Monday, March 30, 2009

Don't laugh, I'm completely serious...part 5

Today marked the beginning of the educational sessions. As of this writing, I have attended two and a half.
Starting things off, buying groceries was the right move as yogurt wins over nasty cereal any day.
Craig got down here nice and early, so I was able to show him around and get him acclimated to ACPA.
The first session was an interesting look at the spiritual development of college students, presented by none other than Astin and Astin. When listening to Mr. Astin speak, I could see the words out of his mouth and surrounded by quotation marks on a page written by me at some point in the future. It was a powerful presentation on a subject I didn't realize fascinated me. However, after listening to them speak, I now see ways to help my students develop as spiritual beings without being overly preachy or religious.
The next two (or rather, one and a half) sessions were based on trying to be a better advisor to student groups. While the first proved useful and informative (and will inform my practice), the second was more of a workshop and less of a way for me to learn how to advise those who donate their time to the wonderful student groups with which I work.
What is disappointing is that this was supposed to be a focal point of my trip. In working with the clubs of my institution, I have seen a need to develop a strong set of guidelines for the advisors (or rather, my supervisor has seen this and I wholeheartedly agree), and while these sessions have shown me some potentially strong methods, I am not certain how I will implement what I have learned when I return to my campus.
The great thing is I still have two days of convention left!

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