Farwell Alfred

I am feeling very sad while writing this editorial because I do not want to say goodbye to Alfred State College. The experiences and opportunities I have had in my three years here have shaped who I am. The maturity, personal growth, and intelligence I have gained has been fantastic to experience. My first time coming here I was not sure what my goals were, but I now know what I want in my life. I have achieved being a leader, being comfortable in my own skin, confidence in myself, gained many close friends I can rely on, learned how to find resources to be “in the know,” feel connected with the college and community members, found my inner passions, gained confidence talking to people without pressure or fear, finding out who I really am, and what makes me truly happy. Becoming editor of the Tor Echo has improved my writing skills, fulfilled a bucket list moment, and I cannot thank Dr. Quinn enough for this amazing opportunity. I will be graduating from Alfred State College knowing that it is a place that I consider my home away from home.

Get Real with It Seeking Opportunities While at Alfred

Get Real with It is a new program started by Taquon Middletown and Nickie Hockenberry. The program’s goal is to inspire minority students to be successful and take advantage of opportunities while at Alfred by hearing the inspirational stories of guest speakers. The first session was held on February 26^th and is a bi-weekly program. Taquon was one of the first speakers because he is one of the cofounders of the program. When Taquon came to Alfred he made partying, drinking, and illegal activities his main priority. He got arrested often and did not focus on academics. Kim Williams noticed his behavior and encouraged him to get his life turned around. He started going to counseling sessions, made goals and priorities, and keeps a positive attitude. He has a new mindset. He has worked really hard, got his grades up, got a job on campus, and received scholarships to spend a semester abroad.

Another guest speaker at this event was Thomas Daniels. Thomas grew up in the Bronx. His mother was a single parent and the mother of seven children. His dad was not involved in his life because he was incarcerated. To protect his family, Thomas joined a gang. When he was 16 his friend was shot in the back of the head and as he lay dying he asked “why me?” Thomas watched his friend die and became angry because he felt that the world lost a really good person. He was encouraged to go to college and came to Alfred. When he first arrived, he was very angry, not expressive, and did not open up. He then decided to make changes when he started counseling. He started working, volunteering, and excelling.

Alfred provides many opportunities for college students. Talking to people, joining clubs, and getting your name out there can be the best opportunities to accomplish dreams. There are people here who truly care about the students. Discover who you are, vent feelings, and take full advantage of the opportunities here like Taquon and Daniel. “I believe that anything is possible, believing starts within yourself. The opinions of others have no value, just believe. You have to want success as much as your next breath,” Taquon commented. 

Son of Holocaust Survivor’s Talk

Murray Deutsch recently visited Alfred State College and did a presentation about his family’s experiences during WWII. His parents were born in Czechoslovakia, which is known today as Ukraine. His dad was a traveling teacher and his mother was rich, spoiled, owned property and lived on a farm. After graduating high school his mother went to Budapest to attend college and worked as a wig maker. She was a social butterfly and networked with many people. As time passed it became common knowledge that an event, later known as the Holocaust, was occurring. The Holocaust began because Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Third Reich, had convinced the German populace that they were a superior race. The goal of the Holocaust was to target and methodically irradiate mass numbers of Jewish descendents to create a superior race. This irradiation would create expanded opportunities for German leadership and living regions for the new German race. The Holocaust occurred predominately during WWII, from 1941-1945. This genocide became known as the largest in modern history.

 It became obvious to his mother and father that the Jewish population was being targeted. They feared that they would be transported by freight train to specially built extermination camps where, if they survived the journey, they would be systematically killed in gas chambers. His mother and father needed to become creative to be able to survive. Because of her social connections his mother was saved because others assisted her to become a nun in disguise. She worked in a hospital that fronted as providing health care, but actually took in people that were Jewish to hide them from the Nazi’s control and extermination. His dad however was captured and placed in a labor concentration camp and was continuously in fear that he would die. He noticed a huge pile of trash in the middle of the camp and he decided to crawl underneath it and hide for three days and nights. After hearing that the fighting and yelling had ceased, he crawled out and slipped out of the camp and headed towards Budapest. He eventually escaped to the refugee hospital where he met his future wife, the nun. They fell in love and were married a short time later.

