Wayne State’s Communication Arts Department will be hosting its annual Communication Day event Thursday from noon to 4 p.m.

“It’s important for everyone to learn more about networking online and in person for their future careers,” said Taryn Winter, a WSC junior. “The information that will be presented will put them ahead of the mark and set them apart while preparing them for the real world.”

The day will consist of a business panel and a student panel as well as two guest speakers, with mocktails to follow.

The business panel will feature four community professionals—Sandy Brown, chair of the Green Team; Amanda Polacek, marketing director for Columbus Chamber of Commerce; Lukas Rix and Mark Kanitz, owners of Rustic Treasures; and Jay Collier, director of College Relations for WSC.

The panel speakers will discuss how communication skills have helped them in the business world. The panelists work in varying aspects of the labor force, but were chosen because they all use their skills in communication to make an impact with their work.

The student panel will feature students from WSC who will talk about how communication has affected the way they connect.

The first guest speaker will be Joe Whitt, a WSC alum who has traveled the world and is an expert in intercultural communication. The other speaker is Em Griffin, a highly respected communication scholar. Griffin is also president of Communication First.

“The event is not just for the benefit of those studying communication but for everybody,” Winter said.

Alongside Communication Day, Ron Holt and William Huggett, WSC alums, will be holding a book signing for Holt’s book, “PRIDE: You Can’t Heal If You’re Hiding from Yourself,” and Huggett’s accompanying coloring book “PRIDE Coloring Book: Inspiring Designs with Affirming Messages of Love and Acceptance.” They will be outside the bookstore in the Student Center from 2 to 5 p.m. Both books are $5 apiece.