Ok so most of you know that we have been in the process of adopting
from China since January 2006. Our dossier officially arrived in China
on Sept 12, 2006 (this is our Logged In Date, LID). We have waited a
very long 6 years to receive our referral. China has slowly churned
through dossiers and referrals and we have waited. However, after long
last, we might very well be getting our referral SOON. China has
processed dossiers through August 20, 2006 and there are very few
dossiers between August 21st and August 28th due to a CCAA (Central
Chinese Adoption Agency) holiday. China is processing approximately 4-6
days worth of dossiers each month but it's hard to tell what will
happen with a week of no dossiers. It also looks like there are a few
days with spikes in dossiers (Aug 28th, Sept 5th, Sept 11th and of
course Sept 12th), so it's hard to tell exactly how the next 22 days of
dossiers are going to break out.
That being said, I
thought it would be good to start guessing on when we'll actually
receive our referral. Referrals traditionally arrive towards the end of
the month
LID 08/02/2006 - Referral 10/24/2011
LID 08/07/2006 - Referral 11/28/2011
LID 08/10/2006 - Referral 12/19/2011
LID 08/15/2006 - Referral 01/19/2012
LID 08/21/2006 - Referral 02/22/2012
So my thought is along the following:
LID 08/31/2006 - Referral 03/26/2012
LID 09/05/2006 - Referral 04/23/2012
LID 09/11/2006 - Referral 05/29/2012
LID 09/12+/2006 - Referral 06/25/2012
NOW-
that being said, most of the rumor boards put us in the July group
(closer to Jul 23/24th) and because Sept 5th, 11th and 12th seem to be
spikes they could all very well each be a separate month which would
push us all the way back to August. (Let's hope that's not the case!)
Anybody want to take a guess -
Friday, March 2, 2012
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Safe Space Facilitation
So on Friday, I co-facilitated the Safe Space program here at AU for the first time. Our audience consisted of 55 students in the STEP program (Summer Transition Enrichment Program). STEP is organized by our Mutlicultural Affairs office. Today they brought me M&M's as a thank you! (yay for M&M's).
A couple of things about the presentation: 1) it was the first time I had facilitated the discussion, 2) it was the largest group that the GLBTARC had presented Safe Space (which meant 4 hours instead of 3) and 3) it was mandatory for STEP participants - this is not usually the case. Traditionally, Safe Space is voluntary training so it was a little unusual to present this to a group who may or may not have wanted to be there, especially given the subject matter. And that question did come up around break "shouldn't this be voluntary?" Our answer was basically (since Matt our fearless leader had left the room) that we were just providing information. What the students did with it after they left the training was up to them, but this is part of the culture at AU and they needed to be aware of what was going on here on-campus. AU is traditionally rated close to the top of lists for GLBT friendly campuses (1st if the list is alphabetical!) but I think that a lot of students who aren't aware of GLBT issues don't really know that or think to even pay attention to things like that.
I was more than thrilled to be part of that presentation. It means a lot to me to finally be able to work towards understanding for a cause that means a great deal to me. I have a significant number of friends who are part of the GLBT community. I think of the friends who simply cannot enjoy the same rights that I have because they love someone of the same sex and it pains me.
Additionally, the number of incidents where members of the GLBT community are bullied, tormented, have their self-esteem eroded away, are disowned or disavowed by their own family, friends, community is staggering. It amazes me that the bullying is allowed to continue under the umbrella of Christian righteousness. Hate is not a good look for anyone and forcing someone to choose between their family and being true to him/herself is unconscionable.
It also leads me to another area of research that I'm working on. The 2012 ACCA (American College Counseling Association) has a conference in Oct 2012 (at DisneyWorld!!) and the main theme is bullying prevention and specifically GLBT bullying prevention. So I've been thinking that there are basically 3 groups involved in bullying: the bullies, the bullied and the by-standers. In order for any intervention to be successful in deterring bullying behavior all 3 groups need to be targeted. The bullies need to be identified and educated on proper social interaction, the bullies need to be able to cope with the abuse and have the skill & knowledge about how to handle a bullying situation and the by-standers need to send a clear social message that bullying behavior in any form will not be tolerated. Peer pressure is an amazing thing and can be used to positive ends on this front.
So how do you get bullies to stop being bullies? How do you get kids who are being bullied to stand up for themselves? As Rev. Schaffer suggested when Westboro Baptist came to protest here at AU - offer those who show up to hate you love or at least coffee & donuts maybe. That takes a lot of inner strength that sometimes (a lot of the time) is not so easy to find - is that a learnable skill? And finally how do you get people to rally around and say enough is enough? How do you convince people that spewing hate and instilling fear and emotional abuse is NOT an acceptable way to deal with people who are different from you?
