Workshop aims to teach student communication

In the military, a forward is defined as forces that are organized and ready to rapidly deploy.

This type of organization and readiness was exactly what the IU/IU-Purdue University Indianapolis division of the Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate program had in mind when they created their “Not a Retreat But a Forward” workshops four years ago, said Dr. Yolanda Trevino, assistant dean of the University Graduate School and the AGEP Project Director at IU.

“It’s definitely a play on words,” she said.

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, AGEP will hold this year’s workshop – which focuses on effective communication – in the Oak Room at the Indiana Memorial Union.
According to its Web site, AGEP is a national science foundation that focuses on increasing the number of underrepresented minorities and U.S. citizens who obtain graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and math. 

The foundation encourages students to enter the professoriate once they obtain their degrees, Trevino said.

Saturday’s workshop will have four sessions: “What is effective communication” by Dr. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas from the Department of Communication and Culture; “The process of persuasion” and “Negotiation: Technique, training and tips” by Dr. Carolyn Wiethoff from the Kelly School of Business; and “Putting it into practice” by Dr. Nancy Goldfarb from the Department of Philanthropic Studies at IUPUI.

Goldfarb, whose session will be the final one of the day, said she will help students apply what they’ve learned from the other speakers by giving them different scenarios where they might need to communicate, such as in a lab, and have them role play, trying out their new skills and sharing their experiences.

“It’s relevant to anybody who wants to develop their communication skills,” Goldfarb said. “And really, that should be everyone.”

The concepts of persuasion and negotiation are vital for science students as they negotiate their post-doctoral appointment or their first hiring appointment, Trevino said.
“It’s like chess: you’re on one side and they’re on the other. It’s not a game, but a strategy to get what you want,” she said.

Goldfarb said she was asked to speak at the workshop because she impressed Nelson Soto, the director of AGEP at IUPUI, with her ability to communicate.

“You need to know how to navigate delicate political situations,” Goldfarb said. “Like if you want to change advisors – when do you do that and how do you do it without stepping on anyone’s toes? I have experiences as a grad student that I can share with them.”

One of the goals of AGEP, and, specifically, “Not a Retreat But a Forward,” is to mentor students and introduce them to the professional skill sets and resources that they will need to be good scientists, Trevino said.

“(It’s) a really undervalued program,” Goldfarb said. “A lot of people come to the University and they don’t know what life is like as a graduate student. AGEP offers great support.”

Although the workshop has several different goals, there is no way to teach effective communication in one day.

“It’s like ‘here’s an introduction,’” Trevino said. “So they’ll have the tools and resources available to them. They’ll have their forces organized.”