Cole Smithers, a senior psychology student at UNLV, stepped onto the debate stage with plans to rebuke his classmate’s well-trained arguments in favor of ​​single-payer national healthcare. Treading carefully, Smithers knew he had to refute that reasoning.

As he strategized and arranged the correct words, he wasn’t standing before a group of onlookers; he hadn’t even stepped foot in a classroom. Rather, he was in one of two enclosed Whisper Rooms, new resources from the university’s COM Lab that provide students with a small, soundproof space in which to practice their speeches without interruption.

Each Whisper Room’s tall black box allows people to practice speeches, debates or other public speaking-related assignments. They reside in Greenspun Hall and were created in conjunction with the university’s communication studies department and Academic Success Center.

The rooms feature a computer for student use, a ring light and squares of blue foam to ensure that sound stays trapped inside.

Smithers discovered the Whisper Rooms through his professor for the debate course, a general education requirement class. He says he usually spends all day on campus, and with few other locations for practicing speeches without interruption, the Whisper Rooms have become a key resource for him.

“I couldn’t think of anywhere else that I could go … where I knew I wasn’t going to bother anybody by rehearsing my speech,” he says. “I’m on the debate team as well, so I’m sure I’ll be using it for prep for some of those debates.”

When the COM Lab first opened last fall, it touted they Whisper Rooms for any students interested in using them. This spring, the lab remains fully open as it formulates plans for the coming semester. That’s when the communications department plans to implement a requirement for students enrolled in Communications 101 to use the COM Lab at least once throughout the course, explains Nick Tatum, assistant professor in residence, ​​basic course director at the university and director of the COM Lab.

COM101 is a public speaking course required for many UNLV students, arranged into four major speeches on topics of the students’ choices. “We’re hoping that will drive later visits, but also, it’ll really increase the amount of appointments we’re having regularly,” Tatum says.

Second-year graduate student Samantha Schaffer, who serves as a tutor at the COM Lab, says many of the students who seek assistance there are also looking for guidance in writing their speeches. After conferencing with her, students such as Smithers will then use the Whisper Rooms to practice their speeches out loud.

“Everyone has the ability to be a good public speaker; they just have to believe that they can,” Schaffer says. “I’ve had students come to me afterwards and say they were just more successful on their speech because they came here. That’s my favorite part.”

When COM101 begins requiring students to use the rooms next semester, students will begin flooding there. This semester, 52 sections of 25 students each are enrolled in the class, according to Schaffer.

“I love working with the students who come in, because they’re scared of public speaking,” she says. “Public speaking can be really daunting, and seeing them gain confidence in themselves and believe in themselves is so rewarding.”

Tatum agrees, adding that academic resources like the COM Lab are integral for students to succeed in their courses and after they graduate from the university.

“It’s a really safe place where students can get individualized feedback on a skill they’re going to use, obviously, in the class one-on-one, but then throughout their lives,” he says. “It’s such an important skill, and we are glad to be able to offer services to help students hone their public speaking abilities.”