Section LC05

When I walked inside this room i had a pretty good idea about what this workshop was going to be about (conflict b/w students or teachers). When i did walk into the room though, we had almost 1/3 the class sitting on the floor. The room should have been relocated to somewhere with more space (and more chairs). However aside from that the speaker was very well prepared and had us even role play situations that may have involved conflict between students and their professors. The workshop was an hour shorter than expected, but 40 minutes into it, it became a bit repetitive, because the speaker gave us a very detailed informative speech for the first 20 minutes or so. I found this workshop to be helpful because it is very practical. Im sure there are many instances where a student may have some sort of conflict with his teacher, and thanks to this workshop, i would know where to go if that ever was the case.

I exited the elevator onto the  fifth floor to see a mass of freshmen students. Everywhere you could possibly turn was students waiting in line to an unknown destination. When I finally worked my way to the front of the line, passports were being signed and I jumped in line.  Afterwards, I looked around and wondered “Now where exactly is this workshop?” I walked into a room that was, again, filled with freshmen (how many freshmen are there anyways?) After spending what felt like eternity wandering the halls looking for this seminar, I found another freshman and we joined forces. Unfortunately, our forces weren’t good enough and we ended up leaving behind our search for the “seminar” (wherever that was) and going to an Ethics Seminar.

All in all, I was a bit dissapointed– I had brought with me the postcard for a raffle that Baruch had mailed to me and wanted to test my luck.  Hopefully next year, Baruch will organize this seminar better where students will actually learn something. At least I found a friend =]

What I thought was going to be an interesting and informative speech and discussion turned into a boring waste of time. I’m sorry to be blunt but the keynote speaker whom I’ve already forgotten his name hardly addressed diversity in Baruch. It was almost as if he was addressing a group of Stoneybrook students. Its great that he experienced diversity at another university but one needs to address their audience. Make connections between the two colleges. Provide a slightly more interesting food for thought.

The discussion board panel provided a bit more “spice” as the sociology teacher best put it. The Macaulay Honors male student made a valid point: Just because Baruch had diversity in its student population didn’t mean that the students spent time in diverse cliques. He used the example of the cafeteria; Looking around, you see a plethora of different colors and ethnicities yet they are divided. “The Asians are one side and the African Americans are on the other,” he pointed out.

The sociology teacher made another point: If we were trying to promote diversity, why do we deny those whose first language is something other than English from taking certain classes? She used a personal experience that was so touching that she had to take a few moments to compose herself.

I applaud Baruch on their desire to discuss diversity however, they should pick their speakers better. I’m quite sure the keynote speaker had good points to bring to our attention here at Baruch but it was lost in his jargon.

I’m 125% sure I signed up for a workshop about small talk (that I was actually interested in), but I got this instead when I got there. But since it fulfills the same requirement, I stayed.

So the lady discussed things that we should consider when we choose our majors, like your values, interests, skills, and some other stuff. She also showed a list of majors and corresponding jobs, and some hexagon thingy that relates to jobs and majors. It was pretty boring despite the lady trying to make jokes every now and then, but I guess it’s “informative.” This workshop was held in room 3-215, I think, and I absolutely love the windows in this room; awesome views.

And with this workshop done, I’m free from workshops! 😀

The Mediating Conflict and Resolving Disputes at Baruch College workshop is as the title describes. The workshop was directed by Professor Mindy Engel-Friedman who offered me an introduction to the Office of the Ombuds. Before this workshop I didn’t know what an Ombuds is but I found out that it was a person that resolves conflicts. The students of the workshop were broken up into groups and each group was given a different scenario in which there was a conflict that needed to be resolved. She listed various conflicts between students, faculty, and staff often caused by a variety of reasons. One of the reasons that I recalled could be a dispute over a grade a student received. Professor Engel-Friedman explained to me what the office does and the procedure they follow in order to resolve a conflict. The group work was very helpful as I was able to better understand what the office does. I was the Ombud of my group. The only complaint I have is again, organization. The room was over crowded and students were forced to sit on the floor or were turned away. You would think, after having to RSVP before attending the workshop, the organizers of the workshop would have a better average on the amount of students that would attend it and would better prepare. They didn’t prepare as I expected but over all I thought the workshop was successful.

