Monday, 06-Jul-2009 00:24:41 EDT

Higher education

I am a higher education administrator, working as the Coordinator of Orientation and Welcome to Michigan Programs in the Office of New Student Programs at the University of Michigan. I received a Master of Arts in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University.

The Student is:

The most important person on the campus. Without them there would be no need for the institution.
Not a cold enrollment statistic but a flesh and blood human being with feelings and emotions like our own.
Not someone to be tolerated so that we can do our thing. They are our thing.
Not dependent on us. Rather, we are dependent on them.
Not an interruption of our work, but a purpose of it. We are not doing them a favor by serving them. They are doing us a favor by allowing us to do so.

Here are some of my professional accomplishments, research interests, and memories from my graduate program.

BGSU College Student Personnel program

My Master of Arts degree in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University was conferred on May 11, 2001. Here is a listing of my coursework:

Summer 1999
CSP 601: Foundations and Functions of College Student Personnel
CSP 602: Theory and Assessment of College Student Development
EDFI 642: Research in Education

Fall 1999
CSP 603: Theory and Assessment of Educational Environments
CSP 689A: Experiential Learning
EDFI 641: Statistics in Education

Spring 2000
EDFI 680: Radical Pedagogy
CSP 689A: Experiential Learning
CSP 680: Legal Issues in College Student Personnel
CSP 697: Practicum in College Student Personnel (Oberlin College-Winter Term Advising)
CSP 697: Practicum in College Student Personnel (BGSU-Orientation & Registration)

Summer 2000
CSP 680: Resource Management
HIED 734: College and Universtiy Teaching

Fall 2000
CSP 604: Educational Outcomes of American Colleges and Universities
CSP 689D: Experiential Learning
CSP 697: Practicum in College Student Personnel (Oberlin College-NEOHO Conference Planning)
COUN 676: Counseling the Culturally Diverse
PSYC 793: Development Coaching
GRAD 600: Seminar in Graduate Studies

Spring 2001
CSP 605: Capstone Seminar in College Student Personnel
CSP 684: Readings on CSP Concepts and Practices
CSP 697: Practicum in College Student Personnel (BGSU-Orientation & Registration)
POPC 680: Gay Popular Culture

Click here to join BGSUCSP2001
Yahoo! Group for BGSU CSP 2001 Alumni (summer cohort)

News Clippings

From the Michigan Daily

Event builds bridges across social gulfs
By Christina Hildreth, Daily Staff Reporter
Copyright ©2005 The Michigan Daily (from September 6, 2005)

The University is using a new weapon in its crusade for increased diversity, but it's not a lawyer or an admissions policy - it's freshmen.

This offensive was in the form of a program yesterday and Sunday called "A Day of Change," and it aimed to encourage freshman to leave their residences and develop friendships across social barriers.

During previous Welcome Weeks, students made smooth transitions to college life yet "stayed within their own (social) groups," said Drew Tinnin, coordinator of orientation and welcome programs for the University. "We wanted to provide an opportunity where they could interact in an intergroup setting."

The sessions, the first of their kind at the University, may be the start of a new wave of diversity-centered welcome programs.

"This program is being replicated at places like U of M Flint, and I will work with student representatives throughout the Big Ten," to implement similar programs, said Michigan Student Assembly President Jesse Levine.

More than 350 students attended the program, which was sponsored by M-Justice, a new initiative by the University's Division of Student Affairs. There, they listened as speaker Maura Cullen, an educational consultant, implored them to reach out to students from different backgrounds.

"Going to college is like going from Kansas to Oz. Life is very different. People look different, and they talk different," she told her audience.

Additionally, 14 student and administrative groups from across campus joined forces to foster further interaction through community service. Program leaders used the Ginsberg Center's annual Community Plunge, a fair for various community programs, to bring students of different backgrounds together to address social injustices through local service organizations.

Activities ended Monday night with "ExChange," an organized dialogue held at Palmer Commons. Students learned about labeling during an exercise in which each was required to select an identity. Then, breaking into groups, they outlined various stereotypes that are commonly applied to their group.

Students said they found it difficult to settle on one identity, many acknowledging Cullen's statement that common social identifications are broad and often too rigid.

"Initially, I chose the label 'woman' and later, I chose the label 'African-American,' as different aspects revealed themselves throughout the discussion" said LSA junior Temeca Simpson.

