Learn vs.Teach

About the time I vanished from sight, winter quarter was wrapping up. That meant the final salute & celebration for the part-time RN students! As with the students that graduated at the end of last summer, these will hold a special place in my heart: they started when I started--and have been with me the longest so far! Fifteen of the original twenty made it to the finish line--hats off to them! It's a gauntlet!
We've learned a lot together--and hopefully we are collectively the better for it! A few of them have already passed their N-CLEX exams, so they're off & running...

Their final time together...

Meanwhile the new part-time RN class of twenty made an impressive start in winter quarter--nineteen of the twenty made it through the 'transitions' quarter.  The vacancy was quickly filled from the wait list, so we have a full constellation this quarter as we 'go live' in the clinical world. Hang onto your hat--hopefully we're not in for a bumpy ride!
So this quarter is an odd but enjoyable mix: new RN students with five quarters still ahead of them, part time PN students in their final quarter--some of which I'm supervising for their precepting experience this quarter, and full time PN students that will finish at the end of summer quarter--about seventy-five students in all. I've been in the classroom and the clinical setting with all of them this quarter--makes for no dull moments!
Our new college president is settling in--a positive addition; great humor, approachable, positive ideas. We'll see where we grow from here...

Learn vs.Teach

The next installment...
We last checked into academia prior to the start of fall quarter. The break was nice...and we launched right into a new academic year mid-September.
Fifty fresh, new faces rolled into the full-time PN class, and--quite remarkably--49 finished the quarter. Woo-hoo! They are a special group, I think. I really enjoyed watching them dive in & had the privilege of several classes & many campus labs with them. Was all set to start this (winter) quarter with them as they start clinicals in the 'real world' but priorities shifted just before the holidays. The grant fairy flew in with funds for an additional class of LPN-to-RN students--if we launched them in winter quarter. Well, all right!!

So this quarter has been a true yin & yang experience: the part-time RN students are now in their final quarter & doing their preceptorships. It's both exciting & nerve-racking for them--but they're doing well. This group will always hold a special place in my heart, as we started together & have  now traveled six quarters--learning lots on the journey.
Meanwhile, mid-quarter, a fresh group of twenty part-timers arrived on the scene--so we're off & running. With a little of the deer-in-the-headlights phenomenon we're immersed in 'transitions': up to our brain cells with nursing foundations and up to our elbows in refreshing skills in the lab. At the end of this intensive six weeks, they start nursing classes in earnest & begin acute care clinicals. Having both the first & last quarter students overlapping this quarter makes me appreciate how much they grow in such a brief period of time.
I'm almost half way through the tenure process--isn't that amazing?! Tritely stated: time truly does fly when you're having fun! We have a new president arriving on the scene next month, but change is good, right?  Meanwhile the legislature continues to slug it out over a workable budget. I heard a piece on the radio the other day that if the proposed budget goes through, state support for higher education will have decreased by almost 50% since the bottom fell out of the economy. I had to listen to it again to be sure of what I'd heard...  May the force be with us all.
I'm still here, though, enjoying every minute while it lasts!

Learn vs.Teach

Realized I haven't given a school update in some time, so here goes. When we last left our protagonist, things were looking rather grim--budget cuts, reductions in force, rescinding tenure... what a difference a few months can make!
Turns out the budget projections were somewhat overstated & hoping for the best while preparing for the worst paid off.  By the end of the academic year, I was reinstated full time with tenure restored--so the supplemental job hunt didn't need to happen. (That was a relief!) And in case it's not clear: I'm definitely doing the Snoopy happy dance! I truly enjoy this job & after a full academic cycle, feel like I'm getting the hang of it!

the full-time LPN group:  happy, relieved campers!

Summer quarter (not optional--it's required) was shortened due to the budget crunch, although content was not--nor the required clinical hours for students. Suffice it to say:  it was a wild ride!
Summer is the final quarter for the two full-time cohorts, so I bid a fond adieu to my first students; a definite growing experience for all of us!

the full-time RN group--minus 4 that couldn't hang around for photos!

They've now launched into the 'real' world--awaiting exams to become licensed professionals in search of jobs.  Not the best of economic times to venture forth--but they'll do okay; many will thrive! I will hold them in my heart & my thoughts as this part of the journey ends and the next is just beginning. I wish a solid, caring mentor for each of them in their new work world. I know it made all the difference for me....
The part-timers still face two more quarters--and sadly I had to say goodbye to three students at the end of summer due to grades. *sigh* The survivors are a mighty force, though, and we head off-island for clinicals in the fall. For now there is a brief time out; three weeks off to recharge, regroup, and get ready...
Sleeping in will be involved!

