Meeting & Event Schedules

Dates are subject to change due to COVID-19. Email us at jltm_officers@googlegroups.com to recieve the latest information. Stay safe! (All meetings will be via Zoom until further notice)

Fall 2020:

8/7- Demo Meeting

JLTM Demo Meeting

We will be introducing the strucuture of club meetings and new ideas we have implemented. New and returning members are more than welcome to participate.

The meeting is 8/7//20 at 7 pm.

Summer 2020:

6/26- Sophia Li, Kevin Meng, and Ethan Zhao

College Application Panel

For this event, we've invited three graduated seniors to talk about the process of choosing and applying to schoools: Sophia Li (UT), Kevin Meng (MIT), and Ethan Zhao (UPenn). Participants will be able to get an insight on the process these students went through to get into some of the most competitive schools in the nation. This event is especially beneficial to those who are vying for a position at a top college as our panel will be giving out valuable college application advice and answering questions.

We hope you'll join us Friday, June 26th on Zoom from 7pm-8:30pm! See you there!

6/29-7/16 - JLTM Camp

Summer Camp

This year will be our first ever student-run speech camp. It will be held on Zoom and will provide participants with the opportunity to speak in front of an audience as well as receiving guidance and feedback from high school speech and debate competitors and Toastmaster's officers. See Summer Camp page located under "More" for details and the sign up link.

7/27- Minkai Wu

Guest Speaker

We will be inviting a guest speaker from an adult Toastmasters club to hold a workshop. This will be a great opportunity to further improve our speaking skills and other efforts at JLTM. Mr. Minkai Wu will be presenting a seminar over evaluation.

Fall 2020:

To sign up, please send an email to jltm.dfw@gmail.com including the student's name, grade, email, and parent email.

Referral Policy

This year our previous members will have the opportunity to be able to refer new members to receive a $5 discount on membership for each new member referred.

Meetings will be every Friday from 7:30 - 8:30 at the Carpenter Recreation Center.

Previous Years

Summer 2019:

6/21 - Kenny Huang and Joye Chen

College Application Panel

Kenny Huang and Joye Chen will both be attending Princeton University in the fall semester, and they are here to share their high school experiences, future tips, and knowledge with us! It is never too late to start preparing for such a big step for a new chapter in your life that will be here before you know it! This meeting will be very unique and different from our usual meetings throughout the school year and I really recommend for our members to attend to not only listen in on experience from our guest speakers, but also to learn something new!

7/19 - Kevin Meng

Speech Seminar

Speaking skills are extremely important life skills that we must acquire through persistent practice! Public speaking takes a lot of training and practice, and it is prevalent in all aspects of life such as giving presentations both at school and at work. Former JLTM President, Kevin Meng, will be here to teach us his tips on how to become a more effective speaker.

8/2 - Distinguished Session - Grace Tyler, Distinguished Toastmaster

Speech Seminar

Often in life, we are expected to deliver a well crafted speech to an attentive audience. Small details surely make a great difference and there are always ways to improve our public speaking skills. Come join us for an educational night at Carpenter Recreation Center on 8/2 from 7:00-8:30 PM! This workshop, led by veteran Toastmaster Grace Tyler, will help you learn how to become a more effective communicator.

About Grace Tyler

Grace Tyler is a Distinguished Toastmaster and is actively involved in helping young speakers find their confidence and develop their voice to master public speaking.

Summer 2018:

6/14 - Joint Meeting with HPYT

Our second summer meeting will be a joint meeting with our sister club, the HPYT Toastmasters Gavel club. It's not at our regular location. The meeting will be from 7-8:30 PM in Room H203, 3821 University Blvd, Dallas, TX 75205 on Saturday, July 14.

College Application Panel

It'll be a panel discussion focusing on college applications and high school life. Two of our JLTM Toastmasters alumnus are invited on the panel. Please come with questions to ask them! Hope to see you there!

6/29 - Distinguished Session - Mark Wolfe, Distinguished Toastmaster

Effective Evaluation

We are asked to give our feedback on many things, such as a friend’s essay or a project presentation. Learning how to provide valuable suggestions in an encouraging way is useful not only in your daily life but is also an important part of a Toastmasters meeting. Like most things in life, learning how to give effective evaluations is a skill that takes training and practice. Come join us for an educational night at Carpenter Recreation Center on 6/29 from 7:00-8:30 PM! This workshop, led by veteran Toastmaster Mark Wolfe, will help you learn how to give effective and motivating evaluations.

About Mark Wolfe

Mark Wolfe is a Distinguished Toastmaster that was in Toastmasters for over 10 years. He considers evaluations the most important aspect of a Toastmasters meeting and has given multiple presentations on the topic.

Spring 2018:

1/12 to 6/1 - JLTM Weekly Meetings Every Friday, 7:00pm - 8:30pm

Except for March 9 and 16 for Spring Break.

Carpenter Park Recreation Center, 6701 Coit Rd, Plano, TX 75024

Fall 2017:

9/15 to 12/15 - JLTM Weekly Meetings Every Friday, 7:00pm - 8:30pm

Except for Thanksgiving Break on 11/17 and 11/24

Carpenter Park Recreation Center, 6701 Coit Rd, Plano, TX 75024

9/8 - JLTM Orientation

How Toastmaster Meetings Work

Toastmasters is a club that allows young students learn how to become better public speakers. We offer a positive environment for those who want to be able to improve their public speaking and leadership skills. Come attend our JLTM orientation for a better idea of how meetings run. We'll be demonstrating how jobs work and what we expect from each role with a demo speech, Table Topics, and evaluation. This is the best way to understand how Toastmasters works and to meet your fellow members! Be sure to register.