At a glance, the day was a success. Lured by free food and opportunities for community service, students came and made the connections Tinnin and other event planners desired.

But program planners acknowledge that it is up to the students to integrate their social groups.

"We have more in common than we have different, but we tend to notice the differences first," Cullen told her audience. "But noticing doesn't make us bad people. It's what we do when we notice that counts."

-Jeremy Davidson contributed to this report

Freshmen introduced to 'U,' campus politics at convocation, September 6, 2005, Michigan Daily.

Bookstores and 'U' need to provide more planners
Copyright ©2004 The Michigan Daily (from September 9, 2004)

To the Daily:
Yes, I'll admit it. I'm a proud carrier of the M-Planner, have been for two years in a row. As Jerry Seinfeld would say, "Not that there's anything wrong with that." However, this year I went to Ulrich's, Michigan Book and Supply and the Union Bookstore where all three were sold out. The response that I received was that the University under-ordered the M-Planner for sale to the students. This is pretty frustrating because they should probably know how many M-Planners are usually bought and given away for free to the freshmen. The size of the freshman class has been reported to be the largest ever for many months now so that shouldn't be an issue, especially because they are free. What I'm wondering is why so few planners were ordered to the bookstores for sale. It's the first day of class and they are all sold out. The University under-ordered, ha? Well, who exactly is the University? The Office of New Student Programs is my best guess, but I couldn't tell you - neither could the workers at the bookstore. In their defense, they do offer the planner online to download or print off. I mean I know that's what I want to waste 240 pages of ink on. So will someone please step up and admit some responsibilty/clear things up for us, order more immediately, maybe even give us a break on a price for this mistake? Thank you.

Kevin Orr
LSA junior

'Challenge and be Challenged': New students kick off year in style, September 7, 2004, Michigan Daily.

Welcome Week activities offer fun away from parties
By Sara Eber, Daily Staff Reporter
Copyright ©2003 The Michigan Daily (from September 2, 2003)

Photo: LSA senior Travis Atkinson performs with the Dicks and Janes during the 2003 New Student Convocation in Crisler Arena on Thursday. (TONY DING/Daily) Are partying and drinking the only activities offered the first week back at school?
Not necessarily.

The Office of New Student Programs hoped to introduce incoming students to the University in a more meaningful and informative way by again hosting the Welcome to Michigan Program, a week-long program designed to further introduce students to college life.

Commencing last Thursday with the New Student Convocation at Crisler Arena, the program featured an array of activities to orient new students with social, athletic and activist opportunities on campus. Program highlights included Artscapade/Escapade, Meijer Madness, Maize Craze, Recreational Sports Day, Community Plunge and the Pre-Class Bash.

While most key events remained the same, the student response was greater than in previous years at Meijer Madness and the New Student Convocation, said Drew Tinnin, coordinator of Orientation and Welcome Programs at ONSP.

"I was proud that we were able to showcase student talent with student groups performing at both events, and we had great help from a variety of student organizations who volunteered at the events," he said.

LSA freshman Byung Park said he really enjoyed going to Meijer Madness on Friday, where he joined students in the crowded store for free food, music and last-minute shopping. "They really named it properly," he said. "It was freakin' madness!"

Alyssa Goldstein, also an LSA freshman, voiced a similar opinion, saying that Meijer Madness was her favorite activity of the week.

"It was awesome!" she said. "Everything was so cheap, and my roommate and I bought so much stuff that we needed. It was great because neither of us had a car."

The Welcome program also aimed to provide an alternative to the alcohol-infused party scene, said Tinnin.

"Hopefully, Welcome to Michigan is a social time for students, but not a party scene." One of our goals is to help students meet one another, and we provide numerous ways to do this," he said. "We do plan late-night events such as Artscapade/Escapade, Meijer Madness, and University Unions' Dance Trilogy to help us meet our goals, new students to have a good time, and events as an alternative to the party scene.'

LSA freshman Justin Berg noted that the University social scene and the school-sponsored activities "were pretty separate," he said.

"I went to Rec Sports Day, which was really informational and people were really enthusiastic," Berg added. "But I still felt really welcome as a freshman at different fraternity and house parties and had a lot of fun there."

In hopes of improving next year's Welcome program, students are encouraged to fill out an evaluation at www.onsp.umich.edu/welcome for the chance to win a $250 gift certificate to Ulrich's bookstore.

