Hixson Blog #12 - 

    In class last week, we have a lecturer discuss diversity over ice cream. Towards the end of the class the speaker displayed photos of a woman and man and had us characterize how we felt or viewed their image. For the most part, responses were what I expected. Some classmates put down the typical denigrating stereotypes. One student, in my opinion, put a couple of offensive terms up. For the most part however, I felt the group was even-keel in their descriptions based on what they could possibly know from a picture of a model on the screen during a diversity lecture.

   I live in Iowa. It is a fairly white, middle-class state. For the most part, myself and other Iowa State students included are not exposed to as much to diversity as we would at other colleges it seems. This can be a problem at times. Unfamiliarity breeds uncertainty and can perpetuate stereotypes. The naive rural Iowan in me often overlooks the most basic physical differences. I'd like to think it does not matter what your racial background is or your sexual preference or anything along those lines. But dealing with diversity is something everyone needs to be accustomed too. Too often do bad things happen because someone puts an irrelevant difference into the spotlight and uses a difference to denigrate that someone's overall being.  

Hixson Blog #11 

    In class this week, we talked about ethics and strategy for good practice. There was something particularly awesome about the presentation of this chapter in the Hixson book... might have been the presenters or something but who knows... Anyway, the lesson focused on dealing with situations in which there may or may not be an obvious "right" answer. These situations involve dealing with alcohol, professionalism, and relationships as a small subset of potentially difficult decision-making situations. 

    One of the hardest parts of freshmen year to me was figuring out what was the right thing to be doing. As a freshmen, I really had no guiding compass other than the beliefs and values I carried over from my parents and pre-college life. At times, college can be a quite adept at putting new students into situations where knowing the right thing to do may or may not be apparent. College can often confuse one's moral compass. I was in environments in which I had never been in and some of them I wish I hadn't. I believe, after looking back, I made correct and ethical decisions most of the time. But, I could have used a lecture or a reading like this past weeks to help me think of all the consequences and outcomes of the decisions I make. I never thought about potential employers looking at my facebook a few years ago or my thoughts were never about anything more than what lie a weekend away. I truly hope that I can use this lecture in my seminar next year to maybe even help one student make a potentially life-altering decision for the better.

Hixson Blog #10 

     There really isn't too much to talk about in this week's blog. In class we worked on our digital story telling project.  From the look of things, it appears we have nearly all, if not all, filming done. At this point, we need to finish editing and applying background music.  It was a shock to me to hear that a few Hixson videos from last year were taken down for copyrighted material. Next year I will have to make sure to tell my Hixson class about using copyrighted music or video material. 

     This week, Easten and I have our Hixson presentation. I'll give you a sneak peek and say its about Ethics but other than that, you'll have to find out in person....

Hixson Blog #9 - 

     Spring Break and back again - so much has happened since my last blog. This Sunday, our Hixson group covered two major requirements set out in our syllabus:  the digital story telling project and lesson plans. Before meeting with Silas, I believe nearly everyone from class met to finalize the acting scenes set out in our movie. Sebastian and the other writers have done a great job making a workable script and Easten has done fabulous work in putting everything together. I had a lot of fun filming a scene where I got to be a henchman. With the exception of the karate chop from Jame Bond/Dane that sent me spiraling to the ground, filming was finished without a hitch. I believe we're now moving to the editing portion so hopefully we're getting close to a finished product.

    The latter half of the day was devoted to working with Silas on our lesson plans. If i'm not mistaken, I will need to have five completed before the end of the semester. One will come from my in-class lesson plan (I present next Wednesday fyi ), two will come from what I've done so far, and i'll have to scrounge two other ones up from somewhere. We focused on building a practical and workable lesson plan. One thing I learned to do was to have a grid style layout and include time estimates. It's always good to have backup plan in case I go too short on time. I can't imagine I'll have a day lecturing where I talk too much, but then again I've been known to ramble. The semester's end is within sight and its time to get everything in order to finish strong and have a solid foundation to work off of for next fall.

Hixson Blog #8 - 

     Tonight we had the etiquette dinner at the Memorial Union. It was, in my opinion, one of the best Hixson events we've had to date. We started off with a brief mix and mingle before being seated. I never really heard the ladies name (Artie???), but she had so many tips and suggestions. I was surprised something as seemingly insignificant as a dinner interview could be towards displaying to prospective employers attributes about myself. I've had a few formal dinners in my life, but never anything amounting to this level. 

    We learned about silverware placement, situational faux pas, mild mannerisms, and about presenting a strong and confident appearance to a host/employer. I've always been taught no alcohol at any work-related or formal event. I never knew how to set my silverware and where to begin. Can you believe it's most appropriate to chew at least 9 times on every single bite? Grab with the right hand and pass with the left - make sure to pass left to right though. Don't rip off the tops of any sugar packet or creamer, set your coffee cup in a specific place if you want coffee. Don't have your desert fork in the correct position? Well, then no desert for you. 

