So Close I Can Taste It!

It's my favorite time of the semester. The time when you walk into the computer lab and slightly frown when you realize that all the computers are taken, but realize and empathize with the fact that everyone is simply finishing their finals. The time when everyone is sitting together going over their notes and studying for finals, or the Praxis. The time when you realize that you maybe should have started working on this reflective group presentation a little earlier than you did, but aren't really worried because you always produce top-quality work and luckily you were able to select your groupmates for this project so you have faith in them...ok, maybe that last one just applies to me, but that fact of the matter remains that it's like the last week and some change of school and I am excited!
Even though I started a few of my projects a little later than I would have liked to, I started them earlier enough and I am pretty much done now. For example, I made sure I selected to give my presentation in my psych class last week, so I wouldn't have to worry about it this week. And me and my student teaching dialogue paper have been working on our reflective paper all semester long (sort of), so now it's just a matter of pulling the stuff together. It's pays to plan ahead, because during this hectic time of year I can just sit back, relax, and find a friend in the computer lab who will print my already-completed work off my jump drive for me!
I am still teaching, though. I grew slightly attached to my 6th grade boys, and although I should have left them about 2 weeks ago, I haven't mustered up the nerve to leave them yet. I actually enjoy teaching this groups of children and enjoy the school environment. I was just talking to my boyfriend last night about how, should I teach once I am finish this program, Lea (the school where I student teach) is a good site for me. I am familiar with the environment, the administrative team is very supportive of the staff (even under NCLB pressures), my cooperating teacher loves me, and my professor at Penn is Lea's Penn partnership liaison (Penn is partners with a few area schools, and they do like professional development and provide various resources, such as student teachers!, to support these schools) and she thinks that I would make a good fit at the school. With my professor's nod of approval and my cooperating teacher's accolades, I'm sure I could work there. And that is what I really like about being here at Penn. I've networked and made connections sheerly by doing what I am supposed to do as a student. I didn't go out of my way to forge these connections; they were kind of naturally opened up to me because I did my duty as student. How hot is that!
Speaking of hot, it's getting warmer outside! Ugh! I think anything above 75 degrees is torture...I think it's 76 today! And to think that in just 2 short weeks, I am taking a vacay in Vegas and then going to Cali for job training....how am I going to make it? And Philly summers can be brutal (now, take that with a grain of salt. Remember, I think 76 is too hot...) If you enjoy hot city sun, a Philly summer may be the thing for you. Atlantic City and beaches aren't too far away, but still...let's just hope that my office has air conditioning...

The end is in sight

So I think I have about two weeks of class left! The end is in sight, and I will be halfway through my journey in grad school. I actually like this time of year, when everyone is abuzz trying to finish final projects and papers and the like. I have a few projects due, and I am pretty excited about them. I really got into this prject for my Psychology of African Americans courses, wherein we had to design an intervention program. My group decided to address the issue of colorism and its effects on sistas. We've titled it "Phenomenal Woman: sistas Speak Real Rap." I wish I somehow new how to put up links to our information, such as the brochure we designed to market our intervention, our powerpoint for the intervention, and my background paper on colorism. It was a lot of work, but it really was a labor of love and something I could actually see myself getting into. I'll try and see if i can find a way to put the info up here. I even found grant info so there would be funding just in case we decide to make this project a real thing!
The Accepted Master's Student's event was on Monday. It went swell! (who uses that word, anyway). I thought it was a success. The students really had a lot of questions that I had never even thought about asking, such as how does the program help a student transition to the Master's level. And the students were all really friendly to each other too! Our ice-breaker activity did not go as planned, as a matter of fact, because the students spent so much time talking to each other. I hope to see all of those faces here at GSE next year! the multicultural reception and dinner was a smashing sucess too. The discussion was stimulating and touched on some important issues, issues that even trascended race, such as campus/city safety. Not to mention the food was good...but we all know that's not the real issue. The point is, it was great, and I am glad to be a part of it. If anyone out there still has questions about it, feell free to contact me!
So now it's on with the remainder of the semester. I am just about finished with all my school work, and now I'm just focusing getting some of my portfolio work done (the master's portfolio) and preparing for my sumer job as assistant director of the summer school program. I'll pull a small vacay in May, and then it's nonstop professional and academic development for me! I can't wait!

