Well it has been a fun and interesting semester! I thank you all for your participation and opinions. You all have future goals you are aspiring to, whether they include family, more academia, or the job market. I wish you all good luck in your endeavors; and again, thank you for all your hard work.
Bye!
27 July 2009
24 July 2009
Legalities...
I'm sorry about this week, but I've been in court all week. It ended favorably for me today (thankfully)! But I was able to get a firsthand look at our legal system. Scary as it was, it is a fair system I think. Anyone ever think about law school???
The judge, law clerk, court reporter, bailiff, lawyers, jurors, plaintiff, and defendant were all very civil and respectful throughout the process. Although I have to say the entire episode made me reflect on the status of morals and ethics in our society. Any thoughts on the state of our society's morals or values?
So, now that that huge burden is over, I'm here for questions or comments again. Just a reminder, next week we sign off so let me know if there is anything more you want to chat about. Thanks to all of you!
The judge, law clerk, court reporter, bailiff, lawyers, jurors, plaintiff, and defendant were all very civil and respectful throughout the process. Although I have to say the entire episode made me reflect on the status of morals and ethics in our society. Any thoughts on the state of our society's morals or values?
So, now that that huge burden is over, I'm here for questions or comments again. Just a reminder, next week we sign off so let me know if there is anything more you want to chat about. Thanks to all of you!
23 July 2009
philosophy
My new philosophy is to come to a job with a game face. I want to establish a certain level of respect and a good working relationship.In life, I realize that image is very important and people will treat you accordingly. I feel that there is a time and place for everything and at work its business. I may joke at times during a break or I may have brief and open conversations but I will never cross that line. My job is important for survival so there is things that I will not compromise.
18 July 2009
Careers & Philosophy
So I was in a conversation the other day about my personal philosophy. Don't ask me to define it because I have no idea where to begin! Nonetheless, I was asked how my personal philosophy would integrate into my future career? I was stumped. I didn't know how to approach the question, let alone explain my answer (whatever that was)! Therefore, I set out to categorize some philosophies within my desired field and to compare them with what I believed. A tedious task, I've noticed.
Well, this is what I'm asking: are you able to define traits of your personal philosophy and compare it to the philosophy of your future career? In my opinion, thinking about this makes sense if one of our goals in our jobs is to be content with what we do. Also, it may help you localize what exactly you care about in life.
This is just a suggestion; you don't actually have to do it. But if you think about it for a few minutes, you might gain some insight you never knew you had! Thanks, Karyn.
Well, this is what I'm asking: are you able to define traits of your personal philosophy and compare it to the philosophy of your future career? In my opinion, thinking about this makes sense if one of our goals in our jobs is to be content with what we do. Also, it may help you localize what exactly you care about in life.
This is just a suggestion; you don't actually have to do it. But if you think about it for a few minutes, you might gain some insight you never knew you had! Thanks, Karyn.
16 July 2009
future plan
I want to be in the medical field. I am making the nessary steps to accomplish my goal. I will have a B.A degree, finish nursing school, continue my education in graduate school while working as a nurse, and receive a master degree as a family practitioner. I'm hoping to have my own practice and possibly be a boss for some medical facility.
I'm hoping that I can be a part of an organization that will help those in need to pay for any medical bills. I would like all of the leaders of the U.S to take part in planning a better way for all to be insured. I think there should be better checks and balances of how the money is distributed and collected. There should be caps made on the amount of money the "big shots"makes. Regulation have to be made in our economy which should be a main concern.
I'm hoping that I can be a part of an organization that will help those in need to pay for any medical bills. I would like all of the leaders of the U.S to take part in planning a better way for all to be insured. I think there should be better checks and balances of how the money is distributed and collected. There should be caps made on the amount of money the "big shots"makes. Regulation have to be made in our economy which should be a main concern.
Bill being pass
I feel that the employer should pay into the health care system for the employee but at what cost. The idea is great for the short term and the companies will find a way to get back that money that they will be spending. Our country is all about making money and the people in power always find a way to get it. Physical change is nice but if we do not change our mind set from greed then we will be in the same boat that we are in right now. The change is still great and it will install hope for the people.
Future Plans
I would like to begin by apologizing. I have had a few crises in my life the last two weeks and they have affected my level of participation. I know everyone gets busy, and I am not trying to excuse myself; but things have been exceptionally dismal for me lately and I am sorry I haven't posted anything.
That being said, I have also decided to change things up a bit. I am tired of our blog together being so formal and dry. For my part, I'm going to attempt a change of philosophy. From now on, if no one has any suggestions or questions, I'll simply blog whatever I feel like saying. I'll try to keep it relevant for you, but I don't want to continue to post essay-like content! We should all agree there should be some structure, but let’s try to venture outside our weekly monotone dialogue! Also, thank you Devon for posting your own stuff. This blog is for all of us and you can post items also.
This week, since there has been so much legislative changes (and subsequently news coverage) for the healthcare field, I'd like to discuss that a little.
That being said, I have also decided to change things up a bit. I am tired of our blog together being so formal and dry. For my part, I'm going to attempt a change of philosophy. From now on, if no one has any suggestions or questions, I'll simply blog whatever I feel like saying. I'll try to keep it relevant for you, but I don't want to continue to post essay-like content! We should all agree there should be some structure, but let’s try to venture outside our weekly monotone dialogue! Also, thank you Devon for posting your own stuff. This blog is for all of us and you can post items also.
This week, since there has been so much legislative changes (and subsequently news coverage) for the healthcare field, I'd like to discuss that a little.
- Senator Kennedy's bill for the nation's healthcare reform passed the committee vote. Also in health news, a proposed bill to make employers cover health insurance for their employees or pay a fee is in talks.
- What do you think? Is there anything else in the news you would like to discuss that relates to our major concentration areas or minor?
This post is called future plans not only because it covers the upcoming changes for this blog, but also because I am interested to hear about your future plans. Thank you for those of you who responded to the email I sent; but after graduation, do you intend to enter the workforce or attend graduate school? Also, what does your future career entail: not just job title, but also I'd be interested to hear a typical day of what you want to do.
