Tryin' to Get Paid-Post 11
Post 11 from Tryin' to Get Paid
Mood: Cold...very cold
Music: Lupe Fiasco "I Gotcha"
You know, I think I made a mistake moving to the upper Midwest to find a job...I completely neglected the fact that, around the months of December-Feb., it gets cold. It gets really cold. I had never felt cold like this, the kind that hits your face and it just doesn't hurt...it's like a teething 6 month old chewing on any uncovered part of your cheeks over and over and over. I remember being a child and not wanting to wear thermals because they used to itch my skin (these are the days before microfiber clothing), and my father told me "smart men dress for the season, not for the feeling", and his words never rang more true until today. Did you know temperatures can go into the negatives?
Well, as for work, I had my first campus crisis this past week. Some of you are wondering, he hasn't had his first crisis until now? Well, the nature of my work involves event planning and one-on-one developmental discussions, and I haven't had to delve into the world of crisis management...until last week. The details I cannot divulge...but as we professionals can guess, it started with a group of students not using their better judgment and acting in a fashion that a lot of their peers didn't think was a good idea, or was in a deeper sense very insensitive. In this case, our friend alcohol might have been involved. And now, with the fallout, this group in question is trying to rationalize their decisions (this is where Kohlberg's Moral Development comes into play...I'm glad I read it). So now, I'm working with a group of colleagues on how to handle this situation, and I've been tasked to discuss with students on this situation. I've had some interesting conversations, and I'm beginning to see the diversity of thought in the student interactions. I kind of had this idea in my mind that all the students here had the same thought processes, due to the reputation my institution had of attracting folks here. But, this incident has made me realize that I was short-sighted in my thoughts, and in a way I kinda feel like a fool for doing so.
Despite this situation, I am suprised that I've kept my cool and had some interesting discussions with folks across the campus. When I first heard the news, I wanted to throw a chair across the room, ala Bobby Knight. But, when I could have marched across campus and grabbed the students by their ears, I had to remind myself of a little thing called due process, and no matter what my temper was, this was an educational opportunity. So, my theory training kind of kicked in, and I went into, as my supervisor called it, "challenge and support mode". I'm glad I went into that mode and this situation has been relatively easy to handle, because if I went off on these kids like a raving lunatic, I'd be in the cold really quick, and ya'll know how much I hate the cold...
Mood: Cold...very cold
Music: Lupe Fiasco "I Gotcha"
You know, I think I made a mistake moving to the upper Midwest to find a job...I completely neglected the fact that, around the months of December-Feb., it gets cold. It gets really cold. I had never felt cold like this, the kind that hits your face and it just doesn't hurt...it's like a teething 6 month old chewing on any uncovered part of your cheeks over and over and over. I remember being a child and not wanting to wear thermals because they used to itch my skin (these are the days before microfiber clothing), and my father told me "smart men dress for the season, not for the feeling", and his words never rang more true until today. Did you know temperatures can go into the negatives?
Well, as for work, I had my first campus crisis this past week. Some of you are wondering, he hasn't had his first crisis until now? Well, the nature of my work involves event planning and one-on-one developmental discussions, and I haven't had to delve into the world of crisis management...until last week. The details I cannot divulge...but as we professionals can guess, it started with a group of students not using their better judgment and acting in a fashion that a lot of their peers didn't think was a good idea, or was in a deeper sense very insensitive. In this case, our friend alcohol might have been involved. And now, with the fallout, this group in question is trying to rationalize their decisions (this is where Kohlberg's Moral Development comes into play...I'm glad I read it). So now, I'm working with a group of colleagues on how to handle this situation, and I've been tasked to discuss with students on this situation. I've had some interesting conversations, and I'm beginning to see the diversity of thought in the student interactions. I kind of had this idea in my mind that all the students here had the same thought processes, due to the reputation my institution had of attracting folks here. But, this incident has made me realize that I was short-sighted in my thoughts, and in a way I kinda feel like a fool for doing so.
Despite this situation, I am suprised that I've kept my cool and had some interesting discussions with folks across the campus. When I first heard the news, I wanted to throw a chair across the room, ala Bobby Knight. But, when I could have marched across campus and grabbed the students by their ears, I had to remind myself of a little thing called due process, and no matter what my temper was, this was an educational opportunity. So, my theory training kind of kicked in, and I went into, as my supervisor called it, "challenge and support mode". I'm glad I went into that mode and this situation has been relatively easy to handle, because if I went off on these kids like a raving lunatic, I'd be in the cold really quick, and ya'll know how much I hate the cold...
posted by StudentAffairs.com at
11:08 AM
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