Monthly Archives: February 2016

Adjunct Faculty, Administration, Student Services, student success

Trickle-Down Help

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The theme this week is asking how I have helped someone. I could go on about all my amazing successful students, of course. (There is nothing more rewarding than mentoring students.) Instead, I want to highlight how I have been helped … and how hopefully that help has trickled down to the students.

Before I came to the community college, I taught science in a Montessori Elementary setting, and I also handled the tough behavior issues that went beyond the classroom. I felt pretty good about classroom control and helping students learn from their behavioral mistakes.

Funny thing though, Montessori Elementary classroom management techniques don’t always work in a community college setting – for a host of different reasons. I can no longer ask students to check their cell phones in at the door. Moving people’s seats during a lecture doesn’t go over very well. Students who misbehave cannot be sent to another classroom, and they don’t get detentions or “write ups.” They cannot be asked to write a reflective essay on their behavior. Adult students expect a certain amount of freedom – after all, they ARE adults!

I know I am not the only one who can spot a problem brewing. When we see this, we must decide how far to take it. I usually start by speaking to the student individually. I can suggest, cajole, offer, etc. to students who need help to visit the appropriate support service (counseling, testing center, library, writing center, etc.) – but sometimes those students just do not follow through. Then, when the student is not getting what he/she needs outside the classroom, it shows up in classroom etiquette and other disruptive behaviors. As soon as it becomes a distraction to the learning of the others in the class, we have options and support.

The Behavior Intervention Team, a committee through the Dean of Student Life has helped me handle a specific difficult situation and become a better teacher at the same time. I had a student that was significantly disruptive and I frankly was concerned for his mental health. I started by having an informal conversation with Dr. Trisha Lavigne (fellow faculty are amazing), and then I followed through by filing a report online. I wanted the record to be in the system, but it was only in there for informational purposes. It is important to track things like this, as if the student repeats the behavior for another instructor, we at least have a paper trail. After the initial report was filed, we decided to have someone call him and offer services to help him get on track. Trisha gave me some words to use when speaking to the student about it. He got agitated, and the next class period, his behavior was even worse. I knew I was going to have to speak to him again, this time about his grade and what he was going to need to do to remain enrolled in the class. This is where Lt. Nate Achtizger helped me. He sat in the classroom and assessed the situation, then he sat outside the conference room when I met with the student. His feedback helped me feel more safe when the student was around. In the end, the student ended up dropping the class, which was helpful for everyone else – and maybe for him, too. Whew! Dodged a bullet! All through this process, Dean Monica Castaneda was aware and ready to step in if I couldn’t handle it.

The bullet was not dodged for long, though. That same student enrolled for another one of my classes this semester. Again, Dean Castaneda spent time emailing and talking with me to be prepare before the semester even started. While we tried to get the student to get the services he needs, he has refused. He is, however, doing much better this time around. And so am I. I know I am supported – the team has my back. I have established a new rapport with the student, and maybe, if he continues to not be disruptive, I will be able to reach him. Maybe he will eventually follow through on getting the services he needs. Just maybe. I hope.

So to answer the question, “How have you helped someone,” I can say that the GCC community has helped me. And in turn, hopefully, I can return the favor.

 
Write6x6

Mistakes are expected, inspected, respected

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The title of this post came from an Arizona K-12 Teacher of the Year.  She has this slogan posted in her classroom.  It is something that I’ve been working on with my classes.

The most influential reading I’ve shared with my students over the past two years deals with growth mindset.  THANKS to my counseling colleagues and teaching partners, especially Aracely Barajas.   I share Carol Dweck’s work with all of my classes, and most do Cornell notes on it within the first ten days of class.  They also take a self-assessment to find out if they are mostly growth or fixed mindset.  We regular start class community meetings with “who has learned something this week?”  That’s code for who has made a mistake?

The hard part of learning is sometimes accepting our “failures” .  Jose Antonio Bowen shared an acronym that I thought was so good:  FAIL = first attempt in learning.

