Lisa M. Corrigan
A professor at the University of Arkansas has received a national award for scholarly writing, the most prestigious granted by the National Communication Association, a nonprofit scholarly society based in Washington, D.C.
The 2017 Diamond Anniversary Book Award went to Lisa M. Corrigan, an associate professor in the department of communication at the J. William Fulbright College of Arts & Sciences at UA-Fayetteville for her 2016 book, “Prison Power: How Prison Influenced the Movement for Black Liberation, published by the University Press of Mississippi.
Corrigan, who teaches in the African American Studies Program and the Latin American and Latino Studies Program, also directs the Gender Studies Program at the university. She is the first UA professor to win the award.
The book examines the role of prison in the history and rhetoric of black power organizing, and is the first NCA book award winner focusing on black rhetorical practices.
“It tells the story of how prison has shaped racial demands for equality from the civil rights era to the war on terror,” Corrigan said in a news release. The book underscores prison as a “site for both political and personal transformation” that molded movement leaders’ political analysis and strategies of organization. Behind bars, she posits, civil rights goals became black power ideals, especially as Southern civil rights activists faced setbacks.
“We are incredibly proud of Dr. Corrigan, both for her needed and groundbreaking research and for this recognition of her work and its scholarly significance,” said Robert M. Brady, chair of the department of communication.
NCA Executive Director Paaige K. Turner praised Corrigan’s contributions as noteworthy in a long tradition of exceptional scholarship in communication studies. “We are proud to honor her with this award.”
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