Showing posts with label students. Show all posts
Showing posts with label students. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

NASPA 2014 - A Virtual Experience

I had grand plans this year. I wanted it to be the first time I attended a national conference. Seeing as NASPA was in Baltimore, MD I thought I would have a better chance going there, but as my luck would have it that didn't work out. I then found out about the groundbreaking NASPA Virtual Conference that they were going to roll out this year. My love of technology, student affairs, professional development, and being an introvert - this seemed like it would be perfect!

I had a lot of questions leading up to the conference, but thankful to the NASPA staff and NASPA TKC volunteers (got it right this time!) for answering them all for me. One of the major items I needed to know was if I could view session after they aired. I had to participate in a few GA phone interviews on both Monday and Tuesday which would make me miss a few sessions. I was happy to find out that we would be able to review sessions.

So how exactly did it go? Well here's a short timeline, as it was only a three day experience anyway.

Day One: NASPA 2014

The Opening Session started with a great ceremony on Sunday, March 16, 2014 at 5:00pm. It was a very entertaining opening with multiple performances. After performances the featured speaker Wes Moore spoke. I enjoyed his story and what he brought to the table. One of the statements, that most people ended up tweeting, was about how just getting a degree doesn't matter unless you have experiences to back it up and know why you got it. Overall I found very energized from seeing the Opening Session and was ready for Day 2.

What I learned/enjoyed from Day 1:

  • I didn't have to worry about the Baltimore snow storm as I was cozy sitting on my couch.
  • Two other professionals I had connected with through Twitter were also participating in the virtual conference (Lynn Ellison and Jennifer Keegin)
  • NASPA TKC volunteers are very knowledgeable and great to work with. Thanks to all of them!
  • This was the largest NASPA conference with about 6000 on site attendees and 120 participating in the virtual experience.

Some good tweets that were shared (yep, I included one of my own):

I absolutely love this. #aaws14 pic.twitter.com/cHI2DHq2Fs 
— Amma Marfo (@ammamarfo) March 16, 2014 

You can also check out the NASPA blog post for Baltimore Journal Day One.


NASPA 2014 - Day One: Opening Session

Day Two: NASPA 2014 (on location)

Today I had to participate in some GA phone interviews from the Campus Living Office. I was up at 7:00 a.m. so I could get ready, drive to our North campus, and set up shop to be able to tune into the conference when it started. I arrived on North Campus before the office was open and ended up sitting in the Housing Operations Office across the hall. The day started of with a Featured Speaker Session. Debra Humphreys spoke about student success and learning. I also attended these sessions for day two (missing one):
  1. Beyond the ADA: Inclusive Policy and Practice for Students with Disabilities in Higher Education
  2. Featured Speaker - Freeman Hrabowski, President, University of Maryland - Baltimore County
  3. Higher Education Act reauthorization: What it means to public universities and student affairs
  4. Ready to Face the Media: Strategies to Employ During Crisis
  5. 5 More Things: A Dialogue on Supporting Postsecondary Success for Men of Color

What I learned/enjoyed from Day 2:

  • SA folk REALLY like their coffee. Long lines at the Starbucks in Baltimore. 
    • I had no issues with my Keurig at home.
  • Following the back channel on Twitter allowed for me to check out sessions not available in the virtual format.
  • There are some REALLY great and talented professionals in our field. I'm more and more amazed by what others have done and are doing.
  • The Live Chat in sessions for virtual attendees added to the session. Lots of good ideas and information was shared there too.
  • Live-in professional staff members at private OR public institutions are covered by the ADA for service animals. How does your institution measure up?
  • HUD 504 doesn't differentiate between live-in staff & students when it comes to comfort animals.
  • I met a new professional during the Q&A panel discussion. Hello AJ Duxbury!
  • One of my mentors (Shigeo Iwamiya) still amazes me.
  • On site attendees really love Jimmy Johns = extra long lines during lunch.
    • Not an issue in my kitchen.
  • NASPA's "5 Things" report can be found here.
  • I felt very comfortable during my virtual conference experience - my 'I' was fully charged and raring to go!
  • There were little to no issues with being a virtual attendee. Some great suggestions on improvements were shared and I'm actually excited to see what happens for next year.

Some good tweets (yes a lot are mine):

You can also check out the NASPA blog post for Baltimore Journal Day Two.

