5 Ways Being Ready to Speak Will Help Your Student This School Year
[Updated 2026] For almost 30 years, The Institute for Cultural Communicators has been helping the next generation get ready to speak. With all the needs in the world, why is this the focus of this organization I lead? Being ready to speak in any situation is a foundational skill for success in education and in life. It prepares students for every stage, gives them tools for whatever comes their way. Here are five ways communication skills help your student at school and beyond. Your student is bully resilient. Johns Hopkins Medicine warns today’s parents and educators: “Bullying is a serious issue that affects up to 75% of kids at…
Loving Your Neighbor – Why EQ is Essential for Cultural Intelligence
With adaptations from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands… (Revelation 7:9, ESV) We live in an interconnected world where crossing geographical, cultural, and ideological boundaries is no longer an optional experience for our students – it is a routine reality. Whether they are navigating a diverse university campus, entering a global workplace, or simply interacting with…
A Discerning Mind – Why EQ is Essential for Critical Thinking
With adaptations from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation “But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” (Hebrews 5:14, ESV) We live in an information landscape that doesn’t just want our attention – it wants our outrage. Every day, our students are bombarded with headlines, social media algorithms, and peer commentary designed to bypass logic and trigger an immediate emotional reaction. (In fact, students in the Institute have been wrestling with this pivotal societal problem in our Round Table exercise this year.)…
Free to Fail – Why EQ is Essential for Kingdom Creativity
With adaptations from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation “I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground.” (Matthew 25:25, ESV) When we think of creativity, we often picture someone with a paintbrush, a musical instrument, or a knack for creative writing. We treat it like an optional hobby – a talent some people are born with and others simply lack. But the research shows that we’re all born creative – and cultivating that creativity is a vital skill. Creativity can be creating art, but it’s also the ability to look at a…
Many Parts, One Body – Why EQ is Essential for True Collaboration
With adaptations from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation “There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other….Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” (1 Corinthians 12: 25, 27) Working together is easy when things go your way. Collaboration is really about what happens when they don’t. Whether it’s a group project at school, a family chores list, or a youth ministry team, working with others is genuinely hard. Not hard in a logistical way – hard…
A Time to Listen – Why EQ is Essential for Christian Communication
Adapted from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19, NIV) We live in a culture obsessed with the art of the presentation. We train our students to craft the perfect argument, polish their delivery, and project confidence. But if we are not careful, we can mistake performance for communication. Communication isn’t primarily about speaking well. It’s about listening – really listening – in a way that most people, at any age, have never…
The Heart of the Matter – Why EQ is a Kingdom Skill
I had just finished speaking to a group of parent educators when a mom approached me, her brow furrowed. “I’m not as worried about my son’s public speaking skills,” she said. “I just want him to have good character. I want him to be a person who actually cares about others.” I smiled, because I hear this often. We tend to put “skills” (like speaking, leadership, or academics) in one bucket and “character” (like empathy, kindness, and self-control) in another. But in my years of coaching students to be ready to speak, I’ve discovered a vital truth: You only cultivate world-changing skills with Emotional Intelligence. What is EQ,…
Literacy in Motion: Why Speaking Is the Secret to Stronger Readers and Writers
At the start of eighth grade, thirteen-year-old Leo was drowning in a sea of disconnected ideas. His essays were often returned with notes about “fragmented organization.” At home, he would stare at blank documents for hours. His mother, Sarah, watched him struggle to untangle his thoughts and turn them into essays, unsure of how to help. The turning point came from a source Sarah didn’t expect: a communications club he started attending. To prepare for a mini-debate, Leo had to organize a two-minute speech with a clear beginning, middle, and end. He had to swap words like “stuff” for precise nouns and anticipate what his audience needed to hear.…
