Annie Bolduc wins KSU's Fourth Annual Public Speaking Showcase

KENNESAW, Ga. (Feb 4, 2011) — Annie Bolduc, a senior communication major, won first place in KSU’s second annual Public Speaking Showcase, held November 5, 2010. The Communication Department sponsored the event, which featured 15 speakers. To be eligible to enter, the contestants were current students in the Public Speaking course, or had previous credit for the course. Each student delivered a persuasive speech that was 8-10 minutes in length with an extemporaneous delivery style. The event was open to the public and consisted of five semi-final rooms of speeches to begin the evening. Then, one speaker from each of the semi-final rounds competed in the final competition. Judges were current and former KSU Communication Department faculty members, experts in the field, or members of the Georgia Communication Association.

Bolduc’s speech was titled, “Lost in Translation.” She stressed the importance of learning a foreign language. Afterwards she explained, “Learning another language can seem hard and unnecessary, but the job market is so competitive and we need every edge we can. So many employers now want candidates that are bilingual and I wanted to tell people about all the advantages!” Proud of her unique topic approach, Bolduc shared, “I wanted to have a topic that was not necessarily a controversial topic. Part of me wanted to prove to students that you can give a good persuasive speech without falling into the ‘classics.’” Bolduc won a trophy and a $600 cash award for her award-winning speech.

Caitlyn Van Orden won second place with her speech “Jittery Owls: Why You Should Avoid Energy Drinks.” She also took home a trophy and a $400 cash award. Third place was awarded to Sean Collins who presented, “Why Americans Should Pressure Legislators to Pass the Dream Act.” Collins won a trophy and a $300 cash award. Other finalists included Chelsea Korzenko and Vanessa Lupo, winning $100 respectively.

This was the first year the event was sponsored by CNN. The Department of Communication congratulates all participating speakers.