Keep on Going

On the left is a photo of me on my first day of class at Miami,
and on the right is a photo of me after I got out of my
last class at Miami today.

In August 2012, I began my college career at Miami as an Early Childhood Education major. The first class I had on campus was ENG 111 (Composition and Rhetoric), and we had to go around the room and talk about what we had eaten for breakfast. I ate a banana that day.

Today, I finished my last undergraduate class at Miami as an Integrated English and Language Arts Education major with minors in Writing & Rhetoric, Linguistics, and English Literature. My last class was ENG 293 (Contemporary American Fiction), and I’m glad to say that I didn’t have to talk about what I had for breakfast today (if you must know, I had cookies), but instead, we discussed graphic novels.

I find it fitting that English classes serve as the bookends of my career here at Miami.

Between my first class in 2012 and my last class in 2016, a lot has changed. I’ve grown in more ways than I would have imagined, and I’ve truly learned so much – both inside the classroom and out.

The past four years have not always been easy, and sometimes, giving up seemed like the right choice, but I am so glad that I stuck with it.  I won’t lie. College isn’t always easy, but it’s worth sticking to the course. Keep your goals in mind, and keep chasing them. Every obstacle presents an opportunity for learning, and you’ll come out stronger and tougher than before.

As my four years draw to a close, I look back at each of the experiences that pushed me to my breaking point, and I have to say that in hindsight, I am grateful for each experience because they shaped me into who I am. If I hadn’t encountered so many challenging experiences, I wouldn’t be who I am today.

In many ways, the past four years have pushed me out of my comfort zone, but without those opportunities to learn and grow, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

I know, I know. This post is full of clichés, but they honestly ring true. I know that I didn’t believe everyone when they said college would fly by, but it’s true.

Keep your goals in sight, and keep on going, because in the end, it will be worth it.

Beyoncé, the Western, and Advertising

The end of my final semester of college is coming faster than I want it to, and once more, I find myself swimming in papers and presentations. A typical end of the semester scenario.

Photo I took in King Library.

But this semester, I’m not overly stressed about the pile of work surrounding me. While I’ve been spending the majority of my free time hiding in the stacks of King Library, searching for books to help me with these papers and projects, I’m not worried about finishing everything.

It will all get done, even if I take a break to go hang out with my friends (this is a mindset that is strangely foreign to me).

Because as much as I love that I’m writing a research paper about societal reactions Beyoncé’s song “Formation” and another paper about gender in advertising, I can’t fully seclude myself in cubicles in King during my last two weeks of college.

I have a bucket list to complete, and while writing an academic paper about Beyoncé may or may not be on that bucket list, there are other things I want to complete, too. I still would like going to a baseball game and visit my favorite spots on campus one last time.

And as exhilarating as I find writing papers about gender in the Western genre to be, I’ve finally come to the realization that this thing which people call “senioritis” is beginning to creep into my mindset. It’s not that I’m slacking off – I’m still doing all my work and I’m still applying for jobs like crazy – I’ve just come to the realization that I need to enjoy what little time I have left.

While I have very little time left, the key is that I have time, and it will all get done.

The Intergenerational Mentoring Program

During my freshmen year at Miami, I joined the Miami Student Education Association (MSEA), which is a pre-professional organization for students who are entering the education field. As a result of this membership, I have been a part of the National Education Association and the Ohio Education Association ever since.

During my sophomore year, I decided to take advantage of a program that is offered as a result of my membership with MSEA that is called the Intergenerational Mentoring Program (IGM). In this program, students are paired with retired teachers who mentor them and guide them as they begin the early stages of their teaching careers.

In my first year with IGM, I was placed with a retired high school social studies teacher and we would occasionally meet for lunch in Oxford and attend the IGM meetings together. We formed a bond that was helpful to me as I was just starting to figure out what my life would look like as I became a teacher.

As I began my second year with IGM, my first mentor moved away, so I was placed with a new mentor and another student. In some cases, mentors will have multiple mentees, and this was the situation that I found myself in last year.

At the banquet, each senior was given a journal
(titled as the one above) with their name on it,
in addition to a yellow rose.

The three of us would meet for lunch and would attend events together, and it was nice to have two other people to bounce ideas off of. While my mentor and the other student are early childhood educators, so it was a bit different for me, I still have appreciated having that bond.

The other student that was paired with my mentor and I graduated in December, and since we were both student teaching last semester, it was difficult for the three of us to meet. However, my mentor and I were able to meet for dinner during my student teaching experience, and we still meet for lunch in Oxford on occasion.

Each year, IGM has a banquet at the end of the year to celebrate the program and recognize graduating seniors. The banquet was this past Monday, and I had the honor of speaking on behalf of all the mentees.

MSEA and IGM have provided me with a support system of future and retired educators who have helped guide me on this path to becoming a teacher. I’m so glad that I decided to join both of these groups early on at Miami, and I would encourage all education majors to do the same.