Added a jacket too!
Bringing a little St. Patrick's Day style to NASPA virtual Experience

NASPA 2014 - Day Two: On location [UB North Campus Housing Operations/Campus Living Offices]

Day Two: NASPA 2014 Pj's to Business attire

I woke up late thinking I had missed the first session and realized that it didn't actually start until 8:45. I also missed the two afternoon sessions because I had to travel again for a GA phone interview. However, I was not disappointed in today's sessions. I thought I had a favorite session today, but as I sit here typing this I realized that it's harder to choose one then I thought. I would say that I really enjoyed the session on Title IX because it's an area I want to develop in more. It was nice hearing about Veteran's Affairs because I had quite a bit of experience with veterans at my previous institution. I enjoyed the panel discussion on graduate programs. Being one who didn't attend a traditional program it was nice to hear them discuss distant learning and online programs. "Climbing the Ladder to CHO/SSAO" was a good session to bring things into perspective. As I am in the process on mapping out my next career move, this session gave me a lot to think about. The official session titles of the day are as follows (again I am missing two):
  • So You Want to Be the Boss--Climbing the Ladder to CHO/SSAO
  • The Future of Title IX: How your campus should prepare for the inclusion of gender identity and expression
  • Building supportive student veteran communities on college and university campuses: Innovative and effective strategies that work
  • Featured Panel - The Future of Student Affairs Graduate Preparation Program with Larry Roper and Patricia Whitely as moderators

What I learned/enjoyed from Day 3:

  • "Having a veterans office isn't enough. Knowledge should be in offices across campus: Admissions, Res Life, etc" 
  • When a student identifies as a veteran, they shouldn't be pushed right to the veteran affairs office. LISTEN to their question 1st.
  • There isn't a ladder, it's a lattice - you can move up or across.
  • As you move up, it's important to look in. Why do you want to move up? Why do you stay in the field?" Shana Meyer
  • In the next decade 2 million veterans will be entering colleges and universities."
  • "If you don't have a mentor now is the time to DEVELOP one.Best way to develop one is w/ someone you know & trust." Shana Meyer
  • "Fears,Successes, Questions" CHO-SSAO #NASPA14 pic.twitter.com/cUuLYjs2JY
  • For trans* residents: Private spaces cannot be the ONLY option & it should not cost more/burden them
  • If a trans* male student wants to join a Fraternity, he needs to be allowed because he identifies as male. This is the same for a trans* female who wants to join a sorority.
  • "What does success look like? Sometimes it's just getting people in the room."

Some good tweets that were shared:


You can also check out the NASPA blog post for Baltimore Journal Day Three.


NASPA 2014 - Day Three: PJs on the couch

And then to North Campus for a GA Phone Interview
Business attire acquired.


Overall thoughts on this experience

I do believe that this virtual conference option was FANTASTIC! It allowed a lot of professionals to attend the conference and participate through a more cost friendly option. Today while in sessions and participating in the Live Chats I saw a lot of people who were watching with colleagues or full offices. This really does open up the possibility for so many more professionals to get the information than ever before. I also enjoyed being able to attend a session and follow other sessions on the back channel through Twitter. However, I did feel that I was not able to tweet as much as I normally do while at conferences or presentations. Though I am not too upset about this as I was able to screen shot slides during sessions and share them. I believe that was more beneficial. Would I want to change things? Yes. NASPA and the Technology Knowledge Community did a fantastic job pulling this all together, I do believe some things can be improved for next year and for years to come. Some of the issues that need to be addressed are as follows:
  • Seeing people logged in is great, but not being able to see if they are active in the Networking Lounge (chat) or the session you are currently in doesn't work. If I knew who was in the sessions with me I would have talked to them more and been able to network during the conference. I met two new people, plus some of the TKC volunteers.
  • Session options. There was a variety of sessions available to the virtual audience, but if we could choose from a larger pool I think that would be great. I know not every session can be part of the virtual conference, but I feel that it would've been nice to have more options. For the most part there was just one session during each time slot to participate in. The only time it was doubled up was when there was a featured speaker or panel.
  • Hybrid registration. An option to attend both onsite and virtually. Yes, this may not be a hot commodity,but you never know how many people would choose this option it it was available. I sense a poll coming on...
  • [UPDATE 3/19/14] Questions. One of the only problems I feel that we ran into being a part of the virtual conference was that when it came time for questions at the end of a session we usually didn't have time to have ours asked/answered. Our questions were screened before being able to be presented to the panel/speaker. A lot of onsite people stood up during questions time and just made comments. Granted they were good, it just took time away for us who didn't have a chance to later speak with the presenters onsite.
    • Screen onsite questions to make sure it's a question before allowing them to speak. (Sounds harsh, but it serves a purpose!)
    • Manage the time better during the presentation; maybe a 5-10 minute warning light for questions to start and then the red over limit light?
    • Have the TKC volunteer go first to ask the questions from the virtual audience before onsite people have a chance.
And there you have it. See, not really too much to change! I do believe that if I make it to NASPA15 I may even register for the virtual conference too (see Hybrid registration above). Why? Because I think you get the best of both worlds! As a virtual conference attendee we have access to the materials for 30 days! How many times can I watch the videos, share with colleagues, and have discussions on my campus in 30 days? I'm thinking a lot. It also allows for more opportunities to go to different onsite sessions if you know you can catch one virtually later. Just my thoughts on the matter. :) 