A couple of things about the presentation: 1) it was the first time I had facilitated the discussion, 2) it was the largest group that the GLBTARC had presented Safe Space (which meant 4 hours instead of 3) and 3) it was mandatory for STEP participants - this is not usually the case. Traditionally, Safe Space is voluntary training so it was a little unusual to present this to a group who may or may not have wanted to be there, especially given the subject matter. And that question did come up around break "shouldn't this be voluntary?" Our answer was basically (since Matt our fearless leader had left the room) that we were just providing information. What the students did with it after they left the training was up to them, but this is part of the culture at AU and they needed to be aware of what was going on here on-campus. AU is traditionally rated close to the top of lists for GLBT friendly campuses (1st if the list is alphabetical!) but I think that a lot of students who aren't aware of GLBT issues don't really know that or think to even pay attention to things like that.
I was more than thrilled to be part of that presentation. It means a lot to me to finally be able to work towards understanding for a cause that means a great deal to me. I have a significant number of friends who are part of the GLBT community. I think of the friends who simply cannot enjoy the same rights that I have because they love someone of the same sex and it pains me.
Additionally, the number of incidents where members of the GLBT community are bullied, tormented, have their self-esteem eroded away, are disowned or disavowed by their own family, friends, community is staggering. It amazes me that the bullying is allowed to continue under the umbrella of Christian righteousness. Hate is not a good look for anyone and forcing someone to choose between their family and being true to him/herself is unconscionable.
It also leads me to another area of research that I'm working on. The 2012 ACCA (American College Counseling Association) has a conference in Oct 2012 (at DisneyWorld!!) and the main theme is bullying prevention and specifically GLBT bullying prevention. So I've been thinking that there are basically 3 groups involved in bullying: the bullies, the bullied and the by-standers. In order for any intervention to be successful in deterring bullying behavior all 3 groups need to be targeted. The bullies need to be identified and educated on proper social interaction, the bullies need to be able to cope with the abuse and have the skill & knowledge about how to handle a bullying situation and the by-standers need to send a clear social message that bullying behavior in any form will not be tolerated. Peer pressure is an amazing thing and can be used to positive ends on this front.
So how do you get bullies to stop being bullies? How do you get kids who are being bullied to stand up for themselves? As Rev. Schaffer suggested when Westboro Baptist came to protest here at AU - offer those who show up to hate you love or at least coffee & donuts maybe. That takes a lot of inner strength that sometimes (a lot of the time) is not so easy to find - is that a learnable skill? And finally how do you get people to rally around and say enough is enough? How do you convince people that spewing hate and instilling fear and emotional abuse is NOT an acceptable way to deal with people who are different from you?
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Musical inspiration for this blog....
From the Talking Heads:
And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful
wife
And you may ask yourself-Well...How did I get here?
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
And you may ask yourself
How do I work this?
And you may ask yourself
Where is that large automobile?
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful house!
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful wife!
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Water dissolving...and water removing
There is water at the bottom of the ocean
Carry the water at the bottom of the ocean
Remove the water at the bottom of the ocean!
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/in the silent water
Under the rocks and stones/there is water underground.
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
And you may ask yourself
What is that beautiful house?
And you may ask yourself
Where does that highway go?
And you may ask yourself
Am I right?...Am I wrong?
And you may tell yourself
MY GOD!...WHAT HAVE I DONE?
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/in the silent water
Under the rocks and stones/there is water underground.
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful
wife
And you may ask yourself-Well...How did I get here?
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
And you may ask yourself
How do I work this?
And you may ask yourself
Where is that large automobile?
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful house!
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful wife!
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
Water dissolving...and water removing
There is water at the bottom of the ocean
Carry the water at the bottom of the ocean
Remove the water at the bottom of the ocean!
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/in the silent water
Under the rocks and stones/there is water underground.
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
And you may ask yourself
What is that beautiful house?
And you may ask yourself
Where does that highway go?
And you may ask yourself
Am I right?...Am I wrong?
And you may tell yourself
MY GOD!...WHAT HAVE I DONE?
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/in the silent water
Under the rocks and stones/there is water underground.
Letting the days go by/let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by/water flowing underground
Into the blue again/after the money's gone
Once in a lifetime/water flowing underground.
Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...Same as it ever was...
The ideal
So I've been thinking a lot about long term research goals lately - what's my main area of interest? How do I head in that direction? What are the overall arches of my interest, what's out there and where do I see the need for improvement on college campuses and most importantly how do I connect all of those things into a coherent piece that people will take seriously.