After the war ended they traveled back to her childhood home but found it occupied by another family and were told to leave. This was not uncommon for survivors to not be able to recover their own personal property after surviving the war. They had nowhere to live, but they heard about survivor refugee camps located in Turio, Italy, where his parents relocated and lived for a few years. During their time there they had two children, his brother and himself. During their time in Italy they repeatedly applied for paperwork to move the United States and eventually arrived in the States.    

“It’s On Us” Campaign Movement on Alfred State Campus

Alfred State College began partnering with the White House and The Generation Project last semester for the campaign entitled “It’s On Us.” The goal of this campaign is to “promote being an empowered bystander and sending the message that it is truly on all of us to help eradicate sexual violence on college campuses,” according to Nikkie Hockenberry, coordinator of Equity, Inclusion, and Title IX located at Alfred State. The college recently showed the film It Happened Here during Ally week. The film was followed by a question and answer session with the producer Marjorie Schwartz Nielsen and one of the subjects of the documentary, Sarah O'Brien. The movie explored sexual assault on campuses through the personal testimonials of five survivors from three schools along with testimonials from college administrators, educators, mental health experts and legal scholars. The video featured many students, faculty, and staff talking about how the rape culture needs to end. The students described surviving a sexual assault and how that when they reported the crime, people’s reactions were disbelief, blame, and encouraged them to forgive and forget.

Sarah is a Vanderbilt University student athlete who has mobilized other survivors and activists at staged events, such as Take Back the Night and The Clothesline Project. She presented a list of demands to Vanderbilt deans that have led to a revision of Vanderbilt’s policies. Sarah said that the purpose of releasing the film was to change intervention strategies at college campuses, empower people to tell their stories and make change.

These students went to college excited and ready to find their independence. It is a time in a student’s life where they seek new experiences, make lasting friendships, find out where they belong, and discover their passions. Experiencing a sexual assault robs them of enjoying college to the fullest. As a result of the attack they had panic attacks, did not feel safe, experienced anxiety, felt isolated, had difficulty concentrating, and their grades dropped. 85% of rape incidents are committed by perpetrators that the people know. “The worst part is knowing that my friend did it,” said Erica Daniels.  

“It’s On Us”, hence the name of the campaign, seeks to create a safe environment for people who have been victim to sexual assaults on college campuses and offer them support. It is on us to not blame the victim, not to look the other way, step in, help someone get home safely, and take responsibility. According to assaults that have been reported, 1 in 5 college students are sexually assaulted. This is not just a woman’s issue because men can be assaulted as well. 100% of the time it is not the victim’s fault. Rape victims are the highest percentage of victims that experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), more than any other group.

Alfred State shows support for the “It’s on Us” campaign through activities such as Take Back the Night. This year during Take Back the Night the Chief of University Police Leslie Kachurek talked about the free services that the campus police offer to all Alfred State students. They offer referrals, change of room assignments, escort services, counseling on and off campus, judicial affairs actions, arrests, and order of protections. During the event the “It’s on Us” Alfred State video was shown.

There are many things that a person can do to stand up against sexual assault; obtain clear, verbal consent, respect a person’s right to say no, sign a pledge to commit to intervene, educate yourself and others on the issues, advocate for more rape prevention education programs, youth violence prevention programs, participate in a Take Back the Night march, and avoid blaming the victim. Their experiences showed how they turned their tragedy into a springboard for change.

Exam 1

1   1.  Compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the associates in Human Services practicum and the bachelor’s in Human Services Management practicum in terms of roles and expectations.

In the 104 practicum it was all very basic level. It was a lot of observing and taking notes, not a lot of action involved. In the 400 hour internship people are more open to a person doing their own thing, learning more skills, receiving more leadership positions, and more power but in a good way. I feel like I can really take the reins in the 400 hour internship. In my 104 internship I found it boring because I wasn’t doing too much.

2  2. Compare and contrast the roles and expectations of teachers and students in the traditional classroom and seminar models of learning.

The traditional classroom model includes the instructor has the most to contribute, there are many students/one instructor, students and instructor blame each other when things go wrong, and the group is a collection of individuals.

The seminar model includes everyone has something to contribute, all are instructors, all are learners, students and instructors have collective responsibility, and the group is necessary to the accomplishment of learning goals.

3 3. Personal reflection is a key activity in experiential education. Describe Kolb’s Experiential Leaning Cycle and what tools you are using to incorporate reflection in your practicum learning experience.

Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle has 4 steps concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. Concrete conceptualization is having a specific experience in an internship. Reflective observation is reflecting on the experience. Reflection is what connects and integrates the service to learning. Reflection helps a person grow, have success, learn, and develop. The tools a person would use would be observation, and documentation in a journal to learn from it or challenge them to solve a problem. Abstract conceptualization is to form generalizations or principles based on the experience and reflection. Active experimentation is to test the principle in a new situation.

44. We were introduced to Kiser’s Integrative Processing Model in the associate’s practicum seminar and the Kiser model is cited once again in our current text. As a manager conducting in-service training for your staff, how would you describe the Kiser Model and suggest applications in your agency setting?

The Kiser processing model is important in training and future endeavors in this agency. Step one is gathering data from a past experience, step 2 is reflecting, step 3 is seeking out knowledge to help you understand, step 4 examine conflict, step 5 what did you learn, and step 6 develop a plan. These are excellent skills for trying to figure out how to solve a problem and keeping future hardships from happening.

55. Our text identifies five sources of personal power that are essentials for empowerment. Again, as a manager leading your staff, how would you describe the five sources of personal empowerment and identify ways of applying them in your agency setting?

The power of expectations will be helpful in this agency because of the specific guidelines of your job.

I expect you to be hard working, follow through on commitments in a timely manner, have a positive attitude, and do the best job possible.  

The power of perspective is how we look at things. We are all unique and seeking to understand something in its full context before becoming judgmental and discovering blind spots in your schema can help prevent disagreements.

The power of discussion can bring out concerns with the manager about issue you may have at the agency. Talking reasonably with the manger can help create realistic solutions to issues.

The power of humor can help us cope, get through stress, and make us feel uplifted, encouraged, and empowered. This makes us better workers and helpers in all ways. This helps us keep an open mind to new experience.  

The power of language helps someone have an open mind when reflecting on an experience. A bad experience can help learn certain skills and help us see how we deal with people. This can help us understand that constructive criticism is effective.

The power of mindfulness is being fully aware of what we are doing and doing it well. This is a hard concept to do in this world especially if one is not really good with time management but can be developed over time.

66.  The Developmental Stage Model of an Internship includes five developmental stages. Reflecting on your agency, cite the five stages and select two associated concerns and response strategies that you see as most relevant to your setting, and state your reasoning for selecting them.

The four stages of internship are anticipation, exploration, competence, and culmination. Two concerns that I had for the anticipation stage was my internship hours and what I could do with it. How I responded to this was by calling Tricia before the start of the internship and discussing it. She reassured me about I could do and I now know that the hours are not a concern anymore.

Two concerns I have with the exploration stage is staying on track with the learning goals, and seeking feedback. How I responded to staying on track is check my goals daily. How I can respond to seeking feedback is taking the extra effort to talk to Tricia and check in. She encourages me when she sees me and this is how I know if I meet her expectations.

I don’t have any concerns about the competence stage because I am well matured in all the areas. I continue to grow in all the areas. I trust myself, and supervisor, I see myself as a professional, I have a solid platform from what I expect from myself, I don’t really feel any pressure from meeting commitments, I seek quality,  and I feel empowered by working hard and completing objectives. I raise the bar by challenging myself in my internship.

Two concerns I have with the culmination stage is ending the internship and leaving Alfred. I love my internship, the experiences I have had at Alfred and the personal growth in myself I have achieved.  I will miss leaving the international students, friends, and connections I have made. I will respond to this my savoring every moment and saying farewell.  Leaving Alfred will be very hard for me because even though I see myself as a professional I still don’t think I am ready to leave yet. I think I could mature so much more than I have and I don’t feel ready. I am just starting to feel competent is my skills, connections, and social experiences. I don’t really know how I will responded to this but I will have to try to make the best of it and graduate.

77. Weinstein has developed a sentence completion technique to help us identify our own reaction patterns.  The sentence is:

Whenever I’m in a situation where I feel angry about a friend, I usually experience feelings of anxiety and self-doubt. The things I tell myself are take it easy. It’s not that bad. There is probably a good explanation and besides you don’t want to upset him. What I typically do is smile, joke, or protest very weakly. Afterwards, I feel as if I let us both down. What I wish I could do instead is find a clear, respectful way to tell my friend what is upsetting me.

