Shauna Cook
The Corsair
Pensacola State College has introduced a new Speaker’s Bureau to the greater Pensacola community presenting speakers on a wide range of topics.
“We began the process a couple years ago to put it together,” said Thom Botsford, head of English and Communications Department. “It took us about half a year to get people to sign up and another half a year for marketing to produce the website.”
The Speaker’s Bureau has 25 volunteers that range from PSC faculty, researchers and administrators to alumni that provide lectures and guest presentations to professional and community organizations, public and private schools, and businesses free of charge.
“The speakers are very qualified and speak on subjects spanning business ethics, political science, music history, philosophy and religion, spirituality and self-awareness, and art appreciation,” Botsford said.
Every volunteer speaker has come up with their own topics that they are knowledgeable about and felt would be appropriate for the audience. Julie Ruengert, associate professor of English is a speaker with the topic of “Subversive! Banned and Challenged Children’s Books.” Every year small groups of parents or community members across the country try to make certain books unavailable, for example, Shel Silverstein’s “Where the Sidewalk Ends.” It has a poem in the book that parents believe teaches children to misbehave.
“I’m very interested in the topic I chose,” Ruengert said. “I believe strongly in the freedom to read the books of our choice.”
Peter Wilkin, student life administrator, covers topics about life and self-awareness. His most popular topic is “Are you dead and just don’t know it?”
“I’ve given this lecture to hundreds of different groups,” Wilkin said. “What it teaches is you can not be alive and enjoy life if you are involved in all of the negativity.”
Wilkin uses a fun approach that will not hurt or offend anyone.
“What I attempt to do with every workshop I do is to always get you to understand first of all, life is not an accident. Things that have happened to you are not accidents. You are responsible for what’s going on in your life by the choices that you make,” Wilkin said.
The purpose of the Speaker’s Bureau is to give a public service to the community that is not only educational, but also informational and entertaining.
“Dr. Meadows, President of PSC, has wanted this Bureau for a long time,” Botsford said. “Speeches can draw people and publicity to PSC.”
Overall, it contributes to the education of the community. It provides information and can stimulate peoples thinking. It’s both inspiring and informational. The Speaker’s Bureau is also good for the college and it can get its name out there and give people an idea about the teachers and remind the community of how much of a resource PSC is for numbers of information.
“The function of a college like PSC is it’s based in a local area,” Botsford said. “And it’s not just degrees we offer.”
The Speaker’s Bureau is available to anyone in the community and provides a service to the public on a basic entry level. You can go to the Pensacola State College website to look at all of the information on the speakers and what services they provide. There have been several bookings for speakers already that are opened also for the public.
— “Too Lazy to Work, Too Nervous to Steal: Why I Teach” by Keith Pendergast, Bayview Senior Resource Center, 6 p.m. Dec. 1.
–“The Devil’s Horn: The Temptation of the Saxophone” by Thom Botsford, Bayview Senior Resource Center, 6 p.m. Jan. 26.
For more information about the Speakers’ Bureau or to book a speaker, see the Pensacola State College website.