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Sound Off! with Cassidy Miller
2/17/12
I have known since I was five years old that I wanted to do nonprofit work. Let me clarify. I was not a small child running around telling people, “I want to create sustainable change in people’s lives by working in the nonprofit sector!” That would have been a little bit weird. When I was five, I wanted to make people smile for the rest of my life. Obviously, you cannot make a living off of people’s smiles, so over the next 13 years the definition of my life goal transformed, but the ultimate passion remained.
When I was making my college decision, I ended up picking William Jewell College because of the nonprofit leadership major and the emphasis on a strong liberal arts education. From day one I began transforming into a more open-minded, adaptable, understanding and informed individual. It is this transformation that has led the way for the decisions I have made in my life.
Over the past three-and-a-half years I have held internship positions at seven different nonprofit organizations. Many of these opportunities came about because I took concepts that I had learned in my nonprofit and CTI classes and formed programs and practices to implement at specific organizations. These experiences and the knowledge I have gained, both in and out of the classroom, have prepared me to overcome challenges.
One of these challenges was spending time abroad. I had the opportunity to study for a semester in Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, nor did I have any idea how I would react to life in a foreign country. During my time in Central America, I lived with impoverished families in tin houses, I walked miles through cornfields to get to school, I had bed bugs, I got amoebas and a pig trapped me in an outhouse. I faced each of these physical, mental and cultural challenges with an open mind and the willingness to adapt. Before this experience, I was unaware of how my family, peers, professors and mentors had influenced me and helped to prepare me for the obstacles I faced.
The education I have received, my experiences in the nonprofit sector, and my time abroad have contributed to my life goal of creating sustainable social and economic development in impoverished communities around the world. I am so grateful for all of it. I am grateful for the education I have received, the experiences and opportunities I have had, and the fact that I am doing what I have dreamed of since I was a child. I am grateful that I get to spend the rest of my life making people smile.
Sound Off! with Chris Bradbury co-director of CUA
Chris Bradbury
2/10/12
College Union Activities is a crucial organization on campus. CUA creates, books, organizes and holds events for the entertainment of the student body. Matt Drabenstott, Sara Bailey and I brainstorm every aspect of an event. For concerts, comedians and novelty entertainers we are given a list of what is needed: food, drinks, lighting, sound and hotel accommodations. This year our events have been very successful compared to past events. We have done a lot to advertise the events on campus using new types of marketing ideas.
When dealing with entertainers, we never know what to expect. We try to provide everything they ask for within their writer. A writer is a list of demands the entertainer asks for when dealing with lighting, sound, hotel, food, drinks, etc. Most of the entertainment needs have to be done the day of, or even hours before, the show. We have to prepare a green room where they can hang out before the show. My job is to make sure that the entertainers are comfortable, so that they give a wonderful show.
I always take feedback from the students who attend our events, and try to see what we can improve upon for the next year. CUA wants to make sure that the events delivered are events that the student body wants to see. Many other campus organizations approach us for help with funding and planning other campus events. We always want organizations to ask us if
they need help with any school-related event. Most of the time, CUA is willing to help other organizations.
We take a lot of time collaborating and constructing what we will need for every aspect of an event. We have to reserve rooms or specific areas in buildings in order to secure space for the event. Some types of marketing we use include banners, buttons, fliers, posters, word of mouth, Facebook and email. CUA has been trying to make a name for itself and use that name to promote events. We do not want CUA to linger in the shadows any longer, but rather to become an organization everybody recognizes. We want the identity and purpose of CUA to be clear.
CUA kicked this year off with a novelty act by Michael DeBois, and over 300 people attended. This was a start of a change in CUA. Some of the entertainment featured this year includes: Dan Ahdoot, Second City, Graham Colton, Ben Rector, Tucker Tower, Slip-n-Slide on the Quad and Pool Party in the Mabee Center.
Next week CUA will host a triple threat of events, starting with Thursday’s basketball game in which students can win prizes for displaying team spirit. There will be activities in the Union today, and tomorrow we will hold an intramural knock-out tournament.
Sound Off! with Charlotte Belshe
Charlotte Beshe
12/2/11
Looking for the right college may or may not be just one of the most stressful experiences that I have ever been through. Let’s just say that decision-making isn’t a real strength of mine. I even have a hard time deciding between popcorn or peanut butter M&Ms at the movies. First-world problem—I know. My college search process started my junior year of high school. I began to visit schools in various states such as California, Washington and Oregon. At first, I was more excited about the vacation aspect of the travels rather than the pursuit for education that my parents saw in these investments, but as I visited different campuses and spoke to various students, college counselors, family members and friends ,they all began to lecture me about the criteria I should be looking for in my future college.
