A fresh start

So it's been a few months since my last post. A lot has happened in those months :)

I have a new job at a new school. Still a small private institution, but larger than the previous school at which I was working; less than 10,000 students at my campus, but a completely different student profile. I've been here almost two months, and institutionally, it's a much better fit. Once again, I live-in. Well, sort of... it's an odd hybrid of live-in/on. I don't have an RA staff to oversee, but I am a point person in the building where my apartment is, although technically, b/c there is no RA staff, it's considered an unstaffed hall. Compared to my last position, I feel much more removed from the students. The apartment is also pretty swanky, so I can't complain there. My husband and I finally feel like we're not so immersed with residents.

The work I'm doing is also more removed from students, in that I'm not supervising an RA staff or directly programming in the halls. I do a lot of publication work, as well as venue management of a much sought after residence hall lounge. The rest is all random administrative work throughout the department. It's varied enough that it keeps my short attention span satisfied, and will hopefully build a unique set of experiences to take with me elsewhere (be it at the university or otherwise).

I'm also a part of the administrative on-call rotation, which is at a higher level than I was previously. Though nervous for my first rotation a few weeks ago, it was relatively uneventful. I got the luck of the draw for on-call rotation this week, and apparently Halloween is a happening event on campus. We joke in my office that this weekend is going to be the real "hazing" as opposed to my first rotation. We'll see ;)

My second course for my graduate program has now wrapped up. My focus for the next 7 weeks will be to set up my electronic portfolio. Thankfully, my program has the format all set up, it's just a matter of picking a template and design that suits my style... and knowing how much of a perfectionist I am, that will take the full 7 weeks, I'm sure ;)

The student development theory course I just finished was fascinating and I got some great very early thoughts on where to point my Applied Research Project. Right now, I'm looking at Millennials (isn't everyone in the field right now? It sure seems that way) and brand management, and connecting the two in terms of identity development. It's all very rough stuff up in my head, but after doing some reading, I'm encouraged at where I can take it.

So, in the spirit of a new start, I've decided I need to post more here. There are lots of great topics and issues that are raised in my online discussions that I really should post some of those thoughts here; our classes disappear after a semester, but this way, I can keep a good record of my experiences in one location. This is also a great place for me to track my research, when the times comes.

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. -Maria Robinson