Talking Stick - November/December 2013 - 9

PD for Free:

Present Your Way to PD
Presenting can be an intimidating endeavour, especially if you have a fear of
public speaking, but it is a fantastic way to share your knowledge, apply adult
learning strategies, and build professional competencies. We often equate
presenting or facilitating with large conferences, but there are other ways to
gain presentation experience.
Start small. Find opportunities to present on a project or program you
are working on to your colleagues during a staff meeting, or connect with
a community partner to deliver a training workshop for their organization
or volunteers. These lower risk presentations can help you build confidence
and find your style as a presenter. Kathryn Magura, operations manager,
assignments & customer service at Oregon State University in Corvallis, is
also a seasoned presenter at conferences, but she had to learn how to become
comfortable with the experience. "When I started my professional career, I
was scared of public speaking. I had a hard time presenting to RAs about
information they needed to be successful in their job, and I knew I had to
conquer my fear of public speaking. So I pushed myself to get involved in
presenting at conferences. I started with NWACUHO, which allowed me
to present to a small crowd of people and with a co-presenter. Once I got
comfortable there, I submitted proposals to present at national ACUHO-I
conferences. As time went on, and my experience presenting got more
refined, I grew quite comfortable with presenting to larger crowds, which
actually helped me gain confidence in my work. As I presented about housing
management systems, gender-neutral housing, and room change procedures,
I realized that I really knew quite a bit about these topics and had a lot to share
with my professional community."
Presenting at a conference does not need to be costly. There are many
local conferences and workshops that provide the same opportunity to gain
presentation experience, often with a smaller audience than at a national
conference and with only a nominal registration fee. Magura recently presented
at the Oregon Women in Higher Education Conference, where, given the
location, she was able to co-present with a student. Presenting with (and not
just for) student leaders is a fantastic way to help them develop skills and build
their confidence - a great way to give back to the profession.
Magura credits the desire to give back to the profession for helping to
alleviate her fear of public speaking. "If I think I have a topic that could help
benefit others in housing or student affairs, I will submit a program proposal."
Further, if you feel that your functional area is underrepresented, that is
motivation to present. Magura notes, "I didn't feel like the programs presented
at conferences reflected the larger scope of work happening within our field.
Specifically, I was frustrated that there were very few programs regarding
assignments or housing operations. A wise supervisor told me that if I don't
like the options provided, I needed to change it by submitting the kind of
program proposal I wanted to see. This is the best piece of advice I can share:
don't complain about the lack of options; resolve to change it by adding your
voice for future conferences!"

Fun Facts

Indiana University in Bloomington
was the first institution in the Big 10 to
have a woman start their residence life
program.

The start time for
classes at Lehigh
University in
Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania, is
10 minutes past
the hour. This was
originally established
so that students finishing a shift at
Bethlehem Steel could arrive on time.

Yale University
has the oldest
and best known
collegiate
a cappella group.
The Whiffenpoofs
have been singing on
Monday nights at Mory's,
the famous tavern on the
Yale campus, since 1909.

The first successful open heart surgery
and the first successful human bone
marrow transplant in the United
States were done at the University of
Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Kate McGartland-Kinsella
Student Development Officer, University of Toronto Mississauga
[Ed. Note: PD for Free is a recurring column that explores professional development
opportunities for campus housing professionals at little or no cost. If you have ideas or
success stories to share, please contact the author at kate.kinsella@utoronto.ca or on
Twitter at @KateMcGK.]
November + December 2013

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Talking Stick - November/December 2013

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