CONNECTION 2026 Spring
FSU Health
By Michelle Kazmer, Dean of the College of Communication & Information
Greetings from lovely Tallahassee, where we are enjoying the warming weather and the end to a successful spring semester. I’m delighted to invite you into the pages of the College of Communication & Information Spring 2026 Connection newsletter. Here you will find what is truly the tip of an iceberg: some examples of the important work the faculty, students, staff, and alumni of our college are doing with the exciting new FSU Health initiative. In many ways, absolutely everything that happens in our college and its three schools is dedicated to improving the life experience of people, and thus contributes to health and wellness across everyone’s lifespan. But this issue of our newsletter focuses on some of our specific programs, research projects, interdisciplinary collaborations, and clinical services that are closely related to health. Even so, these pages only encompass a small portion of what we do! Spending time with the College of Communication and Information means you will meet folks like Dr. Rachel Bailey, James E. Kirk Professor of Communication and Director of the Communication Wellness Research Center; Dr. Zhe He, Professor of Information, Director of the Institute for Successful Longevity, and leader of the iSchool’s eHealth Lab; and Dr. Elizabeth Madden and Faculty Clinical Supervisor Ellen Nimmons, leaders of the new Intensive Comprehensive Aphasia Program.
Michelle M. Kazmer, Dean
You will meet School of Communication Distinguished Alumnus Bob Knight and Herbert Wertheim College of Business Hall of Fame Honoree Gail Knight, who have generously invested the very first endowed professorship in the School of Communication Science & Disorders: the Bob & Gail Knight Distinguished Professorship in Audiology. We are grateful for this incredible philanthropic investment in the School’s ability to educate the next generation of audiology professionals. Thank you Bob and Gail Knight! You will also find stories about conferences attended, presentations shared, and academic programs developed. You will be inspired by the health care and research we do throughout the world. You will, as always, have the opportunity to enjoy posed and candid pictures of various college events since our last issue. Look closely: you might spot a College of Communication and Information “celebrity,” a familiar face, or a happy memory! Whether you are fondly remembering your time in Tallahassee, or if you want to share a new story with us, this is a great time to engage with us. Please email info@cci.fsu.edu and tell us how you are doing. I would love to hear from you, and to meet with you—whether you will be in Tallahassee or I will be in a location near you. We at the College of Communication and Information share our warm thoughts with all of you this spring and look forward to an amazing summer. We at the college continue to enjoy—thanks to the brilliant work of everyone here!— the highest level of success in our academic programs, research and creative accomplishments, clinical services, and student experiences. I hope you enjoy reading about them in more detail throughout this issue of our Connection newsletter.