- For me, my future plans lie with traveling and graduate school. After this semester, I'll be traveling to the Middle East and to Southeast Asia (again)! I'm applying to graduate school for next year, so I'll also be working. I plan to apply to the Anthropology program. Mostly I want to teach and do consulting work. Archeology holds little viable opportunities for me, so I will probably look into cultural or social anthropology. For the next year, however, I intend to continue working where I am.
Anyway, share your thoughts, opinions, and suggestions. Again, sorry for being so late!!!
09 July 2009
work equality
I feel that my degree may cause a problem for a few people at the work place. People always looking at the next person trying to get a head in the game. If they feel that exposing something will affect your job and boost them up, they will do so. Many people may not understand the whole dynamics of our degree. Conclusion may be drawn up and be taken in a negative manner.
There is still those who may be open minded and see the benefits of my degree. The main thing is, if the people in power understand and give us a chance, then we can prove that we are a great asset to the organization.
There is still those who may be open minded and see the benefits of my degree. The main thing is, if the people in power understand and give us a chance, then we can prove that we are a great asset to the organization.
06 July 2009
Workplace Equality
I hope you all had a great holiday weekend. If you haven’t responded already, I’ve emailed you a question and would like you to go into as much detail as you feel necessary to answer.
One question I find lurking at the office water cooler is the question of equality in the workplace. While there are many resources about gender equality, I’d rather talk about workplace equality in regards to your degree. Do you feel you will be treated equally with the type of degree you’re earning?
Workplace fairness has been around for some time now and has been advocated for my many diverse groups. But how far have we come? According to an article by Stephen Ohlemacher of Washington, employees with bachelor’s degrees earned an average of $50,000. Ohlemacher also portrays the message that of states with numerous high school diploma graduates the number of college degree graduate will also be high. ***By the way, Florida doesn’t rank high!*** What does that mean for people who earn a degree in a less than well known area of study? Currently, the mentality in the United States is centered on specialization of work to the extent that our universities offer degree programs just for those specialized jobs. For example, if you wanted to be a human resources manager there is a degree program for that. But you can also have an interdisciplinary studies degree and be a human resources manager. So the question becomes, with the trend in specialization that our society has, do you think the employee with the interdisciplinary studies degree be treated equally with the employee with the specialized degree? In an article by James Lardner, upward mobility is discussed relative to several factors, one of them being degrees. Lardner states, "upward mobility is determined increasingly by a college degree." And a New York Times article regarding the economic disparity of college graduates asserts that the gap between college graduate and high school graduate employees is diminishing. According to the NY Times article, the reason for the rise of inequality is a "lack of strong policies and institutions that broadly distribute economic gains."
If your answer to the interdisciplinary studies versus specialized degree question is no, I have another question for you: what can be done to correct the situation?
Revamping the workplace is one start point. The Out & Equal Workplace Advocates provide several steps for creating equality in the workplace. Granted they are more concerned with inequality related to sexual orientation, but a few of their suggestions can be applied broadly: create an employee resource group, hold degree diversity seminars (or cross training sessions), market and advertise employees varied backgrounds and degree studies, and advocate for leadership development in employees with different degrees.
Another way to correct the workplace inequality is to update policies and create organizations to advocate for benefits. This is what was encouraged in the New York Times article by Levy and Temin. They argued that we had unions and affirmative action groups years ago and today we don’t have those benefit advocates anymore. They also state that employer policies are outdated and should be revised.
If you find that you’ve been discriminated against based on your degree you should pursue the matter further with risk management or human resources. This may not always be the case, however, as you are the marketing tool for your degree. Do not hesitate to promote your education to your employers. Hopefully, you will never experience workplace inequality. If the situation ever arises, I think you should reflect on ways you can work with your employer to correct it and then advocate with your local workplace equality group.
“Economic Life After College.” 11 June, 2007. New York Times. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/11/opinion/11mon3.html?_r=2&oref=slogin.
“Fifteen Steps to an Out & Equal Workplace.” Out & Equal Workplace Advocates: Workplace Resources. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://outandequal.org/steps-to-equal-workplace.
Lardner, James. “Mobility Check.” The Progress Report. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://www.progress.org/2004/labor06.htm.
Ohlemacher, Stephen. “Monetary Success a Matter of Degrees: Bachelor’s Brings in $23,000 More a Year.” 26 October, 2006. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2006/oct/26/news/chi-0610260286oct26.
One question I find lurking at the office water cooler is the question of equality in the workplace. While there are many resources about gender equality, I’d rather talk about workplace equality in regards to your degree. Do you feel you will be treated equally with the type of degree you’re earning?
Workplace fairness has been around for some time now and has been advocated for my many diverse groups. But how far have we come? According to an article by Stephen Ohlemacher of Washington, employees with bachelor’s degrees earned an average of $50,000. Ohlemacher also portrays the message that of states with numerous high school diploma graduates the number of college degree graduate will also be high. ***By the way, Florida doesn’t rank high!*** What does that mean for people who earn a degree in a less than well known area of study? Currently, the mentality in the United States is centered on specialization of work to the extent that our universities offer degree programs just for those specialized jobs. For example, if you wanted to be a human resources manager there is a degree program for that. But you can also have an interdisciplinary studies degree and be a human resources manager. So the question becomes, with the trend in specialization that our society has, do you think the employee with the interdisciplinary studies degree be treated equally with the employee with the specialized degree? In an article by James Lardner, upward mobility is discussed relative to several factors, one of them being degrees. Lardner states, "upward mobility is determined increasingly by a college degree." And a New York Times article regarding the economic disparity of college graduates asserts that the gap between college graduate and high school graduate employees is diminishing. According to the NY Times article, the reason for the rise of inequality is a "lack of strong policies and institutions that broadly distribute economic gains."
If your answer to the interdisciplinary studies versus specialized degree question is no, I have another question for you: what can be done to correct the situation?
Revamping the workplace is one start point. The Out & Equal Workplace Advocates provide several steps for creating equality in the workplace. Granted they are more concerned with inequality related to sexual orientation, but a few of their suggestions can be applied broadly: create an employee resource group, hold degree diversity seminars (or cross training sessions), market and advertise employees varied backgrounds and degree studies, and advocate for leadership development in employees with different degrees.
Another way to correct the workplace inequality is to update policies and create organizations to advocate for benefits. This is what was encouraged in the New York Times article by Levy and Temin. They argued that we had unions and affirmative action groups years ago and today we don’t have those benefit advocates anymore. They also state that employer policies are outdated and should be revised.
