The Greatness of Saint Mike's Professors

As a MJD major, I've learned that technology can be both a good and bad thing. Unfortunately, this semester I learned how bad technology can be. My external hard drive got corrupted after only using it three times. Because it was corrupted, it meant that all my files saved on my hard drive were lost and I had to reformat my hard drive. While the IT office on campus was doing everything to recover the files, I was freaking out because I needed my hard drive to work on my documentary. 

Because I didn't have a hard drive for a while, I felt really behind in my Digital TV/Film class. During this time, I was communicating a lot with IT office and my professor. Understanding how stressed I was, my teacher gave me an extension on my documentary. Reason #738384 why Saint Mike's professors are awesome. They understand what you're going through and do as much as they can to help you out.  They make the time for you to make sure that you're keeping up with work. With that extension, I felt like a huge weight was lifted off of my shoulders and I had time to just try to relax and complete my documentary.

Along with doing my documentary, I've also been doing a lot of group presentations this semester. I have to admit that I have an EXTREME fear of presenting in front of a big group of people, so it looked like this was the semester I was going to have to get over my fear.

I've already had two group presentations for my Sports Psychology class. Coincidentally, my first presentation for that class was on mental training. While I was researching mental training, I was learning how athletes prepare themselves before a game and I started to see how those tips could calm me down during my presentation. Needless to say, the presentation that was supposed to be an hour long only ended up being 30 minutes long. I hit the fast forward button a little bit too much when I was speaking, and that was something that my professor noticed. When he came up to me afterwards, I was worried he was going to say how bad the presentation was. Instead, he came up to me and pointed out that I did talk fast, but I had a lot of great information and he's excited to see my other group presentation. Professors are able to see that you have the ability to do whatever you can, and they push you to be a better student and in my case, a better presenter. They give you feedback that's extremely necessary.

Another thing that was helpful was that my professor recorded our presentation on Tegrity, so we could watch ourselves afterwards. After watching myself and absorbing the feedback from my professor, I was a lot more confident during my second presentation. I actually spoke with real words!! Afterwards, my professor came up to me and this time, he said I did awesome. Professors want to help you grow as a student and as a person. The extra push that they give encourages students to work harder.

I think the most important part to remember is that classes don't really end after the semester. The thing is that if you ever need to reach out to professors about a different class or if you just want to catch up in general, then you can always reach out through e-mail and schedule to meet up in person. I remember for my Global Comm class last semester, I had to do a website about two different cultures and their media. After attending a panel on the men and women of South Sudan, I was immediately intrigued. The panel included Professor Robert Lair, who was my Examined Life professor freshman year. I connected with him through e-mail and he was more than eager to meet up and discuss more about the website. When we met up, we talked about more than just the website. He asked me if I was liking my classes and if I was enjoying my sophomore year overall. It was good to be reminded that professors don't stop caring after classes. If anything, they want to see you grow and hear about your experiences along the way of the growth.

It's true that I do live in the Ethan Allen apartments, but this semester, I have also found myself living in Bergeron and the library. It sure has been one busy semester, but luckily, I've had great support from my professors to keep me pushing through it.

Happy Halloween!
 

Ethan Allen Livin'

Hey everyone!

This year, I've been living in the Ethan Allen apartments, which are a part of North Campus. North Campus has dorms, a restaurant styled dining hall, and art studios. 

This is my first time living on North, and so far I like it a lot. Some people might worry that it's a mile away from main campus, where classes are, but the distance isn't bad at all. The shuttles run on the :15 and :45 and they take you near the dining hall, Bergeron, the library, and the gym, hitting some of the popular places on campus. It's also been pretty convenient for me because I've had my bike and car too, just in case I feel like getting in a work out or going on a drive to class. 

There's a lot to love about North Campus . 

There's the tennis courts if the ones on main campus are ever full or if you feel like it's more convenient to walk over and play. 

the tennis courts

There's the Ethan Allen apartments that come with a common room, a kitchen, and two doubles.

panorama of my common room

the kitchen area

Along with the dining option on main, there's an alternative dining hall on North campus called Sloane. Sloane is home of the restaurant styled dining hall and art studios. Since it is restaurant styled, reservations have to be made in advance, but no worries because Sloane is still a part of your unlimited meal plan (40 swipes for those who are in townhouses or apartments). 

inside of Sloane dining hall

And another great thing on North campus is Turtle Underground. Turtle is located in the bottom of Purtill Hall, one of the residential buildings. Local bands come around the area and play for free for all students. It's a fun thing to do on a Friday or Saturday night. 

inside of Purtill Hall- photo cred to Turtle Underground

Thanks for reading!