It has become increasingly clear that we as communication center professionals must confront the deeply rooted linguistic assumptions and traditions that underlie notions of speaking well. In this essay, we argue that one place to start is to look closely how and why conceptions of speaking well have come to rest on an unquestioned ideal of what…

Student motivation has been researched from a variety of viewpoints such as that of student motivation and in the classroom, student motivation and learning, and student motivation and teacher immediacy. This study looks at the motivational factors of communication center tutors (n = 165) across the United States to determine what motivates them…

Prioritizing wellness and wellbeing is absolutely necessary for all schools, regardless of size or classification, and Communication Centers are uniquely positioned to serve their campus in impactful and meaningful ways. Communication Centers can and should develop into aspirational spaces where authentic experiences and stories are curated,…

The mission of university communication centers is to help all students succeed, and part of this mission is helping students with disabilities. The first component of helping students with disabilities within communication centers is to check that communication centers comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). However, compliance…

Many new students are struggling to succeed in the current college environment. The mental health crisis and the pandemic have only increased this struggle. Communication centers should partner with student orientation in order to increase student retention, alongside familiarizing students with the communication center from the beginning of their…

We offer as praxis--at the intersection between theory and practice--an essay examining what we are calling the "micro-geography" of the communication center. Specifically, we challenge communication center practitioners to think about the ways in which everyday practices and "bottom-up" efforts in our centers can work to…

At the University of North Carolina Greensboro's Speaking Center, recent formation of an Antiracist Values Committee, as well as former research completed by its members, have governed antiracist efforts. As one resource to students, the University of North Carolina Greensboro's Speaking Center offers tip sheets. These tip sheets are pamphlets…

Literary theorist and poet Kenneth Burke defines terministic screens as a rhetorical device that influences how individuals perceive and respond to a situation. They are a lens through which each individual looks at life, and are created through a person's experiences and language acquisition. The language used for one group may not be the same…

The word "grapevine" is defined by Merriam-Webster (n.d.) online dictionary as an "informal person-to-person means of circulating information or gossip," but this definition lacks in explaining the capabilities of grapevine communication. It enhances the knowledge of an organization's specific procedures, furthers the…

As a graduate assistant at the University Speaking Center (USC), Rebecca Ray investigated the ways how the diverse staff works together cohesively to be both fascinating and effective. She conducted two different focus groups at the USC during downtime to create an open dialogue for learning about what makes us diverse. She found that diversity is…

How humans learn is a topic explored by many disciplines. Eyler (2018) synthesized research from diverse fields such as developmental psychology, anthropology, and cognitive neuroscience to identify themes important for understanding the science behind learning. Three of these principles have important relevance for center work: curiosity,…

Merriam-Webster states that belongingness entails "close or intimate relationships, and a sense of belonging." Humans have a basic and universal emotional need to be an accepted member of a group. In terms of a university setting, Gleiman (2015), states "Ultimately, engagement through the sense of belonging can be one of the most…

In writing, speaking, and movement, without context society would be unable to communicate and function at the capacity it does today. Oftentimes, the context of a situation is understood with only a few words, a nod, or even by simply residing within a location. In most aspects of life, context is the undetected force, but in a communication…

During Kellar Poteat's work as a graduate assistant at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) Speaking Center as well as her coursework in the UNCG Speech-Language Pathology master's program, she has begun to research the impacts communications centers can have on persons who stutter (PWS) or those with other communication disorders…

This paper looks at a mid-size state university's speaking center. At this speaking center, managing peers oversee consultants for hour-long shifts, and those who work together during these hour-long shifts are referred to as shift families. These families remain the same for the entire semester, and so effective personal communication between…