IHEP Trip

As I reflect on the visit to the Institute for Higher Education Policy in Dupont Circle, Washington DC, I further realize how insignificant my research has been.

Here I am, consulting online documents and case studies from the past, and I don't read further onto the effects on policy that this research has on Higher Education. Of course, there are the theories and examples of reference, but honestly, why have I not further developed my thoughts these days? In reference to my project for this class, I'm looking over it again with a clearer mind and a definite goal, but with such a short amount of time in which to create the digital story, will I have something to be proud of to the level of what has been done at the IHEP?

One thing that has fascinated me was the partnership with Wal-Mart. How can an organization such as IHEP take money from a corporation such as Wal-Mart to do research that I somewhat see as "market research"? My train of thought immediately shifted to how Wal-Mart would use IHEP's research on students and populations for their own gain, though the thought behind the project was well-intentioned.

    The state of quality students who enter college varies these days, ranging from highly informed and motivated to those with less intention on success. It isn't that these students lack the will to continue in post-education, but there are certain factors mentioned in the conversation between Adam Howard and Arthur Levine that question the financial class of these students. What is also brought into question is the ability of the higher education institutions to provide access to students on the lower end of the financial class spectrum.

    The part of the conversation that spoke to me was the section on mentors. When Levine asks students from at-risk (higher percentage of not advancing past high school) backgrounds what motivated them to go into higher education, he related their stories to that of “reading the same novel by the same B novelist” when describing their struggles and finding a mentor or inspirational person. Mentors were a huge part of my education and a fundamental piece of my life, because without a mentor at different stages of my life, I would never have reached as far as I have in my career.

    The issue that is constant in this article is how students of lower financial class can continue to have access to higher education institutions, yet how barriers consistently deter certain “poor” students from getting an education. I agree to a point that students who enter college are deterred from continuing their education because of a detachment to their school. But I feel that there is a detachment because there is little reinforcement of mentoring, which offers students a connection to their school and pushes for pursuit of their education by accepting loans, applying for grants, and seeking scholarships. It's not that schools are getting expensive, but that students cannot motivate themselves to get out of their negative environment. In an article for the Chronicle of Higher Education, written 4 years prior to this conversation between Levine and Howard, Dr. Harvey Kaye speaks about being a mentor to middle- to working class students struggling through their undergraduate studies in more ways than financially (Chronicle of Higher Education, 2000). Dr. Kaye's article relates back to the 70s and 80s about students having to worry more than about how much the cost of college was, but to taking care of families, raising children, and juggling jobs with their academics. I question how much has changed, but I do realize that mentoring still existed back then to provide the necessary environment to keep students connected to their studies and university. And I continue to realize that students from poor financial backgrounds just need figures in their lives that will motivate them to continue, with proper education on finding ways to finance their college education.

Citations

Howard, A., & Levine, A. (2004, September). Where are the poor students? A conversation about social

class and college attendance. About Campus, 9(4), 19-24.

Kaye, H. J. (2000, April 21). Chronicle Review. In One Professor's Dialectic of Mentoring (chronicle

of higher education). Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/One-Professors-Dialectic-of/

34477/

Student Activism: Wake Up, Let's Go

"I have been gravely disappointed with the... moderate who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice."

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Considering the articles I've read about student activism, racial discrimination, and campus diversity, I have a perspective that relates to these readings. Now, I am for student activism and peaceful approaches to balance. When a student sees something wrong with their environment, they should speak up and not be afraid of the repercussions. After all, standing up for what you believe in is what makes this country so great, so when I heard about an incident involving two students at George Mason University's (GMU) Fenwick Library and the resulting abduction felony charge, I supported the wrongly accused.

To rewind back to the week of Spring Break, when a story began floating around social media networks popular among GMU students about an incident in the library. The story recounts a "good-natured" male student who entered the library, lost his study room to a female student who refused to share the room after citing a racist comment about his accent, had the police called on him, and ended up being arrested by the police for abduction after he stayed in the study room to persuade the female to share the space. This is obviously a very condensed re-telling, but the full story that riled up over five thousand students can be found here on CNN iReport, a "blog" discussion medium where anyone can post stories. Many students banded together to support this student named "Abdi", who by all accounts of friends, would never do anything to get arrested prompting the conclusion that the GMU police were corrupt.