To make this all genuine, I have to model making mistakes, often doing a think-aloud to model problem solving and learning from it, and show how to accept and move on from it.

I also have had to change my grading practices to support their attempts.  As I teach the process of taking Cornell notes, for example, I don’t give less than full points.  If students haven’t done a good summary or reflection, or if they didn’t capture the key ideas, their paper has an R for rewrite.  (Thanks, Joy Wingersky!)

I’m continually looking for ways to support the learning (and making mistakes) process.  Do you have an idea to share?

Sources:

Dr. Carol Dweck
Mindset
http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/

Dr. Jose Antonio Bowen
President of Goucher College and author of Teaching Naked

 
CTLE, Write6x6

The Curse of Week Four

     What is it about week four?  I arrived at work bright and early on Monday, eagerly anticipating the day.  But it just felt odd.  Stressful?  Already?  It’s only Monday, I thought, determined to figure out why this week had me on edge.

     There were a few pieces of old business hanging over from the previous week: the Write6x6 blog post (ahem), some work coming in from students, some planning I had not finished. And there were thoughts of what I had to do coming up, one item not until April that I was worried about. Then there’s that one troublesome student who seems determined not to learn from me all while I try desperately to learn from her in hopes I can actually find a sneaky way to teach her.  Maybe all of this unease is the settling in of the semester for all of us, students included. Yep, the semester really did start. Yep, weekends are now mostly about grading or doing homework.  Maybe now is the time to really work on balance. Yes, today I’ll work on balance and get rid of some of this unease.

     This plan might have panned out at some point had Wednesday, the day some refer to as hump day, allowed me to have the time to think about balance. Instead my wife texted me to say we were overdrawn in the checking account (we just got paid last week). “What happened?” I texted. “We’re supposed to be rich.”

     “I don’t know.  I lost track.  Bills.  Students loans.  I bought some clothes.”

     Dollar signs appeared before my eyes. I imagined trucks pulling up in front of the house, delivering racks of clothes. How much could someone spend on new outfits?

     This bump in the hump was just a bit of a slow down midweek, but it was not awful, just perplexing.


     Shortly after arriving home, later than usual, I greeted the animals with sweet talk and lots of pets. It was just a few moments later that I realized our cute and sweet Lila was having another bout of diarrhea. It wouldn’t be so bad if she weren’t long haired and if she didn’t curl her tail under herself in the catbox. I grabbed for some paper towels and then grabbed her tail–it’s never a good idea to grab a cat’s tail. She
tried to run, and she hissed. Her hind claws caught my toes which were only protected by socks, one of which has a hole in the toe I noticed.

     This was a job that needed more than just a dampened half paper towel. I grabbed and wetted a wash cloth and went in again. After much hiding under tables, running, hissing, and clawing–both of us–I got her to a spot where I could really hold down her tail and wash it, and surprisingly she let me do it. I think she was just tired. She’s having a week four, too.

     I’m not sure I’m the only one having a week four, but it is certainly my challenge to work out the rough spots this week. I need to find a way to sand down the edges. There are two things that sometimes work for me:

1.  Read a book that has a little depth.  Right now I’m reading When the Heart Waits: Spiritual Direction for Life’s Sacred Questions by Sue Monk Kidd. It feels a little heavy for what may just be a strange week, but books like this challenge me to wonder about the big picture and, in doing so, I can generally put into perspective the little things.

2.  Do a brain dump and prioritize.  There’s a formula I use for this. (I’ve had students do this at high stress times of the semester, too. Takes about ten minutes in class, maybe a few more if you talk about it.)   Here are the steps.  Math ahead.
   a.  List everything you can think of that you have to do that you can’t stop thinking about.  (Here’s where I’d make my list and actually put down that thing I have to do in April.)
   b.  Give everything a number from 1-4 based on when it has to be done (1=in the next day, 2= in a few days, 3=within two weeks, 4=long way off).  Rule?  You may not give everything a 1.  Rule?  Don’t put down eating or sleeping.
   c.  Give everything another number from 1-4 based on how serious the consequences are if you don’t do it (1=jobs lost, people die, you get the idea; 2=serious, but not life altering; 3=even less serious; 4=who cares?).
   d.  Multiply those two numbers together to give all items a new and final number.
   e.  Rewrite the items from 1-? and then cut the list in half.
   f.  Work on the top half.  Forget about the bottom half for now.

