Southern Utah University welcomed five guest speakers to the Hunter Alumni Center Great Hall for the 2024 TEDxSUU event “Transcendence.” TEDxSUU is an annual, independently hosted TED event organized by a TEDx committee and the SUU Speech and Presentation Center. The event was held on Tuesday, Feb. 20 and featured lectures from students, faculty, and an alumnus.
The first speaker of the night was Holly Biesinger, a student studying art education and history. Biesinger shared the story of one of her ancestors who journeyed to Utah and explained how knowing her family history has helped her through her own challenges.
“In the stories passed down through generations, I found solace and connection,” explained Biesinger.
Next was Brenna Horton, who is currently pursuing a degree in elementary education. Horton’s speech was about her own struggles with social anxiety and how self-efficacy theory has helped her to redefine her limitations. According to Horton, self-efficacy theory is defined as “the degree to which you believe you can accomplish a task.”
“We can believe in ourselves, but we have to reach out to others around us,” said Horton, adding, “We can do hard things.”
Bret Nelson gave the third speech, which was related to how modern media may be limiting our ability to step into new perspectives. Nelson is the managing director of Aggregate Coaching. He also obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in interpersonal communication from SUU. Nelson compared the current form of media and news consumption to myopia, or “near-sightedness.”
“In this increasingly time-compressed world, we seem to be more willing participants in ‘compressed news,’” said Nelson. “We may be missing opportunities to connect.”
After Nelson was English professor Laura Walker, who recently returned from a sabbatical she used to finish writing a novel. Walker shared valuable lessons that she learned from her own experience with divorce and stressed the importance of vulnerability, grace and awe.
“The moments we feel the most ‘flayed open’ and tender are the moments with the greatest opportunity for connection,” said Walker. “We can find ways to move out of the wreckage that heartbreak leaves behind.”
The final speaker of the night was David Hatch, a professor and the director of the Master of Interdisciplinary Studies program. Hatch spoke about the benefits of learning to entertain new ideas and encouraged students to take advantage of classes that are not directly related to their career path.
“In our rush to move on to our career and learn the discipline we’re excited about, we miss the opportunity to learn in our general education experience,” said Hatch. “Our attitude towards general education needs to change.”
After the speeches, the speakers returned to the stage for an additional round of applause. Each presenter was also awarded a trophy as a token of their hard work. For more information about TEDxSUU or to learn about the services offered by the Speech and Presentation Center, visit their respective websites.
Author: Nick Stein
Photos: Courtesy of SUU
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