View from Abroad

Jessica Gliserman
2/17/12

I imagined that Oxford would be the nerd center of the universe and a pretentious one at that. That turns out not to be the case at all. The city is full of academics, it’s true, but they are the sort of academics who go out to the pub five nights in a row. Sometimes it seems like a contest to see who can do the most extracurricular activities and still keep up with their degree. Tutors go by their first names. I’ve yet to hear a single word about the proper formatting of an essay. In the entirety of Fresher’s Week (a rather alcohol-saturated version of orientation), not once did a faculty member sit everyone down and proceed to wax eloquently about what a fine institution this is and how privileged we are to be here and then exhort everyone to carry on the tradition with excellence.
There are reasons for this nonchalance. First of all, Brits seem to have an aversion to anything that resembles bragging. And at Oxford, your grades don’t count until the very end.  You might write 36 essays in a year, but technically speaking, none of them matters. (As a visiting student, my essay grades do count, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt more laid back about my own work. I must have absorbed some of the British attitude by osmosis.) Plus, “I go to Oxford” has an impressive ring to it until you’re actually in Oxford, and there are approximately 21,000 other people who can say the same thing. The prestige of it all gets left behind somewhere on the bus ride from London. Don’t get me wrong – it’s a special place, and most of us work very hard. But the specialness speaks for itself when your library was built in, say, 1300.
As if that wasn’t enough, the University delegates a (sometimes disconcertingly) large amount of responsibility to its students. When 20-year-olds make the decisions, college life takes on a distinctively informal flavor. Consider, for example, Über Brew. It’s a Sunday afternoon tradition here at Regent’s Park, and it’s basically a college-sponsored opportunity for the undergraduates to stuff their faces with chocolate, fruit and miscellaneous junk food. I imagine that if Jewell were to attempt this, it would take place in the sterile environment of the Union, with real grown-ups doling it out in equal portions, and everything kept neat and tidy. What happens at Regent’s, on the other hand, might be living proof that Hobbes was right about man in the state of nature. It’s not quite like any other experience I’ve ever had.
We start hovering like vultures at a quarter till four in the afternoon. People shove couches and tables together, creating a near-impenetrable fortress of bodies and furniture. And then we might talk amongst ourselves a little, but mostly we watch the clock and the door. The student who is the designated bearer of Brew is undoubtedly the most important person in college on Sundays. When she finally arrives with two bulging Tesco bags, their contents are dumped unceremoniously onto whatever surface is available (some weeks this has been the college ping-pong table) and immediately devoured. The whole lot of us becomes a tangled mass of arms and mouths. There are no rules, just a lot of grabbing.  Twenty-five pounds worth of the cheapest junk food can disappear in less than five minutes — and if the men’s rowing crew didn’t happen to be out on the river at that time of day, who knows what would happen? I would photograph it to give you a better idea, but again, all you’d see would be arms and mouths (and besides, I wouldn’t get anything to eat).
Über Brew is an extreme example. Oxford usually isn’t quite that undignified. But it’s under the surface all the time. Yes, supposedly there’s a tutor at Christ Church who gives one-on-one tutorials in his academic gowns. Yes, there’s a building devoted to the study of ancient biomolecules, whatever those are. Yes, once a friend reported running into two drunks on the street arguing about Nietzsche. And yes, people here are brilliant. But they’re also, to my pleasant surprise, very normal—a heck of a lot more normal than your average Oxbridger (don’t freak out, I’m allowed to say it). It is at Oxford, of all places, that I’ve learned that it’s just an essay, to give it my best shot and then let it go.
Oxford highlight #1: it’s hard to take yourself too seriously.

