Associate Professor, Dr. Dedria Givens-Carroll, To Retire After Fall 2021 Semester

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Department of Communication has announced the retirement of Associate Professor Dedria Givens-Carroll, Ph.D. Givens-Carroll’s retirement will be effective Jan. 1.

This retirement comes after a distinguished 15-year career at UL Lafayette. During this time Givens-Carroll was involved in the UL Lafayette Crisis Plan, attended and presented in several academic conferences, published books, book chapters and journal articles and served in the faculty senate.

Her work in the Department of Communication includes mentoring over 50 graduate students, assisting in the establishment of the student chapter of the Public Relations Students Society of America (PRSSA), organizing senior portfolio reviews for strategic communication students and advising hundreds of undergraduate students.Her record of community service includes working with the 15th Judicial District Attorney’s Office to combat the opiate epidemic, Lafayette Economic Development Authority (LEDA), Woman’s Foundation Inc, Hearts of Hope, and Acadiana Animal Aid.

"Dr. D., as students affectionately call her, has quickly established herself as a core member of our faculty. She has made a critical contribution to the department through her research, teaching, and service” said communication department head, Lucian Dinu, Ph.D. “Personally, I will miss her collegiality and professional insights as much as I will miss our long conversations about travel, cooking, and gardening. "

Following retirement, Givens-Carroll said, “I plan to kick off 2022 spending more time with my family, reading a non-academic book or 10, listening to ocean waves and music, cooking and eating great food, spending time outdoors, sometimes hiking, and pursuing fungi and edible mushroom collecting, and vegetable and flower gardening.”