If you find that you’ve been discriminated against based on your degree you should pursue the matter further with risk management or human resources. This may not always be the case, however, as you are the marketing tool for your degree. Do not hesitate to promote your education to your employers. Hopefully, you will never experience workplace inequality. If the situation ever arises, I think you should reflect on ways you can work with your employer to correct it and then advocate with your local workplace equality group.
“Economic Life After College.” 11 June, 2007. New York Times. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/11/opinion/11mon3.html?_r=2&oref=slogin.
“Fifteen Steps to an Out & Equal Workplace.” Out & Equal Workplace Advocates: Workplace Resources. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://outandequal.org/steps-to-equal-workplace.
Lardner, James. “Mobility Check.” The Progress Report. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://www.progress.org/2004/labor06.htm.
Ohlemacher, Stephen. “Monetary Success a Matter of Degrees: Bachelor’s Brings in $23,000 More a Year.” 26 October, 2006. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 06 July, 2009 from http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2006/oct/26/news/chi-0610260286oct26.
01 July 2009
Interdisciplinarity + Everyday Life
How do you find ways to utilize interdisciplinarity in your life? We can all talk to people about how interdisciplinarity applies to our education; but what about everyday life? Can the tools we learn throughout our program of study be applied to our daily lives?
I believe we can not only apply interdisciplinarity to our day by day actions, but we can also advise others to take notice and try it themselves. Consider applying interdisciplinarity to organizing your workspace. Now you may think of it as simply straightening up, but to really organize, you may include elements from some of these disciplines: architecture, organizational psychology, anthropology, and design. Four different disciplines have come together to maximize your workplace organization! Now bearing in mind we all maintain health, psychology, or criminal justice components of our interdisciplinary studies degree; how can we apply aspects of interdisciplinarity of one of these areas into our daily life?
Besides applying interdisciplinarity in academia, what other organizations utilize this tool? On a global scale, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations published a research study in 2001 employing an interdisciplinary approach to field research and case studies. http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/003/X6996E/x6996e00.htm#Contents Also, the state of New Jersey has developed a linguistics program using interdisciplinary studies in the education arena and also the corporate workplace arena: "an interdisciplinary, systems thinking
approach—is needed to provide cohesion and foster the development of workplace readiness
skills." http://www.state.nj.us/education/frameworks/worldlanguages/chap1-4.pdf
Let's consider specific characteristics that are incorporated into an interdisciplinary lifestyle. Are there traits that are essential for the application of interdisciplinary studies? One characteristic I find necessary is curiosity. Although the desire to create something, conduct the research and find ways to apply those findings to any market is useful, it all begins with curiosity. You wouldn’t have the desire to create, the stamina to research, or the proficiency to apply the results if you weren’t curios about what was being queried. Curiosity, in moderation, is a great tool that can be used to advance your career, jumpstart new projects, or even improve livelihoods.
When assessing or applying interdisciplinarity, are there standards to measure against or should everyone be considered individually? What are pros or cons of each?
I believe we can not only apply interdisciplinarity to our day by day actions, but we can also advise others to take notice and try it themselves. Consider applying interdisciplinarity to organizing your workspace. Now you may think of it as simply straightening up, but to really organize, you may include elements from some of these disciplines: architecture, organizational psychology, anthropology, and design. Four different disciplines have come together to maximize your workplace organization! Now bearing in mind we all maintain health, psychology, or criminal justice components of our interdisciplinary studies degree; how can we apply aspects of interdisciplinarity of one of these areas into our daily life?
Besides applying interdisciplinarity in academia, what other organizations utilize this tool? On a global scale, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations published a research study in 2001 employing an interdisciplinary approach to field research and case studies. http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/003/X6996E/x6996e00.htm#Contents Also, the state of New Jersey has developed a linguistics program using interdisciplinary studies in the education arena and also the corporate workplace arena: "an interdisciplinary, systems thinking
approach—is needed to provide cohesion and foster the development of workplace readiness
skills." http://www.state.nj.us/education/frameworks/worldlanguages/chap1-4.pdf
Let's consider specific characteristics that are incorporated into an interdisciplinary lifestyle. Are there traits that are essential for the application of interdisciplinary studies? One characteristic I find necessary is curiosity. Although the desire to create something, conduct the research and find ways to apply those findings to any market is useful, it all begins with curiosity. You wouldn’t have the desire to create, the stamina to research, or the proficiency to apply the results if you weren’t curios about what was being queried. Curiosity, in moderation, is a great tool that can be used to advance your career, jumpstart new projects, or even improve livelihoods.
When assessing or applying interdisciplinarity, are there standards to measure against or should everyone be considered individually? What are pros or cons of each?
24 June 2009
e-Portfolio
When I was in my Cornerstone course, I had reservations regarding the efficacy of the electronic portfolio (or e-portfolio). I did not fully appreciate the viability of the project. However, the e-portfolio can be a useful tool. Defined within the educational setting, an e-portfolio is a web version of your learning record and abilities. It contains “artifacts” or “evidence” created by you to map and promote your development. For interdisciplinary studies majors it is a useful tool to track your progress and review how your learning talent has progressed.
Let’s talk about what goes into your e-portfolio. You will learn more about all of this when your professor introduces the module, but I will do a brief overview of a few things.
- The first part of your e-portfolio is an introduction. This is where you grab the reader’s attention, tell them why your e-portfolio exists and what will be found in it. Most learning e-portfolios will then contain an evidence page where you display samples of your work throughout your college career. Next will be your work experience; i.e., a resume. This will help you integrate your educational progress with your professional goals. As you advance in your career or graduate school you will also add your curriculum vitae to your e-portfolio. Included may also be any organizations you belong to and volunteer work you’ve done. Links to blogs and webpages are useful for the reader to get to know you a little bit more. One caution regarding your personal websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Wikis and others is that your readers will be looking at them. Make sure any unprofessional content on these pages are deleted or cleaned up!
- With your e-portfolio you have the opportunity to be creative. Showcasing your three concentrations may prove to be constructive. Perhaps you will have the opportunity to create a page for each and one for your minor and you can organize your evidence that way. To customize your e-portfolio more, you can pick templates, add photos and personalize it for your interests.
