Seven Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) communication studies students will compete for scholarship funds as part of the university’s biannual “SpeakEasy” speech competition at 11 a.m. on Friday, December 9.
The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held in the Columbus Learning Center Lecture Hall & Auditorium. Light refreshments will be served immediately following the competition in the Student Commons, which is adjacent to the Lecture Hall.
Students selected for the competition, which is held once a semester, are nominated by classmates and their instructors based on the quality of their public speaking skills in the classroom. They represent some of the finest students enrolled in IUPUC’s public speaking classes, according to Professor Anna Carmon, who coordinates IUPUC’s communication studies program.
“In today’s workplace, good communication skills are essential for success, whether in making formal sales presentations before large audiences, informal discussions in a small group setting, or one-on-one conversations with customers. Research, good critical thinking, the ability to develop a solid presentation, and a personable delivery style are valuable skills in any profession,” she said.
Carmon noted that IUPUC has hosted the competition for at least ten years. “By holding a competition in a formal setting with a larger audience that isn’t primarily composed of their peers, students have an additional opportunity to develop and perfect their public speaking skills in a realistic way before graduation,” she explained.
The competition judges include:
- Dr. Andrae Marak, head of the Division of Liberal Arts at IUPUC
- Dr. Robert Williams, CEO emeritus at Centerstone
- Lynn Lucas, director, Columbus Area Visitors Center
- Paige Harden, public relations and marketing specialist, Columbus Regional Hospital
Students will be judged on the basis of their delivery skills, speech structure, visual aids, and overall presentation style.
The students will compete for a first-place prize of $200. The second- and third-place winners will receive $150 and $100, respectively.
The competitors (and their hometowns) include:
- Courtney Seiwert, majoring in communication studies | Columbus, IN
- Olivia Pavlov, majoring in psychology | Columbus, IN
- Steven Cain, majoring in business/accounting | Columbus, IN
- Jordan Lewis, majoring in business/finance | Franklin, IN
- Juan Mateo Rodriguez, majoring in business/management | Columbus, IN
- Jessie Browne, majoring in environmental health science | Columbus, IN
- Zakkery Hashman, majoring in business | Edinburgh, IN
For more information, please contact Professor Anna Carmon at 812.348.7213 or acarmon@iupuc.edu.