Talking Stick - January/February 2011 - 9

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Online Summer Training a Hit
With the rush of new students at the beginning of every academic year, frequent staff meetings, and the start of classes, many staff members find little time in their schedule for further job training and development programs. To prevent staff members from feeling overwhelmed, many institutions have begun training online during the summer to help ease staff agendas while also giving them time to readily prepare for their new positions. At Ithaca College in New York, the residence life department has used online components as part of their training program for the past three years. Individuals have the opportunity to complete these class modules prior to the end of spring quarter or during the summer before starting their positions. These programs provide a beneficial experience to staff members who can gain knowledge in an interactive way while working at a comfortable pace. Online summer training programs like those at Ithaca College are effective at bringing in successful, well trained staff each fall. By beginning training in the summer, colleges and universities can reduce the amount of information that needs to be given to staff in the fall, thus allowing the department to save both time and money during this period. Bonnie Prunty, the director of residential life, emphasizes another benefit to starting programs early: “Summer training modules can focus on information sharing, and then you can have more interactive follow-up components during your fall training program.”
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Inspired by Rebecca Krylow, University of Delaware

I Have to Speak in Front of Whom?
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Wake Forest University

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Inspired by Rebecca Krylow, University of Delaware

Public speaking – everyone does it, but many would prefer not to. It can be a dreaded task, and yet it is one that communicates so much about who we are. Take heart, housing professionals: our communication-savvy colleagues can help. Rebecca Krylow, complex coordinator at the University of Delaware in Newark, teaches a public speaking course on her campus and has found multiple overlaps between the content in her course and her work in student affairs. She has come to this conclusion: “Staff members at all levels are continuously engaging in the process of public speaking. It’s just a matter of how formally.” She offers some suggestions to make the task easier: “Because public speaking isn’t an activity that most look forward to, I wanted to share a few tips to hopefully ease any anxiety that you might feel. It’s important to remember that public speaking is more than standing in front of a room giving a speech. It’s an everyday activity with anywhere from one to 100 individuals composing the ‘audience.’” • • • • • Be audience-centered. Know to whom you will be speaking, and learn as much about your audience as you can. Look for positive listener support. Visualize your success as you deliver the “speech” as a controlled, confident speaker. Afterwards, focus on your accomplishments, NOT your anxiety. Empower yourself to seek future speaking opportunities.

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january + february 2011
Talking Stick - January/February 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - January/February 2011
