SCSU Volunteering!

http://www.southernctowls.com/documents/2011/7/12/Muriel_Grossfeld_Invitational.pdf  

        

This Saturday, I volunteered and helped host an SCSU gymnastics invitational. It was hosted by the SCSU gymnastics team. It was located in the Field house, on the basketball court. The floor, bars, beam, and vault was set up to look very professional. The meet was called the Muriel Grossfeld invitational. Muriel Grossfeld is a world known gymnast, who proudly supports SCSU gymnastics. 

          The meet had three sessions, which ranged from level four to level seven. If you do not know anything about gymnastics, this basically means that the girls are at the beginning stages of the competitive side of gymnastics and the girls are typically very young. The teams that attended were from all around the country, such as New Hampshire and Florida.

          The SCSU gymnastics team was the help of the meet, while head coach Jerry Nelson and assistant coach Kristen Silvestri planned and supported the meet. We set up the meet Friday night by moving all of the gymnastics equipment from Pelz gymnasium to the field house.  Saturday morning, bright and early, we began three sessions of gymnastics competitions. Each session began with a warm up and concluded with awards. My job during the meet, along with one other teammate, was to collect the scores from the judges and input them into the data base on the computer so they were ready for the awards.

          I enjoyed my volunteer work that I completed on October 15, 2011. I hope to continue this meet and volunteering for the next three years of my college life. I enjoyed watching the younger level gymnastics because it brought back memories of when I was first starting off competing. It was thrilling. It was scary. And most of all it was exciting. It is amazing to watch the progression of skill level and ability in young athletes. A mixture of talent and coaches pressure, pushes young gymnasts into National and Collegiate level of competition. I like knowing that we support the continuation of gymnastics through young children by our volunteering, planning and time. 

Video project

I'm not going to lie... I am struggling with this project. Technology is definitely not my strong point. I have gotten gotten the rough draft started. I have a very detailed outline; however, I am having a very hard time making it all come together as a video. I own a HP laptop therefore I am using Microsoft Movie Maker. I have tried Googling "how to's" however they have been somewhat unsuccessful with helping me... I am a very visual learner, and I am definitely not the most technology inclines person. The amount I do not understand about Windows Movie Maker is overwhelming. This weekend, I am being tutored on how to use the software, but until then... I'm stuck.
I have completed my interviews, and I have the complete outline. Once I complete the project, I think it will be cool too see my first video I have ever made. I have never been introduced to this type of technology before. It is a good learning experience so next time I go to make a video I will know how to use Microsoft Movie Maker.


My movie title is What's With all the Critical Thinking? Its going to be focused on Critical thinking and how It will affect the rest of our lives. In College so far, we have spent a lot of time learning how critical thinking is important to our classrooms and how to apply or selves but my project will focus on Critical thinking and our Careers. Hopefully I will get this Movie Maker Up and running, and I will be on my way to becoming a a Microsoft Movie Maker wiz!

Critical Thinking from the Library

           Critical thinking... it seems to be the main focus of our college year. I always thought that coming to college I would develop a knowledge of my major which would prepare me for graduate school; however, as I have been at Southern for the past month, I have Learnt very fast that this is not the main focus of college. Critical thinking is a huge focus in college. But why? I did some research at the library this week to find out some more about Critical thinking.

          The most important thing I saw while researching is that critical thinking is everywhere! Critical thinking is not just for the talk show host; critical thinking take place in hospitals, in teaching, in history, and in virtually every subject or profession we may want to pursue. Since I hope to become a doctor and I am majoring in biology, I looked up books and articles pertaining to my field of study relating to critical thinking.

           The book I took out was called Critical Thinking In Medical-Surgical Settings. This book was very interesting! It took a case study approach to teaching how to think critically in a hospital setting. The book provides the reader with a multiplicity of different scenarios and it asks questions to invoke helpful critical thinking in specific scenarios. The book is a good tool used to introduce people new to the medical field how to think critically. I think this is useful because you will be prepared in situations which can be very serious or life threatening.

          The second article I found was more of an interesting read called, Teaching and Assessing Critical Thinking in Radiologic Technology Students. This article was long; however I grasped that there were many ways to assess and teach Critical thinking. It once again stresses the importance of learning and maintaining critical thinking in the medical field.  

           I am glad I took a trip to the library. It really opened my eyes to the types of books which could be available to me. I think I should take advantage of these resources because it will help me advance in  my degree and take out of college what I need to get. Not only will I come out of college with a biology degree, but I will also have a good understanding of how to think critically in the medical field, which will definitely be vital to my performance. 

Link to the Article:

http://etd.fcla.edu/CF/CFE0003261/Gosnell_Susan_D_021008_EdD.pdf

Career Service!

          We have all made the first step to beginning our future careers; we have made it into college to further our education.  In today's competitive market, furthering your education is almost essential to getting a successful consistent job. Today's college degree is the equivalent to the importance of the old high school degree. Now that we are all in college, a large percentage of college students are unclear what exactly they want to take from their college degree. Do you know what your major is? Do you know why you want that that degree and what kind of job you wish to attain from that degree?

            An easy way to help set goals and direct you in the path you may want it by getting familiar with the Career Services located on campus. Career services also has an online website which offers office hours and some other details about the service.

            Career services is an excellent resources for student who want to find a major that may interest them. Career services will not only help you with a major but they will also help students identify specific jobs he or she could reach for with his or her specific major. There are so many jobs out in the market, we are just not yet aware of them. Career services will introduce us to jobs we might not be aware of and the make sure we graduate prepared for the job.