Here's to next year: NASPA 2015 in New Orleans, LA

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Location: Buffalo, NY, USA

Monday, November 18, 2013

This means something to me.

An expectation of my current position is that my colleagues and I create multiple programs each semester based on diversity, sustainability, and community service. Last week I was the lead on an immersion program that focused on diversity; an adaptation of Archie Bunker's Neighborhood. It was actually a great success. We are also working on an event to bring awareness to Hunger and Homelessness by trying to plan a "One Night Without a Home" event at the end of National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. I brought this idea forward. I was excited to get the chance to work on something like this again, as I had supported Resident Assistants at University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg when I was working there as a Graduate Resident Director. When I was at Pitt-Greensburg we didn't orchestrate a large event like "One Night Without a Home", but it's something that I've always been interested in trying to make happen.

This is something that I was working on. This is something that I wanted to happen. During some of the planning meetings with my colleagues were trying to decide how this program was going to work, what we were going to provide, what students could bring. I wanted to try to be as realistic as possible. I didn't want students to bring cell phones. I didn't want students to bring ipods/radios/etc. I didn't want to really allow for too many amenities that take away from the experience. I got resistance. We're in Buffalo, NY in November.  I get it. We need to think about the safety of the students. I get it. I'm not trying to hurt anyone, but I would like them to have an experience to think about. I don't like fluff. I don't like glossing over hard topics. This means something to me.

Sitting in the planning meetings it was hard to not speak up. It was difficult to just nod my head and wave the white flag. I wasn't ready to share. I didn't want to share. I didn't want to go into the details right then, right there. I get it now. I thought about how the last planning meeting went and what I was holding back from saying. I get it now. I understand why this means something to me.

I was homeless.
I was homeless.
I was homeless.

January 19, 1996 a flood devastated my town. Just two years prior my town was also struck by disaster; another flood, one in which I almost lost my life, but that's a whole other story. January 19, 1996, this date is stuck in my brain. Throughout the flood my family and I were in our house; second floor duplex. I watched our car that was parked out front get swept by our house. I watched our brick garage collapse. I watched other people's belongings go down stream. I watched my town become a raging river. These are things I remember vividly. We stayed in our home until the water subsided later into the evening. We were rescued by neighbors who drove a backhoe to our front porch and scooped us to safety. We had nowhere to go. We were homeless. We were renting our home from the church we belonged to. We had been renting the same house since 1987. I don't recall the details but one of the jobs my Mom had was as a cook for the only restaurant in town. The owner and my Mom's boss allowed us to move into a room on her second floor. A family from our church who owed a very large house allowed us to keep belongings that we didn't lose in their basement. For 9 months my mother, my sister, and myself lived in a single room. We shared one full size bed, one in which I would usually get kicked out of and slept on the floor because I moved and kicked in my sleep too much. For 9 months we lived in a single room. I was lucky that I was in school because I could count on getting a meal. I was lucky that sometimes my school bus would arrive at school early enough so that I could eat breakfast, these days I loved. For 9 months most of my dinners were made of peanut butter and jelly on saltines. Our luck changed slightly. We were still homeless, but we seemed to be moving up in the world. The family that owned the backhoe had an unfinished basement that wasn't really being used, we were welcomed in their space so we had a little more room. We moved our belongings we had with us from the single room above the restaurant that my mother worked in to an unfinished basement in the home of family friends. We were still homeless. The family had a pull out couch in the basement. My mother and sister slept on the couch, I slept on the couch cushions on the concrete floor. We were homeless, but we at least felt like we had a place to call home for now. For another 9 months we were homeless. My mother worked 3-4 jobs during this time to try and support us to find a new place to live. We were homeless for a total of 18 months. Things didn't automatically get better. With all that my mother was able to save we purchased an old 1960's trailer. During the time that we owned the trailer the back half of the electrical system went and to get power into the master bedroom, which my sister and I shared, we had to run industrial extension cord. This is how we got power to the bathroom too. During the time we owned that home anytime it rained we would have a waterfall in the middle of our living room. This home wasn't perfect. It's not what most people would call a home, but it was ours and we made it the best we could.