     There were so many things tonight which have been greatly beneficial to me. Some people feel a dinner interview is a time to relax and feel more confident. While the confidence part remains, your level of concentration and etiquette should be as much as you can give if you find yourself in this situation. I know now that before I go on any dinner interview with a potential boss I will review some of the things I learned tonight.

Hixson Blog #7 - 

    The first part of class this week was devoted to partner communication. To do this one partner had to guide the other partner, who was blindfolded, through an obstacle course. This event was symbolic of the need to have beneficial and purposeful communication when working together. Without adequate communication, a Hixson Peer Mentor group could be blind. In the sense of the obstacle course, this was expressed both figuratively and literally. Dylan and I worked well together. We would have been the first ones down with the obstacle course, but no amount of communication can overcome my disability of clumsiness caused by my height. 

     For the second part of the class we did a brief activity that involved flipping a blanket over but the blanket had 14 people on it. To do this, we had to further practice our communication skills and it involved a lot of group game planning and probably a little bit of rule-bending. Everyone got to know each other a little bit more up close and personal before the game was up.

    And for some reason, we finished off the night with a game of telephone pictionary. This game maybe illustrates how our messages can be misconstrued when they are passed from person-to-person. Another hypothesis - maybe we're not that great at drawing as a class. Regardless, I got a good laugh at my duck evolving into an alien autopsy(?) somehow. Class was cut a bit short at the end but I'm sure we'll go over it all this next Wednesday. I'm once again looking forward to another interesting Hixson class  this week.

Hixson Blog #6 - 

    In class this week, we had activities focusing on problem solving as a unit and a separate survey about leadership personalities. For the first half of class, we focused on Chapter 5 in our book which entails, "Problem Solving with Individuals." The class was split into groups of twos and every group was given a different task in which they had to work together to achieve a goal. One group had to build with play-doh, another (very lucky group) got to play super Mario, and in my group we had to create a story by alternating words. It was difficult in that it took a lot of effort to create a simple story. Michael and I did a good job and appeared to work well as a unit. This task was important because as peer mentors next semester, we will be called upon to problem solve with others and not just handle everything 'lone-wolf' style ourselves. 

     The second part of class was devoted to understanding different conflict management styles. I took a brief survey and after tallying my results, I was determined to be a collaborating conflict manager. This type of individual seeks win-win solutions where both parties are satisfied. This style works well in long-term relationships and when varying concerns are too important to be compromised. I feel this may be the best fitting conflict management style heading into next fall. My second highest score was accommodating. This means I have a tendency to shy away from conflict if I have no strong interests in the decision and mainly want to promote group harmony. I believe an accommodating conflict management style works well when trying to solve a lot of life's little problems. I feel it is best not to get too worked up or something if it isn't important to me.

Hixson Peer Mentor Blog #5 - 

    First off, sorry about being a little slow on the blog post. I had a death in the family this week that kept me away from home for a few days. Moving on, this week we had a discussion over chapter 4 in our "Students Helping Students" book. The topic this week was over interpersonal communication skills. 

    The chapter was mainly about distinguishing when it is appropriate to give advice and when it is necessary to engage in an interpersonal dialogue. This chapter is important because we, as peer mentors, will have to be able to realize whether advice or interpersonal communication is needed. As mentioned by the book, advice giving is easy. As upperclassmen, a lot of the things the 2012 Hixsons may ask us about  in class next year may be simple things or simple questions which we can readily answer off of our own prior experiences. These types of questions will allow us to provide our insights and past dealings and translate them into advice. What to do for a certain class or where to go for this or that service will be things we can easily offer sound advice for. I'm not expecting any difficulties with advice giving.

    What needs to be focused on, and to be prepared for, is more difficult. Not every aspect of our interactions next semester will be advice giving. To truly connect with our classes next fall we will be necessitated to engage in something more difficult - interpersonal dialogue. Past mentors can articulate the need to actually listen and talk and interact in a more meaningful way. Problems will arise and as peer mentors, we should expect our students to want to talk to us about difficulties they are going through - difficulties which do not need advice but something more. We can be considered successful peer mentor educators if we can offer an outlet or a vent or some semblance of trustworthy figure who can be utilized to solve the unforeseen challenges the transition to college will assuredly create.

Weekly Blog #4 - 

     In class this week, we talked about identifying with other cultures and dealing with cultural diversity in class.  It's a topic that should be readily addressed. Sometimes the topic of cultural diversity is avoided - at least it seems that way in Iowa where exposure to other cultures can be limited at times. Nonetheless, from the book we learned a few of the obstacles to cultural proficiency as well as a few strategies to move past these boundaries. 