            Not only does career service have their own office to help students, career services also host many events at Southern to involve students and to make them aware of what Southern has to offer. One of the most recent events they hosted was the Job Search Workshop. This was hosted on October 4th. Online there is a complete list of events hosted by Career services. Finding a career can sometimes be confusing, whether you are looking for a part time job right now, or a full time job for your future. Just make sure you are aware that there are people and recourses at Southern to help. Do not let the opportunity pass. Check out the Career services office, or check out their link below! 

http://www.southernct.edu/careerservices/ 

Stress Levels Rising?

           Stress comes upon me easily and frequently. I have a very busy schedule and sometimes I get overwhelmed with how things are going or the amount of work has yet to be some. Stress if occurs frequently for most college students. A mixture between work load, home sickness, and fatigue can bring students to the maximum tolerance. Sometimes there is little you can do about some stress that happens; however, there are ways to reduces stress and prevent stress from coming in the first place. Here are a few things that help me deal with stress...

            First, when I become overwhelmed with the work load of school. I write down everything I need to get done. Seeing it in front of me is still a little overwhelming; however, it definitely helps clarify what I need to get done. I try to go in order of what is due first but sometimes it also helps me to do the easiest things first because then I can just take them off the list. Then I only have a few things I need to get done. Whatever I do, I make sure I do not procrastinate. Procrastination just leaves my to do list over my head and it lets my stress level build.

            The second thing, that helps me with stress is working out. Working out is proven to release hormones and is scientifically proven to make you feel better. I like to relieve stress at gymnastics. Whether it is me focusing extra hard at practice or being more aggressive on skills. This helps me because normally when I do this, my skills improve which makes me happy and brings down my stress level because at least I have gymnastics going for me.

            The last thing that helps me deal with stress is to just forget about whatever is bothering me. This takes a while to master; however, if you can learn how to move on, it will help you relieve stress. Just try to put your problem in perspective. Will this problem remain a problem forever? Most-likely the answer is no. Just try to move past your problems or try to solve them, and if they are beyond your control, just try to remembered that and do not stress yourself out about it.

            Everyone is different and deals with stress in different ways however, these sure ways that help me. Just take things one step at a time and do not get stresses out about things that are out of your control. 

Under the Weather?

          It can start with a simple sneeze or a little fatigue, but to your surprise that little sneeze or fatigue could potentially lead you to something more significant which could be an impediment to your life style. People cannot normally maintain their typical schedule running on 50%; something must give.

          I am not suggesting that if you wake up fatigued in the morning because you stayed up to three in the morning talking to you boyfriend, you should skip class; however, if you wake up completely under the weather a little rest would benefit you. Perhaps sleep in to catch up on rest and let your body rejuvenate itself. Do not skip your morning class because you don't feel well then go out that night. Do not take advantage of missing classes because in a lot of classes participation and attendance count as part of your final grade. When you miss class, make sure you stay on top of the class syllabus. The last thing you need to do is fall behind or miss assignments because you're sick.

          All of these things will help if you wake up and are sick... however what do you do if your very sick and do not seem to be getting better? Located across from the Wintergreen building there is the SCSU Health Center. They are open most days until five. They have full time a doctor and full time nurses on staff. Do not be afraid to call or go in if you feel like something does not seem to be right. They might be able to prescribe something that will speed recovery, so you miss a little as possible and you will be able to get back to your normal schedule. The health center also gives vaccines on a regular basis. The most common vaccine is the Flu Shot. Try to prevent your illness before you have it. I would recommend the Flu Shot to ever student at Southern, especially to those students who live on campus.

          Whenever something unexpected comes your way, try to worry as little as possible. Stress will only make things worse. It happens to everyone and professors are typically understanding. They understand that we are not robots and occasionally we will get sick and be unable to attend class. Try your hardest to make it to every class but when you do have to miss class just be sure to stay on top of the work you missed. 

Community Coordinators

The number one recommendation for those students entering and returning to college is to get involved! It may be scary at first. You may be the shy type like me; however, becoming involved in your school and your community will enable you to have unforgettable experiences throughout your college experience. One way to get involved is to become a CC. This is short for a community coordinator. This week I looked into what becoming a CC entailed. When I talked to my CC she gave me a link that I could look up to find out more on becoming a CC. The website said, "community coordinators provide leadership for an undergraduate residence hall floor community of primarily first and second year students". Some roles of a CC a completely voluntary work, while some work such as working at the desk, is paid work.

This is definitely something I am looking into doing. I like the idea of the work it entails. CC's can input their ideas for community projects, and they are introduced to all different people. I would like a job on campus so I can have a little extra spending money for the weekends, but a full time, full commitment job is out of the question due to time restraints. If I work at the desk, or worked supervising a computer lab, I would be able to pick up as many or as little hours as I wish to have. It is not full commitment so if I decided I have a lot to do this week and I have a meet on the weekend which is limiting my time, that is fine! I simply chose to not work that week or only pick up a few hours.

Applying is simple. Online there is a webpage dedicated to aiding people looking into becoming a CC. It has all of the application requirements, and information you need. It is very user friendly. One way to better your chances of being employed or getting a job as a CC is by getting to know your own CC's. After all, they are the ones who will be hiring you. Good luck getting involved!


For more information check out this website! 

http://www.southernct.edu/departments/reslife/web_files/Residence%20Life%20%20Position%20Descriptions%20and%20Qualifications.html