The purpose of your e-portfolio is to market your accomplishments to prospective employers and graduate advisors. It includes evidence of both your college and workforce careers. The e-portfolio can be personalized to include photos and colour schemes. To be truthful, the example e-portfolios I’ve looked at from others schools have been exceptional compared to what UCF offers. Their choices of templates are minimal and navigating is not user-friendly. Overall, I have to say that considering all of you are seniors it is unfortunate that you had not taken the Cornerstone course earlier on in your college career so that you could accumulate more evidence throughout your other courses. That would have made it easier to utilize the e-portfolio in your future advancements.
Nevertheless, it is a functional mechanism not only for your personal career choice, but also for firms, projects, and themed tasks. Your Cornerstone professor will give you sample e-portfolios from a few institutions. Here is one that I found to be interesting. Navigating them is easy and the purpose is clearly stated. http://eportfolio.citytech.cuny.edu/ePortfolio_examples.shtml By the way, thank you Rachelle for submitting the question.
22 June 2009
Participation
I want to thank you all for the interaction and assistance you've been providing each other. I read all the posts and comments and will be addressing a question from one of them shortly. Before I do so, however, I would like to ask you to clarify with your professor how the blogging is supposed to operate. According to my professor, we are to post a discussion topic each week and we are all to comment and post responses about it. It is a conversation via blogging. But my professor wants a new topic each week (preferably on Monday) and full interaction/participation from everyone. It was also stated that your professor agreed to this weekly participation.
No matter how often or what level of participation there should be, I appreciate your feedback and questions. I'm sure as the semester progresses, we will begin to uncover the positive aspects of this project. Also, as we continue in our classes feel free to ask questions and comments as they arise.
Thanks, Karyn.
No matter how often or what level of participation there should be, I appreciate your feedback and questions. I'm sure as the semester progresses, we will begin to uncover the positive aspects of this project. Also, as we continue in our classes feel free to ask questions and comments as they arise.
Thanks, Karyn.
16 June 2009
The beginning 1st Assignment
Devon Alejandro
Name: Devon Alejandro
Preferred email account: alejandrodevon@gmail.com
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Major: Health and Criminal Justice. Minor: Anthropology
When do you anticipate graduating? Spring 2010.
What's your favorite subject of study and your least favorite? My favorite subject of study is Science and Music .My least favorite would have to be Humanities.
Want to share your age? I am 33 years old.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? Dubai
Do you have any pets? NO
What's your favorite book & movie? The Bible and the movie 300.
What's your favorite food/dining experience? My favorite type of food is Chinese. My favorite dining experience would be anywhere that serves chicken. I love chicken.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? I play basketball and play the piano.
Beach, mountains, or city? I like the beach and the city and I never been to the mountains. I lived in NYC and enjoyed the city life and I like the beach for the scenery.
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking three classes this summer.Ihave a full time job and deal with my family and friends which is another full time job.
Activity #1: MapQuest I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.The town that I found is Ellijay, GA. Ellijay is 516.32 miles from Orlando, Florida. Ellijay is located in the blue ridge mountains. It’s the apple capital of Georgia. There was a gold rush their in 1842 and you can still find gold nuggets in the streams.WWW.downtownellijay.org.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Basketball-Its my favorite sport and I love watch it and play it.
Cologne- I want to always smell great.
Fruit punch- My favorite drink.
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?I chose interdisciplinary studies as a major because I like the fact that I can basically personalize my major.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?My minor is Anthropology. I love to study the origins of human beings.
Have you had experience with online learning before?Yes, I have taken a few online courses at UCF.
What concerns do you have about online learning?I really don’t have any real concerns with online learning except for computer problems.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?I think it’s very useful and interactions with students especially with experience is beneficial.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?I think blogging should be very productive. It allows me to share my personal views and opinions with others.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?I am a senior!
Name: Devon Alejandro
Preferred email account: alejandrodevon@gmail.com
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Major: Health and Criminal Justice. Minor: Anthropology
When do you anticipate graduating? Spring 2010.
What's your favorite subject of study and your least favorite? My favorite subject of study is Science and Music .My least favorite would have to be Humanities.
Want to share your age? I am 33 years old.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? Dubai
Do you have any pets? NO
What's your favorite book & movie? The Bible and the movie 300.
What's your favorite food/dining experience? My favorite type of food is Chinese. My favorite dining experience would be anywhere that serves chicken. I love chicken.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? I play basketball and play the piano.
Beach, mountains, or city? I like the beach and the city and I never been to the mountains. I lived in NYC and enjoyed the city life and I like the beach for the scenery.
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking three classes this summer.Ihave a full time job and deal with my family and friends which is another full time job.
Activity #1: MapQuest I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.The town that I found is Ellijay, GA. Ellijay is 516.32 miles from Orlando, Florida. Ellijay is located in the blue ridge mountains. It’s the apple capital of Georgia. There was a gold rush their in 1842 and you can still find gold nuggets in the streams.WWW.downtownellijay.org.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Basketball-Its my favorite sport and I love watch it and play it.
Cologne- I want to always smell great.
Fruit punch- My favorite drink.
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?I chose interdisciplinary studies as a major because I like the fact that I can basically personalize my major.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?My minor is Anthropology. I love to study the origins of human beings.
Have you had experience with online learning before?Yes, I have taken a few online courses at UCF.
What concerns do you have about online learning?I really don’t have any real concerns with online learning except for computer problems.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?I think it’s very useful and interactions with students especially with experience is beneficial.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?I think blogging should be very productive. It allows me to share my personal views and opinions with others.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?I am a senior!
15 June 2009
Interviews
Thank you for introducing yourselves. I am confident with the group that we have that our interaction will be beneficial. Please remember if you haven’t posted an introduction to copy the welcome post and change the answers to reflect yourself; then post an intro. Also, any concerns or suggestions you may have are welcome. Please remember you can email me (feedback is always desirable)!
