Week 1
Welcome back to the Spring Semester! This past week was a very busy week but it feels good to get back to into the groove of taking classes, studying, doing homework, and working. On Tuesday I started off the week by picking up a shift at the welcome desk from 3-4. On Tuesday and Thursday I have one class starting at 9:30 A.M. and another starting at 5:30 P.M. so this was a great way for me to snag an extra hour while already on campus. While working at the welcome desk, and just from being on campus Tuesday, I could tell it was the start of a new semester. It was very easy to spot the new students who were looking for their classrooms and were confused so I decided to ask them if they needed help finding their classrooms and showed them the way. There were 3 or 4 different students that I assisted, but one of the students that I helped while working the welcome desk was looking for their class in Progress Hall. They asked me where room 150 was and when I looked at the map and saw this was the One Stop office, I assured that they were looking for a classroom and not our OneStop/Financial Aid office. When they said they were looking for a classroom I then realized that their classroom must be in a different building. Sure enough I had the student pull out their schedule and it said their class was in Progress Hall. I then showed them that the first few words in front of the classroom number indicates what building the classroom is in and directed them to Progress Hall. I was just really glad that there was someone there to help this student because I can imagine how stressful and frustrating it was for them.
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On Wednesday I helped present at the Student Orientation Leader Information Session alongside Chris (The Orientation Program Coordinator) and Stephanie (another Student Ambassador). There were only a few students who showed up for the information session but it was still nice to meet a few more students who are interested in the position and give them more information about it. Stephanie and I will both be working as Student Orientation Coordinators this Spring and Summer and will be helping interview, select, and train the upcoming Student Orientation Leaders so we were very excited to meet some potential candidates.
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On Thursday I had my welcome desk shift bright and early before class from 8:30-9:30 A.M. and helped at the Bicentennial Celebration from 11 A.M. - 1 P.M. I was honestly amazed at how many cupcakes and pieces of cake the University was giving out to students and faculty. I helped pass out cupcakes, pieces of cake, and welcomed students that were walking by to come help themselves to some free dessert. I loved working this event because I too got to partake in the cake and cupcake eating and I was able to brighten other people's days by reaching out to them and inviting them to come up and grab cake and cupcakes. It was very evident that many students walked by and weren't sure what was going on but when they got invited to come get cake or cupcakes they were very eager and excited to join us.
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Of course this week wasn't filled with just work. This semester I am taking 7 classes which are a total of 15 credit hours. 3 of the classes that I am taking are online, and three of the classes are just one credit hour each because there are either lab classes or a short online course. One of the classes that I am taking in person is called Phonics. On the first day of class I honestly had never heard of Phonics and didn't have any idea what it meant. On the first day of class I learned that Phonics is a certain method for teaching children how to read and that throughout the course we will be learning about the many different ways to teach children how to read. This got me very interested in the class because I instantly realized that I could use what I learn in this course to help teach my 4 month old Niece how to read in year or so! Well that wraps up this first week, see you all next week!
Week 2
Hey folks, week 2 is over so that means it is time for an update. This past week was a very busy one, filled with lots of events and time spent doing homework and studying. This week was like a feeler for what the rest of the semester will be like and I realized that I must be on top of things and manage my time well to get all of my homework and projects done on time. This week I spent 2 hours at the welcome desk which is always fun. I enjoyed getting some homework done while I was there and also spent some time catching up with old friends as they walked by and approached me.
On Wednesday I spent 3 hours working the SOL tabling event trying to recruit Student Orientation Leaders for this upcoming summer. I felt like this event allowed me to have a big impact on the students of UC Blue Ash because I was able to inform and tell a lot of students about our Student Orientation Leader and Student Ambassador Position, which both have numerous benefits. My hope is that at least 5 of the students that I met and talked with actually applied.
To wrap up the week I attended UC Blue Ash's leadership retreat. The leadership retreat had a particular impact on me because I was able to learn more leadership skills and further understand what it means to be a true leader. Some of the things that were emphasized and I thought were really important was the value of listening and understanding your peers or the people you are leading, how leadership can be very different in different situations and positions, how to make ethical decisions as a leader, and that patience is key when leading a team. I consider myself to be a good leader but no one is perfect, and I don't know everything about being a leader, so I was glad to hear some new and different leadership techniques and styles.
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One of the courses that I am taking this semester is Physical Geology and Physical Geology Lab. Throughout the course this week, we studied plate tectonics and the history of our world. This week I learned a lot more about plate tectonics and how plate tectonics cause earthquakes and volcanoes to erupt.
