GCC Public Speaking Instructor Takes Second Place in Toastmaster Contest

Gil Stern Talks the Talk

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BATAVIA, NY (05/03/2018) Albion, NY - Genesee Community College's Albion Campus Center is shining a spotlight on one of its own by recognizing the recent accomplishment of Adjunct Instructor Gil Stern. Gil, in his 18th year teaching Public Speaking for GCC, has literally put his teaching subject area expertise into practice by placing second in a district-wide Toastmasters speech contest that had competitors from Syracuse to Buffalo.

The Toastmaster District Tall Tales Contest took place Friday, April 20, 2018 in Binghamton. Gil's award winning speech was called "The Shoehorn" and it was about how the "magical powers" of his shoehorn helped make him "brilliant, strong, rich and handsome."

Gil has been a member of Toastmasters for over 23 years, but his passion for speaking goes even further back to his BA and MA in Communications from SUNY Colleges at Buffalo and Brockport respectively. Gil spent seven years in radio in Florida and Westchester, New York including hosting call-in talk shows, interviewing newsmakers and anchoring newscasts.

Gil's first teaching gig was at Iona College in New Rochelle in 1993 teaching Writing for the Media and, after falling in love with the teaching profession, he then taught at The SUNY College at Brockport. He currently teaches online courses for Devry University (Illinois) and Southern New Hampshire University on topics ranging from Mass Communications and Public Speaking to Media Ethics and the Law and Preparing for the Future.

In addition to teaching at GCC's Albion and Medina Campus Centers, Gil helped develop the College's first online Public Speaking course. He has also taught the Accelerated College Enrollment (ACE) "College Today" classes for young students advancing their college careers by taking Public Speaking while still in high school.

In his "spare time," Gil teaches Jewish Education at Temple B'rtih Kodesh in Brighton, NY. This includes helping students read Hebrew, running the computer lab and assisting special needs children.

Asked to explain why he loves teaching at GCC, Gil is quick to say, "I enjoy teaching as I find that my students inspire me and I learn a lot from them. I consider myself fortunate that after a number of them have graduated they have kept in touch with me." Spoken like a true 2009 National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Master Teacher awardee.

The Albion and Medina Campus Centers raises a toast to this accomplished Toastmaster!

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Editor's Note: For a photograph of Gil Stern, go to:

http://marketing.genesee.edu/images/Gil_Stern_PublicSpeakingInstructor.jpg