For our first discussion topic, I decided to focus on interviews. I was informed that the majority of you had concerns about presenting your degree in an interview. I will admit that I have been on quite a few interviews before (I believe practice makes perfect)! In each of these I found out that there are two deciding factors that will land you a second interview or the position applied for. **Disclaimer: when I’m talking about two deciding factors, I mean outside of the requirements like education or experience qualifications, besides mannerisms, etc.**
The first factor is confidence. Confidence, not arrogance! You have to be confident in your presentation and your answers. Confidence in your presentation comes through in how you dress for the interview and your body language. Confidence in your answers comes from being truthful, knowing your resume, and knowing the company & position applied for. The University of Buffalo Interview Guide (http://mgt.buffalo.edu/files/career/InterviewGuide.pdf) provides plenty of information regarding interview skills. Pages three to four discuss researching the company and position; also, on page 15 begins a discussion about your educational experience.
The second factor is playing on the strengths of the question asked. What I mean by this is if you come across a question that may actually point out a weakness, turn the question around to portray a strength. The University of North Carolina provides an Interview Guide (http://www.unca.edu/career/interviewingskills.pdf) that suggests using their STAR formula for answering questions. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result (page two). In other words, select a prior experience and draw attention to the positive actions and results. The guide also provides good sample interview questions on page four.
- Consider this example: Grace has other responsibilities besides work (i.e.: family, school, weekly book group, etc.) that doesn’t permit her a lot of time for working extra or on weekends. In a recent interview, Grace was asked if she would be available for team projects that may require extra hours. Instead of giving the many reasons why she may not be able to fit in more time at work, she could highlight the points of the question: is this person reliable and are they a team player? So a possible answer Grace could provide would highlight that she is consistent in her deadlines, in her last position she was only late twice in three years, she initiated a team project that decreased accounts payable by ten percent, that she is glad to help others meet their deadlines, and that she assisted in the creation of a company softball team. See, Grace isn’t saying that she’s too busy. Instead, she is actually providing points that showcase how responsible and dependable she is, how she takes the initiative, works well with others, and even interacts outside of the workplace.
When it comes to a degree such as ours that isn’t well known outside of the academic world, depicting its strengths and how it can benefit the company is how you market yourself. Although I have not had many interviewers ask about my degree, there is a direct question that pertains to it. Interviewers may ask about your general education experience or your GPA; but I’ve found one question in my interviews thus far that has forced me to actually market my degree to the employer (which was completely unrelated to my concentrations). The interviewer asked, “How will your educational career benefit our company?” Granted this is an open-ended question and there are many ways you can answer this. I would like to hear how you all would respond to this.
Now employers can phrase it any which way they want, “tell me about your degree,” or they can be really blunt and say something like, “what exactly is interdisciplinary studies?” The point is to relate the degree to the company. Perhaps you can tie in the company mission to your response, or if the qualifications of the position require you to work with many departments in the company you can talk about how flexible and versatile your degree has made you. Face the fact: our degree program is new to the career world and they don’t know a lot about it. Yes, you may have to explain it a bit during an interview. Do not become discouraged!!! There are many aspects about the degree you can emphasize. Such as: yes it’s new, but it is adapting with the changing times; studying several disciplines provides you will skills that are transferable to another department, etc. If the employer doesn’t ask about your educational background (perhaps because you have enough work experience – which is generally my situation) there is always a time at the end of the interview where you can ask questions. A good tip is to develop these questions prior to the interview. In your research of the company you may discover two to three questions about the company or the position or the future thereof. You also have the opportunity here to tell your future employer about the strengths of your degree. Our degree is certainly viable in today’s economy and can prove to be advantageous to securing your future career!
I mentioned earlier that I believe practice makes perfect. I also believe that having others critique your responses to questions is effective. Certainly you should utilize friends, spouses, professors and coworkers to help you practice for an interview. Remember, knowing your resume and the company is essential for answering these questions. I don’t know if your class has done this yet, but my Cornerstone class participated in practice interviews through a service called Perfect Interview. If you have reached this part of class yet, feel free to share your interviews with me. If you haven’t I look forward to hearing your experience with it in the future. Either way, I am available if you would like to practice.
I’m going to share with you all my interviews from my Cornerstone class. I hope they help!
http://www.perfectinterview.com/online/review_gateway.asp?id=3017853&type=standard
http://www.perfectinterview.com/online/review_gateway.asp?id=3017852&type=standard
14 June 2009
Dori Dietrick
Name: Dori Dietrick
Preferred email account: Dori.Dietrick@gmail.com
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Major: Behavioral & Social Sciences and Health. Minor: Criminal Justice
When do you anticipate graduating? Fall 2009
What's your favorite subject of study and your least favorite? My favorite subject of study is Behavioral and Social Sciences, my least favorite would have to be Math.
Want to share your age? I just turned 29 last week.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? New Zealand
Do you have any pets? A Yorkshire Terrier.
What's your favorite book & movie? The Notebook.
What's your favorite food/dining experience? My favorite type of food is Mexican. My favorite dining experience would be Cerviche, my husband brought me there last week for my birthday. It is a tapas place, so we got to try all kinds of different things.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? Work pretty much consumes my life. But, when I get free time, I love to go to the beach, travel, do landscape photography, and relax with my husband and family.
Beach, mountains, or city? That is a hard one. I love them all. I lived in LA and NYC and had an amazing time in the big city life and I love the beach, but I think I would say the mountains are my favorite. It is so nice to be surrounded by nature and it so beautiful in the mountains.
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking three classes this summer and three in the fall and will graduate in the fall. I also work full-time with a lot of overtime. It is going to be a rough summer and fall, but I know it will all be worth it when I graduate.
Activity #1: MapQuestI’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
The town that I found is Helen, GA. Helen is 521 miles from Orlando, Florida. Helen is full of import stores and the architecture of the buildings are similar to a Bavarian town. There is horseback riding, river tubing, canoeing, fishing, mountain biking and tons more outdoor activities. http://www.helengeorgia.com/
Activity #2: Wal-MartOK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Memory cards for my camera. I love photography, so I am always buying them because I take tons of pictures.
DVD’s. I love to lounge around the house with my husband in my free time and watch movies.
Hand Sanitizer. I work in clinical research dealing with infectious disease, so I am very cautious of the spread of germs.The following are questions I’d like you to answer:
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?
I chose interdisciplinary studies as a major because I like the fact that I can basically personalize my major.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?
My minor is criminal justice. I have an interest in why criminals are incarcerated, and how it mentally affects them once they are socialized in prison.
Have you had experience with online learning before?