     This might seem obvious to everyone else, but I find it really helps me to focus, and maybe that is the key to conquering the curse of week four–to focus on what really matters and let the little things go.
   

 
Write6x6

Does trying count?

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Making a difference in today’s world is easy, said no one! Well, maybe a few people have. I believe that in order to understand a question such as “how do you make a difference,” one must look inward. I believe that one must know the self before one can truly answer a question with such depth.

Anyone can come to the assumption of having made a difference in one way or another. That’s the easy part.

I find myself looking out my office window every now and again, watching everyone walking by and I wonder, have I made a difference in their lives? What have I done today that made a difference not only in someone’s life but for the benefit of society?

These are some difficult questions. Each one of us possesses the right to define “making a difference” in our own way. I understand this and agree, we do define it in our own way. It can be a simple and pleasant gesture of saying hi. Or, going all out by sitting down with someone and having a conversation. Paying for someone’s meal, an invitation for a cup of coffee, helping someone with a flat tire on the side of road, simply put; paying it forward.

I like to think that we all want to make a difference but how many of us actually do? We can never really know if we have or haven’t. Unless these individuals give us some sort of affirmation, we would never be absolutely sure that we made a difference. As depressing and pessimistic it may sound, I believe it to be true.

But, let me get past my cynical sentiments.

“How do you make a difference?” I believe that the only way we can be certain that we are making a difference is to create a level of interaction between one another. This level of interaction cannot be just any interaction, but one that expresses an act of kindness. One that creates a positive relationship even if it is for just that moment. It’s hard! I will be the first one to admit it, having and conveying a true act of kindness is difficult. We are surrounded with so many distractions that we sometimes lose sight of the good. But, if we can understand this about ourselves, we can learn how to make a difference where and when it counts. If we can learn more about ourselves, we can then in turn, make the difference that others long for.

How do I make a difference? I try, try and try a little bit more. I mean, I would love to say that I have a go to difference maker but I don’t. I just try to do right and try to do it with everyone and in everything I do. I will continue to try because I believe that someday everyone will catch on and do the same. Just try!

Thanks!

 
Adjunct Faculty, Write6x6

Success Is Not a Grade

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My class is The Art of Storytelling. My objective for the course is:

Students will recognize the power of storytelling, and will become aware of their own potential for using storytelling as a tool for communication.

I try to teach them both the mechanics and the art of how and why to tell stories.

Don’t just tell someone a “list” of all your feelings, but but share them…  by telling a story. Share your joy of wonder and discovery, and allow those around you to experience it too… by telling a story. Inspire someone, or even yourself… by telling a story.

Some students come to me every other class and want to know why they lost two points. They want those two points so badly. They believe those two points can make or break them.

And then, there are others who do the work and accept the fact that they may have missed a question here or there. Points are not on their radar, learning and understanding are. At the end of the semester, one such student wrote:

I would like to share a story with you! I needed to find a humanities class and as I was scrolling down my computer screen I found one, but it involved literature and poetry. Well, I am not into poetry at all. The word literature translates “you will be writing long, intense essays”. So I did what any student would do, I kept scrolling down…until I found “The Art of Storytelling”. I honestly laughed a bit and thought, what could I possibly learn from a storytelling class and why is it considered and art? Now, I was curious. And that curiosity caused me to enroll.

After the first day of class, I changed my outlook on storytelling. Each class became more interesting and I could not wait to hear more stories. As the semester went on, I learned the answers to my questions. I realized the importance of stories and how it can be used in many aspects of life. Storytelling is truly an art because the storyteller is an artist who crafts their story to make it more interesting, exciting, and appealing to their audience.

