For Lecturer Lindsey Hand, the goal is to get students to understand just how important communication is.
In the wide discipline of communication, Hand’s passion is where health communication and media studies meet. The way her students grow their own passions for communication is her priority.
“I like to look at anything that is taboo, stigmatized or hard to talk about,” Hand said. “The uncomfortable topics that still need to be addressed.”
Hand devotes a significant portion of class time to discussion of current events as they pertain to communication. The objective in having discussions — aside from getting to know students — is to show just how broad the field of communication is.
“Discussion is important to break up the monotony of lecturing,” Hand said. “It’s also a good way for students to learn about our field and discuss it. I try to be an advocate for my students and help them see that their voices matter.”
Hand also enjoys seeing the work her students have done. She frequently encourages students to publish their work and even provides a space on D2L for her students to upload their projects.
“A lot of the time, students can connect but also see just how cool the field and how talented a lot of students in our school are,” Hand said. “I think it’s important to highlight the amazing things that people are doing.”
While discussions are improved by having a variety of different perspectives, the larger class sizes can make it harder to develop connections with students. The largest deterrent to effective teaching, according to Hand, is a lack of care from students.
“My calling is trying to make a difference in how people learn about medical issues, but also encouraging people to talk about them,” Hand said.
Hand studied at KSU before graduating and joining AmeriCorps to work with homeless veterans suffering from substance abuse problems. She later went to graduate school for journalism and media studies.
After spending some years in Nevada, Hand returned to KSU in 2015 as a lecturer of communication and media.
She encourages communication majors, along with those interested in the field, to stay active on social media as it is a major avenue for information. She commonly posts about her research and other interesting topics under the Twitter handle @LindseyJoHand.