     Lack of knowledge about other cultures is often the predominant factor or instigator to culture-based problems. Our Hixson book recommends establishing common grounds when dealing with these situations. The second obstacle involves being unaware of majority privileges. I know at Iowa State, where most students are of European ancestry and from middle to upper class families, we can become oblivious to some advantages we may have simply by being the majority. It is only when we try to empathize with those who may seem different from us, that we can truly begin to understand the many different cultures represented at Iowa State. Lastly, the book identified believing things should remain as they are as an obstacle to cultural proficiency. Unfortunately, many people in this world are intolerant to other cultures and diversity being presented into areas with strongly defined norms and procedures. This can't be an excuse. We all have to be open to new experiences with others who may not see the world in the same light we do. 

    I have been fortunate enough to travel to a few different continents and even live abroad for a while. I feel like I have had a good amount of life experiences with other cultures; but, this has only made me realize how truly little I know of the rest of the world. We all need to be willing to explore the similarities and differences amongst cultures and to be careful and hospitable when someone new may come into our lives.

Week #3 Blog - 

    In class this week, we broke down our MBTI personality evaluations. Compared to freshmen year, the results I got back were a lot more in-depth and descriptive. I became a little more appreciative of the MBTI test this past week - I had my reservations about it before. The test described me as introspective, logical, pressure prompted, contained and spontaneous. I'd have to agree with most of these things. Underneath the data graphs, there were descriptions of how these traits are expressed or can be realized. I found most of them quite insightful. For the introvert v. extrovert test, I was labeled as a moderate introvert but I always felt that description wasn't covering the full range of my personality. There was a special section however which listed me as "always wanted to be near the action." At that point I was a believer in the test. Hopefully I can use this test as a basis to further understand myself, as well as others, and utilize my strengths next fall. 

     On Saturday, I went to the ISLE event at the Memorial Union. The entire seminar was on leadership training and working with others. The keynote speaker did a great job of identifying character traits of leaders through movie clips. His energy level was incredibly high and it clearly left an impact on his audience. He obviously knows the qualities it takes to be a well-refined leader. Above all else though, it was a refreshing presentation compared to the typical character building seminars I've remembered from high school. A strong leader can have many traits but the true measure of a leader is someone who can inspire and bring out the best in others. This is my task as a future Peer Mentor.

Blog #2 - Reflection on discussions and MBTI

    For class this week, we talked about potential situations which might arise during our fall seminar classes. A lot of these had to do with  typical questions freshmen have asked in previous seminars over the years. I found some of them to be very thought provoking. I often think that college students have similar mindsets. We go to college for a degree and whatever happens along the way is the subject of chance, our own personalities and life stories, and a little bit of everything in-between. I guess at this point in my college career, I had somehow forgotten some of the most basic questions and thoughts I had when I was a freshmen. Wednesday night brought back a few of these memories. 

    Time management, no parental constraints, and suddenly the opportunity to pick any career path definitely intimidates many newcomers to college. I was no exception to this. I had experienced new schools and moving over high school but there is a large difference from these situations and college. I'm glad we covered this aspect of being a peer mentor in class. Dealing with some of the questions posed is definitely a job requirement for a peer mentor.

    I also completed the MBTI questionnaire last week. I have always held reservations about those sorts of personality tests. I understand that different people are introverted or extroverted, or detail-oriented or "always on the fly." I understand I will be working with people who vary across the personality spectrum. However, I find it hard to believe that I am a certain type of person because I chose the term "warm" over "justice" in many similar posited questions. I find the "are you this or this" questions to be irrelevant and not taking the situation into account. That's all for this week.

Week #1 –

            I wanted to become a peer mentor because the Hixson scholarship gave me the opportunity to go to Iowa State University. I felt it was necessary in order to give back to a program which gave me so much. But this was not the only reason. The experiences and leadership training a position such as this provides will be greatly beneficial down the road in life and in any career path.

            My knowledge of the qualities it takes to be a strong peer mentor have only come from observation so far. I was lucky enough to have my two mentors – Ben and Leah. They were excellent at guiding my freshmen class and there was a night-and-day difference between them compared to the Freshmen Honors Program I was also in at the time. They were the perfect combination it seemed.

            Currently, I have no real knowledge or personal experiences at Iowa State with any peer mentor positions. This one will be my first it seems. In order to counter this, I will have to pay extra attention and be especially considerate to the readings provided within the “Students Helping Students” book. I understand it will be a gradual and time intensive process to fully come into my own in regards to the peer mentor position. Thankfully, the book provides tips for the maturation process which will ease my adjustment heading into the fall.

It will be imperative that I identify my strengths and weaknesses, and apply my strengths while improving my weaknesses to help me help others when I will have my own Hixson seminar. Reading will not be my only source of help and insights in this learning process however. I trust the seminars on Wednesday nights in addition to our scheduled retreats will help prepare me for the role I am slowly learning I will assume.