Leading into the 3rd Week

Today, I attended the Iowa State Leadership Experience event at the Memorial Union.  At first, I thought it was going to be a bit boring, but I soon found that it was interesting and that it provided me with information I can use in the future. One of the speakers I listened to was Delatorro McNeal, II. A former businessman and current leadership event speaker, I found this man to be a little too enthusiastic, but I guess that is what his job entails. What I liked about his speech was that he used media relevant to us to convey his message. He used clips from films like Drumline and Hitch to explain the importance of leadership and how you can be a leader. I especially liked how he displayed six different leadership styles in the Hitch clip. When I teach a class next semester, I will make sure to incorporate what he said to make my leadership style a more mentor-coach style

Another event I attended was the Art of Interviewing with Mike Gaul. I attended this event because I have an interview for the Community Adviser position next Saturday, and I figured that this would help me. During this session, I learned that before an interview, I not only have to research the company, but I also have to research myself to find my strengths and weaknesses and be prepared for the interview. I also learned there are a variety of factors that go into a first impression. In addition, I found that it was important to keep the dialogue going so there are no lulls. Next Saturday, I will ensure that my interview is successful. Next fall, I can use this knowledge to help those I am mentoring with their interviews if they have any.  I can also use this knowledge for other interviews in the future.

The final event I went to was the Planning Campus Events event with Lauren Sandstrom and MaryBeth Konkowski. During this event, I learned the important steps that go into planning events such as logistics, publicity, and the evaluation after the event. The Event Management Office’s importance was explained as well, but I was aware of this entity because I had to deal with them for quiz bowl tournaments. The EMO will come in handy next semester when the 2012 Hixson scholars go on their retreat. This session will also help out in the future if I want to plan any events besides the retreat with my co-peer mentor. Overall, I feel today was a learning experience. I acquired useful knowledge that will help me not only as a peer mentor, but in my college and professional career as well.

Finding Strengths in the Second Week

In class, we had to talk about three strengths that we have that will be useful when we are peer mentors next fall and one or two weaknesses that we will need to work on for next fall. We were given a fair amount of time to think about and come up with answers for ourselves. The weaknesses were easy to come up with because I know what skills I need to work on, and I am constantly improving up them. One of these skills was patience. I can be a bit impatient at times when working with others. In order for me to be a great peer mentor, I need to realize that not everyone is as fast as I am. Another skill I need to work on is working on taking advantage of situations. I need to work on this because sometimes I miss important opportunities because I do not act when I have a chance to do so. Working on this skill will help me become a better role model for others and thus a better peer mentor.  The three strengths I came up with were my ability to understand where many of the incoming freshmen are at, my knowledge of the college, and my determination. I believe determination is my greatest strength because whenever I start a task or whenever I want something badly enough, I do not stop until I have obtained or completed it. In addition, I believe this strength makes me a great role model for the incoming freshmen.

In addition to this, we discussed several issues incoming freshmen face when coming to college. One of the problems freshmen face is financial aid. I am very familiar with this issue as I had trouble with financial aid in the months leading into my freshmen year. Another issue is the issue of homesickness and feeling lonely at college. During my freshmen year, I experienced a bit of homesickness before classes started, but I soon got over it. However, many freshmen do not get over it quickly and want to go home. One other issue freshmen face is adjusting to hard classes. This issue is familiar to me because I was not use to studying every single night in high school, and when I started classes, I found that this had to happen or I was going to fail. I adjusted however not every freshmen does. It is because I have had experience with these issues that I will be able to help and offer suggestions next semester if anyone comes asking for help.

In addition to all of this, we started talking about the digital storytelling project. While we didn’t make any important decisions, we still came up with some possible themes for the project. I offered to be a script writer for the project, and I hope I get it as I love to write stories. I look forward to completing this project, so the freshmen next fall can have a great example for their projects.

Week 1 of Niftyness

In Students Helping Students, the authors explain what it means to be a peer educator and how a peer mentor should interact with their fellow students. I especially like how the authors state that a peer educator is a more than a helper; it is a provider.  This will be valuable information next semester when I am helping lead a class. It will allow me to understand that my job is not just to assist the students in the class, but that I have to guide the students and offer support to the when needed. Another thing from the reading that was interesting was the fact that the writers point out that peer mentors should be role models.  The authors note that the peer mentors were chosen because they are responsible, and Allison, Debra, and Silas feel we will be excellent leaders. They know that the incoming students will look up to us for answers and for cues on how to act. I have always understood this, but I haven’t understood the great impact my behavior could have. Using this realization, I now know that I must work to eliminate any bad habits I have this semester, so I can embody a better role model next semester. In addition, this will help me as well with school work and other aspects of my life.

                In class, I found out that I am to be paired with Laura Wentworth in order to teach a learning session for the class. We will be teaching strategies for academic success. I look forward to working with her as well as teaching a class for the first time ever. It will be a challenge, but it will be great practice for when I have to teach a recitation every week next fall.  In addition to this, we found out other activities we will be doing this semester such as creating a portfolio, attending diversity events, and making another digital storytelling project. All of these activities will be a bit challenging, but I look forward to a fun and interesting semester in this course.