News

Portland State University undergraduate students in the Speech Communication Research Inquiry class exemplified Portland State’s vision of serving the community this fall. Using the Portland Art Museum as their client, students worked in groups to conduct surveys, interviews and hands on experiments to understand such things as why people attend the museum, how easy/difficult it is to get around in a wheelchair, how college students perceive the museum and why the museum lacks support from local businesses.

As their final project, the students presented their findings and suggestions, and offered advice such as how to market to college students by offering a “college night,” a social event with music; how to improve the museum’s image and generate higher attendance; and marketing strategies on where people turn to for information rather than where the information actually exists.

“This is a required class in communication, and many students are scared of statistics and quantitative methods. In this class things like “statistics” begin to make sense because students see how research can be applied to an actual situation,” said Professor Cynthia Coleman. “The class meshes two goals: students get to work with a real-life client and we help fulfill Portland State’s mission of serving the community.”

For more information, visit www.pam.org.