The 4C’s conference is on college composition and communication. It gives undergraduate and graduate students the chance to present their research to a group of other academics in similar and differing fields of research. The conference focuses on different topics in the rhetoric field each year. For English, this year’s focus was how we communicate with each other and how we can improve life through communication. Each year the conference is held in a different place, and this year, it was held in Cleveland, Ohio. This year 5 students were able to attend the 4C’s conference: Emma Childress, Elena Adkins, Drew Condella, Atiana Spivey, and Ryan Cobb.

“I got a grant from PCAL to go out there, and that covered my travel cost. So that was one reason why I got to go,” Ryan said.

The opportunity to go to the conference for many of the students was funded or partially funded through grants provided by WKU. This made the event accessible to more students interested in the conference. For these students, it was their first time at this event, and for many, and their first time presenting a large research project to others.

“Like I said, it was my first project that I’d ever done. I was still trying to figure out how I was even going to do it when I wrote my proposal. And I think it’s just a great opportunity, especially if people are interested in writing studies, research, conducting research, and going post-undergraduate with research,” Elena remarked.

For many students, this event offered them a chance to grow in their academics and personal lives. Many of them got the chance to explore the city where the conference was held through local shops, bookstores, food spots, and museums. Durning the conference each student was also able to network with other college students, faculty, and other researchers.

“I think it was a good way to build meaningful connections with people at WKU. Throughout working on the research project, we spent a lot of time encouraging and supporting each other through the process,” Emma said.

The conference was also a great way for the students to get to know their WKU community better. They were able to build connections with the students they attended the conference with and the faculty that traveled with them and/or helped them prepare their research.

“It felt like I was able to get closer to people in the major, and people who were all class of 2028,” Atiana expressed. The experience was incredibly rewarding for those who had never participated in such research or presented publicly, as well as those who had been preparing their research for many months.

“If you think your research topic or idea is too small or insignificant for a conference like this, I can assure you that it’s not!” Drew exclaimed.

The 4C’s conference was a great way for students to gain presentation and research skills they otherwise may have never gotten. Through immense faculty support and their dedication to pursuing their academic passions, all the students had a great time at the event, and all agreed they would attend again if given the chance. They all recommended that if you are at all interested, to go for it! Try out the Naylor workshop to help you develop your research topic. Most importantly, as said by many of the students, is to not think that your work is not good enough or ready. No matter what, you will leave 4C’s with new connections, academic pursuits, and a remarkable memory to look back on.