           Complete the sentence and then identify what you believe to be the sources of your reaction patterns.

The source of my reaction patterns stem from maturity. When I was younger my reactions were very in mature and not really reflective on what really was happening. Now that I have matured way more than I was in high school my reactions are slower, more thoughtful, and I don’t jump to conclusions. I let people know how I feel that is appropriate.

88. Our personal cultural identity is constructed from many sources including family, peer group, community, religion, and nation. Describe at least two work settings when that cultural identity may be an asset and two where it may present challenges.

My cultural identity might be an asset is white privilege in getting a promotion, and I can do well in a challenging situation without being called a credit to my race.

My cultural identity may cause challenges in being a women receiving less pay than a man for the same work. Another one is the stereotype of being a women only wanting to be in a women related field like nursing.

99. Our bachelor’s learning contract introduces an additional dimension to professional development to include civic development. What are civic development goals? Give examples of civic learning objectives to meet civic learning goals in academic learning, democratic citizenship learning, and diversity learning.

     

Civic development goals are goals that make someone a more responsible, and contributing member of a community regardless of where someone lives and what their profession is. Some examples for academic learning include understanding root cause of social problems, and developing active learning skills. Some examples for democratic citizenship learning becoming familiar with different aspects of citizenship, and developing competency in the community. Some examples of diversity learning is understanding individuals as “isms”, and developing cross cultural communication skills. Some examples of political learning is learning about citizen groups that have effected change, and developing advocacy skills. Some examples leadership learning is understanding the social change model, and developing the skills that facilitate sharing leadership skills.

110.   In Chapter 6, discussing situational leadership and supervision (may be applied both to interns and employees), Hersey Blanchard, and Johnson identify two dimensions of supervision that can be combined in four different ways. What are the dimensions and combinations? They go on to say that the key factor in selecting the appropriate combination is the maturity level of the supervisee. They define four different levels of maturity based on a combination of willingness and ability. What are the four maturity levels and the appropriate matching style of supervision?

The 2 dimensions of supervision that can be combined in 4 ways are direction and support. Direction is clear, specific, directions, close supervision, and frequent feedback. Support is a non-directive approach using listening, talking, and high levels of emotional support. The combinations of these two dimensions of supervision high support/low direction, high support/high direction, low support/high direction, and low support/low direction.

The first level of maturity is the intern is not willing or able to do it. This requires high direction and high support. The second level of maturity is the intern may be unable but willing to try a task. This requires high direction and support. The third level of maturity is the intern has the skills but feels uncertain. This requires low direction and high support. The fourth level of maturity is the intern has the skills and the willingness. This requires low direction and support.

111.  Identify three adjustments that you have made in coping with your agency setting? What are the behaviors and challenges presented by each adjustment you made? 

A hurtle in my internship is communication between my supervisor and me on projects. Sometimes it can be hard to understand what needs to be accomplished in certain project I am assigned because my supervisor has a hard time communicating to me well enough. But a way that I deal with that issue is meeting with me daily or every other day and discussing and asking question on what specific she needs accomplished. I communicate well but sometimes I don’t think that she fully remembers what I tell her. She is very busy and she has trouble with organizing and accomplishing all of her tasks because she can be pulled in a hundred directions. So I understand why she might become flustered in communicating to the best of her ability.

I have always had trouble with thinking on my feet and this has been one of my biggest challenges during my internship. If I get too much information at once I can get confused and it is difficult for my brain to be able to process information quickly. I have always felt that my thinking processes take longer and I am more efficient when I am given one or two directives at a time. It can be difficult for me to interrupt my train of thought, switch gears and do a different task that may be asked of me. I desire to finish my thoughts and then do what has been asked, however this is not always possible. I realize that this slower step process is not what the real work world expects. Multi-tasking has never been my strong suit, but a month into my internship I am finding that I am developing this skill. I realize that this is a skill I need to develop to be able to prepare for my future work career. I only have had 2 adjustments.

Journal #12 Dependability

I consider myself to be a very dependable person. I arrive on time and oftentimes I come earlier than my scheduled time. I did not leave early and I never called in. Tricia was very accommodating to my flexible schedule because I have two part time jobs where I have fluctuating hours. She even came in earlier than her scheduled time to make sure I received 30+ hours per week. It was exhausting at times trying to balance my schedule: getting up very early, working jobs, and participating in six clubs, and having very long days sometimes. But I stayed committed and I am very happy with the outcomes of my internship as a whole. I will miss Alfred and the new international friends I have made, but I am happy knowing that I can leave Alfred with the assurance that I am as ready as I can be to face endless possibilities. 