College’s faculty members balance teaching, publishing prospects

Austin Baragary- Beyond the Hill Editor
2/10/12

William Jewell College students are accustomed to large amounts of reading required for classes. Often this reading takes the form of scholarly articles or chapters and excerpts from scholarly texts. However, it is unlikely that many William Jewell students pause to consider the source of their readings or the fact that the very professor from whom they are learning likely has published several articles, maybe even a book or two.
Academia as a profession and institution functions on writings and research. It is based on the premise that there is always something new to learn and professors, as people who have devoted their lives to academia, are the ones who conduct this research.
William Jewell, however, does not focus on research. Rather, the College focuses on teaching and imparting knowledge, according to Dr. Alan Holiman, professor of political science. This, he says, is as it should be.
“It [the College] shouldn’t focus on research. It’s a teaching institution, not a research institution,” Holiman said. “The purpose of a research institution is to generate discovery. The primary purpose of Jewell is to pass on the ability to think critically.”
That does not mean, however, that William Jewell professors do not engage in research, Holiman clarified. Holiman has published two articles and currently is working on a book. While professors must make certain contributions to their respective academic community, it is up to each department to determine what will be considered an academic or scholarly work or achievement.
“Every department has a scholarship statement indicating what a faculty member must accomplish in order to advance or receive tenure,” Dr. Sara Morrison, assistant professor of English, said. “In the English department, we have academic achievement and academic activity. Publishing is classified as an academic achievement.”
Holiman indicated that the reason the standards are left to the departments is because academic achievement looks different in different departments.
“Staging a play is not an academic accomplishment in political science,” Holiman said. “In the communication department, it is. So not having a set standard of what each faculty member must achieve across the board is good.”
Should a professor decide to publish research, the process through which he or she must go is extensive. Morrison, who is currently in the process of publishing a book of which she is an editor, said the process began in spring 2010.
“I co-chaired a seminar at the 2010 Shakespeare Association of America with Deborah [Uman,  the book’s co-editor] and that led to us deciding to put together a collection,” Morrison said. “By the time we made the decision, we already had quite a bit of material with which to work.”
After accumulating essays for their collection, which is called Staging the Blazon in Early Modern English Theatre, Morrison and her colleague approached Ashgate, a publisher for scholarly works.
“At the point that we approached Ashgate, we had a clear vision and much of our introduction written,” Morrison said.
After speaking with her editor at Ashgate, Morrison sent a preliminary draft of the collection to the publishing house, which then forwarded the materials to external readers. This peer-review process is one of the most important aspects of the publishing process.
According to Dr. Elaine Reynolds, chairwoman of the department of history, the peer review process is the way in which one receives the most feedback prior to publication.
“I’ve participated in that process as both a reviewer and as a subject of the review, and both times I’ve found that process to be very informative,” Reynolds said. Reynolds has published articles, book reviews and a book, Before the Bobbies: The Night Watch and Police Reform in Metropolitan London.
The final aspect of publishing a scholarly book is compiling the index. According to both Reynolds and Morrison, this is quite a chore. Morrison, who is working on her first book, expects the process to be lengthy.
“After we get proofs back from Ashgate, then we have to compile the index,” Morrison said. “It seems daunting.”
Completing the index, though, means Morrison will be one step closer to seeing her book published, which, for anyone, certainly counts as an academic achievement.              

Rychlewski guides students on application processes and résumé, interview techniques

