Trey McCain – Alumnus Spotlight

Owner, Triskelion Media

 

Hometown: Amory, MS
BA in Linguistics, minor in French (2010)
MA in French (2012)
LinkedIn

“My interest in linguistics began as an accident. I always had an interest in languages, but couldn’t decide on just one. I intended to learn Arabic and work for the State Department, but after travelling abroad, decided that wasn’t the job for me. Linguistics seemed a good option because it would equip me to learn whatever language was in front of me. It has done that, but it’s so much more. I learned not only the structure but the function of language – hint: it’s more than just communication. My favorite courses were generally tied to sociolinguistics, where we looked at why and how a language changes within different contexts. That differed greatly from my initial conception of linguistics, but I found something all the more valuable for it.”

A transfer student from Northeast Mississippi Community College, Trey McCain took Introduction to Linguistic Science, Forensic Linguistics, Intro to Chinese, and Intro to French in his first semester at UM. Ultimately he decided on French, even staying to complete a master’s in French. McCain’s interests drew him out into the community in different ways. Linguistics courses involved interviewing people or recording conversations. He was involved in the Oxford Community Garden, Campus for Clean Energy, and a founding leader of the North Central chapter of the Gaining Ground Sustainability Institute of Mississippi.

Since leaving Oxford, McCain has worked with an environmental non-profit and been a freelance media work. He lived in Wales where linguistics helped him learn Welsh and serve as an advocate for minority language speakers in Europe. Watch the BBC video: “Mississippian Trey McCain on the Welsh Experience” (30 October 2014)

He is currently the owner of Triskelion Media, a company that specializes in web production, website development, and social media management.