Blog Week 7 – MUW Dean of Students – Elizabeth Rugel

Activities:

•  Created Student Title IX Brochure
• Created Responsible Employee Title IX Brochure
•  Completed second Title IX training module

This week, Sirena is out of the office so I have been working from home. This has worked out well because my GA schedule has been hectic and sporadic this week with new students arriving. So I’ve been using my Publisher skills and creating brochures to publicize Title IX on MUW’s campus. I also did a second online training module in order to compare it to the one I discussed in my previous blog. Yes – this all sounds very dull. But I was actually kind of excited when Sirena asked me to work on the brochures because I have experience making publicity material for the Study Abroad office. Yay for resume building! I’ve attached a rough draft of my Student Brochure if you’re interested.

Warning: My big fat pity party starts here.

This week I’ve been struggling with one of the key concepts from our text book – reconciling life and work. According to Joe Blanchard in Beginning Your Journey “Student affairs professionals must challenge themselves to find balance among the many constituencies they serve,” (Amey & Reesor, 2009, p. 133). This summer, reconciliation is not possible. I am being pulled in 4 different directions and cannot make everyone happy. While the book sounds very encouraging and understanding of our busy lifestyles, the words seem insignificant compared to the mountain of school and job work on my plate. I think that the authors should offer more practical advice on the issue of losing yourself to work.

The theoretical application that I can relate to this week’s activities is Chickering’s Seven Vectors. I have come to understand how these vectors may be fluid through my own experiences. I would usually describe myself as being competent, having my emotions under control, independent, and capable of mature relationships (Chickering, 1993). However, in the past few weeks I have regressed to the beginning vector and cannot cope with adversities, control my emotions, or think about anyone's problems but my own.

My environmental influences have become greater than ever and my developmental support has become nonexistent (Chickering, 1993). My classes and my jobs only encourage me to keep working and keep struggling yet there is no one in my student environment encouraging me and thinking about my growth and health. 

Sorry for the uber depressing post this week. Just remember – only a couple weeks left!

References:

Amey, M., & Reesor, L. (2009). Beginning your journey: A guide for new professionals in student affairs (3rd Ed.). Washington, DC: National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.

Chickering A., & Reisser, L. (1993). Education and identity. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.