Jill Powers- Staff Writer

2/10/12

For many students, it still feels like the semester has just begun. For those of you who are going to graduate this spring, the end of the year may seem very close. Entering into the world outside of college or beginning graduate school can be difficult, scary and time-consuming. It is important to get ready as soon as possible. A good first step is preparing your résumé.
Judy Rychlewski, director of Career Services, said that William Jewell College’s Career Services website (www.jewell.edu/career/) contains templates for résumés that companies and students prefer. You can type directly on them, eliminating the need to manipulate the format in a word document. They also make it easier to keep your entire résumé on one page and to keep your most important information, like qualifications, within the first 15 lines. Rychlewski said this is key to getting noticed.
“Have as many people look at [your résumé] as you can,” Kat Long, senior, said.
Asking friends, Career Services, parents and professors to edit helps prevent silly mistakes and awkward wording that could cost a job. Graduate schools may also ask for a résumé, so this step is important for everyone.
If you do not know what kind of job you want, Rychlewski suggests talking to friends and parents.
“Sometimes other people see you better than you see yourself,” she said.
“We’ll say, ‘What don’t you want to do?’” Rychlewski said of Career Services.
They can help you search for jobs by skills, industry, or position. For those planning to pursue graduate study, they will help you find a strategy to decide which schools are best for you. Their website has links to tools and practice tests that can help with the admissions process. While there are also links for career sites, Rychlewski does not believe this is the best way to go to apply for jobs, especially if the site charges a fee.
“You can go into the black hole of the internet, and sometimes you don’t hear anything,” she said.
Rychlewski added that taking advantage of career fairs and recruiters on campus is beneficial, even if they do not interest you.  Talking with professionals is good practice for interviews.
A Public Service and Nonprofit Career Fair will take place in Yates-Gill College Union 221-222 from 2:30 to 4:45 on Feb. 14 with representation from Harvesters, Jumpstart Kansas City, Youth Volunteer Corps and many other organizations. She also advises students to contact and hold informative interviews with people in the industry they want to enter. In these, one should ask questions such as how the professionals got their careers.
“Our idea is 80 percent of the jobs are not advertised, so you’re uncovering them,” she said.
Such interviews are a good way to get information about a company so you know something about them when you are trying to get hired.
“It’s important to have questions, intelligent questions, for the company,” Long said.
She believes in the importance of an extensive list of contacts, as well.
“I even hound my parents and professors. ‘Who can you connect me with?’” she said. Rychlewski encourages students to use LinkedIn and connect with William Jewell alumni who are glad to help new graduates get started in their fields.
After getting the interview, be prepared to answer questions about specific situations in which you employed certain skills or dealt with difficult situations.
Remember, the sooner your start you search, the better.
“Make a career timeline of smaller goals and objectives,” Long said. If you are feeling pressure to make long-term decisions, keep in mind that your first job does not have to be your last.
“According to our surveys, about 30 percent of recent grads change jobs within six months,” Rychlewski said. “Find what motivates you, and once you get started, it’s fun.”
Career Services, located in YGCU 218, can read and edit your résumés.

College advances sustainability efforts; students soon to recycle more materials

Camille Reid- Perspectives Editor
2/10/12

William Jewell College is striving to become a more sustainably responsible campus. The Center for Justice and Sustainability, Facilities Management and the Cafeteria are creating a new program that the campus will begin to implement as early as March. This new program is called Single Stream, and it will help to create an easier system of recycling on campus.
Single Stream is a system in which people can dispose of everything in one container and know that it will be recycled. Dr. Andy Pratt, executive director for the Center of Justice and Sustainability, said, “We have a contract with our trash vendor, where our trash will go into a sorting machine which will separate, plastics, papers and other items.”
The only items that cannot go into the machine are food and glass. Bruce Reed, general manager of William Jewell Dining Services, reiterated this limitation.
“Food residue or crumbs are okay with the machine, but not large pieces of food,” Reed said. However, this is not a cause for disappointment. “It will make recycling easier for students,” Reed said.
As of now, each residence hall and places across campus, including the Union, offices and departments have recycling bins for paper products. Yet some students find the recycling bins inefficient.
“At our [Lambda Chi Alpha] house we go through so much recycling that we almost need two bins,” Chris Zoog, junior, said.
With this system, the Single Stream green baskets will be accessible at more locations the Hill than are the blue recycling bins currently in use.  According to Pratt, “Each resident [of William Jewell] will receive one Single Stream bin, where they can recycle plastic bottles, cans, paper. We are trying to make things more beautiful around [William] Jewell. The baskets will be emptied several times a week.”
Emily Gates, sophomore, finds the proposed system of recycling helpful.
“I think that would be a good idea. I hate taking my trash out. I’m less inclined to recycle because it is in the bottom of Ely. It’s a hassle to take down the one Coke bottle I have been drinking,” Gates said.
Steve Anderson, director of Facilities Management and Procurement, is guiding this project with Pratt and Reed, as he did before with the green to-go boxes in the Cafeteria. “It’s a process.  We want to know what’s working and not working,” Reed said.
Yet, it is not just Reed, Pratt and Anderson working to make William Jewell more environmentally friendly.  Student Senate and the Students for Sustainable Life helped to create this change.
Another opportunity for  sustainability is glass recycling. Zoog believes that glass should be recycled at William Jewell.
“It’s stupid that we don’t recycle glass. So many people drink on campus,” he said.
Zoog believes that William Jewell needs to change in other ways as well.
“It’s great that Jewell is reducing its footprint, but there is more to be done with the structure of Jewell. Like, fixing windows and doors.  That way heating and cooling costs go down,” Zoog said.
Nonetheless, the College has shrunk its footprint considerably in the past two years.
“The more we change, the more we will see the volume of recycling go up and the amount of waste in landfills go down,” Pratt said.