NMI 4200
New Media & TED is hands-down my favorite class that I’ve taken throughout my college career. In this course, I learned how to examine big ideas and turn them into valuable and engaging presentations. I gained hands-on experience with presenters as I helped prepare them to take the TEDxUGA stage. I also learned about the process of curation to help turn these big ideas into an 18 minute presentation. The best part is, I was able to take this class twice. Both semesters presented different challenges and responsibilities within TEDxUGA. Take a look at my journey throughout my year of TED.
Resonate
When I first started New Media & TED, I didn’t know much of anything about TED Talks, let alone how to write one. What separates a good talk from a bad one? In order to answer these questions, our class read Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences, a book by Nancy Duarte. This book discusses the difference between a report and a story, and how a good presentation should be a mix of both. I learned useful tools such as the Hero’s Journey story structure and STAR Moments that I utilized during the curation process. Duarte’s book is one of the most impactful resources that I’ve used in college, as it taught me how to appropriately engage audiences.
Fall 2020 Semester
Throughout my first semester in TED, I learned how to curate a powerful and engaging presentation as well as get hands-on experience. Our primary goal was to put on a Student Idea Showcase (SIS) for UGA students and Alumni to share their big ideas. I was paired with another student in the class, and we were assigned to a presenter who would be giving a TED Talk at the end of the semester. I had the honor of working with James Schulte, a UGA Alumnus who works it sustainable architecture. My partner, James and I worked together to take his idea of implementing green rooftops to reduce pollution to the TEDxUGA stage. This process taught me skills such as internal communication, scheduling and patience. Click below to watch James Schulte’s talk.
Spring 2021 Semester
My second semester in New Media & TED was my favorite, as we were able to put on an actual TEDxUGA event. This was an amazing experience to see a whole years worth of hard work pay off. Throughout this semester, my role shifted from Student Curator to Family Director. It was such an honor and joy to be part of TEDxUGAs lead team. In the role of Family Director, I worked with a classmate, Lena Soenke, to create a fun, engaging and inclusive environment within the TEDxUGA community. We planned various bonding activities, highlighted students weekly, and implemented rewards programs to create a fun yet professional atmosphere. From this, I learned the importance of creating a sense of community within a workplace. If people enjoy being in the work environment, they will be more engaged with the project.
In addition to being a Family Director, I had the privilege of working with TEDxUGA 2021s Emcee, Alton Standifer. This was a huge honor, as Alton is the President of UGAs assistant. I met personally with Alton to create an authentic Emcee script. I was also responsible for making sure he knew when to go on and off stage during the event. This was an incredible opportunity to make a long-lasting contact.