Expressive Communication Center
Expressive Communication Center
(in the hallway that connects the library and the SHED)
Fall 2024 Semester Hours:
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Mondays: 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.
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Tuesdays: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
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Wednesdays: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
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Thursdays: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
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Fridays: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
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Saturdays: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
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Sundays: 1 – 7 p.m.
Contact:
Expressive Communication Center Director:
Strengthen your ability to deliver dynamic public presentations confidently, clearly, and eloquently at the Expressive Communication Center—skills that give you an advantage on the job and throughout your life.
Need help with your presentation?
We're happy to help. Stop in during drop-in hours, schedule an in-person or virtual meeting, or join in a small group appointments. The ECC offers professional mentoring, practice opportunities, and resources to help you maximize your presentation skills.
Appointments and Drop-In Sessions
Appointments — Virtual, In Person, One-to-One, and Small Group Options:
- In-person appointments: Arrive at Wallace Library 05-1640 at your scheduled appointment time.
- Virtual individual appointments: To join a virtual appointment, shortly before your appointment time, log in and click on your appointment in the scheduling system, and then select the red 'start or join online consultation' link.
- Small group appointments: In-person small group appointments will take place in Wallace Library 05-1640. Small groups may also schedule virtual appointments. To do this, have one group member make the appointment. On the appointment intake form, they must select the "group" option and provide the emails of the other group members. A Zoom meeting join link will be emailed to the group members.
Drop-In Sessions:
We recommend that students make appointments, but we do take drop-in appointments on a first-come, first-served basis. Each available drop-in slot opens fifteen minutes before its start and remains open until it fills or the time passes. This allows you to make appointments as you arrive or when you're ready to start your meeting.
*If you require interpreting services, please make interpreting requests through Access Services.
Learn from the Best
Industry workforce reports, university alumni surveys, and academic studies have long stressed the importance of strong communication abilities in order for all college graduates to excel. Research consistently shows that communication apprehension and hesitancy to communicate undermine academic and professional performance. Better communicators are better students: more articulate, more confident students have higher scores on graduate entrance exams, higher GPAs, more positive attitudes toward education, and better college retention rates.
At the ECC, we use a consulting-training model and an engaged active learning approach where students receive training, practice, and get ongoing feedback from expert tutors:
- Communication faculty and trained tutors who help students prepare and rehearse for presentations and other oral communication activities.
- Expert communication faculty who work one-on-one with course instructors from all disciplines.
These activities provide real and lasting benefits to students in oral, interpersonal, group, and visual communication competency improvement.
Meet Our Consultants
The Expressive Communication Center is staffed by undergraduate and graduate students from various majors across RIT. Consultants are trained to work with students from all backgrounds, with some able to assist in languages other than English, including ASL.
Please review the profiles below to identify the consultant best suited to help you as you prepare your presentation.
Adrian Burgos is a fifth-year computer science major with a minor in communication. He is a career development mentor and the Vice President of the Computing Organization for Multicultural Students, as well as a member of No Voice Zone. During high school, he won the Chairman’s Award for his presentation at a FIRST Robotics competition, and has now gone on to mentor high school students on Rochester’s city-wide FIRST Robotics Team with both programming and presenting. If you need help outlining, writing, or practicing your speeches or interview skills, book an appointment with Adrian.
Paula de Cárdenas is a fifth-year chemical engineering student minoring in communication. Having been raised in Puerto Rico, she communicates fluently in English and Spanish. Outside of the ECC, you would find her drinking a coffee, at the gym, or having a good laugh with her friends. When it comes to speeches and essays, her strengths include brainstorming ideas, as well as structuring and organizing the outlines. If you book with Paula, you are bound to have a good, productive time.
Andres Ceinos is a fifth-year software engineering student. Being from Puerto Rico, he is fluent in both Spanish and English. He enjoys helping others with problem-solving and brainstorming exercises. He usually spends his time at the gym, doing homework, and mentoring at the Society of Software Engineers. He loves to hear other people’s speeches and helping them improve their delivery. Book with him to get rid of that presentation anxiety.
Elena Desai is a fourth-year ASL-English Interpretation major and communication minor, and she is able to take appointments in English or ASL. She enjoys hanging out with friends and getting some exercise by paddle boarding, kayaking, hiking, or hitting the gym. She is looking forward to working with you on brainstorming topics, building a strong outline, and practicing delivery. Work with Elena and she will give you a kind, constructive critique and make sure your speech is a good balance between natural and rehearsed.
Kora Lovdahl is a fourth year Computing Security BS/MS student with minors in Psychology and Quantum Information Science & Technology from Southeastern Connecticut. She discovered her love for public speaking in high school and won the Story Slam at Imagine RIT 2023. One of her passions is lacrosse; Kora has played for 13 years and is currently captain of the women's club lacrosse team on campus. She also loves to knit, crochet, paint, garden, woodwork, and generally do anything with her hands. If you need support on your upcoming projects and presentations, come visit Kora in the ECC!
Mikayla MacIntyre is an applied statistics graduate student. She recently completed her bachelor's degree at RIT as an applied statistics and data analytics major with minors in communication and ecology and evolutionary biology. Mikayla works as both a consultant and strategic communication specialist at the ECC. She has discovered her love of public speaking and is determined to show others that it isn’t something to be scared of. To make sure your next speech is the best it can be, visit Mikayla today!
Lauren is a second-year mechanical engineering technology student. She is currently vice president of RIT's tennis club. You'll often see her playing with her friends and traveling to tournaments with her club. Lauren is also an active sister of Zeta Tau Alpha fraternity. She enjoys giving back to her community and the leadership opportunities Greek life has to offer. Lauren looks forward to helping her clients work on their speeches, outlines, or whatever they wish to improve on!