Storytelling has given me a little more confidence and passion, not only in class but to my personal life as well. I know that when I finally become a nurse I will be sharing stories with my patients, not only to comfort them, but to connect with them. I am a bit sad that this class has come to an end because it was such an interesting, exciting, and uplifting semester.

I have no doubt, that the one who wrote that will not only be telling great stories, but will succeed in all her endeavors!

Success is not a grade, either for the student, OR the teacher. Success for me is, “Did I do the best at my job? Did I possibly make a difference in one or two lives?” The paragraph below from one gal was the greatest gift I could have at the end of the course.

Storytelling and this class have affected my life in a positive way. This past week I used what I had learned in this course in one job interview that I had. They asked me to tell them about myself and instead of listing all of the things I have done, I decided to tell them a little story about myself. The best part is not only that I exercised storytelling outside of class (without being a class assignment) and that I was hired. I start next week!

 
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La celebración del Año Nuevo Lunar en GCC

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Todos los años digo lo mismo: tengo mucho trabajo con las clases y no debo meterme en problemas organizando festivales culturales. Mis amigas siempre me dicen, que de alguna manera, me gusta trabajar de más y la verdad es que ellas tienen razón. Hace ya 18 años empecé a organizar la celebración del año nuevo chino llamado en inglés, The Lunar New Year Celebration. Cada vez que se acerca la fecha, empiezo a entusiasmarme y a comprar regalitos para los estudiantes que vienen a ver la celebración. Desde hace ya dos años, me visto del Dios de la Riqueza y reparto sobrecitos rojos entre el público. Me llena de satisfacción ver las caras de alegría que ponen al recibir lo que les trae este personaje tan conocido en los países que tienen compatriotas chinos. Esta celebración festeja a nuestros antepasados. No se trata de emborracharse o festejar con sombreritos de colores como lo hacemos en Estados Unidos, pero de estar con la familia y comer platos tradicionales. En la China hay un período de siete días en que la gente no va a trabajar para que puedan viajar a visitar a sus más allegados familiares. El éxodo de personas es uno de los más grandes en la China. Para muchos de nuestros estudiantes en GCC es una experiencia que les abre los ojos a otro mundo y a otro concepto de celebrar en familia. Durante esta fecha se hacen regalos, se les da dinero a los solteros y niños y se lleva el color rojo para atraer la buena suerte. Las casas se limpian a profundidad y todo el mundo se encuentra de buen humor. Durante el primer día del festejo no se debe limpiar ni cortar nada, ya que según la superstición, eso podría ahuyentar la buena suerte. Esta celebración celebra la nueva luna, pero también la alegría por la vida, los lazos familiares y la prosperidad y salud de las personas amadas.

 
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Being Successful

I believe that I have had many successful events happen in my life both with students and with fellow colleagues. I don’t believe that success is a “rocket science” idea. That is, it isn’t hard to be successful. If your mindset is one of service and unselfishness, then success will come naturally. When you put others first and you approach each day looking for opportunities to assist others you are bound to have successful stories occur. My advice to anyone is, to focus on doing your best at all times whether the job is one you like or dislike, and what will happen then is that you will be an encouragement to others and will make other peoples lives better in the process. Look for the enjoyment that exists in each moment and be content in your situation doing all you can to make your little piece of the world a better place and thus at the end of life you will look back and be happy with how it has all unfolded!

 
Write6x6

What Have I Done!

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I have been a part of GCC’s community for almost 5 years now. During my time here I have been a student, I have been a club and organization member and I have been an employee. As a student, I found myself going from class to class. Never wanting to involved myself into anything more than what was expected from me as a student. By the end of my first year I was spotted by an old friend on the way to the Student Union. She was helping out during an M.E.Ch.A. event and by the next week I was voted as their Public Relations Officer. Fast forward a few months, I was introduced to the Associated Student Government. From there forth I was fully integrated into this wonderful community. By the end of my second year, I was being asked to attend a retreat for the formation of our MEN (Male Empowerment Network) organization. Queue the amazing memory montage!

