SATU: new name, same program

When College of Arts and Sciences Dean Richard Beeman thinks about SATU, he cringes. But it's not what is taught in the University's public-speaking program that grates on Beeman -- it's the acronym.

Beeman believed that the Speaking Across the University program was desperately in need of a name change. So, as he jokingly recalls, this year, he used the power of the dean's office to mandate a name change.

Out went SATU and in came CWiC -- or Communication Within the Curriculum.

But the changes Beeman has made to the program, which helps undergraduates to learn how to speak before an audience, are in name only. It will continue to promote the University's belief that students need to be able to express themselves clearly.

Sara Coelho, CWiC's coordinator and a recent Penn graduate, said CWiC's workshops are increasing in popularity and word about the program is reaching more students. The number of CWiC affiliated classes is also growing. This academic year, 1,390 students enrolled in one of the 55 CWiC affiliated classes.

"We're building our program," Coelho said. "Every semester, we're finding more faculty who want to participate, and therefore, we're getting more students involved."

CWiC works with faculty to design oral assignments that complement their curricula. For example, classes that are designated as CWiC affiliated might include an oral presentation as part of the grade.

Coelho said changing the name of the program will help raise the program's profile on campus.

"CWiC is a catchier name," Coelho said. "It's a lot easier to remember than SATU. A lot of people say they like the name, and frankly, it's their opinion that matters, not mine."

Beeman said the program continues to be important to undergraduates, noting that University trustees have told him about bright Penn graduates arriving at job interviews with stellar resumes, dressed to kill, who proceed to stare at the ground and mumble through the entire conversation.

"We need to help students learn not only how to think critically, but to communicate their thoughts effectively," Beeman said. "Penn students write better than when they arrived. I'm not so positive that we can, at this point, say with confidence that our students' oral communication skills are so much better than when they arrived."

CWiC offers workshops that last for several hours once a week for multiple weeks, or others that are one-time sessions for an hour and half. The workshops offer advice for a range of oral communication topics including impromptu speeches, controlling anxiety and using Microsoft Powerpoint.

At the CWiC central office on the fourth floor of Bennett Hall, students can meet with a trained undergraduate speaking advisor to create and revise their oral presentations before they deliver them publicly. Just as the Kelly Writers House provides advice with written assignments, CWiC offers similar help in creating a thesis and organizing the oral assignment.

"People really underestimate the value of organizing their thoughts and presenting a cohesive argument," said Evelyn Dean, a College senior who is a speaking advisor. "Knowing a subject well is not the same thing as delivering a good presentation, and it's not the same as writing a paper. You have to be more concise and clear."

Dean has served as a speaking adviser since the program's inception in 1999. And although she admits that the name change has nothing to do with CWiC's success, she said she has definitely noticed the program improve in its three years.

"We were struggling in the beginning," Dean recalled. "It was almost only students who were trying to do the administrative job and the advising. Now, the program's really taken off. We have more students, more affiliated classes and more workshops."

Beeman said the College will probably never have an oral communication requirement, because it lacks a faculty with expertise in that area. Instead, he foresees an increase in opportunities for students to take classes that incorporate oral communication into the curriculum.

But, he added, he's happy with the progress Penn has made thus far.

"We're ahead of the curve significantly," Beeman said, comparing Penn to its peer institutions. "The school probably doing nearly as much as we are is Stanford."

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