I'd like to begin this post with two simple truths. Both of these are things you know if you know me personally or have spoken with me for more than a second and a half:
1. I am a word nerd.
2. I am a band nerd.
It is these facts, and their intersection, that led me here. At one point in the not-so-distant past, I was thinking about athletic bands (read: in my natural state). Much of the experience that led me into the field of student affairs in the first place was being a member of and student leader within the pep band at my undergraduate institution. Thinking of that experience - one that involved both a credit-bearing course and a out-of-classroom leadership opportunity - I struggled to think of a term to describe this sort of experience. I toyed with my knowledge of prefixes and word roots and considered: Pericurricular? Paracurricular? I then realized: The perfect word is already out there, and it's in use: Cocurricular.
In student affairs, we like the word cocurricular. We should - it places us as equal partners at the table that is the higher education enterprise. Co- means with; that is, the curriculum with the cocurriculum comprise the college experience. We are the copilot to academics - both are necessary to land the plane successfully.
In contrast, say the word "extracurricular" in a student affairs crowd. The responses are likely to be similar to those from the word "dorm" (that's another post for another day). But why? We hear extra- (note the hyphen) and we think extra: Optional, unnecessary, might be a nice treat, but certainly not vital. But extracurricular is much less a value judgment and more simply a declarative statement: Extra- means outside of (or beyond, if you want to get on your high horse), and except in the instances where our work has a credit-bearing component, this modifier is accurate. We do indeed exist outside the curriculum. This isn't, and shouldn't be used as, a tool to downgrade what we do.
So which is right? As I've hopefully demonstrated, both are. I'll keep walking the walk and speaking the cocurricular language of our profession, but when it comes right down to it, you won't hurt my feelings one bit if you refer to the extremely important work I do as extracurricular.
Showing posts with label involvement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label involvement. Show all posts
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
One and Only One Ambition
(For supplemental reading, See What Else Is There? from 80 Minutes of Regulation)
Earlier this month, I made the trip up home to Delaware to celebrate the retirement and 36 year career of Paul Parets, director of bands at Alexis I. duPont High School and my former high school band director. At the gathering of several hundred at A.I.'s football stadium, the love from the more than three and a half decades of Tiger Band alumni, parents, friends, and supporters was clearly evident.
I've told Mr. Parets this, but he is a large part of the reason I'm in the field of student affairs. His work with the band was as simple as it was risky, as perfect as it was nonsensical to many: Simply put, he let the students run the band. The leadership each year was the senior class, and that group of students made decisions including repertoire, trips, and more, while truly having the opportunity to serve as leaders to their peers. It was my experience as a leader within that organization, as well as excellent role modeling by Mr. Parets, that started me on the path that would ultimately lead to my career.
At the ceremony, Mr. Parets spoke relatively little; most spoke to, for, and about him. But in his brief remarks, he speaks volumes to the value of education:
(I suggest you listen to, not watch, the video, which was er, masterfully captured by my 14 month old daughter)
Earlier this month, I made the trip up home to Delaware to celebrate the retirement and 36 year career of Paul Parets, director of bands at Alexis I. duPont High School and my former high school band director. At the gathering of several hundred at A.I.'s football stadium, the love from the more than three and a half decades of Tiger Band alumni, parents, friends, and supporters was clearly evident.
I've told Mr. Parets this, but he is a large part of the reason I'm in the field of student affairs. His work with the band was as simple as it was risky, as perfect as it was nonsensical to many: Simply put, he let the students run the band. The leadership each year was the senior class, and that group of students made decisions including repertoire, trips, and more, while truly having the opportunity to serve as leaders to their peers. It was my experience as a leader within that organization, as well as excellent role modeling by Mr. Parets, that started me on the path that would ultimately lead to my career.
At the ceremony, Mr. Parets spoke relatively little; most spoke to, for, and about him. But in his brief remarks, he speaks volumes to the value of education:
(I suggest you listen to, not watch, the video, which was er, masterfully captured by my 14 month old daughter)
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
How are you spending your summer?
--or-- Worlds Colliding!