Learn vs.Teach

(as ever, skip the school musings unless you're really interested!)

Wow--the quarter turn-around can be a little dizzying sometimes!  A quarter is over in a blink, the one week break can be just a big sigh, & then we're off again!  Spring quarter, by the looks of it, will be the busiest of the year; summer quarter will be calmer--and I still feel as though my juggling act is barely holding together! All eighteen of my winter quarter advisees made it through last quarter--although a couple had me holding my breath briefly. (Sometimes I wonder how I would fair if I had only two exams & a paper balancing my future on the outcome!)

Although we knew that the school budget was going to pass through a knothole soon with the new state budget in progress, I think many/most of us were still somewhat unprepared for how it would all play out. A nearly five million dollar deficit for the budget year beginning July 1 is a grim obstacle. (At this moment, I'll refrain from my rant on the state of important issues like education & health care in the current national tempest--in a teapot! Not my country's finest hour...) During these many months, as I've pinched myself regularly to be sure I'm not just dreaming up this great job, I've had a feeling of waiting for 'the other shoe to drop'--and it did, finally, during finals week, as administrators went through gauntlet days meeting with staff--including me.
Good news is: I will still have a job in the fall (many will not).  Bad news is: all tenure track processes will be shelved as of June, with no future expectation of being dusted off & brought back to life. That translates to year-to-year contracts with no guarantees. Although I'm still among the standing, the other bad news is I will be considered a 75% faculty as of September (both in hours & pay)--which means auxiliary job hunting is likely.  There is a possibility that I can 'moonlight' some additional hours during the next academic year, but doubtful it will be enough.  Dang!   Turns out it did feel too good to be true! It's pretty hard to get much of a pity-party going, though, when many folks I know are out altogether, and most of them have been there much longer than my neophyte-self. (Schools don't really need art teachers & librarians, right?!)

So, for now, I'm pulling my Scarlett O'Hara & deciding to think about it tomorrow, as life is fairly busy today! I'll be alternating weeks of two 8-hour shifts & four 8-hour shifts at two different hospitals with two different groups.
Throw in a few classes, stir with weekly clinical packets to be reviewed, & sprinkle with some papers & presentations, and you've got a tossed salad of 'never a dull moment'! I am not complaining though; far from it! I love the clinical hours, even though there are moments of sweating bullets, biting your tongue, sitting on your hands, etc.--and, as ever, questioning who really is teaching whom! Every day...

Learn vs.Teach

When we last left our fledgling faculty member, she had finished her first quarter with a scrumptious looking holiday break ahead.  Fast forward almost two months:  break is long since over & mid-quarter evals start next week. Wowie, zowie--that went fast! The joys of a quarter system!
At the end of last quarter I learned that I would be changing dance cards--moving to the RN-to-be class.  They started in the middle of fall quarter & I'd not met any of them--or truthfully, paid much attention to their course-work to date.  That suddenly became much more interesting over the break when I knew I'd be hitting the ground running as soon as New Year's was over!  Just to add a little wrinkle of interest, we're a bit short staffed this quarter so the lion-share of this quarter's work has been clinical rather than classroom. I miss time in the classroom (and I miss my students from last quarter, too!)--but if forced to choose, I'd opt for the clinical time, at least for now.  My full-timers are doing two eight-hour sessions a week in the small, community hospital setting, & the part-timers have two six hour campus labs every other week--until next week when they, too, start eight hour shifts at the hospital.  That translates to about twenty advisees.

Likes:

• fostering being a 'generalist' nurse--when the prime directive of the student is to think 'specialist' 
• having students 'farmed out' in nine different settings or work areas--lots to see, do, remember!
• getting to a 10,000 step day without too much extra efforts when I get around to all of those areas!
• making a difference for many patients & getting to work with lots of different staff (who are actually very welcoming to motivated students)
• getting better at organizing my day & planning ahead for the 'teaching moments' that present themselves
• being back at the bedside with a variety of patients & families
• working evenings--that was always my favorite shift in a hospital setting (right, Julie?)

Challenges:

• having students 'farmed out' in nine different settings or work areas--what are you doing? and when are you doing it? and why, exactly?!
• much less time in the classroom--I miss it--and it's important to keep up with their current thread of content 
• being in the right place at the right time to offer support with the next big 'reality check'--you know, people don't always get better, endings we see are not always happy...
• trying to find the best way to help the beginner see: yes, the right answer to this situation is recognizing that you really don't know all the answers...
• refraining from acting like a mother bear when some staff are just having a bad day & feel better when they make a student have a bad day, too...

