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Posts Tagged ‘college’
Friday, November 13th, 2009
The good folks over at OnlineUniversities.com sent me a link to a page on their site that chronicles hilarious college courses that actually exist. I took a look through some of these courses and it makes you scratch your head. Take a look below at some of the philosophy courses that are on the list…seriously.
44. The Simpsons and Philosophy: While the Simpsons may appear to be just good entertainment, this course shows the deeper philosophical issues under all those “d’ohs.” [UC Berkeley]
45. Philosophy and Star Trek: Students who take this class will not only get to watch Star Trek, but delve into the issues the show discusses like time travel, a sense of reality, free will and more. [Georgetown]
46. Star Trek and Religion: Look at religion through the lens of the Star Trek world, with discussions that address both supporting and criticizing religion. [U of Indiana]
47. Myth and Science Fiction: Star Wars, The Matrix, and Lord of the Rings: Explore larger issues of myth and speculative fiction through these popular movies. [Centre College]
48. Taking Marx Seriously: The oddest thing about this course’s name is that it implies that people haven’t been taking Marx seriously, odd considering the antipathy towards the economist and social theorist since the Cold War. [Amherst]
I was a philosophy minor in college so I absolutely appreciate creating these courses to serve a diverse student population. But Philosophy of the Simpsons? What can one learn in that course?! And isn’t any “Philosophy of [Insert TV Show Name Here]” really just a study of the perspectives on life of the show’s writers? I mean, it’s not like there is an actual Homer Simpson where we can study his life and times.
Anyway, head over to their site to take a look at the entire list. It’s pretty entertaining!
Posted in College & Fraternity Life | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
Over the last year I think I’ve made it pretty obvious that I think the concept of a gap year before going to college is a great idea for many high school graduates. Sure, some students will want to (and should) go straight to college. However, there are also a variety of students that would benefit from taking a year to do something different after high school – maybe doing some traveling or spending a year working in an office as an intern to get some real world experience. In general, I think the standard mindset that each student should graduate from high school and then be immediately shoveled off into college needs to be broken.
To that end, another blog has posted a link with 100 tips for those who want to take a year off in between high school and college. I browsed through the list and it looks pretty solid, so if you are in high school (or if you’re the parent of a high school student) and you’re looking for additional information on a gap year, I’d suggest heading over to the link above.
Posted in College & Fraternity Life | No Comments »
Thursday, August 13th, 2009
Earlier this month I uploaded an entry talking about how I was going back to school to finish up a certificate program at the local college. One of my purposes of going back to the local college to get this certificate was that it seemed like it would be very easy to attain. Or, as I put it:
I was hired at my job and I began to look into Doctoral programs as well as certificate programs. Lo and behold, the program that I was previously enrolled in where I only finished one class had a certificate available for being a Public Relations Specialist. At the same time, my company was looking to have me and some of my coworkers get trained on some other aspects of our business. Since the local college (where I was enrolled and only finished one class) was offering a fundraising course, I took the course and completed it. Well, as a part of my research prior to taking the course, it turns out that both the course I had previously completed and the fundraising course were two of the four courses needed for this certificate. But it gets better…
I researched when the other two courses were offered and they are being offered this fall and next spring. And since I’m teaching at the local college this fall and next spring, I can take these courses for no charge. In essence, I can received this certificate in public relations free of charge.
Yes, I’m quoting my blog on my blog. Welcome to the nexus of the universe.
Anyway, as it turns out one of the courses that I previously enrolled in was taken as a non-matriculating student. In other words, that means that it does count towards the certificate goal. If I want that class to count…I need to take it again. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the definition of stupidity.
Those of you reading this entry who know me from my days at college might expect me to raise all hell and get this stupid clause reversed. Well, I’m not going to do it this time. I’m not interested in the fight nor am I interested in getting myself all wrapped up in an argument that I really don’t care about in the long run.
Speaking of the long run, I’m still getting a blockbuster deal. Assuming I teach this fall (which is locked in already) and next spring (which is 50/50 at this point), I’m still taking two of the required four classes for free. Plus, I still have the one course I took years ago that counts toward this program. That leaves one course that I have to pay for – not bad. I plan on working with my employer to split the cost of that one course (which should equal about $1,000 each). Either that, or I’ll just see if I can teach another course in the spring or next fall, which will allow me to take the necessary class to complete the certificate.
In any event, since this is somewhat a vanity certificate (in other words, I’m getting a credential that I don’t need for my current job and may only tangentially need in the future), I don’t see the need to fight what would be the good fight in this situation. At least this time…I’m just going to go with the flow.
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Tuesday, July 14th, 2009
So I thought I would give a quick recap of the long weekend that I just had. On Thursday, I slept in a bit so I could get some energy up for the festivities. On my way north to check-in to the hotel, I stopped at my Father’s final resting place to pay my respects. After checking into the hotel, I jumped into the pool (a recurring event for the weekend). Later in the night I enjoyed a wonderful dinner at The Outback with my Mom, younger brother, his girlfriend, and her child. My older brother was bartending that night so the entire family was hanging out.
On Friday, (after a quick swim in the pool) I did some shopping with my Mom and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the wedding rehearsal. After a few more dips in the pool, I went to the rehearsal at the Meadow Wood Manor in Randolph, Morris County, New Jersey (which is a beautiful facility, by the way). The rehearsal dinner was at La Strada (in the same town) and the food was outstanding. At the rehearsal dinner, the bride and groom-to-be gave the bridal party and the groomsmen some presents. I got some funny gag gifts – How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must) by Ann Coulter, an Obama for President deck of cards, a Snuggie, and Go Dog Go (my favorite children’s book). I also was given a really nice pen, which is great because it’s really something that I needed.