This program isn't to be a mockery. This program is to bring awareness. We hoped to educate students. I hoped to get them thinking about what some people go through. I want to challenge them. I want to see how this makes them feel. I want to see their thought process. I want it to me something to them because this means something to me.

I'm asking too much.



National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week is November 16-24
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Location: Buffalo, NY, USA

Monday, November 4, 2013

Careers in Student Affairs Month

[Originally written for 11/1/13] 
Last night/this morning on Facebook Ann Marie Klotz posted a question on her timeline.As I was typing my response I decided to delete all I had written and responded with: "I think I'll blog my answer". So here it is.

So what was the question? 

My answer doesn't just name a person, like most others who had commented. My answer is a much longer story than a name. See, I'm a first generation college student. All I knew about college was what I had seen through the eyes of Hollywood and heard from people at school. I had no idea what I had gotten myself into. When I applied for college I had applied to two, just two: Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pennsylvania and Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, NH. Why two? Well as most people know each college requires an application fee. I was not just a first generation college student, but I was also a first generation college student from a one parent household living in the economical lower class. I couldn't afford to apply to all the colleges that I wanted to. I applied to CCC because if I had gone to their Open House the application fee was waived. I applied to FPU because at the time they had a free application. I was accepted to FPU and was informed by my Guidance Counselor that the financial aid package was pretty good; knowing nothing about that I enrolled and graduated with my BA in Social Work and Counseling.

What does this have to do with my start in Student Affairs? Everything.

I picked up my life and moved from Pennsylvania to New Hampshire to attend college. I knew no one where I was going. The only thing I had in mind was to get my degree, graduate, and get a job. During move-in was my first encounter with Student Affairs. My mother and her significant other drove me to college in our truck, the back filled with boxes because my mother made me take way too much stuff. (Yes we were THAT family.) We followed Campus Safety's directions and parked in a space outside my building, before I was able to get out of the truck we were surrounded by what seemed like hundreds of people in blue shirts. Someone greeted me and asked where I lived. I showed them the folder I had received at the entrance of campus. They brought me to the check-in table outside of my residence hall and I was given my room key. I was then brought to my room, looking behind me trying to figure out where my mother had gone and wondering how I'm going to move my items up so many stairs. I met my roommate who had moved in early due to field hockey pre-season. I said hello and walked inside the room to see person after person bringing in all of my items and placing them in my room or outside in the hall. I moved in NOTHING! I just had it all to unpack though. The day went on with some convocation items, a mandatory floor meeting in which I first met my Resident Assistant, and a welcome carnival. My mother left during convocation. I was alone to set up my side of the room. I was in my room alone with the door opened when two girls came by asking why I wasn't at the welcome carnival. I really didn't feel like going (yep, I was THAT resident), but they convinced me to check it out so I did. I'm not going to lie and say that this was the moment that did it for me, it wasn't. It took me a while to figure it out.

Later in the semester I saw posters around the hall looking for applicants to be Resident Assistants for mid-year hires. I told myself it was too early to apply as I hadn't finished a semester there myself, but that I would for the following year. At that time I had really connected with two of the RAs in my building and the Experience Director (Hall Director/Residence Director/etc). I found myself in the RA office while they were on duty most of the nights. I then became THAT resident. I never really connected with my own RA though. She was a senior and I didn't see her around much. When she was, she was interacting with the popular girls on the floor. I tried to bridge the community and made some great friends on the entire floor. Although I was nice to them all, there were some who I was not fond of. My roommate became friends with those girls, and one night in November my roommate and a group of the girls who I didn't particularly care for were in my room  gossiping and speaking poorly of many of the other girls on the floor. I felt entirely uncomfortable even siting at my desk witnessing this. Luckily some of the girls I had met in the building invited me to go bowling (side note: bowling in New England is not traditional ten pin bowling - it's Candle Pin bowling and I'm sure the locals got a kick out of seeing two girls from Pennsylvania and one from New Jersey trying to figure it out!) While I was out, unbeknownst to me, the girls in my room went through my things, put on my undergarments and took pictures of themselves. I found out a few days later when one of my friends on the floor had found the photos in her room (her roommate was involved). I went to my Experience Director's office and asked for a room change. At that point in time anyone who had an opening was not willing to welcome someone new into their space as they had a double as a single. I didn't want to be in a worse situation so I didn't pry too much when girls told me no. I was lucky to find an opening in a triple on a different floor in the building with an international student from Japan and a transfer student. I was happy to move and lucky to have some friends help me make the move too.