To begin with I have a great passion for career counseling - I feel there's a lot of bad advice or a serious lack of advice for college students. Some of that comes from my own personal bias, I know there are a lot of fantastic counselors out there, but their message isn't being heard or sought out by the folks who really need it. It's the perpetual conundrum - the people who need the most help are the least likely to seek it out. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
My eventual goal is a PhD in Higher Education - the thesis is to develop a career advising curriculum based on Wm. Sedlacek's non-cognitive behavior theory (more detail on that in a bit) that can be implemented by schools using a faculty based advising model. I truly believe that career counseling (not just job searching skills) need to be utilized from day 1 by colleges & universities. I think it will help students help define their academic goals at an earlier stage which will in turn help them find higher satisfaction in their academic careers.
Dr. Sedlacek's non cognitive behavior's include:
POSITIVE SELF-CONCEPT OR CONFIDENCE. Strong self-feeling, strength of character. Determination, independence.
REALISTIC SELF-APPRAISAL, especially academic. Recognizes and accepts any deficiencies and works hard at self-development. Recognizes need to broaden his/her individuality.
UNDERSTAND AND DEALS WITH RACISM. Realist based upon personal experience of racism. Is committed to fighting to improve existing system. Not submissive to existing wrongs, nor hostile to society, nor a "cop-out." Able to handle racist system. Asserts school or organization role to fight racism.
PREFERS LONG-RANGE GOALS TO SHORT-TERM OR IMMEDIATE NEEDS. Able to respond to deferred gratification.
AVAILABILITY OF STRONG SUPPORT PERSON to whom to turn in crises.
SUCCESSFUL LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE in any area pertinent to his/her background (gang leader, church, sports, noneducational groups, etc.)
DEMONSTRATED COMMUNITY SERVICE. Has involvement in his/her cultural community.
KNOWLEDGE ACQUIRED IN A FIELD. Unusual and/or culturally related ways of obtaining information and demonstrating knowledge. Field itself may be non-traditional.
(http://williamsedlacek.info/publications/articles/employing1.html)
So that's where this blog is starting. I fully expect that I will add in bits and pieces of things that I find interesting but not necessarily related as I blog along. I am the author & owner of this blog so I reserve that right! :)
To begin with I have a great passion for career counseling - I feel there's a lot of bad advice or a serious lack of advice for college students. Some of that comes from my own personal bias, I know there are a lot of fantastic counselors out there, but their message isn't being heard or sought out by the folks who really need it. It's the perpetual conundrum - the people who need the most help are the least likely to seek it out. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
My eventual goal is a PhD in Higher Education - the thesis is to develop a career advising curriculum based on Wm. Sedlacek's non-cognitive behavior theory (more detail on that in a bit) that can be implemented by schools using a faculty based advising model. I truly believe that career counseling (not just job searching skills) need to be utilized from day 1 by colleges & universities. I think it will help students help define their academic goals at an earlier stage which will in turn help them find higher satisfaction in their academic careers.
Dr. Sedlacek's non cognitive behavior's include:
POSITIVE SELF-CONCEPT OR CONFIDENCE. Strong self-feeling, strength of character. Determination, independence.
REALISTIC SELF-APPRAISAL, especially academic. Recognizes and accepts any deficiencies and works hard at self-development. Recognizes need to broaden his/her individuality.
UNDERSTAND AND DEALS WITH RACISM. Realist based upon personal experience of racism. Is committed to fighting to improve existing system. Not submissive to existing wrongs, nor hostile to society, nor a "cop-out." Able to handle racist system. Asserts school or organization role to fight racism.
PREFERS LONG-RANGE GOALS TO SHORT-TERM OR IMMEDIATE NEEDS. Able to respond to deferred gratification.
AVAILABILITY OF STRONG SUPPORT PERSON to whom to turn in crises.
SUCCESSFUL LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE in any area pertinent to his/her background (gang leader, church, sports, noneducational groups, etc.)
DEMONSTRATED COMMUNITY SERVICE. Has involvement in his/her cultural community.
KNOWLEDGE ACQUIRED IN A FIELD. Unusual and/or culturally related ways of obtaining information and demonstrating knowledge. Field itself may be non-traditional.
(http://williamsedlacek.info/publications/articles/employing1.html)
So that's where this blog is starting. I fully expect that I will add in bits and pieces of things that I find interesting but not necessarily related as I blog along. I am the author & owner of this blog so I reserve that right! :)
My first post!
So the idea behind this blog is to just get me writing. I do eventually want to work on a PhD and I need to get better about writing, researching and publishing in general. I'm hoping that by committing to this blog I can get the creative juices flowing and getting some ideas for journal worthy articles on a page somewhere in the blogosphere.
Wish me luck!
Wish me luck!
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