While our campus isn't as vibrant with student activity as it is during the standard academic year, I've still got fairly regular contact with students; some are on campus for summer session, others are members of my program board or fraternity with whom I stay in touch. A common thread for many over the summer--as it is for many, but fewer, during the school year--is that they are working. For some, it's merely what one does during the summer, but for all it's a way to earn money, be it towards personal luxuries, necessities, or the cost of attending school.
If you don't know me personally, you may not be aware that I am a self-professed band nerd (this is where I plug the other blog). For me, that means that summer means drum corps season, specifically Drum Corps International. For those who are unfamiliar, the corps that make up DCI comprise up to 150 brass players, percussionists and color guard members who tour the country competing against other corps for approximately eight weeks each summer. Most of the more prominent corps are made up of members from across the country, typically also members of their high school and college marching bands. While the numbers of those participating in World Class (the highest level of competition) corps number just better than 3,000 nationwide, with most participants aged 17-21, these are our students.
While I enjoy DCI from an entertainment aspect, the student development piece is certainly not lost on me. Each of the participants is engaging in leadership, teamwork, progress towards a common goal, and a quest for excellence, and to a person, drum corps participants would tell you that it is an experience unlike any other. Add to that the continuing of arts education, and drum corps is truly an exercise in student learning.
Herein lies the rub: It doesn't come cheap. The average cost for drum corps participants is just north of $3,000 per summer, which says nothing of possible private lessons or other opportunities that have been undertaken throughout their lives to get them to the level of competing at a World Class level. While various scholarships and programs are available for to offset and reduce costs, there is another piece of the puzzle that isn't told: Remember those students I mentioned to you that spend their summers working? Those who dedicate their summers to marching don't have that opportunity. This means that even if the costs of corps tuition can be met, drum corps may still exclude those who need to work over the summer to afford school or otherwise make ends meet. Sadly, participation in the activity is simply not accessible to everyone.
When we look at what we offer in student affairs, so often the opportunities we provide are free (or "free" as they may be student fee funded). While this helps our students, it is only one piece of the puzzle. What do our students have to give up to participate in our programs? Are we able to make it worth their time? Or do we find ourselves catering solely to the students who can "afford" it?
While our campus isn't as vibrant with student activity as it is during the standard academic year, I've still got fairly regular contact with students; some are on campus for summer session, others are members of my program board or fraternity with whom I stay in touch. A common thread for many over the summer--as it is for many, but fewer, during the school year--is that they are working. For some, it's merely what one does during the summer, but for all it's a way to earn money, be it towards personal luxuries, necessities, or the cost of attending school.
If you don't know me personally, you may not be aware that I am a self-professed band nerd (this is where I plug the other blog). For me, that means that summer means drum corps season, specifically Drum Corps International. For those who are unfamiliar, the corps that make up DCI comprise up to 150 brass players, percussionists and color guard members who tour the country competing against other corps for approximately eight weeks each summer. Most of the more prominent corps are made up of members from across the country, typically also members of their high school and college marching bands. While the numbers of those participating in World Class (the highest level of competition) corps number just better than 3,000 nationwide, with most participants aged 17-21, these are our students.
While I enjoy DCI from an entertainment aspect, the student development piece is certainly not lost on me. Each of the participants is engaging in leadership, teamwork, progress towards a common goal, and a quest for excellence, and to a person, drum corps participants would tell you that it is an experience unlike any other. Add to that the continuing of arts education, and drum corps is truly an exercise in student learning.
Herein lies the rub: It doesn't come cheap. The average cost for drum corps participants is just north of $3,000 per summer, which says nothing of possible private lessons or other opportunities that have been undertaken throughout their lives to get them to the level of competing at a World Class level. While various scholarships and programs are available for to offset and reduce costs, there is another piece of the puzzle that isn't told: Remember those students I mentioned to you that spend their summers working? Those who dedicate their summers to marching don't have that opportunity. This means that even if the costs of corps tuition can be met, drum corps may still exclude those who need to work over the summer to afford school or otherwise make ends meet. Sadly, participation in the activity is simply not accessible to everyone.
When we look at what we offer in student affairs, so often the opportunities we provide are free (or "free" as they may be student fee funded). While this helps our students, it is only one piece of the puzzle. What do our students have to give up to participate in our programs? Are we able to make it worth their time? Or do we find ourselves catering solely to the students who can "afford" it?
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