On Saturday, I slept in a little bit before spending some time in the pool with the groom and his brothers (the other groomsmen). To the bride and grooms’ great credit, the entire day of the wedding was planned down to the minute so after I cleaned up after the pool and got lunch, the guys were transported to the Meadow Wood Manor and sent down to the game room. As the guests filed in upstairs and the bride arrived, the guys played some Wii and had a toast to the groom.
The there was the wedding, which I don’t think I need to get into too much detail on. It was a spectacular wedding – definitely the best wedding I’ve ever attended (and that’s not just because I was the best man – it really was that good). I can’t say enough good things about the Meadow Wood Manor and how amazing their service was, how delicious the food was, how elegant the decor was – it was just perfect. On top of that, the owner of the facility was on hand and personally attending to each of the tables to be sure that everyone was satisfied. You honestly don’t get that type of service any more. Very impressive facility and very impressive service.
To let you know how good the wedding was, I thought I’d share this picture of me and one of the guys that I advised in college:
Yeah. A little alcohol, a little Bon Jovi, and a lot of good people and that’s what you get! No complaints from this end, though.
Both the bride and the groom have amazing families and I was honored to meet and become friends with them. I was also honored to stand up and say a few words after the bridesmaid (the bride’s sister) gave a speech. It was a great wedding.
The next day I suffered from some pretty severe heartburn (pounding Yuenglings will do that to you), which I actually was battling through this morning. But, today was back to work and – as such – back to putting new content on this blog!
Posted in Random Entries | No Comments »
Thursday, June 11th, 2009
This story is a damn share. In yesterday’s New York Times there was an article that talked about a tough decision that Reed College needed to make regarding its incoming Freshman class. Frankly, it’s a decision that I fundamentally disagree with for personal reasons, but completely understand in a professional sense. As best described in the article:
Money was the problem. Too many of the [Freshman] students needed financial aid, and the college did not have enough. So the director of financial aid gave the team another task: drop more than 100 needy students before sending out acceptances, and substitute those who could pay full freight.
The whole idea of excluding a student simply because of money clashed with the college’s ideals, Leslie Limper, the aid director, acknowledged. “None of us are very happy,” she said, adding that Reed did not strike anyone from its list last year and that never before had it needed to weed out so many worthy students. “Sometimes I wonder why I’m still doing this.”
What a shame, huh? Not only do you have a cohort of young students that are literally losing their shot at going to this particular college, but I think this story is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the effects that the economy will have on college campuses.
This is something that I’m going to keep an eye on for personal interest, but if you have college-age children or soon-to-be college-age children (or if you’re a college student or soon-to-be college student), I would suggest keeping an eye on these types of developments. The education industry may present a very real, very scary, cold slap of class warfare on the lower and middle classes…and soon.
Posted in College & Fraternity Life | No Comments »
Monday, March 30th, 2009
Every once in a while I surf to some websites that deal with higher education policy and how freedom of speech is being handled on college campuses. The website (called Minding the Campus and linked to the left) posted an article the other day regarding a “Loyalty Oath” that professors are being asked to sign on to at Virginia Tech. I did a little bit of digging and the entire text of the loyalty oath can be contrived from the information posted at this link.
Honestly, it’s gratuitously boring and not worth getting into the details on the text itself on this blog. However, the Minding the Campus website did make the following comment in its article:
Virginia Tech (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University) is attempting to force faculty to take an ideological oath to “diversity.” Promotion and tenure will depend on a willingness to embrace the vague but militant ideology dear to the left side of the political spectrum.
And the article goes on a little bit more with a quote from a critic of the policy. From my view – which is admittedly the 10,000 feet above the issue level – I never really liked the concept of a forced diversity in terms of developing a curriculum or a pedagogy. In other words, I think history should be taught as it was, I think the great works of literature that influenced the world should be taught as they are, I think that testing should be provided based on the minimum levels needed to succeed in society and not include any type of cultural or socioeconomic bias.
It’s a tough thing to write about in this type of blog entry format, but maybe an example will help. As an English major in college, I was forced to take a class called African Women’s Literature. That’s cool – I like to study up on new topics within the realm of what I “like” and English was obviously a subject that I liked. However, the class was so far out of sync with the rest of the curriculum that it was truly an awkward (not educational) experience. I know why the course is included in the curriculum at the time – to increase the diversity of study for English majors. However, most if not all of the concepts, readings, and discussions from that class are completely gone from my mind now because they have no bearing on anything around me…and this is coming from a guy who frequently volunteers his time in black communities.
And that’s just it…that’s the point. When a university is trying to integrate “diversity” into its foundation, they generally wind up missing the point entirely. If my alma mater wanted to be sure that its English students received worthy instruction on topics related to the black population or are historically famous in black literature, then there are any number of excellent American authors, politicians, and activists that could have fit that bill, but within the context of non-racially segregated themed courses. To say it another way, why couldn’t we cover W.E.B. DuBois when we talked about early 20th Century literature? Why couldn’t we talk about Frederick Douglass when we studied war-related literature?
As it turns out, my old college canceled the course in African Women’s Literature (thank God). I guess someone with some stroke over there had the same thought that I had and the same thought that Minding the Campus has regarding the situation at Virginia Tech.
Posted in College & Fraternity Life | No Comments »
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