It's humbling, thrilling, scary, satisfying, puzzling, joyful, & sad. It's human. Humane. A journey. What a zany roller-coaster to be on! I'm loving the ride...  every day...

Learn vs.Teach

As ever, feel free to skip over the current school review!
The posts have been few & far between the last few weeks--reflective of the end of the quarter & accompanying busy days of finishing up.  Kind of started with Thanksgiving: the big storm before the holiday became five days off instead of two-- a welcomed break for students & faculty alike!
Upon returning, the reality set in that only two weeks remained and students pressed on with a strange mix of hopeful cramming and depressed fatalism.  This week launched with two days of 'last exams', quickly followed by grade calculations & one-on-one end of quarter evaluation conferences with twenty-one students (a third of the total group). Whew!
A much more talkative group came through my office door this time, and most of them are settling into the jogger's pace needed to see them through the remainder of the program.  Definitely the marathon & not the sprint-- and it's encouraging to see confidence developing on most faces.
At mid-quarter evals there were many unknowns and some worrisome performances. At the quarter finish line here's how it settled out: two of twenty-two withdrew with the option of program re-entry in a year or two, two full-timers opted to transfer to part-time status with a more manageable pace, and the remainder finished the first heat with the required C+ or better with the next round to begin January 3rd. Cover your ears as the stampede for the front door ensues and the three week break begins. (and why am I using sports metaphors?!)
My own scorecard looks something like this:
Areas for improvement - start-to-finish time per lecture improved, but still needs work; as does the variety of in-class activities utilized. Still don't have clear understanding of all services available to students & inner-workings of the organizational beast, but progress noted.  Retaining verbal information, although significantly improved from week one, needs work; especially if I want to stay on the good side of the dept's administrative assistant!  Not one office visitor doodled on the white board or art pad next to the chair, but several have returned spontaneously and have begun to find their voice for ideas rather than facts. Difficulty getting enough steps in most days--still gotta work on the balance of active vs. quiet times (especially because someone keeps the office chocolate jar full most of the time!).
Progress:  Getting to know some faculty outside of my own department.  Good marks with the first quarter of tenure committee and dean's review/observation. Managing time & my schedule pretty well--and on the worst weeks of the quarter still put in about 20-24 hrs less than the usual week at the job-that-ate-my-life! (no comparison!)  Didn't get short of breath when the near-final schedules for next quarter came out at staff meeting this week. Got my 'professional development plan' finished that will help get me through this three years of tenure-track work. Learned a fair amount about technical tools for the classroom--with more to come. Realizing there's a fair amount of information stored away in those dusty old memory banks--kind of fun to drag it out & put it back to work!
In the just-for-fun category: turns out these students know how to throw a great potluck! Books on tape are a great separation between work & home, having just finished my fifth one. My closet now includes uniforms & white shoes again, after thirty years, for those fateful clinical days ('never say, "never"!')
So, today is the end of quarter one--woo-hoo! Will actually be able to prepare for the holidays, read, write, cook, quilt, play games with the boys. How fun to have a true break--but I also look forward to new adventures in the quarter ahead. Bring it on!!

Learn vs.Teach

Today marks the end of week 5 for the quarter--are you sick of hearing about my new world yet?
Yesterday was a watershed of sorts. I met with all of my advisees (isn't that a weird word?!) for mid-quarter evals--which is less about writing & more about 'how's it going'.  Couldn't help thinking about my previous job-that-ate-my-life & how onerous and unsatisfying evaluations had become--much more about writing & meeting external regulations, and much less about how people were doing.  Anyway, in my brave new world that would be twenty-one individual appointments throughout the day...("okay, I can do this!")
Needless to say, I was a little travel-weary by the time I was packing up on a dark, rainy night, but I was energized by the process, too.  It was one of those bittersweet kind of days:  some happy, laughing moments, but also hard questions for some, and  listening to others who know that the end may be drawing near.  For all of them it was the first pass through my office door--as Julie said early on, office hours are seldom utilized.  I'm hopeful it won't be the last for many, and for several I hope the next visit will be sooooon.  We are nearing the point of no return; the place where it becomes statistically impossible to pull out of a quarter gone wrong.  For a few, they will need considerable direction & TLC regarding next steps and their possible choices for the future--as they will be unable to advance to the next quarter.

Which in some ways must look like the 'lightning round', I think.  As in:  you thought this quarter was bad, just wait...  For the full-timers this quarter, every morning is a three and a half hour class with one afternoon clinical session per week.  Next quarter they pass go, collect their $200 and move to a clinical site (with me) for two days a week and decrease their class time to only two days a week--but the sessions are over five hours.  I keep looking at that & wondering. Five hours. In a classroom with fifty students. In charge.  Huh. Really? Five hours...  And the course content is much more complex?  Okay then...
But I digress--there will be plenty of time to consider that little gem over the holidays.  Meanwhile there is the second half of this particular game plan to complete.  The quarter is ramping up.
    