Yes, I have taken a few online courses at UCF.
What concerns do you have about online learning?
I really don’t have any real concerns with online learning. I feel like education is evolving.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?
I think it will be very helpful. Anytime a student can learn something from another student that already has the experience I feel like it is very useful.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?
I think blogging should be very productive. It allows you to stay involved in what you are doing with someone with experience. This is the first time I have ever done something like this, but I am excited to try it.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?
I am a senior!
Preferred email account: Dori.Dietrick@gmail.com
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Major: Behavioral & Social Sciences and Health. Minor: Criminal Justice
When do you anticipate graduating? Fall 2009
What's your favorite subject of study and your least favorite? My favorite subject of study is Behavioral and Social Sciences, my least favorite would have to be Math.
Want to share your age? I just turned 29 last week.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? New Zealand
Do you have any pets? A Yorkshire Terrier.
What's your favorite book & movie? The Notebook.
What's your favorite food/dining experience? My favorite type of food is Mexican. My favorite dining experience would be Cerviche, my husband brought me there last week for my birthday. It is a tapas place, so we got to try all kinds of different things.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? Work pretty much consumes my life. But, when I get free time, I love to go to the beach, travel, do landscape photography, and relax with my husband and family.
Beach, mountains, or city? That is a hard one. I love them all. I lived in LA and NYC and had an amazing time in the big city life and I love the beach, but I think I would say the mountains are my favorite. It is so nice to be surrounded by nature and it so beautiful in the mountains.
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking three classes this summer and three in the fall and will graduate in the fall. I also work full-time with a lot of overtime. It is going to be a rough summer and fall, but I know it will all be worth it when I graduate.
Activity #1: MapQuestI’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
The town that I found is Helen, GA. Helen is 521 miles from Orlando, Florida. Helen is full of import stores and the architecture of the buildings are similar to a Bavarian town. There is horseback riding, river tubing, canoeing, fishing, mountain biking and tons more outdoor activities. http://www.helengeorgia.com/
Activity #2: Wal-MartOK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Memory cards for my camera. I love photography, so I am always buying them because I take tons of pictures.
DVD’s. I love to lounge around the house with my husband in my free time and watch movies.
Hand Sanitizer. I work in clinical research dealing with infectious disease, so I am very cautious of the spread of germs.The following are questions I’d like you to answer:
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?
I chose interdisciplinary studies as a major because I like the fact that I can basically personalize my major.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?
My minor is criminal justice. I have an interest in why criminals are incarcerated, and how it mentally affects them once they are socialized in prison.
Have you had experience with online learning before?
Yes, I have taken a few online courses at UCF.
What concerns do you have about online learning?
I really don’t have any real concerns with online learning. I feel like education is evolving.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?
I think it will be very helpful. Anytime a student can learn something from another student that already has the experience I feel like it is very useful.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?
I think blogging should be very productive. It allows you to stay involved in what you are doing with someone with experience. This is the first time I have ever done something like this, but I am excited to try it.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?
I am a senior!
12 June 2009
Rachelle's Introduction Blog
Name: Rachelle Thomas – phonetic spelling (Ra-shell)
Preferred email account: rthomasUCF@gmail.com This is my e-mail account for school related information and I will respond within 48hours
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Health/Behavioural & Social Sciences & Criminal Justice
When do you anticipate graduating? December 2009
What's your favourite subject of study and your least favourite? Psychology/Humanities
Want to share your age? 24
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? I’m a beach lover so I would love to see the beaches of Fiji
Do you have any pets? I have 2 dogs, both of them are boxers one is a female(Zoey) and the other is a male (Fletcher)
What's your favourite book & movie? I’m not much into books or movies because I have A.D.D. and it’s difficult for me to focus for long periods of time, I like watching surgeries mostly and documentaries.
What's your favourite food/dining experience? My favorite cuisine is Italian I love anything with pasta and cheese, but it isn’t on my diet so I don’t get to indulge very often.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? I work out on a daily basis, it’s my release and my passion, I am very health conscious. Other than that I enjoy arts and crafts such as scrapbooking and painting.
Beach, mountains, or city? City. Beach for sure, I was born and raised in Florida, I just got back from a trip to New York and I couldn’t stand it, I need the sunshine on a daily basis!
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking a total of four classes this semester in order to complete my B.S. by December 2009. My other obligations are taking care of my house, working part time for Cornerstone Hospice and working out on a daily basis.
Activity #1: MapQuest
I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
I located Endicott, NY because I just got back from visiting my friends that live there. It isn’t at all what I thought New York would be like since it’s out in the country. It is 1,155 miles from Orlando, Florida. An interesting thing about Endicott is they have this meat marinade phenomenon called “speidie” that originated from the town and everywhere you go in the market places and restaurants they sell a variation of meats marinated in speidie sauce. Another interesting fact is that they are a leader in clean industry and are home to large corporations such as IBM.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart
OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
MP3 Player: It is a must have item for me because I’m at the gym everyday and music motivates me to workout harder and longer. I used to play percussion and have always loved music so I couldn’t imagine it not being a part of my life.
Digital Camera: I love capturing my experiences in photo’s and being able to look back on the memories I have created and the places I have visited. Luckily technology has made photography so much more convenient.
Sundress: Sundresses and flip flops are my way of living the Florida lifestyle, I have visited so many places and just couldn’t see myself living anywhere but here, I love the weather and the light airy clothing that you can wear all the time.
Updated * Questions *
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?
I had so many college credits, it was the fastest way I could use what I had and graduate as soon as possible. It was also offered online which made it a much easier choice for me.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?
I already had credits for the Health portion and I was interested in Psychology so that is why I chose Behavioral/Social Sciences. I had previously enjoyed criminal justice courses which is why I chose it as my minor.
Have you had experience with online learning before?
My entire degree is online so this is my 3rd semester of online courses.
What concerns do you have about online learning?
Honestly it's remembering the timelines for all of the different courses.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?
I hope that it will be useful and it's nice to have a guiding hand with this course since it is demanding.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?
I think it makes it a little more difficult to keep up with because it's just one more aspect of the course to try and remember to keep up with.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)?
Senior
Any further questions or comments?
I have issues understanding e-portfolio, will help be offered on that subject?