The Internship and Goal Setting workshop was the first workshop I attended at Baruch that I found well organized and informative. The workshop provided the basic needs a person must have in order to obtain an internship and get the most out of it. It informed me of the types of internships there are, what is required when trying to obtain an internship and helped me to figure out what I would like to do with my future. It helped me to decipher what my goals are and what I would like to achieve in life. The speaker, a representative of STARR, described what STARR is and how I will be able to use it to my advantage. She also discussed how to have a good resume that will get you noticed by employers. She provided me with the information and methods needed in order maximize my use of the opportunities at Baruch that will help me with my future career plans. My only complaint is that it was a bit too long and I began to lose focus towards the end. The handouts the workshop provided was very informative and is definitely something I will use in the future.

The Club Fair was meant to provide the incoming freshmen of Baruch College to find out more information about the clubs and organizations provided at Baruch and encourage them to get involved with the school and meet new people. I have been to my high school’s (Townsend Harris High School) club fair so I had a general idea of what it would be like but this was a shock to see.

                Entering the basement of the VC, I first encountered a long line to the gym. Once I entered the gym, I was overwhelmed with the amount of people there. I didn’t realize how many freshmen there were at Baruch as I am with my LC for the majority of my classes. I had a general idea about the clubs that I would like to join as I conducted research of my own prior to the fair but it was difficult to find them. Each club had a poster board with the name of the club on top and pictures from the club. There were also representatives from the club at each booth and a signup sheet for students who were interested in the club.

                The overwhelming amount of students was difficult to deal with and was one of the reasons why I left early. They had a show/ dance off at the front of the gymnasium and a huge mob encircling the stage. It was difficult to get through and the music made it difficult to talk to representatives of the clubs I was interested in.

                I would recommend dividing the clubs and designating two different areas for specific clubs in each area. This will break the mob of freshmen students in two making it less crowded. Also I would try to make the organization of the clubs more efficient in some way.

I received a letter from Baruch College informing me about a Freshman Reception that will offer me opportunities to meet the advisors of Baruch and ask any questions that may be on my mind concerning my future. From the letter, I understood that the Freshman Reception was intended to answer any questions concerning academics, any concerns I have about my future at Baruch and the requirements I need to get into the Zicklin business school.

                As it was my second workshop, I was excited to see what the Freshman Reception would be like. I imagined that I would be able to meet my fellow classmates and converse with both them and my academic advisers but I was again disappointed when I arrived. It was crowded and there was a long line that went as far as the escalators. Students turned away after seeing the crowd but I decided to give it a shot. I worked my way through the crowd and entered the small room. Seeing the amount of students at convocation, I believed that the people in charge of organizing the Freshman Reception would try to get a bigger room. Students went, got their book signed at the door and left. Many students didn’t even step into the room with the advisors.

                As I worked my way into the room, I found that the room was just as crowded as the hallway just outside of the room. I couldn’t talk to any advisors and I received no information. I picked up a pamphlet from off a table and left. The Freshman Reception was a complete waste of my time and needs to be better organized next time. They should relocate it to the gym or a bigger place that can hold all freshmen at Baruch and there should be more advisors available to share their knowledge of Baruch and what we should know for the future.

The Baruch Diversity Debate was the first workshop I attended at Baruch College. It was required by my English professor, Professor Saint, but even then I was very much interested in the topic of Diversity at Baruch. Being my first workshop, I was definitely excited to see what a workshop at Baruch College would be like but I would say that I expected more after completing it.

                The workshop was meant to be focused on “Baruch is one of the most diverse U.S. institutions, and So What?” but the majority of the workshop was not what was described, The main speaker, a Nigerian professor from Stony Brook University, Professor Vaughn, concentrated on diversity everywhere else but Baruch throughout his lecture. The majority of his lecture was centered on his experience at Stony Brook and it was difficult to relate it to my experience so far at Baruch College. I did try to apply some of the things he said to my life but after a while I began to lose interest in the lecture and as I looked around the room, I noticed many faculty members with the same problem.

                The workshop became interesting to me after Professor Vaughn spoke and it was now time for the board to give their opinions on the topic. An African American Professor at Baruch College described her experiences dealing with students of various ethnicities. She recalled one situation in which an Asian girl, one of her students, was rejected from a Communication course because her English wasn’t as great as her Communication Professor wanted it to be. Another member of the board, a senior currently attending Baruch College also spoke about the diversity at Baruch. He said that even though Baruch is described as the most diverse school in the nation, as you look around the building it is difficult to see. People of the same ethnicity tend to form a circle of friends, isolating themselves from other ethnicities. The various groups of friends at Baruch College are not as diverse as the College describes itself as. This is a problem we should confront and a topic the main speaker, Professor Vaughn, should’ve focused on.