Let's Hope She Isn't Really a Serial Killer

This past week has been incredibly busy. We finished up our digital story telling project, found out who our co-leaders would be, I had job orientation for move out crew, and I’m starting to prepare for final exams. It’s been crazy, and the next few weeks are going to get crazier. But I believe I can pull through.

Last week, we finished our digital story telling project. Overall, it was a great experience. It was the fourth DST experience I had if I count the music video I helped with for Afterdark. I enjoyed this because it was a great bonding experience and allowed me to learn more about my fellow peer mentors. Comparing this experience to last year, I realize that not only are the two videos and experiences completely different, but the styles are different as well. This reinforces the idea that the peer mentor group this year is different from the one last year. We have different personalities and different backgrounds. Next fall is going to bring surprises. I may have done this before, but that does not mean that I am totally prepared for what is about to go down.

After watching the video, I have to thank Megan and the production team for making the video so fantastic. It was funny but also informative, and I’m sure that the Hixsons next fall will love it.

Last week, I also found out who my co-leader was going to be. I had several guesses as to who it might have been, but, like last year, I was wrong. As it turns out, my co-leader is the fantabulous Brooke Kindlesperger. I do not know too much about her, but I know that she’s a psych student like me, and she has a great attitude about life. It should be a joy to work with her. I am interested in seeing how our learning styles mesh as well as seeing what ideas she brings to our lesson planning sessions. Still, the fact that I was wrong about who I thought my co-leader would be indicates an aspect of groups that was present last year as well. We can think that we have similar learning styles with someone, but until we work with that person, we will not know for sure. Only through interaction can we truly understand a person. I look forward to learning more about Brooke and all my other fellow peer mentors next fall. This has been a great semester, and I’m sure next semester will be just as interesting and entertaining. 

Am I Socially Intelligent?

This week Tanner and Brooke led a great discussion on peer education programs on campus. One part of the discussion involved listing programs at Iowa State. We did this in January, and it was interesting to see how much the class had learned since then. We did this last year as well, but this semester it really got me thinking. The Hixson Opportunity Awards program is not the only program on campus that utilizes peer mentors and peer educators. This is a good thing because not everyone who comes to ISU receives this scholarship. Other programs like this mean that students have a chance to receive help during college that could improve their college experience. In addition, this means that the students have a chance to help others by joining these mentoring programs as well.

Chelsee also gave a fantastic presentation regarding social intelligence. Personally, I believe that leadership is a situational thing. Anyone can be a leader in the proper circumstances. One is not necessarily born a leader in my opinion. Still, reading this research caused me to think a little more about leadership being an inherent trait. In the reading, there were many traits of a leader. One of the traits that I feel I have developed well is teamwork. I had a great chance to work on this trait last semester when I worked with the other peer mentors as well as my co-leader. In addition, I displayed this trait very well when I went to South Dakota over spring break. I could always improve on this trait, but I feel that I have developed it well. Another trait that I have developed well is developing others. It is my goal to see others succeed. This is one reason why I want to be a counselor. I utilized this trait last fall when I pushed for the students to do well in their other classes, and when I pushed for the students to actually attend the Hixson class. I wanted my students to succeed, so I made it so that was a possibility for them.

Still, there are a few traits that I need to improve upon. One trait that I need to improve is my empathy. This is also a trait that is necessary for counselors. I always make an attempt to try to understand what others are thinking and what life is like for them. However, there are some instances when I find this to be really hard. For example, I maintained a certain level of empathy when hearing about life on the reservation, but I will never fully understand what that life is like so it’s hard to be fully empathetic. Still, I should always maintain some level of empathy, so that I can do my best to understand the needs of others. Ultimately, knowing what I need to improve upon will allow me to become a better peer mentor and a better leader. 

Falling in Love With Your Mentees (Is Cleary Unethical)

This week Haley and Cole gave a fantastic presentation on ethics and such. Ethics, as many people know, are what separate us from the animals. Ethics make the world go round. They are particularly helpful for peer mentors because they allow us to have a healthy, professional relationship with the students. If we display ethical behavior, then we can serve as role models to the students as well.

The book notes many ethical principles that mentors should follow, but some of the principles are more important than others. For example, understanding your own personal bias and avoiding imposing this bias on others is a great principle. Every single one of us has different beliefs, creeds, ideologies, and prejudices. It is important that we understand these beliefs and prejudices, so that we may not only help ourselves to eliminate these prejudices, but so that we can also avoid displaying them in front of the students. We shouldn't force the students to believe something, and we should not give the students the chance to adopt a negative belief. I always say that you should keep politics and religion out of your professional relationships. Another important principle is maintaining confidentiality. My career goal is to become a counselor, and this is an important part of the counseling process. If someone shares a secret or personal thought with you, and you tell others, they will be offended and will be less likely to share in the future. The students deserve our respect, and we should not go around telling others of any issues that they may have. However, we should know that if the students have issues that are life-threatening to them or another person, we have to reconsider confidentiality. A final important principle regards feelings of attraction. If we have romantic feelings towards the students, we should not act on them due to our professional relationship with them. Personally, I feel it is a sketchy, gray area because you cannot really control who you fall for romantically. Still, keeping it professional is important.

It is important to remember all of the ethical principles. Of course, real life isn't as clear cut as the book makes it out to be, and we will encounter some conundrums that require long periods of thought. Luckily, we are not alone. There are 16 other peer mentors to help us if we are confused. In addition, we have Chelsee, Debra, and Allie to assist us if we encounter big problems. We may not encounter most of these ethical situations, but knowing what to do during them allows us to be prepared any possible outcome.