speaker for the Mississippi Communication Association’s Centennial Conference on Feb. 6.

Communication professionals and students from throughout the Southeast will hear from a broadcasting legend when they convene at Mississippi College on Friday, Feb. 6, for the 2026 Mississippi Communication Association’s Centennial Conference on the second floor of the B.C. Rogers Student Center on the Clinton campus.

Greenville native Walt Grayson, who graduated from MC with degrees in history and Bible before embarking on a 40-year career in television broadcasting in the Magnolia State, will serve as keynote speaker for the conference. The one-day event will include informative panels and lively roundtable discussions.

Mississippi College and Hinds Community College co-founded the organization that would become the MCA. Mignon Kucia, MC professor of communication, said MC, which is celebrating its bicentennial year in 2026, provides the perfect setting for MCA’s Centennial Conference.

“The Mississippi Communication Association is a 100-year-old organization that exists to encourage research, teaching, appreciation and criticism in the area of communication,” Kucia said. “Having this conference at MC allows us to showcase our department, involve our students and connect various communication hubs across the state.”

Grayson, the 2021 MC Department of Christian Studies Distinguished Alumnus of the Year. started his broadcasting career at a Greenville radio station while he was in high school. After moving to Jackson following graduation, he worked at various radio stations before transitioning to television.

Grayson was a weather anchor and feature reporter for WLBT for more than three decades before returning to WJTV, where he had begun his TV career as a part-time weekend weatherman. He is now the full-time lifestyle and feature reporter for WJTV. A long-time host of “Mississippi Roads” on Mississippi Public Broadcasting, Grayson has written four books about his travels across Mississippi and writes a monthly newspaper column.

The MCA is a scholarly not-for-profit organization that promotes the study, criticism, research, teaching and appreciation of the artistic, humanistic and scientific principles of communication.  MCA seeks to create a sense of unity among high school, community college and university communication departments in the state.

“One of the main things that we do is create connections among students who are doing research in the area of communication and allow opportunities for these students to present their research,” Kucia said. “This is an exciting opportunity for both our students and other students across the state to present at a professional conference.

“Additionally, we provide opportunities for people engaged in teaching communication – from high school to graduate school – to collaborate on best practices, new advances in the study of communication, and how to deal with the constant technological advances that impact our teaching.”

Kucia, Reid Vance, MC associate professor and chair of communication, Lindsey Dancy, MC assistant professor of communication, and other MC faculty members have served the MCA in prominent leadership roles through the years.

For information about MCA membership or to register for the conference, click here.