Summer 2017:

Our club is hosting a series of events full of excitement, learning, and fun this summer! We will invite several distinguished guest speakers to present to JLTM. They will share their knowledge and experiences as speakers, leaders, and professionals in our community. It’ll be an excellent opportunity to learn about public speaking, leadership, and professional communication, as well as tips and tricks for college interviews and applications.

Below are the dates for each meeting. All summer meetings are held from 7:30pm to 9:00pm at the Carpenter Recreation Center at 6701 Coit Rd, Plano, TX 75024.

8/11 - Brandon Chow (Rice), Alice Zhao (Yale), Daran Zhao (Harvard), Cecilia Zhou (UT-PACT) - College Admissions & Interviews (Non-members: Register here)

How to Prepare for College Applications and Interviews

Getting into your dream college can be tough; GPA, resumes, essays, and interviews make the process complex and challenging.

As you set out on your college admissions journey, be sure to identify those schools that line up with your goals most ideally. Include a good mix of safeties, matches, challenges, and reaches. Don’t assume that these schools are out of your reach. With plenty of research and strategic planning, they can be within your grasp.

Join us on Friday, August 11 to hear from a group of talented young students admitted to the nation's top college programs: Brandon Chow (Rice), Alice Zhao (Yale), Daran Zhao (Harvard), Cecilia Zhou (UT-PACT). They will shed light on lessons they learned while applying and give participants valuable advice.

7/14 - Distinguished Session - David Arbuckle, VP at Texas Central (Non-members: Register here)

The Texas Bullet Train - How the United States Enters the World of High Speed Trains

Texas Central brings a new industry and new transportation choice for Texans in North Texas and Houston. Establishing the first, true high-speed train in the Americas, Texas Central presents a transformative transportation option with competitively priced public transit services, without taxpayer funding. Headquartered at Southside on Lamar in South Dallas, Texas Central employees and contractors pour millions of investors’ dollars, and endless hours of diligent work, every day, into providing Texans with the safest, most reliable mass transit mode of transportation in the world. In less than 90 minutes to travel from North Texas to Houston, travelers will move across the 240 miles of northbound and southbound tracks, in comfort to work, play and visit family and friends. The Texas Way on the Texas Bullet Train!

About David Arbuckle

David Arbuckle, serves as Vice President-External Affairs for Texas Central. After more than 33 years’ experience with AT&T, David incorporated a small business to share big business expertise with leaders of business, government and community. After two plus years of working with clients, David accepted the challenge to help establish the first, true, high-speed train in the Western Hemisphere as a member of the Texas Central team. David has led Chambers of Commerce, Education efforts, Work Force Boards, social betterment organizations and charitable entities. These efforts spanned a very wide spectrum of activities, but all centered on coordinating colleagues and communities to realize mutually beneficial outcomes for multiple and diverse constituencies. David is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, and lives in Frisco, TX with his wife, Shanyn and son, Spencer. And, after four sons, is very proud of his three granddaughters!

7/7 - Distinguished Session - Jenny Hoch, Distinguished Toastmaster (Non-members: Register here)

Questions, Answers and...Silence

A fun and interactive session, “Questions, Answers and….Silence” will focus on the importance of asking questions to add emphasis to your presentations. Participants will be able to give 2 reasons why it’s important to use questions, explain the types of questions and how to use them, and identify at least two effective techniques to overcome silence after a question.

About Jenny Hoch

Mrs. Hoch has been a member of Toastmasters for 20 years and is a Distinguished Toastmaster. She recently retired from 7-Eleven, Inc., after working for 41 years as a Senior Accounting Manager. She chartered the iTalk Gavel Club in November 2008 and continues to be the sponsor of the club. In her free time, Jenny volunteers for Girls Scouts of Northeast Texas, travels, and spends time with her 3 grandsons.

6/23 - Kevin Lin, Former JLTM President (Everyone is Welcome)

Keys to Success

Have you ever wondered how successful people are so good at what they do? Ever wanted to hear the insight that great leaders of our society have to say? Former JLTM President Kevin Lin brings us an exciting and interactive session that focuses on the inspiring stories of our world's great men and women. Participants will be involved in a socratic-seminar that allows all students to share their ideas and discuss with each other.

A Special Perk:

Each September, JLTM Toastmasters opens its doors up for aspiring members to apply for membership, but space is limited and some may not get in. Therefore, we would like to offer those who attend 2 or more summer meetings a secured spot on the roster.

Group Discussion at the Distinguished Session with Mrs. Jenny Hoch on 7/7/17

-- -- --

Summer 2015:

During the summer, Just Listen To Me offers summer meetings which occur every other week. These meetings should provide new members more information about the club by introducing JLTM alumni and other guest speakers from the Dallas area to come present a speech and answer FAQ from parents and students. As usual, the meetings run from 7:30 to 9:00 P.M. at the Carpenter Recreation Center, 6701 Coit Rd, Plano, TX 75024. Here is the list of speakers and the meeting dates:

6/19 Qianqian Yang

7/3 Conan Juan

7/17 Heather Xiao

7/31 Esther Tang

8/14 Sabrina Peng

2015-2016 School Year:

The agenda posted at the bottom of this page provides an accurate representation of weekly meetings. Here is the list of meeting dates scheduled for the 2015-2016 school year:

September: 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th

October: 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd

November: 6th, 13th

December: 4th, 11th, 18th (holiday party)

January: 15th, 22nd, 29th

February: 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th (speech workshop training sessions between February or March)

March: 18th, 25th

April: 15th (tentative speech contest date), 22nd, 29th

May: 6th, 13th, 20th (officer elections)

Note: The April/May meeting schedule may change due to AP testing.

June: 3rd (end-of-year party)