Preferred email account: rthomasUCF@gmail.com This is my e-mail account for school related information and I will respond within 48hours
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Health/Behavioural & Social Sciences & Criminal Justice
When do you anticipate graduating? December 2009
What's your favourite subject of study and your least favourite? Psychology/Humanities
Want to share your age? 24
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? I’m a beach lover so I would love to see the beaches of Fiji
Do you have any pets? I have 2 dogs, both of them are boxers one is a female(Zoey) and the other is a male (Fletcher)
What's your favourite book & movie? I’m not much into books or movies because I have A.D.D. and it’s difficult for me to focus for long periods of time, I like watching surgeries mostly and documentaries.
What's your favourite food/dining experience? My favorite cuisine is Italian I love anything with pasta and cheese, but it isn’t on my diet so I don’t get to indulge very often.
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? I work out on a daily basis, it’s my release and my passion, I am very health conscious. Other than that I enjoy arts and crafts such as scrapbooking and painting.
Beach, mountains, or city? City. Beach for sure, I was born and raised in Florida, I just got back from a trip to New York and I couldn’t stand it, I need the sunshine on a daily basis!
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I am taking a total of four classes this semester in order to complete my B.S. by December 2009. My other obligations are taking care of my house, working part time for Cornerstone Hospice and working out on a daily basis.
Activity #1: MapQuest
I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
I located Endicott, NY because I just got back from visiting my friends that live there. It isn’t at all what I thought New York would be like since it’s out in the country. It is 1,155 miles from Orlando, Florida. An interesting thing about Endicott is they have this meat marinade phenomenon called “speidie” that originated from the town and everywhere you go in the market places and restaurants they sell a variation of meats marinated in speidie sauce. Another interesting fact is that they are a leader in clean industry and are home to large corporations such as IBM.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart
OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
MP3 Player: It is a must have item for me because I’m at the gym everyday and music motivates me to workout harder and longer. I used to play percussion and have always loved music so I couldn’t imagine it not being a part of my life.
Digital Camera: I love capturing my experiences in photo’s and being able to look back on the memories I have created and the places I have visited. Luckily technology has made photography so much more convenient.
Sundress: Sundresses and flip flops are my way of living the Florida lifestyle, I have visited so many places and just couldn’t see myself living anywhere but here, I love the weather and the light airy clothing that you can wear all the time.
Updated * Questions *
What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major?
I had so many college credits, it was the fastest way I could use what I had and graduate as soon as possible. It was also offered online which made it a much easier choice for me.
For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor?
I already had credits for the Health portion and I was interested in Psychology so that is why I chose Behavioral/Social Sciences. I had previously enjoyed criminal justice courses which is why I chose it as my minor.
Have you had experience with online learning before?
My entire degree is online so this is my 3rd semester of online courses.
What concerns do you have about online learning?
Honestly it's remembering the timelines for all of the different courses.
Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful?
I hope that it will be useful and it's nice to have a guiding hand with this course since it is demanding.
How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be?
I think it makes it a little more difficult to keep up with because it's just one more aspect of the course to try and remember to keep up with.
What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)?
Senior
Any further questions or comments?
I have issues understanding e-portfolio, will help be offered on that subject?
27 May 2009
Welcome!
Thank you for joining my Capstone blog for UCF! I hope I can assist you in your journey through interdisciplinary studies.
Since we're just getting to know each other, I thought we could engage in a little activity to learn more. I’d like to provide you with a little introduction to myself. Some of the questions are straightforward and some are a little fun. Any further information you can find on my blogger profile or simply by asking. There are also two small activities and a few more questions at the end that I’d like you to complete. Then just copy the questions & activities, paste them in a word document and change the answers. Onc you’re done, just post it (keep in mind the formatting may change so please review your response before submitting it!)
Name: Karyn Leger (it’s pronounced the same as Karen but my grandmother decided to be playful with the spelling!)
Preferred email account: I set up an email for this class and blogging communication at the following: kl.capstone@gmail.com. An alternative email is kleger@knights.ucf.edu. I’ll generally respond to emails within 48 hours (barring any unforeseen circumstances).
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Health/Behavioural & Social Sciences & Religion, respectively
When do you anticipate graduating? Summer 09
What's your favourite subject of study and your least favourite? Religion/Philosophy/Humanities & Physics, respectively
Want to share your age? 26 this month.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? I love Malaysia & Singapore. This year I’m going to Egypt; but I’d like to visit France & Spain.
Do you have any pets? A cat, but she lives with my mother because I can’t have any pets in the condo I’m renting.
What's your favourite book & movie? I’m currently reading a book called Palace Walk by an Egyptian author. I also like Jane Austen and Dr. Seuss! I have to admit, I’m a little behind the times with television and movies. For example, I just saw the first Night at the Museum! I do like the Transporter movie, though; but mostly comedies.
What's your favourite food/dining experience? While I was in Thailand, I ate all kinds of desserts that I don’t really know what was in them (except that they contained fruits & veggies). Nonetheless, they were delicious. ;)
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? Besides work??? … I like to try new things & I really love to travel. Also, I used to play and coach soccer, but gave it up coaching this year to finish off my BA.
Beach, mountains, or city? City. I used to live in NYC and miss it so much. I live on the beach now and it not only smells like dead fish but also the salt kills everything. As for the mountains: been there, didn’t like the cold (although I love the snow!)
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I’m taking a total of 4 classes this summer so I can graduate in August. Besides school, I also work part-time at night (so I may post at odd hours). Other than that, I spend time with my family and any new activities I take up. I should also let you know that I don’t live in Orlando. I live in Satellite Beach (which is next to Melbourne). I actually have only been to the Orlando campus twice (once for orientation and another time to take my nephew to visit the campus as a prospective student)!
Activity #1: MapQuest
I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
I located Telluride, Colorado, which is 2062.20 miles from Orlando. Situated in the San Juan Mountains, Telluride began as a mining community being named after the element tellurium which was never actually found in the surrounding mountains. Telluride hosts a several festivals, one being an annual bluegrass festival! It is sort of like the Woodstock of bluegrass, jazz, blues, etc. Now mostly a ski, spa and outdoor activities town, Telluride rests at 8,750 ft! Find out more at http://www.telluride.com.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart
OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Bounce Rooms: remember jumping and playing in those inflatable bounce rooms as a kid? Well, Brevard County has an annual Indiafest which I go to with my nephews. It’s a good way for them to experience another culture’s music, food, history and customs. There, they also have inflatable bounce rooms which we just love! I believe you’re never too old to be a kid!