Kaatje Mayer is a fourth-year student majoring in communication here. "I love working at the ECC to pieces, and I enjoy every moment I get to work with my fellow students on their speeches and presentations," she said. "I look forward to our appointment together!"
Carrie Rader is a fourth-year industrial engineering student minoring in communication. She has finished two co-ops in Syracuse, NY and Cincinnati, OH. She also enjoys creative writing and crocheting in her free time. Carrie’s strengths include understanding the difficulties of presenting and narrowing down what to speak about. If you need help working through pre-speech anxiety and selecting speech topics, book your next appointment with Carrie!
Hridiza Roy is a fourth-year student, double majoring in computer science and the School of Individualized Study with a concentration in computer graphics. Her hobbies include writing, dancing, and singing. Hridiza is also the winner of the Fall 2021 RIT Public Speaking Contest. Hridiza is passionate about discovering people’s interests and helping them come up with a creative topic that fits the theme and their interests. Her strengths include technical speeches for a non-technical audience, and cultivating non-traditional perspectives. If you want to create a unique and passionate speech, book your next appointment with Hridiza!
Alex Van Eck is a third-year game design student with an immersion in communication. He is interested in many fields, including music, video games, books, and D&D. If you want your speech to shine, book an appointment with Alex!
For Students
At the Expressive Communication Center, students meet with peer consultants for help with all phases of presentation preparation and delivery, including but not limited to:
So you have to give a speech — now what? Deciding what you want to talk about is the first step. Our peer consultants are trained to help you decide on an idea that you’re passionate about and that will speak to a larger audience. Ultimately, we want to help you find your voice! A presentation is always better when you care what you’re talking about, so we’re here to help narrow down that focus.
Preparing an outline can be a daunting aspect of a presentation, but it’s something we can help you embrace! Our goal is to help you design an outline for any kind of presentation or speech that works best for your speaking style. You’ll likely end up with two different outlines — one for organizing the speech, and the second for delivery purposes. We want to find the method that works best for you!
Oftentimes, it’s helpful to back up what you’re saying with a visual aid — we can help with that! The goal is to create something that supports what you’re talking about without distracting your audience. From the content to the color scheme, our peer consultants will help you create material that strengthens your topic
To some, the delivery is the most exciting step of a presentation, but to others, it's the scariest. No matter your comfort level, we’re here to help. Our peer consultants will look at every aspect of the deliverable: your tone, your speed, your movements, everything! We know that it’s tempting to just “wing” a presentation, but it can be really helpful to practice ahead of time. We provide a judgement-free zone to help you get your point across in the best way possible.
We fully understand how nerve wracking it can be to speak in front of your peers and professors, but we also know how rewarding it can be! We want to work with you through every step of the process. Even if you already have your presentation written, the next step is to make you comfortable speaking. The ultimate goal is to make you confident.
For Faculty
Faculty from any discipline may request customized oral communication support for their courses. If you include speaking assignments in your courses—such as speeches, presentations, group presentations, debates, discussions, and oral exams—the ECC director is available to work with you on devising those assignments and their associated grading.
Faculty can require or recommend that students visit the ECC, either for a specific assignment, or for general support.
Our downloadable guide, "Providing Oral Presentation Support to Students," offers practical guidance for accessing the services of the Expressive Communication Center and supporting students in the development of presentation skills. Download the pdf guide now. >
For questions related to writing the ECC into grants or incorporating the ECC into research, please contact Dr. Kelly Martin.
Resources
Here you will find additional resources for the Expressive Communication Center, such as examples of great communication, getting the most out of your appointment with the ECC, steps in the speechmaking process, and managing speaking anxiety.
- Preparation Outline Template (google doc) >
- Speech Planning Worksheet (google doc) >
- Strategies for Managing Public Speaking Anxiety (google doc) >
- Crafting an Elevator Pitch >
- For Faculty, "Providing Oral Presentation Support to Students" (pdf) >
Rubrics:
My professor made my first visit to the ECC mandatory for an assignment, but I decided to come back again after seeing major improvement in my presentations from just my first visit. The student consultant who helped me practice my speech was beyond friendly and even more helpful with constructive criticism on where I need to improve. To any student that wants to improve their speaking skills or gain confidence for an upcoming presentation, the ECC is the place to go.
I’ve seen a significant correlation between groups who had worked with the ECC and outstanding presentations in my classes. It wasn't just the material that was enhanced by these meetings, but the content as well. Instead of listing information to fill space, they really constructed more in-depth exploration of their topics. I'm so impressed with how the ECC was able to impact my students’ learning and engagement!
Principal Lecturer
The Expressive Communication Center is a great resource for RIT students.The consultants at the ECC have helped me become more skillful in my speech writing and delivery. I learn new skills in each appointment I make. The ECC makes me a confident speaker by helping me with public speaking anxiety strategies and practicing methods. As an interpreting major, my delivery skills are essential and the ECC helps me build them. I am very grateful for the ECC and I plan to attend for each presentation I have to give!
The one-on-one style work that the ECC does is what makes it stand out. They have good people there, all of whom are students themselves, so they understand the classroom setting. Having these one-on-one conversations about what to improve or what to keep the same in a speech really helps me and my confidence. The students working there are all very friendly and are all “people persons.” After just a few minutes, it’s easy to relate to them.
Upcoming Events
Expressive Communication Center Brick City Weekend Open House: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Wallace Library (WAL) - Room 1640
Discover how we are empowering students to articulate their ideas and prepare and deliver dynamic public presentations confidently, clearly, and eloquently. Nestled in the heart of Wallace Library, the Expressive Communication Center (ECC) is a hub for fostering meaningful connections, facilitating effective dialogue, and enhancing communication across all disciplines. Read full event listing >
Check back for news about upcoming events and be sure to follow the RIT event calendar.