At JMU we have a Magic Word for each Departmental meeting. The director chooses a word in advance of the meeting, and the person who happens to say the word during their report wins a prize. A typical prize is ticket for lunch at a campus dining facility, or a pizza gift certificate.
The Magic Words chosen typically encourage team members to consider use of student development theory, student learning ideas, or leadership and teamwork concepts.
It gets to be very funny when individuals work hard to incorporate lots of “jargon” into their reports!
Submitted by Maggie Evans, Director of Residence Life, James Madison University