As a student, I was able to encourage other students to become a part of something bigger, a part of something more. I was able to stimulate the importance of joining and participating in clubs and organizations. GCC offers our students more than 50 clubs and organizations for our students to become a part of throughout the school year. How awesome is that? Reflecting on just that thought amazes me, not because I was a part of it but because I know that somewhere along the way I was able to help at least one student.

Throughout my involvement within these remarkable organizations, I was offered a job position through the Student Leadership Center. I started as a Game Room Attendant, and later moved up to an Office Assistant. Both positions opened up my eyes to what I like to call, opportunity! As an employee, I was able to hone my skills as a leader and develop leadership workshops. Following the guidance of my mentor, Connie Greenwell, I was able to explore my talents as a presenter for not only the clubs and organizations that I was a part of but on the national level as well. I have been blessed with the opportunity of presenting at the National Collegiate Leadership Conference and among other worthy conferences as well. When my time was done here as a student, I knew it was time to move on. Fortunately, some people here at GCC believed otherwise. I was offered the position of Program Manager for the SCALE Summer Program. Finally, something that can show what I can really do, I said to myself. Between the students that have attended my workshops and my students in the SCALE Program, I can say that I have helped in one way or another.

Now stay with me, were almost done! Currently, I am a part of an amazing team. You can find me sitting within the Testing & Student Success Services building. I am a member of GCC’s Gaucho 101 Academic Advising team. Here I get to do something that I have not seen done at any of sister colleges. We help our incoming students with nearly the entire process of becoming a student. Shortly after receiving their placement test scores, they migrate into our area where we sit down with them and have a conversation. We include the meaning behind their scores, which classes are either required or recommended for them to take within their first semester. We even go as far as discussing their future plans and academic goals. I could continue to list off everything we do here but I want to keep you entertained. But, I will add the most important part, well at least in my opinion. We help take away the anxiety, the nervousness, the feeling of not knowing, well at least parts of it. We help our incoming students realize that starting their next journey doesn’t have to be alone. That they have someone to come to for help and if we cannot help them, then we point them in the right way.  Now that’s awesome!

Now, back to the theme of this week, “How have you helped students or staff?” I personally can’t put the correct words together to give you a definitive answer or any quantitative data to support my claims. But, what I can tell you is that I have a passion for what I do. I love the opportunities that have been given to me and I love what I have gotten to do with them. I strive to help those in need, those that may be lost or alone. I strive to become a man of value. Being a part of this community, of Glendale Community College, has helped me become who I am. In return I owe my absolute best to our students and staff and that’s what I plan to give them. So, short answer, have I helped students and staff, yes. Not enough of an answer? Come have a cup of coffee with me, I’ll tell you everything!

Thanks

 
Adjunct Faculty, Administration, Administrative Services, GCC Students, Student Engagement, Student Services, student success, Write6x6

Healthier, Happier and Smarter

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Have you read Spark yet? It gave me goosebumps.

The book basically justified my persistence for the past 30 years in the field of Fitness and Wellness. Exercise is not just about getting fit, looking good, preventing heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and the like. It helps keep you smarter!

I finished this book on a plane flight to Dublin last summer, on my way to see my family, but more specifically, my ailing mother who is suffering from the debilitating effects of Alzheimer’s disease.

The book highlighted many of the mental health issues we deal with, including Alzheimer’s, ADHD, stress, anxiety, depression and addiction. And guess what? Exercise outscores medication in every case. It may not replace it for every case, but it certainly is a great complement to treatment.

It turns out that exercise is like Miracle Gro to the brain. It promotes the production of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) which causes neurons to grow! It was only discovered in 1990! Since then, neuroscientists have been studying it like crazy. Exercise lays down the foundation for our students to learn.

