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Uncle Sam Wants You—To Speak! By JANE CHO
Whether you are giving a lecture-recital, making a presentation in a class, or simply offering a toast at your birthday party, public speaking skills are the most vital skills one can have to communicate with an audience. Despite this, few people feel comfortable about public speaking. It can be a challenging and even a frightening experience to some. In an attempt to help people overcome these difficulties, the Office of Career Development launched a public speaking club last November.
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Public speaking provides powerful communication and leadership skills, helping us to be better listeners, critical thinkers, and creators.
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Every Thursday, Juilliard students, faculty, alumni, and staff gather in Room 241 and speak their minds at the Speaking Up Club. This club is designed to help everyone who participates learn to speak confidently and effectively in front of an audience. Each meeting has different theme. On April 8, we focused on the presidential campaign. Derek Mithaug, director of career development, chaired the meeting, during which five enthusiastic speakers expressed their unique opinions on the topic.The first speaker was Anita Mercier (a Liberal Arts faculty member), who expressed her frustration at how our society repeats the same mistakes throughout its history. Her biggest frustration was that she can't trust the sincerity of President Bush and his administration, and yet he is running for re-election this year. Is our society on the verge of making the same mistake again?Sharon Bogas, a cellist who is graduating this year, put a historical perspective on her speech. She was galvanized by John F. Kennedy's inaugural speech in 1961, and pointed out how John Kerry's leadership is coherent with J.F.K.'s vision. Her opinion was that "John Kerry is our last and best hope."André Emelianoff, a cellist on the faculty, pointed out various issues, such as those concerning Native Americans, economic and social prejudice, and racism in our modern society. In order to solve these issues, he said, we need to have a broader and clearer vision as citizens.David Kahn, a third-year bassoonist, talked about the security of our country and how 9/11 affected our economy. He said he feels that our security is threatened, and Bush is the only one who can better deal with this issue. He finished his speech with a strong assertion: "I have no other choice but to vote for Bush in the presidential election."Lauren McMinn, associate director of national advancement and alumni relations, expressed her frustration at how the news media fail to clearly portray important issues, such as economy and education. Instead, they are too busy highlighting the scandals of politicians. She feels that reporters have a responsibility to reflect a clear picture of our society, so that young, educated voters like herself will be able to vote intelligently.After these five prepared speeches, the meeting moved to the more relaxed Table Topics, an interesting and fun part of the meeting in which audience members make short, impromptu speeches. Faculty assistant Molly Skardon was the host for Table Topics, and asked intriguing questions relating to politics and jobs.It was a great pleasure to hear some of the administrators speak, especially those we don't get to listen to very often. Associate registrar Andrew King was asked, "What was your dream job as a child?" He answered with enthusiasm about wanting to become president of a bus company and also a teacher. Scott Holden, director of office services, gave us his opinion on some of the jobs one should have held before he or she became president. Dean Clapp was asked, "What was the most interesting job you had in the past?" He shared some of his early experiences as a young professional (as a violin teacher and a piano tuner) with great wit and a smile. The last Table Topic speaker, Jeremy Pinquist, the network manager in the I.T. Department, spoke frankly about the research abilities he brings to his work and how he gets his job done efficiently. The meeting was a great success, as everyone shared their ideas and opinions.Pubic speaking provides powerful communication and leadership skills. It helps us to be better listeners, critical thinkers, and creators, all vital skills for 21st-century artists. The weekly Speaking Up club meetings have concluded for the semester, but will start up again in September. For more information, call ext. 7135.Jane Cho (B.M. '99, piano) is assistant director of career development.
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