I previously said that I was in support of the wrongly accused, and I still am, my fascination falls on the consequences of such student activism. While I believe the feelings behind posting this story were genuine, it took on a life of its own up to the point that people were banding together against the misuse of power and having the university take some accountability. Abdi's felony charges were dropped, but now there was a forum for students to discuss injustices on their campus.

In an student culture that is implementing more use of social media networks, student activism has skyrocketed in terms of participation. While students are not afraid to be aggressive online in spreading news and opinions, the translation to their offline counterparts vary. Our society should stand by their word, and not just join an online discussion group to vent about their frustrations. An article I recently found online, titled "In Wired Singapore Classrooms, Cultures Clash Over Web 2.0" (Chronicle of Higher Education), a society of students are described as polite online, as juxtaposed against their North American counterparts. There is noted fear against student activism or even free thought online, as the author states:

"Several students pointed me to an incident in August when a 27-year-old engineer was arrested for a comment he made on Facebook. In a comment criticizing the Youth Olympic Games, he wrote that he wanted to "burn" the sports minister and called on Singaporeans to "rally together and vote them out." The arrest led to widespread complaints that the government—which interpreted the engineer's comment as a physical threat—had overreacted."

 This is not what our students, or even our citizens, should fear. In the realm of Student Affairs, protecting the students right to enriching experiences and opportunities to grow intellectually should always be a priority. They should not enter a world where they fear that their own government can tap into their social media network secretly, because they come to school to learn and interact with others. Whether it's because of an injustice on campus or an obvious case of discrimination, Student Affairs professionals should be ready to provide a forum for students to peacefully speak their minds and concerns. If we let student unrest go untouched, we provide an avenue for dire consequences of which an outcome cannot be predicted.

What I do

Not really related to the class, but wanted to show everyone what I do. Recently took some engagement photos for a friend, this is one of the pictures.

Her mother was very excited on how they turned out.

Reading Reaction

The articles in this week's readings centered around women, gender roles, and body politics for college age women. Being a male, it's hard to fit into the shoes of a female, and even harder to justify knowing how to empathize with modern day issues surrounding women these days in higher education. So after reading these articles and relating to things I've learned over the years could I get a grasp of gender roles in today's society and how it affects female college students.

Through my ignorance on the subject, I never fully realized how important the environments and roles that each person plays in developing students. We grow to be stronger people, and specifically for women in college, obstacles are always bound to come up. For this, I blame the media on which everyone I know has grown up with.

The media portrays a male protagonist in many mediums, and the term "damsel in distress" has always followed by. Women are given a disadvantage and not credited as they should be, for example, in the James Cameron's "The Terminator", the female protagonist, Sarah Connor, is rendered helpless against an unstoppable antagonist, The Terminator. It's not until she is saved by the soldier Kyle Reese that we are worried for the couple's safety and wish for their triumph. Another example is that which is given in the article by Bell Hooks about Tina Turner, where her image as triumphant and independent overshadowed a deeper struggle to become her own person. But the media doesn't care for such struggles. The media over-sensationalizes sexuality and the focus of that image because it sells. Is this what children and posterity will focus on when looking back on history? As the media shapes what people should be focusing on, it becomes a time capsule for a disastrous, male-driven society that focused on sex and excitement.

And so work to reverse, and re-energize, an equal standing for both men and women continues. Higher Education institutions which focus on bringing balance to this uneven playing field reinforced by the media has given me definite hope that there is a chance for more unique views in the workplace. What I've learned from the Wolf-Wendel study is that a healthy environment for specific subpopulations of students generates stronger leaders over time. Oprah Winfrey, an actress and TV talk show host, was once quoted as saying, "Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher." This rings very true, especially in specialized population institutions where in Wolf-Wendel's study it states that "women students in women's colleges are more successful than those in coeducational colleges." In the study, Wolf-Wendel brings good points to what institutions should do to maximize student development. This is exactly what every institution should be doing by providing services and environments for students, because it shows that the institution knows what the needs of their students are. What I would hope is that when these students finally go through the end of their education, they will have the leadership, experience, and academic strength to compete against others that view the predominantly white male as top competition in the work place.

The importance of there being a reinforced environment for female college students to thrive is the tip of the iceberg for the progress of college subpopulations. Only when we understand that everyone is allowed the freedom to be treated fairly and have a pursuit of happiness can we really be a successful culture. So maybe I should always keep an open mind about important perspectives such as those brought to my attention in these articles, because I know it will only attribute to my further knowledge.