From the Oberlin Review

Photo: 'Down and dirty' First-years Anjali Blob and Chaz Mortimer, paused from thier frolic in the dirt to pose for a photo. (photo by Areca Treon) Students and faculty were invited to get down and dirty in front of South Hall this Tuesday for a campus-wide Dig-In.

The twelfth event of its kind, the Dig-In attracted about 50 enthusiastic helpers who put over 500 plants and bulbs into the soil. The Grounds Department and Residential life sponsored the event, enticing passers-by with cookies, apple cider and commemorative t-shirts.

Participants will also be rewarded for their efforts next year when the area in front of South breaks into blooming trophies of King Alfred daffodils, Royal Opal asters and the black-eyed Susan.

Describing the process, Grounds Manager Dennis Grieve said, "First, the bulbs come up, then the perennials; flowering in a succession that will begin next spring and carry well into fall. Other plants to be seen next year include miscanthus grass, azaleas, Russian sage and Autumn Joy, which attracts butterflies." Additional areas that have benefited from Grieve's expertise include the native plant gardens near North Hall and Harkness, the Underground Railroad medicinal garden in front of Talcott, and the butterfly garden near Harvey House, which was planted during orientation activities two years ago.

While some students gingerly put trowel to ground, experiencing their first taste of gardening, others got to work right away. Some donned latex gloves and attempted to stay as neat as possible, while others became hopelessly covered in dirt. All, however, were infected by the enthusiasm of the event's coordinators. Beckoned by energetic calls to "Come and plant a bulb!" no passer-by was safe to cross South Lawn without lending a helping hand.

Area Coordinator, Kevin Williams, feels Dig-Ins help build a sense of pride for students and faculty and provide a feeling of ownership in the community. Apart from that, Graduate Assistant to Residential life and Services Drew Tinnin thinks it's a great idea for Grounds and Res-life to work together to provide an event like this for students.

"It just brightens up everything," said Jill Medina, referring to the medley of plants that have cropped up all over campus. An Oberlin graduate and present-day area coordinator, Medina remembers living in Barrows before the age of Dig-Ins.

"Kids don't know what it used to look like," she said, referring to the fact that a lack of plant variety once plagued the areas surrounding dormitories. Thanks to Dig-Ins and Grounds Facilities' continually innovative planting techniques, students now enjoy a lush and vivid campus. However, having attended every Dig-In since they began in 1987, Medina said, "[I wish] more people took advantage of the opportunity."

New faces are taking over Residential life and Services slowly but surely.

Over the summer several new people joined the staff of Res life, and a bigger change is on the horizon with the search for a new director.

Last fall, Deborah McNish, the director of Res life, became interim dean of students after the resignation of Charlene Cole-Newkirk. Filling McNish's place as interim director was Yeworkwha Belachew, who moved from her position as assistant director of Res life. Belachew held the position throughout the year, serving as interim director until McNish left Oberlin for a job at Earlham College.

Now, as new Dean of Students, Peter Goldsmith gets settled in, a search is gearing up for a new director of Res life.

The search committee will be chaired by linda Gates, acting associate dean of student academic services. Other members of the committee will include Harry Pepper, psychologist from the counseling center, and Marge Burton, assistant director of Safety and Security. One faculty member, yet to be named, and two students will also sit on the committee.

Still in the preliminary stages, Goldsmith and Belachew are working on a job description for the position. Candidates for the position will be on campus early next semester.

Other new faces in the Res life office have already appeared. Two new area coordinators have already been hired. Shelley Owens, the area coordinator in charge of the program houses, however, resigned Sept. 15 citing personal reasons. Kevin Williams is the other new coordinator, who over sees Dascomb, Talcott, Fairchild and South.

David Castro will be serving as interim area coordinator while a search is conducted. Castro was originally hired as the assistant area coordinator for the program houses.

Two new positions were also created in Res life. Two graduate assistants, Drew Tinnin and Marites DeFiesta, both from Bowling Green University, are now working with the department.

This leaves only two vacancies in the Res life office. The search for applicants for the position of director of Residential life and Services as well as an area coordinator in charge of program houses.

Welcome Programs

I coordinate the Welcome to Michigan program at the University of Michigan. One of the successful traditions during the program is New Student Convocation. Students are involved in the program through performances, speeches, and assisting as ushers, etc.

View a QuickTime video of the 2003 G-Men performance, "Beautiful Day".