The Institute of Applied Agriculture promotes hands on learning with all kinds of labs—insects, plants, and ag mechanics. Could a speech lab be next?
IAA Oral Communication Lecturer Nina LaTassa presented a paper at the 12th Annual Excellence at the Center Conference: Reflect, Rejoice and Remix. Held April 19-20 at the University of North Carolina's Greensboro campus, the conference was jointly hosted by the University and the National Association of Communication Centers to facilitate the exchange ideas about campus practice laboratories to help students improve their communication skills.
LaTassa’s paper, “The Communication Center for the Two-Year Student: Challenges and Choices” was enthusiastically received and instigated some lively conversation. In addition, LaTassa says the conference presented an amazing array of collegiate communication center models, case studies, and organizational schemes that she hopes can one day be implemented at the IAA.
LaTassa believes many of the ideas “could easily be integrated into IAA’s planning for a communication center in Jull Hall.” She explained that the panels, workshops, and speakers dug deep into the fundamental issues of managing communication centers, incorporating new technologies, arranging space, and controlling the quality. LaTassa noted that, like the University of Maryland, other schools have added an oral communication requirement for incoming students, thus increasing the demand for speech centers.
LaTassa says the conference can be summed up nicely by one of the session titles, “Tasty Tapas: An Array of Delicious Ideas for the Center.” She hopes to eventually take those tasty ideas and turn them into a full menu of opportunities at an IAA Speech Center.