Week 3
Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I started off last week working from 9am-4:30 at my job in the Swimsafe Pool Management Office and then attended the second Student Ambassador Monday meeting of the semester. On Tuesday I had class all day but I picked up two welcome desk shifts in between. I also picked up a welcome desk shift for Wednesday, but the campus was closed due to cold weather! On Thursday I had my scheduled welcome desk shift in the morning before class and also covered an event for a student ambassador who was ill and could not make it. On Friday I was scheduled to work the UC Smiles event but it ended up being cancelled because Norwood schools was on a delay that morning. I was upset that the event got cancelled but I was glad that I realized it was cancelled before driving all the way to the campus! Another class that I am taking this semester is Chemistry and Chemistry Lab. One of the things that I learned in these classes this week is what the different groups in the periodic table are named and why the periodic table is arranged the way it is. To wrap up the weekend I headed to Ohio University in Athens, Ohio to visit my brother for Siblings weekend!
Week 4
Hello everyone and welcome to Week 4's weekly blog. This past week was a little more laid back than previous weeks as there were not many events this week. As always I attended my welcome desk shift this week which is always fun. I also was scheduled to give a prospective student tour on Friday morning which was a blast. I really had a great time touring a larger group of students and their guests around the campus and showing them all of the great things UCBA has to offer! The only other Student Ambassador hours that I completed this week were from my 2 on 1 meeting with Alex and Meghan, the Student Ambassador Interns.
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With the lack of Ambassador hours needing filled this week I took the time to get ahead of textbook readings and assignments. Another one of the courses that I am taking this semester is called Teaching and Learning in Diverse Classrooms, which is a class to prepare future teachers on how to teach diverse groups of students. In the course this week we learned about culture and all of things that are included in a person's culture such as their morals, religion, traditions, language, social life etc.
Week 5
Wow I cannot believe that we are already one third of the way done with this semester! Time is flying by and it seems as if the semester just started back up again the other day. This past week started off with a Student Ambassador meeting on Monday evening and a small group of us Ambassadors meeting with Hawa after to help her plan The Escape Room event she is planning on campus this semester. After talking about it as a group I think it is going to be a ton of fun and I'm sure a lot of students will be super excited about it.
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On Tuesday I helped staff the African American read-in which was held outside of the auditorium in Muntz hall. This event allowed students and staff to sign up to read an excerpt of a book, sing part of a song, read part of a poem etc. that illustrated how African American Culture has affected them in their life. My primary responsibility was to set up and clean up the food that was catered for this event but after setting up before the event started I was able to sit back and relax and listen to some of my fellow students speak and perform to the audience of staff and students. Two of the students who I got to listen to were Hawa and Leo, who are also Student Ambassadors. They and all of the other students did great and it was really cool to hear them perform. A special guest was also present at the read in and her name was Carol Tongue Mack. Carol is an author of a book called "Being Bernadette, from Polite Science to Finding the Black Girl Magic within" which talks about her story as an African American Immigrant who traveled to America at a young age. Listening to Carol speak was very inspirational and one of the take-aways that I got from listening to her is that sometimes when things don't go exactly the way you want them to, it is for a good reason. One of her sayings to describe this is: "Sometimes a set-back is really a set up". Sometimes when something goes wrong it is actually setting you up to learn, grow, and overcome your challenges and put you on the path to success.
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Other than my weekly Welcome Desk shift the only other event that I worked this past week was UC Smiles. This is an event that UC Blue Ash hosts every other Friday where students from Cincinnati Public Schools can come to UC Blue Ash and get their teeth cleaned and other dental needs taken care of by our students studying Dental Hygiene. While the students are here we also teach them about proper dental care and what foods and drinks they should avoid in order to keep their teeth as healthy as possible. The students also get to hear a presentation from one of our admissions staff members and learn about the benefits of going to college and how affordable UC Blue Ash is compared to other colleges. This event was a lot of fun and I look forward to helping out at the ones in the future.
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As I mentioned earlier one of the classes that I am taking this semester is Physical Geology. In Physical Geology this week we learned about what sediments are, how sedimentary rocks are formed, and what the rock cycle is. In the lab class this week, we were given a sample of 10 different rocks and had to identify them based on their distinguishing characteristics such as color, hardness, and what minerals it is composed of.
Week 6
This past week was a pretty slow one in regards to working as a Student Ambassador. Other than my normal welcome desk shift and a welcome desk pick up shift, the only other hours that I worked as an Ambassador this week was at the Allied Heath Career Center visit on Friday from 9am-1pm. This event was hosted by UC Blue Ash's Allied Health program and they allow local high school students and students from career schools to come and visit UC Blue Ash for the day and learn about the different health programs that we offer here such as Dental Hygiene, Nursing, Pre-health education, and Radation Technology. My main purpose at this event was to help set up for the event, greet and welcome the incoming students, assist them in getting to and from the different conference style breakout sessions, and serve lunch. Overall this event was a lot of fun and I was lucky enough to score a few pieces of pizza for lunch after serving all of the students.