This week another mystery of my new world was revealed:  'vocational certification'.  In this state, the 'VC' is a requirement, and although it, too, is a three year process, it is separate and away from the tenure-track process.  I am currently in the midst of writing my completion plan for the objectives I've chosen to meet the state standards.  (I think this might be the payback for not having to write long, torturous evals.)  Continuous quality improvement, or performance improvement plans, or whatever; the language is the same in every work environment I've been in.  I can do this, right?

My land-speed record is increasing but almost imperceptibly.  My goal by the end of the year (as in this quarter) is to have my class preparation less about housekeeping & more about things that matter--and whichever, less time consuming.  I had a tiny glimmer of that in this week's class--but darned if I can quantify what made it different.  The sleuthing continues...    And by the way, in case it's not clear?  I love my new job.  Every day.

Learn vs.Teach

(this post can be skipped if you're already clear of the difference...)
So ends week five of the new job and week four with students, aka: school daze(d).  Since we last visited with our protagonist, she was finding her way around the building, into the classroom, the clinical lab, and continued to have a puzzled--but pleasant--look on her face.
Two weeks later, 'mid-quarter' is looming and life progresses.  I am still slower than skaditch but my cruising speed is gradually increasing. I'm nearing 80% accuracy with name recall of 72 students. I've met with my newly assigned 'mentor' and so far have not forgotten my lunch.  The puzzled look no doubt has continued but most students now greet me pleasantly--& I consider it a plus that they do not run in the opposite direction when I approach!
I just this week received my assigned list of 'advisees' for the remainder of this quarter and also the next.  That translates into twenty-two individuals (ten in the full-time class and twelve in the part-time class) that will begin meeting with me next week for 'mid-quarter evals' & then will be assigned with me in the clinical setting next quarter (for the full timers)--part timers will still be with me in the lab.  This is the watershed time of the program for some students:  it is nearing the time it becomes statistically impossible to pull out of a stall of poor grades--thus preventing them from progressing to the next quarter.  That forces the conversation of withdrawing from the program and deciding if the exit should be orchestrated such that an option remains to return next year or after. *sigh* It's a sad reality--as I can honestly say every student is giving their all. It's just that in some situations it's just not enough to want it to succeed.  The final verdict is not in for all of them, but it adds a serious tension to the weekly exams.  I respect them all:  it's a grueling schedule.  As I learn more in the 'program planning' phase of my job responsibilities, it's clear things become more challenging next quarter as we pass out of 'fundamentals' & delve deeper into specific areas.  I am 'relearning' many topics & am occasionally surprised to find some texts make topics more complicated than necessary for students.
Lest we think otherwise, though, I think it should remain clear that treading water with tasks is mostly accurate.  Many miles aways from 'hitting my stride' but I can now imagine that could be possible.  It is accurate to say:  I really like it!  I enjoy the challenges. I love seeing a light bulb fire up over someone's head, or the look of accomplishment that replaces the look of worry when a clinical task is 'passed' in the lab. I can't yet imagine how many cycles of certain tasks need to be repeated before they feel 'usual'--but I'm hoping that this time next year, I can anticipate the next step before it comes hunting for me.
I mentioned a mentor.  That's a nice option offered to new staff:  someone outside of your department volunteers to meet with you periodically to offer support, answer questions, smile & listen.  Very helpful!  I've also met with my Tenure Committee--which has helped to demystify the process.  Two years from now will be the beginning of final decision-making--so it's not quite a three year process but more than two.  I've been reassured that one would know well before that time if there is Trouble in Rivercity.  (I can only hope!)  There will be a quarterly meeting, following quarterly observation visits to the classroom--and later to the clinical sites.
So--my fellow students of life:  here's to life-long learning!  Trying to teach the concept is certainly enhanced by the fact that "I R One!".  More later...

Guilty Pleasure

Just wanted to share my extreme indulgence--last week I got my new 'toy' that somehow was rationalized as an assist in my new job.  It's a very sweet 10 inch netbook, weighs less than two pounds & has about 1000 times more power than the first (huge) computer we purchased a little over twenty years ago (at about ten times the cost).  "Bigger, better, faster" is now smaller, better, faster, cheaper--and blue.  (Jim always said we should have a blue computer!).

Truth is, I can certainly do my job without this little prize--but I've been increasingly envious of the mobility I see in others.  It's just too fun!

