“I was moved by her speech and story and felt she showed a real ability to connect and be responsive to the audience.” This quote from Oral Communications instructor Raymond Welch says a great deal about some of the reasons why Katherine Palmateer’s classmates nominated her for the Rise and Shine Toastmasters’ Annual Achievement Award; and why the selections committee agreed.
From each May until the next April, the students from every course section of Communications 235 (Oral Communications) take the time to nominate one of their own to represent the best in public speaking practices and skills. Students learn how to capture and keep the attention of their audience, backup their information with credible sources, put arguments together in a way that makes sense, and continually practice speaking clearly and confidently (among many other things).
If you’re interested in perfecting your oral presentation and speech-making skills, you can get ahead of the game by signing up for CMNS 235. The course is designed using the same proven methods that Toastmasters International has developed and championed since 1924. Even if you don’t have the time to take the course (or end up too far down the waitlist) you still have the opportunity to benefit by joining the Rise and Shine Toastmasters club, which meets on campus at UFV (Fridays from 7:20 to 8:20 am in A225). Katherine did both – and it paid off (literally).
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Dr. Marcella LaFever (University of New Mexico, 2005) is an Associate Professor in the Communications Department at the University of the Fraser Valley. She specializes in intercultural communication and brings that expertise to various subjects such as communication for workplace, instruction, social media, team and public speaking contexts.