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In the Phonics course that I am taking this semester we learned about the different short and long vowel sounds and how so many different letter combinations can make the same sounds and this one reason young children have trouble learning to spell. After learning about this I realized how complicated the English language can be and can really understand why people who do speak English as their first language have trouble learning it.
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After the event that I worked on Friday I packed up my Jeep Wrangler for the weekend and headed to Oliver Springs, Tennessee for a offroading and camping trip to a huge offroad park and campground called Windrock. We may have gotten soaked from all of the rain but it was all worth it the end.
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Week 7
Hello everyone and welcome to Week 7's reflection. This past week was a very busy week for me although I only worked one event this week. The event that I worked was Open House on Thursday and my primary duty during Open House was giving tours. Although it was quite chilly, I still really enjoyed giving tours and informing prospective students about all of the great things about UC Blue Ash and all of the resources that we have to offer. Other than Open House the only other Ambassador hours that I worked this week was my welcome desk shift. I also helped work on Project Thank You card this week and signed thank you cards and addressed envelopes to be sent out to scholarship donors thanking then for their donation.
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This past week I also interviewed many Student Orientation Leaders for their second round of interviews which were one on one.I also attended the 2019 NODA annual conference this weekend along with the other SOCs. I met a lot of new people and learned a lot from the different breakout sessions that I attended and I cannot wait to implement what I learned into our future orientation programs and Student Orientation Leader training.
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This past week in my Chemistry lab class we learned about different separation techniques and how to calculate percent recovery. Separation techniques are used to separate different kinds of materials such as liquids and solids that are mixed together. In the lab class this week we were given a mixture of sand and sugar and had to find a way to separate the sand from the sugar and recover as much of it as possible. Percent recovery is a formula that is used to determine how much of your original solution was recovered and separated after using the different separation techniques.
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Week 8
Creating this post for week 8 made me realize once again how fast this semester is going by and how I really need to start working on my Final Projects because they will be due before I know it! This past week I did not work very many hours as a Student Ambassador and only worked one event which was the English Conversation Group's talent show. This event was a ton of fun and I am so glad that I signed up to help with this event. My favorite part of the talent show was seeing Hawa (a fellow Student Ambassador), Jercell (a previous Student Orientation Leader and Ambassador) and Molly (the Coordinator of Inclusion and Involvement at UCBA) all perform. The only other event that I worked this week was my welcome desk shift which is always great.
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This past week in my Physical Geology Lab class we learned how to read and create Topographical maps. I loved learning about this because Topographical maps are commonly used for National and State Forest maps where I like to explore. My knowledge of this information will definitely be used while planning out expeditions into the backcountry and I am so happy to see the content of this class relating to my personal hobbies.
Week 9
Hello everyone, here is my weekly update for Week 9! This past week the only campus event that I worked was the poetry cafe. At the poetry cafe I helped welcome our guests, passed out the event's program, set up and cleaned up the food that was served, and listened to some amazing poetry. I was also lucky enough to listen to Hawa (a fellow Student Ambassador) and Jercell (a former Student Ambassador) perform their song once again. This week we were scheduled to have a Student Ambassador meeting on Monday but it was cancelled due to other Ambassador's conflicts and so many Ambassadors working the Poetry Cafe during the meeting time. Other than the Poetry Cafe the only other hours I worked this past week as a Student Ambassador was my 1 hour welcome desk shift on Thursday morning. Although I didn't work many hours as Student Ambassador this week I did work about 15 hours working with Swimsafe Pool Management, the company that I have been working with almost four years now. I also worked about 5 hours as a Student Orientation Coordinator this week and worked on setting up the schedule for the Student Orientation Leader Training sessions that are coming up here within the next couple of weeks. I also spent a lot of time this past week getting all of my homework and projects done before I left for Orlando, Florida on Saturday morning. This was my first time ever flying on an airplane and it was a blast!
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This past week in the Phonics course that I am taking we learned about the different stages of orthographic development and about word study, which is a method to help students learn about word patterns and spellings. We also learned about Dyslexia and all of the challenges that students with Dyslexia face throughout their educational career. Although I am studying Middle School Education this information will still be very applicable to when I am a teacher and will help me teach my students in a more effective way.
