Bernard’s improv troupe poses for a group photo at 2024’s TedX WCC event. Improv will also be featured in 2025’s event. Photo provided by Hope Bernard.
Beck Elandt | Staff Writer
If you are interested in public speaking, either from the audience or the stage, TedxWCC has a lot to offer. The free event will be held in the Towsley Auditorium on April 10th, showcasing poster presentations, interactive improv and the iconic TEDx red carpet, where members of our community will be sharing personal stories aimed to unite and inspire. The deadline for speakers to apply is Feb. 28th.
“It’s really fun to tap into that larger organization (TEDx), but it’s very WCC. It’s all about students, ideas and our community,” said Hope Bernard, instructor of drama and film for WCC. Bernard’s area is the improv show, which was added last year as the event continues to grow.
“We look for our speakers to have some powerful ideas that are really worth sharing,” said Claire Sparklin, faculty of communication at WCC. Her role is to uphold the license criteria for the TEDx foundation, while also helping speakers develop their speeches and practice their delivery, something full-time faculty of the communication, media, and theatre arts department do, like Bernard.
“It’s such a big event; it’s definitely a team effort,” said Sparklin. Sparklin shared that, in past years, the maximum number of people able to attend the event was capped at 100, but, thanks to an upgrade in the license WCC shares with TEDx, the event’s size is now only limited by the auditorium space.
A past speaker, Kaeka Cagle, really enjoyed the experience. “A month after the event, I ran into someone who watched it live and they told me how impactful it was,” said Cagle. “That’s when I felt fully that it was a good thing.”
When it comes to speaking publicly, Sukhmani Gill, a student in the nursing program, loves doing it.
“I think speakers should let their fear go,” she said. She wants people to know it’s important to practice with people or a mirror, so it sounds okay.
If you believe you have something worth sharing, WCC is currently looking for speakers to apply, whose presentations will be posted to the official Ted Talk YouTube channel. For application details email Claire Sparklin, at csparklin@wccnet.edu.
Join WCC at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10, for food and a variety of introspective experiences.