Learn vs. Teach

I haven't quite settled into my new schedule yet and I'm now working two jobs, as I'm continuing on at the quilt shop a few days a month (it's nice to have a fun escape where I know what I'm doing!).  The end result is limited blogging time this last couple of weeks.  I'm hopeful things will settle into a new rhythm in the next couple of weeks--but that's likely short lived as the quarter system doesn't allow for anything to settle for an extended period!

The first week with students has come and gone, along with many other firsts.  Problem solving copy machines & classroom hardware, teaching my first class, the first clinical lab session--and let's face it:  the first week of steady work for many months!  I'm out of sync with that phenomenon, but it's coming back.  8-)
I'm comfortably into my office space (which is truly a delightful setting), have my office hours established, and am back into the electronic routine of a new computer system.  I've been oriented to the library system, have a photo ID, and have only forgotten to check my campus mailbox once!

I've fallen into bed early several nights--welcoming the rest, as my brain feels exhausted by the end of each day!  I'm hoping that, too, calms down.  It's not a difficult schedule--just so many 'firsts'!  I've wondered many times if that's how all of the students feel, too, as I've met them & started this journey with them.  They've put so much energy into just getting to this point--getting all of the pre-req's completed & being accepted to the program.  As I learn some of their stories, I'm feeling fortunate with the limited amount of 'firsts' I'm contending with!  Seventy new faces & generally an impressive group.  Very diverse in age & life experience--but they've all had so much life experience already!  Many international students, about a third are male (that's a good thing for the future of nursing!), and all with a strong desire to succeed.  Fifty of them will be finished by the end of next summer if they stay the course.  The other twenty will take twice that long as they're going part time (evenings & every other weekend).  There's a brief 'pause' before the other program starts in about four weeks with forty additional students--also a part time and full time mix.

So--for now--I'm just taking each day & week as it comes, and celebrating the little accomplishments along the path (and feeling pretty humble!)  I'm learning a lot & appreciate the challenges.
I'll keep you posted...    

The Last Laugh of Summer Vacation...

Devin offered up this great response to the Ftr. Guido video I posted.  It definitely deserves to be shared--so I'm passing it on!

I so love Rowan Atkinson!  May I never be that teacher--but wouldn't you give anything for that 'death stare'?!  (and that's another thing I've never thought twice about--attendance?! hoo-boy!)

Week One is Wrapping Up

It's really been a great 'first week' of work, all things considered.  So many new things to learn, faces & names to retain (and the students aren't here yet!), culture exposure, etc.  Everyone has been surprisingly nice & helpful with only a few minor exceptions.  Quite welcoming.
Everything is new--whether it's where to find the 'right' bathroom or the emergency procedures.  New hire paperwork, parking stickers, photo ID's, where to find student services, which are the texts for this quarter vs. the next... on & on.  Then to notch it up just a bit--there were three days of time with staff from both campuses together (not a common experience the rest of the year) so there have been exponentially more faces, degree tracts, programs, etc.  It's been a nice way to get a feel for the philosophy & personality of the organization.
Commitment is pervasive with a capital C--and little evidence of burn-out or undue cynicism (that's a relief!).  I thought I would share a video that was included in the President's remarks on the first day--the remainder of remarks were serious, compelling & challenging--but anyone that can share the stage with Father Guido earns extra credit from me!

Thankfully, there is an obvious strong desire to give staff & students a hand-up to success--especially if you're 'new'.  Everytime I had the beginning of a thought about being overwhelmed, I had only to think of another full-time new faculty person that has just arrived with his family from Beijing (yes, that would be China) for a year of teaching.  How could I possibly think I'm overwhelmed by the culture shift?  He was so endearing & excited--and anxious to adapt!  So--I just take a deep breath, tell myself it could be worse, 'don't sweat the small stuff', & move on to the next task at hand.
I'll keep you posted as to my seeming resilience after next week comes & goes.  Seventy new students will be darkening the door (soon to be followed by forty more in a month!).
Stay tuned! Wha-hoo!!

Newbie = Novice or Newcomer

Progress:  today I met my new co-workers (should be a great group!), got my office assigned (very nice), my computer log-in, keys...  and brought home an impressive pile of reading--the first of many like it!  8-}  Go back on Friday for a brief meeting to divvy up the class schedule.  'Official' start still about a month away, but nice to have some time to get acclimated.

Four different programs with four different student cohorts--all starting fall quarter.  (There is a two year cycle for many, and this is the year to start the 'new' groups.)  Also the quarter to start new text books, too.
So count me in the list of 'new', too--trying not to have eyes too wide!  Stay tuned...