Wished I Had!

So I just realized today that the Accepted Master's Student Event is coming up really soon...April 16th soon! I'm so excited! I wish I had gone to mine...judging from all of the planning we a re doing, I know this is gonna be a great event.
Current students, alumni, faculty, division coordinators, financial aide reps, student group reps, reousrce groups reps, EVERYONE'S gonna be there! Like seriously, any question you could possibly have regarding whether or not you want to attend GSE, or just need more information after you have already accepted admissions to GSE, it's all gonna be here! And there are gonna be fun ice breakers too! (I'm cheesy. I live for those sort fo things. I genuinely think they're fun...) Plus, you get to meet a lot of the people who will be joining you whe you finally do come to Penn (I'm assuming that once you come to this event, you're gonna want to come to GSE). It's gonna be fun. If you can make it out to this event, please do. I wish I had!

Been a Minute Now I'm Back...

So it has certianly been a while since my last post. I haven't forgetton about my blog; life (and GSE) has just been keeping me so busy!
Diversity Weekend was great! Me and Jamie planned so much for it; we are both so excited and happy and relieved that it went so well! All fo the students were better than anything that I dreamed of. They really made the most out of this weekend, advocating for themselves, smoozing with the professors, getting tips on the application process, asking questions (tons of questions) about the programs and faculty and research and just plain ol' life here at GSE! I think at least two of the students, maybe thre, had already applied to GSE. In their evaluations of the weekend, they said that they had a fantastic time and that they had made up their minds on GSE. Is that a success or what!
There were some slough and rough points of Diversity Weekend too. For starters, due to some miscommunications (not on GSE's behalf, though) some of the students didn't even know what Diversity Weekend was all about! We also ate a a restaurant and received less-than-friendly service. But overall it was fun, informative, and heck, I got to see the King Tut exhibit at the Franklin Institute! I can't complain!
That was last weekend. This week has been me focusing almost entirely on school. Well, school and accepted international students, but more on that later. It is nearing the end of the semester, and it's about that time when cumulative and/or reflective projects are due! Luckily, I've been a studious enough student to have been somewhat prepared for these projects, and I'm clever enough to think on my feet with the ones I forgot about. This time of year can be stressful for some, but I sort of like it. I kind of like the busy-ness of having all of these assignments due. I like that I don't have "finals" per se, but reflective papers and projects. I've really latched on the my reflective paper for EDU 635, a course where we learned all about assessment (a major portion of the reading specialist's job. Yup, getting my certification to be a reading specialist). Most of the information I learned in this course was new, so I asked if Icould do my reflective piece in a slightly different manner. I am reviewing in depth and systematically everything I learned abotu assessment and reading specialists through this course, and doing a write up of this information, how I have used it in practice (during my field experiences), and new questions for inquiry I now have as a result of having gone through this course. May sound dorky, but I'm really into this paper. Its forcing me to organize and re-learn what I learned in this course, which is helping me to feel more prepared to be a reading specialist. This is one of the most personally and profesionally fulfilling projects I've done thus far at Penn.
School and international students. Yes. I contacted a few international students who were accepted into master's programs in my Division at Penn, LLE...I never realized all the things these students have to consider! I've been pleasantly bombarded with emails (I contacted them via email) asking me question after question about financial aide and housing and cost of living and campus safety and program specific questions and scholarships and jobs and shopping an EVERYTHING YOU COULD POSSIBLY THINK OF! I just never realized how big and all-emcompassing of decision it is to take a year or two of your life and go to school. I kind of take itfor granted at times, but I put that all on the fact that I'm young and freash from undergrad. In any event, I've been trying to answer all the questions. If any of you out there have any questions, feel free to send them my way. I've become a mini-expert...