{"id":16853,"date":"2022-01-20T10:00:54","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T10:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/?p=16853"},"modified":"2022-01-31T21:24:25","modified_gmt":"2022-01-31T21:24:25","slug":"communication-professor-dr-candy-noltensmeyer-reflects-on-last-lecture-presentation-and-shares-research-inspiration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/blog\/2022\/01\/20\/communication-professor-dr-candy-noltensmeyer-reflects-on-last-lecture-presentation-and-shares-research-inspiration\/","title":{"rendered":"Communication professor Dr. Candy Noltensmeyer reflects on Last Lecture presentation and shares research inspiration"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Candy Noltensmeyer presented her \u201cLast Lecture\u201d on Thursday, Nov. 18 after receiving the 2020 student-nominated Faculty of the Year Award.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer is an associate professor of communication at Western and teaches a variety of courses in human communication focusing on theory, research methods, health, sexuality, interpersonal and small group concepts.<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer\u2019s presentation was titled \u201cThis is Me: Authenticity, Inclusivity, and Connection in Relationships.\u201d Her lecture focused on the interconnectedness between relationships and communication.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

During her speech, Noltensmeyer discussed what it means to be vulnerable, and revealed her own vulnerabilities following an accident she had as a teenager.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The accident caused Noltensmeyer to suffer from second and third-degree burns on her body, leaving permanent scars that she is still recovering from almost 30 years later.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She shared this part of her life with the audience to illustrate how important vulnerability is in forming and maintaining relationships with others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer was inspired to speak on this topic because she wanted to connect with everyone in her audience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHow we show up is how we make and keep our relationships, so I really wanted to talk to people about how we can be better at doing that and enrich our own lives in the process,\u201d said Noltensmeyer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer focuses on researching the difficult parts of relationships in connection with other people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One topic of her research she talks about in the classroom is the idea of stigmatizing conditions. Her interest in this concept comes from her own experience with stigmatization as a burn survivor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhile not all of my students are burn survivors (thankfully), they also have their own stigmatizing experiences.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She finds it beneficial to share her experience in a way that shows other people how they can manage their own stigmatizing experiences by engaging in them rather than hiding away.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s okay to struggle. We\u2019re not going to be perfect. We are all struggling through that. Seeing our struggles is a beautiful thing because it shows that we are real authentic people. We are beautifully imperfect,\u201d said Noltensmeyer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Previous students in Noltensmeyer\u2019s classes found it fitting that she received the 2020 Faculty of the Year Award.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c[Dr. Noltensmeyer was] one of the most compassionate professors I\u2019ve had! [She] brought Comm Theory to life,\u201d said Waleed Kahlill, WCU 2021 graduate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cShe always has such fun engaging activities and will even do them with us!\u201d said Sarah Medlin, WCU student.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCandy is an exceptional educator. Her classes were incredibly perception-shifting,\u201d said Drue Stinnett, 2019 Western graduate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer is passionate about making sure each of her students know that they are valued here at Western.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI want people to feel heard and to feel like they belong here. I want to be a part of what makes people feel welcome,\u201d said Noltensmeyer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer hopes the vulnerabilities and insight she shared during her Last Lecture will leave a lasting impact on the students, faculty, and community members who listened.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s next on the horizon for Noltensmeyer after winning this prestigious award and delivering her Last Lecture?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Noltensmeyer is excited about the possibility of creating a podcast within the Communication Department, and writing a book is not out of the question for her future.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For more details on Dr. Noltensmeyer\u2019s Last Lecture, read coverage of the event from the <\/span>Western Carolina Journalist<\/span><\/a> or watch a live <\/span>recording<\/span><\/a> of the presentation.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Candy Noltensmeyer presented her \u201cLast Lecture\u201d on Thursday, Nov. 18 after receiving the 2020 student-nominated Faculty of the Year Award.\u00a0 Noltensmeyer is an associate professor of communication at Western […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":808,"featured_media":9648,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[329,103,88,330],"tags":[336,183,138],"class_list":["post-16853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-department-news","category-faculty-focus","category-news","category-recent-updates","tag-event","tag-faculty","tag-research"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/808"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16853"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16855,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16853\/revisions\/16855"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9648"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/affiliate.wcu.edu\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}