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Week 10
Hello everyone and welcome to Week 10's blog post. Its hard to believe that this semester is already two-thirds of the way over and that there is only 5 weeks left in the semester. This past week I worked roughly over 8 hours as a Student Ambassador and got the opportunity to work a really cool event. To start off the week we had our Student Ambassador bi-weekly meeting which was our first meeting in a few weeks due to Spring Break and other conflicts. It was really nice to see everyone again and to work with the whole team all at once. After the meeting about half of us also met with Hawa to help her plan her upcoming event. Hawa is holding an event where our students can sign up and participate in a Escape Room challenge right here on UC Blue Ash's campus. During the meeting we were told that our college needed a last minute coverage on Tuesday at the Welcome Desk for 3 and a half hours. I quickly checked my calendar and saw that I had nothing planned for that time period and volunteered for the extra hours.
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We also had a event request from a faculty member in the Nursing Department for a Student Ambassador to help with a nursing simulation. I also volunteered for this event and I am so glad that I did. Basically my role during the Nursing Simulation was to ask as a patient in the hospital and act like I was having issues breathing. I was given a scenario card that told me what to do depending on how the nurse's reacted at first. The faculty member that I met with before told me that she really wanted me to get into it and try to be as realistic as possible. This was right up my alley because as a Lifeguard Instructor I must teach the new lifeguards about first aid and to do this I have 2 lifeguards come to the front of the class and one of them is the victim and the other is the lifeguard. I then whisper to the victim what they are going to act out and the lifeguard must react to whatever the scenario is and help the victim appropriately. Being the victim for this simulation was a ton of fun and I also was able to help the nursing students with their practice. After the scenario was over, I was asked to debrief with the nurses and tell them the things that they did well and the things that they can improve upon.
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Other than my normal welcome desk shift on Thursday morning these were the only hours that I worked. I did however help out the cafeteria by helping them with a special task that they requested from Hawa while talking with her a few days prior. Our cafe recently started serving custom sandwiches and they wanted the students to notice them so they asked Hawa to hang up some balloons for them in front of the "New Custom Sandwiches" sign. Since Hawa was not on campus anytime Thursday she asked me if I would be willing to do it and I was happy to help.
This past week in my Chemistry class we are learning about solubility rules and what kinds of elements and compounds are able to dissolve in water and other solutions.
Week 11
Every week that I update my blog it just shocks me that this semester is so close to coming to an end. With this semester being so close to over I am very relieved that I am already very close to meeting the 90 hour requirement that I must work as a Student Ambassador. This past week the only other event that I worked other than my normal welcome desk shift was UC Blue Ash's open house on Saturday. This was the last Open House of semester and it was a lot of fun to work with all of the Student Ambassadors and meet lots of new people. During Open House I was the tour table the majority of the event and I gave multiple tours of the campus to different groups of potential students and their guests. After working all summer as a SOL and giving multiple tours as a Student Ambassador I feel really comfortable giving tours of the campus and I really like telling the guests about the amazing things that UC Blue Ash has to offer such as our Student Ambassador Program and the Academic Support Labs on campus. At the end of Open House as we were all cleaning up I even gave a future student and his mom an individualized tour of the campus because they missed all of the other campus tours throughout the Open House.
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This week in a class that I am taking called Teaching and Learning in Diverse Clasrooms we learned about the Women's Civil Rights movement. One of the assignments this week was for some students and I make a timeline from 1970 to present that showed different events that were significant to Women's Civil Rights. This was honestly an eye opening experience for me because it is crazy to think how much our laws and society has changed over the past 50 years.
Week 12
I just can't believe the semester is so close to being over! It has been such a fun time and it has really flown by. This past week started off with the second to last Student Ambassador meeting of the year! On Tuesday I served on a Student Panel that allowed prospective students a chance to ask UC Blue Ash students about what it is like to go to school at UC Blue Ash and how college is different than high school. I also signed up to clean out one of the storage closets on the 2nd floor of Muntz Hall on Tuesday evening. Since they will be doing renovations up there soon everything on the floor has to be moved to a different location. We ended up carrying lots of different items to another storage room on the first floor but I ended up being able to take home a cool souvenir after. While cleaning out the closet we found a large box of UC Blue Ash fold up camping/lawn chairs and since there were so many and they weren't being used I was given permission to take one home! This honestly made my day because I go camping all the time and I will put it to good use. Other than my normal welcome desk shift the only other event I worked this past week was the Veteran's Cookout which was on Saturday. This event was a ton of fun and it may have been my favorite event of the year. Although working the event was a lot of work, I also had a ton of fun playing Volleyball with the other Ambassadors and messing around on the National Guard inflatable obstacle course. I hope that UC Blue Ash hosts another Veteran's cookout in the future because it was a blast.
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This past week in my Chemistry class we have been learning about solutions and acids. We are learning about what kinds of elements do and do not dissolve in water and how acids are formed. Chemistry has required me to study a lot and do lots of homework outside of class but it has been worth it so far because I still have an A in the class and will hopefully finish with an A as well!