Hula Hoop Dancing

Hula hooping is a new hobby that I started recently that I thought I would never learn. I always felt embarrassed hooping in gym class in front of everybody because I could never get the hang of it. Hooping dates back to 500 BCE when Egyptian chil-dren made them out of dried grapevines. Great Britain used the hoops during the 14th century to medically treat dislocated backs and heart attacks. Native Americans in the 1400’s used hoops to signify the circle of life. The term "hula hoop" came from sailors that had been to the Hawaiian Islands and thought the body motion was similar to their dance style. The most re-cent trend was the craze of the 1950’s. Childhood friends Knerr & Melin recreated the hoops and sold over 20,000 per day @ $1.98 each for the Wham-O Company. Buying a hula hoop today averages $14.99 each. Learning new skills can be liberating, fun and joyful. College has made me more confident and I do not really care what people think be-cause I want to experience everything that college life has to offer. I owe a big thanks to Ben Berry for reintroducing me to this hobby by recently offering a workshop about the technique of how to hula hoop. When anyone has an enthusiastic teacher it makes learning so much easier. He taught the basics but also how to do tricks while hula danc-ing, but I mostly prefer to do the basics. Hula hooping can be lots of fun and it can be a form of exercise.

Heightening Awareness of Multiculturalism

When living in the United States citizens experience multiple cultures and belief systems. Heightening awareness of the acceptance of others is important. Since the events of 9/11, a Gallup Poll found that Middle Eastern people had more racial profiling than any other group and tighter security checks at airports. The theory of Shooter Bias Paradigm is when people respond to a threatening situation quickly; people will be more likely to be aggressive toward minorities. In addition, Section 44902 of the Federal Aviation Act states that flight attendants have the right to refuse the transport of a passenger due to a threat to safety. A 2007 Zogby Poll of Arab Muslims, ages 18-29, found that 31% reported discrimination based on ethnicity and 76% reported discrimination based on ethnic background (Tehranian, 2009).  

So what are some of the characteristics of Islamic culture? Islam is derived from the Arabic root "Salema" meaning peace, purity, submission and obedience. A Muslim is someone who follows Islam. In a religious way Islam means submission to the will of God and obedience to His law. Islam has many of the same principles of Christianity such as: one God, prophets, angels, holy books, God’s will and the afterlife. Muslims strive to live righteously and follow the Golden Rule (Rippin 2012).  

There are 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide and only 20% of Muslims are Arab. More than ¾ of American Muslims are U.S. citizens and stereotypical behavior fails to recognize diversity. Islamophobia is the dread and dislike of Muslim people, discrimination, social exclusion, verbal/physical harassment, and hate crimes (Bryfonski 2013 and Rippin, 2012). Some Americans think that Muslims are terrorists, religious fanatics, irreligious, unenlightened and hijackers. Many believe that Islam is threatening, aggressive, and supportive of terrorism. Some have their beliefs because of experiencing feelings of fear, insecurity and suspicion in reference to foreign people. Other factors include ignorance, media portrayal of Muslim’s religion, and that Muslims are inherently violent and historically have participated in never ending conflicts (Bryfonski, 2013). 9/11 enhanced preconceived stereotypes and stimulated increased levels of paranoia towards Muslim people. Statistics indicate that following the event of 9/11, hate crimes against Muslims increased and thousands of American Muslims were arrested (Marvasti, 2004). Contrary to the perception that Muslims support acts of terrorism, most do not participate. In conclusion, taking time to understand others before judging could decrease the barriers to acceptance.

 

 Bryfonski, D. (2013). Islamophobia. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press.

 

Marvasti, A. (2004). Middle Eastern Lives in America Perspectives on a Multiracial Series. Boulder, CO: Rowan and Littlefield Publishers, Inc. Retrieved 3 12, 2015

 

Rippin, A. (2012). Muslims Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. New York: Rouledge.

 

Tehranian, J. (2009). White Washed America's Invisible Middle Eastern Minority. New York: New York University Press.