In his book, Ratey devotes an entire chapter to the “Learning Readiness PE” program in Naperville, Illinois. These high school students are outsmarting their Japanese and German counterparts on the TIMMS test! You can find out more in this video!

It is my intention to make a difference in the lives of our community college students, faculty, staff and administration by raising awareness about the importance of movement throughout the day.

Just yesterday, the following bill was passed in Senate (SB211). I read it excitedly to my students this morning! Positive change is finally happening at the national level!

“A program of physical activity (i) that consists of at least 20 minutes per day or an average of 100 minutes per week during the regular school year available to all students in grades kindergarten through five and (ii) with a goal of at least 150 minutes per week on average during the regular school year available to all students in grades six through 12. Such program may include any combination of (a) physical education classes, (b) extracurricular athletics, (c) recess, or (d) other programs and physical activities deemed appropriate by the local school board. Each local school board shall incorporate into its local wellness policy a goal for the implementation of implement such program during the regular school year.

…That the provisions of this act shall become effective beginning with the 2018-2019 school year.”

Elementary schools and high schools will finally see the benefits of more movement on the brains of the students. I hope we can continue this trend at the community college level. It is critical to the success of our students.

Source: Ratey, J. J. (2012). Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. Little Brown and Company.

 
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Providing Hope

During the Great Depression, a young child around the age of two and her older brother (not yet four) were dropped off at a church because their mother could no longer afford to take care of them, or at least that’s what the siblings were told when they were old enough to remember. As the children grew older, they spent their entire childhood in foster care; they were never legally adopted by any family. The older brother, Walter, joined the Marines and the younger sister, Helen, began working in a department store.

The older brother fought in the Korean War and was killed during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir. Helen married and had two daughters–one of whom is my mother-in-law. When the girls were very young (about the same age Helen and her brother were when they were surrendered), their father, Helen’s husband, was killed in a car accident. Helen considered doing the same thing her mother did when she was younger but decided against it–those girls were her only family and she wanted to do whatever she could to keep her family together. She remarried and the daughters eventually raised children of their own and those children raised their own children after that (my kids!).

Helen Simmons’ story served as inspiration for Helen’s Hope Chest, an organization by the Mesa United Way to help foster children and their families. State funding for foster care and kinship care (care from a family member who is not a biological parent) has significantly decreased and organizations like Helen’s help to ease some of the financial cost of caring for foster children. Many times, children come to their foster family with only the clothes on their backs. Foster and kinship families can come to Helen’s four times per year (once per season) and receive whatever clothing or supplies they need. Foster parents can also choose Christmas and birthday presents for their children as well as back to school supplies at the start of each new school year. No child leaves without a book. This is all free; as a result, Helen’s relies on the kindness and donations of others.

Obviously, this organization is near and dear to my heart and that of the rest of my family. I try to contribute as much as I can, and when I can’t, I do my best to spread the word about Helen’s and what they need. Since they survive mostly on donations, they often run low on supplies–toothbrushes, body wash, etc. and boys and girls clothes sizes 5-10 (that age is roughest on clothes!). So while I can’t make a difference all by myself, I try to educate my friends about the organization and encourage them to donate. You can also “like” them on Facebook and receive updates (positive stories and updated needs).

At my previous school, I learned that a student of mine was living in a group home. I told her about Helen’s and their house mother loaded everyone up in the big van and took them to Mesa (it’s far, but it’s worth it!). They loved being able to have a shopping spree–something none of them had ever experienced.

As I talk about Helen’s to different groups of people, I am surprised by how many people are involved in some way with foster care. What I mean by surprised is that there are so many people involved, but it gets very little recognition at the state funding level. The people who are involved do so because they care and they want to help. Telling them about Helen’s is one way I can help. I also know that there are other organizations that help foster children and their families, but I really like the concept at Helen’s. It’s set up like a store which I think makes it seem more comfortable to the children who visit.

So, while it doesn’t take place in a classroom, being involved with Helen’s Hope Chest is one way I hope I am making a difference.

Mesa United Way