Between emphasizing the importance of academic rigor, encouraging me to find a place where I could truly get involved among various other suggestions everyone always concluded their advice with these words of wisdom: you will just know. I’m sorry, what? I will just know? False: the last time I thought I just knew that something had to be right was when Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears started dating and my worlds collided. As much as I love some classic throwback tunes, their relationship did not live up to the musical expectations I thought they would be capable of together. So being told that I would just know wasn’t the best advice … or so I thought until I came to Jewell.
Originally I was not particularly drawn to Jewell’s campus. I was born and raised in Colorado and wanted to go somewhere exotic like San Diego or Seattle—to say the least I was not particularly interested in flying out to Missouri to visit a school about the size of my graduating high school class, but little did I know that the short flight from Denver to Kansas City was about to become a regular one for me. My parents were very impressed with the school and finally encouraged me to visit the campus.
Sure enough, when I got to Jewell, I just knew that there was something special about this small college up on the Hill. My admissions counselor, Amanda, greeted me with a hug and asked all about my junior prom, which was weeks before my visit. This was the first interaction I had with an admission counselor who wasn’t concerned with rattling off riveting statistics and talking about how my test scores would fit right in—she actually cared about me. The more I learned about William Jewell the more I began to like it. Even though my time here on the Hill has had its ups and downs I wouldn’t trade my college experience for anything. After hearing all about my friends’ college experiences across the country and thinking about my own, I consider myself to be so blessed.
This year I have had the wonderful opportunity to be a part of the Cardinal Blazers program and share my love for the campus with prospective students and their parents by giving tours. Even though Jewell may not be the wild and crazy place that so many high school seniors think college should be, it is a wonderful place. I enjoy sharing all of the fun facts and statistics throughout the tour, but my favorite part of giving tours is telling “prospies” about the little things like playing baseball on the bricks with my resident director’s kids after dinner, sledding down Browning Bowl on caf trays, Lighting of the Quad, flash mobs in the Union and everything in between. If anything I have learned that every once in a while you should step back and appreciate the small things in life and joy will overcome you, and whenever I can conclude a tweet about my day with the infamous “only at Jewell” hashtag I feel a personal sense of pride in being a part of William Jewell College. The Jewell experience is unlike anything else.
Sound Off! with Ventura De La Rosa
As a Mexican-American on the William Jewell Campus, I have had an interesting experience throughout my four years. I am from Texas. The high schools that I attended (I attended two) were predominantly Hispanic. In Texas, I was part of a minority majority. I was technically a minority, but the minority group that I was part of was so prominent that we were the majority. At Jewell, I am part of a significant minority and sometimes I do feel the magnitude of that significance. In general, I do get along with many people on campus. I am a very social person. As my aunt likes to put it, “You are a social butterfly.” However there are times when I do feel disconnected from individuals on campus.
One thing that really bugs me is the fact that people ask me why I do not speak Spanish. As a third generation Mexican-American, my siblings and I do not speak Spanish. I get asked this frequently, often in a very accusatory tone. We were brought up by our parents to speak English. A lot of people assume that I should not only speak Spanish, but be fluent in English as well. As a third generation Mexican-American, English was already a prominent foundation within my family. My grandparents, my parents and even a couple of my great-grandparents spoke English and spoke it well. My mom and my family made the conscious decision to teach me English. They figured that knowing English was the best way for me to get ahead in this country. They struggled learning English, and did not want me to suffer the same fate. My parents believed they did what was best for me. To question my knowledge of Spanish is to question their upbringing of me. I love my parents and do not question one choice they made in raising me. They had my best interests in mind when they decided to teach me English.
Another issue that I have encountered on this campus is what I like to call unintentional racism. There have been several times where I have felt uncomfortable with actions and words used by my peers. My first year, we read the book, Invisible Man. One problem the protagonist encountered was his acceptance into a particular group of people. He felt and knew that he would never truly belong. Here I sometimes feel this way. For the most part I usually feel like I belong and am loved on this campus; however sometimes I feel like an outsider, like I don’t belong. A few times I have witnessed friends say or do something that is very upsetting. There have been some cases of racism. For the most part, this is not the intent behind those actions and words; however, it does make me feel separated. There is no intent behind what has been said or done, but it is still racism. Those actions and words are made without my peers knowing the severity and weight of their words. Those instances just make me step back and make me feel as though I do not truly belong. It is as though I am driving along on a highway and I get too close to the shoulder of the highway, and I run over that uneven part of the road. I am startled, and once again aware that I am driving. I try to address these instances as much as possible; however, it does not take away from the fact that at times I feel unwanted or unloved. In conclusion, be aware that being a minority at a predominantly white college is tougher than you would think.
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