The functional communication course described in this paper was created in response to requests by students and administrators at the University of Minnesota for a single course that would combine writing, speech communication, and audiovisual topics. The paper provides background information about the general college of the University, which is composed largely of students seeking a broad range of work-related communication skills, and about the functional communication course that was developed to meet the needs of students within the college. The paper describes the goals of the course and offers examples of specific assignments. It explains how much of the teaching in the course has been turned over to students, who are responsible for preparing and giving oral presentations on specific topics. It also describes small group assignments that simulate business meetings typical of organizations. The paper reports that student performance on pretest and posttest cognitive measures reveals that the course has been successful and that it has received positive student evaluations. The paper provides a list of 10 conclusions that relate to the possibilities and limitations of such functional communication courses. (FL)