2019 CPTSC Diversity Scholarship Winners

The Council for Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication (CPTSC) is pleased to announce two 2019 Diversity Scholarship winners.

• Cana Uluak Itchuaqiyaq (KAY-nuh OO-loke itch-OH-key-yuck) is a third-year PhD student in technical communication and rhetoric at Utah State University. An Iñupiaq (IN-you-pack) from an isolated village in northwest Alaska, Cana Uluak was concerned that she had only two BIPOC instructors in all her years of education and was often subject to course readings lists written entirely by white authors. Because of this, she investigates how persistent marginalization mechanisms interfere with societal and institutional diversity and inclusion efforts.
• Sweta Baniya, from Nepal, is currently a Doctoral Candidate at Purdue University. Her dissertation studies the emergence of transnational assemblages during a Nepal earthquake and Puerto Rico’s hurricane. Her project focusses on merging comparative rhetorics with technical/ professional communication by studying disaster-affected communities and comparing their emergent digital composition, communication, and rhetorical practices. Her research interests include: Professional/Technical Communication, Non-Western Rhetorics, and Service Learning/Community Engagement. She is one of the founding members of #NextGen, the first international graduate student listserv.

This award is given annually by CPTSC, in conjunction with Bedford St. Martin’s textbook publishers and an anonymous donor, to support CPTSC’s goal of increasing diversity in its membership and in the field of technical, professional, and scientific communication. The awards will be presented at the CPTSC annual conference held at West Chester University (PA) on October 10-12.

Eligible candidates for this scholarship include graduate students whose race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, and/or nationality are underrepresented in technical communication.

The scholarship is provided to assist the recipients with expenses associated with attending the CPTSC conference, up to the amount of the scholarship.

The $1500 scholarship is awarded to one or two winners each year. The winners also receive a complimentary conference registration and one-year membership in CPTSC.

Founded in 1974, CPTSC brings together faculty, administrators, and researchers of technical, professional, and scientific communication. Its mission is to advance the study and teaching of technical, professional, and scientific communication across the globe.