In June 2021, we hosted a summer writing retreat for faculty in the Nexus space. It was a time to learn about grant/fellowship writing, craft drafts of applications, receive feedback, and eat Duck Donuts.
Writing Retreat
Summer 2018 Writing Retreat: Keef House
HCAT lab had another writing retreat. In August 2018, we headed to Chicago for the glorious 5 day retreat. Five days! It was amazing.
Our house was a small mansion located just north of Chicago. We were told that the house was once owned by Chief Keef. I’m not sure if that story is true, but we decided to name it the Keef House.
We ate deep dish pizza, put post-it notes on the walls to track progress, and worked, worked, worked. Nick made salmon one night. Jake didn’t sleep.
The Keef House writing retreat was hosted by Courtney Scherr and Lisa Guntzviller. It was one of the best retreats of all time.
Chocolate Pie
My grandma Myrtle Wienke used to make the best chocolate pudding. Sometimes she would poor it into a graham cracker crust and serve it as chocolate pie. She taught my mom to make that pie, and my mom taught me. I guess you could say it is a family recipe. I make it at thanksgiving,…
Kate presents parasocial research in Prague
Kate hopped the pond and attended ICA in Prague. While there, she presented HCAT’s research on parasocial interactions and HIV stigma. In that research line, we evaluate the CDC’s PSA campaign designed to reduce HIV stigma. *This was an article we wrote at the 2017 HCAT writing retreat.
ADR: Snapshot of the College
In addition to my research and teaching duties, I currently serve as the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Humanities. I was appointed to this post by Dean Dianne Harris in 2015; Dianne is now a Senior Program Officer with the Mellon Foundation. In Spring 2017, I was asked to present a snapshot…
2017 HCAT Writing Retreat – Adobe House
Once again, HCAT lab hosted a writing retreat in beautiful Park City, UT. The writing retreat was October 11th – 14th, 2017. The attendees were Lisa Guntzviller, Andy King, Courtney Scherr, Kevin K. John, Manusheela Pokharel, Chelsea Ratcliff, Kaylee Crossley, Katheryn Christy, Hannah Badal, Kevin Coe, and Brandon Rivera-Melo. We missed Rob Yale (a lot).…
The Dread Professor Jensen
Every HCAT writing retreat begins with an roundtable session where attendees detail what they will be working on. Typically, the roundtable is led by Jake, but this year, in honor of the 30yh anniversary of The Princess Bride, it was led by the Dread Professor Jensen. He told attendees to “work hard, submit manuscripts” as…
HCAT day retreat in Chicago
HCAT decided to host a day retreat during the AEJMC conference in Chicago. The retreat was held in Courtney’s lab space in downtown Chicago which happened to be a few short blocks from the conference hotel. After writing all day, the lab ventured off to the Barcade for fun and drinks. We ate popsicles with…
College Writing Retreat
In June, I hosted the first College of Humanities writing retreat. Twelve faculty and post-docs participated, and spent 3 days writing grant/fellowship applications at a ski resort in Park City, UT. We plan to run another retreat in June 2018.
In Memoriam: Robert N. Yale
HCAT member Robert N. Yale passed away April 2017 following a courageous battle with gastric cancer. He was a key member of our lab, and a great friend to all of us. He taught us the art of photography, how to purchase excellent tech, and a love of food. He helped build the HCAT writing…
Shuffleboard
Ever since the 2013 Writing Retreat, we’ve been obsessed with shuffleboard. Given that, I purchased a shuffleboard last winter. Today, I upgraded the table by purchasing 6 speeds of shuffleboard powder. Yes, there are different speeds. Shuffleboard is a great activity for researchers as you can talk shop while playing it. Needless to say, our…
2016 HCAT Writing Retreat
HCAT lab held another writing retreat October 12th – 16th, 2016 in Park City, UT. The writing retreat was held at a 5 bedroom house located just above main street in old town (you can rent it here). Fourteen people attended the retreat, including folks from Texas, Illinois, and Maryland. We had two research groups at the retreat: a skin cancer research group and a psychological reactance group. Both groups wrote manuscripts, analyzed data, and designed future studies.
The 2016 retreat also saw two different trips to the emergency room. Jake was in the emergency room when one of his sons developed a nasty case of parainfluenza. Kevin John ended up in the emergency room with appendicitis!
Despite these obstacles, the retreat was a huge success. We wrote from the moment the house opened on the 12th until 2 am in the morning the night of the 15th. Lisa Guntzviller led a workshop on building tables in Excel, and Jake led a workshop on the Johnson-Neyman (JN) technique.
The tattoo sleeves made a second appearance too. As folks finished papers, they were rewarded with the awesome sleeves. Nick Carcioppolo and Rob Yale weren’t able to make it this year, so we made Nick and Rob paper cutouts – and enjoyed taking crazy photos with them.
It was another wonderful writing retreat!
Manu to NCA
Manusheela Pokharel had a manuscript accepted to the National Communication Association (NCA) convention in Philadelphia, PA. Her paper was written at our Fall 2015 writing retreat!
Chamber House Writing Retreat – Fall 2015
HCAT lab held another writing retreat October 8th – 15th, 2015 in Park City, UT. The writing retreat was held at a 5 bedroom house located just above main street in old town (you can rent it here). Courtney and I gave a workshop on writing NIH grants, and we also reviewed vitas and (for…
Writing Retreat at the Roundabout House
HCAT lab held another writing retreat October 16th – 19th, 2014 in Park City, UT. The writing retreat was held at a 5 bedroom cabin just off the old town roundabout (you can rent it here). Nick Carcioppolo led a workshop on Mplus, I led a workshop on validity in confirmatory factor analysis, and we worked on 15 manuscripts, 8 of which were completed by the end of the retreat. A pool table on the top floor of the house was our relaxation sport of choice. We also enjoyed trying to ride the house elevator, which was wonderfully inconsistent. Finally, we visited Olympic Park during this retreat, and that is quickly becoming a tradition.
You can see photos from the retreat here:
Dallas Writing Retreat
HCAT held a writing retreat March 14th – 17th, 2014 in Dallas, TX. Twelve faculty and grads attended the retreat. Jake led a workshop on writing grants, and we also talked a lot about publishing strategies. Jake’s consumption of Mountain Dew during the retreat reached epic levels, I think I slept a total of 2 hours. An air hockey table provided us with quite a bit of fun. A pool also occupied our time. The retreat was put on by HCAT members Rob Yale (Assistant Professor, University of Dallas) and Andy King (Assistant Professor, Texas Tech University). A great time was had by all.
This was the first retreat to have it’s own logo:
Nordic House Writing Retreat in Park City
HCAT lab held another writing retreat October 11th – 14th, 2013 in Park City, UT. The writing retreat was held at a 5 bedroom cabin in Deer Valley that described itself as the Nordic House (you can rent it here). Eleven faculty and graduate students attended the retreat. I led a workshop on Lisrel and confirmatory factory analysis, Lisa Guntzviller led a workshop on bibliography software, and Rob Yale took us all out to dinner at the Blue Iguana (which would become a writing retreat tradition). We also discovered numerous quirks such as my love of high quality scrap paper and Kevin Coe’s need to have lots of gum on hand while writing. Finally, Rob Yale impressed everyone (as he tends to) with an amazing suitcase.
We worked on 12 manuscripts during the writing retreat, 7 of which were finished by end. We played an excessive amount of shuffleboard.
Cozy Cabin Writing Retreat – Fall 2009