Photo Frames: I love taking photos. Birthdays, trips to the park and – of course – vacations all end in hundreds of photos! Most of my photography involves architecture. Though I don’t publish any of my photos, I do frame them constantly and give them to my family and friends.
OTC Medication: Let’s face it, the price of medications these days is almost as much as buying a house! So for routine over-the-counter medications I buy in bulk at Wal-Mart. Then I give them to my mother, sisters, and co-workers! Any help I can give them (and at a discount) is worth it!
The following are questions I’d like you to answer: What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major? For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor? Have you had experience with online learning before? What concerns do you have about online learning? Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful? How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be? What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?
***Though I will choose the discussion topic of the week, I would love to hear your concerns and questions. Therefore, any suggestions for weekly discussion topics or questions please send them to me by Sunday or Monday morning at the latest. If any questions come up at any time, remember you can email me.
I look forward to communicating with you regarding concerns or experiences you may have. Good luck and I hope you enjoy reading what I have to offer!
Thank you, Karyn.
Since we're just getting to know each other, I thought we could engage in a little activity to learn more. I’d like to provide you with a little introduction to myself. Some of the questions are straightforward and some are a little fun. Any further information you can find on my blogger profile or simply by asking. There are also two small activities and a few more questions at the end that I’d like you to complete. Then just copy the questions & activities, paste them in a word document and change the answers. Onc you’re done, just post it (keep in mind the formatting may change so please review your response before submitting it!)
Name: Karyn Leger (it’s pronounced the same as Karen but my grandmother decided to be playful with the spelling!)
Preferred email account: I set up an email for this class and blogging communication at the following: kl.capstone@gmail.com. An alternative email is kleger@knights.ucf.edu. I’ll generally respond to emails within 48 hours (barring any unforeseen circumstances).
What are your areas of concentration for IDS major? What is your minor? Health/Behavioural & Social Sciences & Religion, respectively
When do you anticipate graduating? Summer 09
What's your favourite subject of study and your least favourite? Religion/Philosophy/Humanities & Physics, respectively
Want to share your age? 26 this month.
If you could travel to anywhere in the world, where would you go? I love Malaysia & Singapore. This year I’m going to Egypt; but I’d like to visit France & Spain.
Do you have any pets? A cat, but she lives with my mother because I can’t have any pets in the condo I’m renting.
What's your favourite book & movie? I’m currently reading a book called Palace Walk by an Egyptian author. I also like Jane Austen and Dr. Seuss! I have to admit, I’m a little behind the times with television and movies. For example, I just saw the first Night at the Museum! I do like the Transporter movie, though; but mostly comedies.
What's your favourite food/dining experience? While I was in Thailand, I ate all kinds of desserts that I don’t really know what was in them (except that they contained fruits & veggies). Nonetheless, they were delicious. ;)
What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies? Besides work??? … I like to try new things & I really love to travel. Also, I used to play and coach soccer, but gave it up coaching this year to finish off my BA.
Beach, mountains, or city? City. I used to live in NYC and miss it so much. I live on the beach now and it not only smells like dead fish but also the salt kills everything. As for the mountains: been there, didn’t like the cold (although I love the snow!)
How many other classes are you taking & what other obligations do you have? Would you like to share anything else? I’m taking a total of 4 classes this summer so I can graduate in August. Besides school, I also work part-time at night (so I may post at odd hours). Other than that, I spend time with my family and any new activities I take up. I should also let you know that I don’t live in Orlando. I live in Satellite Beach (which is next to Melbourne). I actually have only been to the Orlando campus twice (once for orientation and another time to take my nephew to visit the campus as a prospective student)!
Activity #1: MapQuest
I’d like you to go to www.mapquest.com and find a not well known town in any US state. Identify how far it is from Orlando, Florida. Find two to three interesting facts about the town to share with us.
I located Telluride, Colorado, which is 2062.20 miles from Orlando. Situated in the San Juan Mountains, Telluride began as a mining community being named after the element tellurium which was never actually found in the surrounding mountains. Telluride hosts a several festivals, one being an annual bluegrass festival! It is sort of like the Woodstock of bluegrass, jazz, blues, etc. Now mostly a ski, spa and outdoor activities town, Telluride rests at 8,750 ft! Find out more at http://www.telluride.com.
Activity #2: Wal-Mart
OK, we’ve all been to a Wal-Mart. I want you to provide three items that can be found in a Wal-Mart that describe you in some way. Please give a reason as to why the item describes you. www.walmart.com
Bounce Rooms: remember jumping and playing in those inflatable bounce rooms as a kid? Well, Brevard County has an annual Indiafest which I go to with my nephews. It’s a good way for them to experience another culture’s music, food, history and customs. There, they also have inflatable bounce rooms which we just love! I believe you’re never too old to be a kid!
Photo Frames: I love taking photos. Birthdays, trips to the park and – of course – vacations all end in hundreds of photos! Most of my photography involves architecture. Though I don’t publish any of my photos, I do frame them constantly and give them to my family and friends.
OTC Medication: Let’s face it, the price of medications these days is almost as much as buying a house! So for routine over-the-counter medications I buy in bulk at Wal-Mart. Then I give them to my mother, sisters, and co-workers! Any help I can give them (and at a discount) is worth it!
The following are questions I’d like you to answer: What made you choose interdisciplinary studies as a major? For what reasons did you decide on your focuses/minor? Have you had experience with online learning before? What concerns do you have about online learning? Do you think the interaction between Cornerstone & Capstone students will be useful? How productive do you think the mode of delivery (i.e.: blogging) will be? What is your grade level (Freshman - Senior)? Any further questions or comments?
***Though I will choose the discussion topic of the week, I would love to hear your concerns and questions. Therefore, any suggestions for weekly discussion topics or questions please send them to me by Sunday or Monday morning at the latest. If any questions come up at any time, remember you can email me.
I look forward to communicating with you regarding concerns or experiences you may have. Good luck and I hope you enjoy reading what I have to offer!
Thank you, Karyn.
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