I found out later that my RA knew about it and didn't do anything because they were her friends. My new RA was a senior who had just gotten engaged so I never saw her either. I kept my relationships and connections with the other RAs in the building, and decided that I not only wanted to be a RA but I needed to be one. I needed to be a RA because residents needed someone who they could count on to help them, assist them, and be there for them. For the rest of my freshman year I became involved with Res Life, applied for a RA job in the spring and was offered a position for the next year. I was a RA for one year and a Head RA for a second year. During those years I participated in RLAGS, a NH based Residence Life conference, and did what I could to go above and beyond. I knew at that time that I wanted to make a career in Residence Life. When I was asked why I became a RA, I didn't shy away from the truth: I became a RA because my experiences with RAs were horrible. I became a RA because I didn't want other students going through the difficult transition that I had gone through. As with most things in my life, I do them because I have seen the bad and want to make things better for others so they don't have to go through it.

Who encouraged me to enter the field? I did. Me. Myself. I.

However, there are some really great professionals I have met who have kept me in the field. A huge thank you to those who've been there when I needed some guidance, assistance, or just someone to hash out an idea with. Here are some of them, just to name a few, (i.e. the big ticket winners, who at times I'm not sure I would know what to do without them): 
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Thursday, February 14, 2013

In the age of hook-up's

I keep trying to tell myself that I am not old, even though every day I find something else that makes me feel as such; today is no exception. Lately on campus there has been an increase in discussions of sexuality. I'm not sure if it's because Maine is trying to pass same sex marriage or not [it passed!], but it sure has got my mind going.

We are a culture that shames sexuality. It's something that we don't want to talk about, hear about, or see. I'm not sure what happened between the days of viewing the naked human form as art and now viewing it as porn, but I'm confused by it. According to the story of Adam and Eve, if Eve never ate the apple from the tree of knowledge, we'd all be walking around naked right now!

So why are we so ashamed of discussing sexuality and giving information out to those who need/want it? One thing that I am thankful for is that I work at a public institution that doesn't limit the resources we can share with students. However, as many may be aware, some of these resources are not highly thought of in some circles and are risking being closed.

I feel as though I come from a time when hooking up meant making out and maybe getting to "2nd base". In conversations with students I've been informed that that is not how the term is used anymore; which is why I've become to feel old again. Hooking up, at least here, means having sex. I am someone who believes that exploring your sexuality and having sex isn't a bad thing, and it shouldn't be shameful. Although, I also believe that sex has to be consensual, at all times, and done with precautions. So what is the point in all of this?

Well, how many of you have met with students who have questions about Plan B, abortions, pregnancy tests, STD testing, sexual assaults, or birth control? Now, I do understand that it may depend on your institution as to what conversations you may be able to have with students, but here I find that these conversations are increasing. Last year we had a few students who were pregnant and/or got pregnant while they were here. Again, it may be different in your area or at your institution  but I find here that in the age of the hook up, conversations in a preventative manner are not happening.  Why might this be?
  • First generation students.
  • Low income/poverty.
  • Religious beliefs.
  • Lack of Sexual Health Education classes
...What are your thoughts? Can you add to this list?

Now as the weather begins to warm and young love is in the air - what do you see on your campus? Within the past month it's interesting how I've noticed the relationships among residents forming or breaking apart. Are you taking notice? Have you increased any programming efforts in your area? Of course a hot topic in February is focused around relationships and Valentine's Day. In my building our monthly bulletin board was focused on sexual health. However, my hints at doing educational programs about sex have not been reciprocated. 



Final thought: This year I've learned that we should not expect our residents/students to come to college prepared with knowledge on sexual health. I've answered more questions and have had many conversations about sex and condoms then I ever thought I would.
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