Well, that’s officially a wrap on my third semester at LATC! A lot has changed since my first semester. I’ve tried new things, I continue to learn more and more everyday, I’ve taken on more responsibilities, and I even got a brand spankin’ new office! It’s been one for the books for sure.

I may have mentioned it in an earlier blog, but in case you didn’t know, I taught my first class this semester. It’s basically an Adulting 101 class, where we teach them about financial literacy, mental health, how to access campus and community resources, time management, etc. etc. Basically things we need to know how to do as an adult, but find that many new college students don’t know how to do. We had a team put together the curriculum for the course at the end of the Spring semester and over the summer, and we finally got to pilot it this fall.

It was definitely an experience. I was pretty excited to try teaching and add another point to my resume, but now that it is over, I’m not sure I liked it as much as I thought I would. I’m not sure if it’s because teaching just isn’t my thing, or if it’s because of the group I had. They barely showed any sign of life! I’d ask a question and it’d just be crickets out there. On the financial literacy day, I had them get into small groups to work on fixing a budget, and when I told them to turn around and work with the people at their table, they all just stared at me. I actually had to say, “that requires you to get up and move to a different spot.” I just really struggled to get them engaged.

So, even though it was a challenge, I wouldn’t rule out giving it another go in the future. If I took anything from the class, it’s that trying new things can be hard and scary, but you never know what will happen if you don’t give it a try. It didn’t seem like the students absorbed much during the class itself, but in the survey they took on the last day, a lot of them said they really enjoyed the class and learned a lot of things to improve their own life. So if I was able to help even a handful of them figure out adulting, I’d call it a success.

Activities were a HUGE improvement compared to last year. HUGE. It no longer felt like I was throwing a bunch of birthday parties that no one came to. I did quite a few of the same activities from last year, and threw in some new ones as well. Almost every single activity was well attended, and especially for the activities I did last year, it was even better this year because I knew what I was doing and what kind of obstacles to expect. I felt like a seasoned professional at that point!

Intramurals were even a pleasant surprise from last year. I have a love/hate relationship with intramurals. They are fun and I know they are the student’s favorites, but they are a lot of work and those nights get to be so long. I wasn’t as worried about volleyball since it was in an enclosed space, but softball is a little more spread out and it can be a little difficult to keep an eye on everything. Last year was BAD. It was basically a frat party every night, trying to get drunk people home safely and cleaning up the fields afterwards. But I don’t know if I got scarier this year and people started to take me more seriously, or if I just had a better group of kids, but they were great. I only had to get after a few kids for drinking once or twice, and they were very respectful about it when I told them to get rid of it instead of putting up a fight. It was just all around a huge improvement.

I’ve definitely had to learn how to be patient with people even since day one at this job, but I feel like now that I have a few semesters under my belt, I’m starting to sympathize with the students a little better. Last year I’d be so annoyed with how stupid some of them were and I just couldn’t understand why they did some of the things they did. But now, I’m realizing, that hey, I was a dumb college kid not that long ago either, and I was in the same shoes as them. Most of them aren’t being stupid on purpose, they just don’t know any better. Working with them outside of class where they can unwind a little bit and let loose has definitely tested my patience more than once, but in the end, I think it has improved my outlook on how these kids operate, and helps me relate to them so much better.

Overall, it was a great semester, and I honestly can’t believe it’s over already! I’m definitely ready for a little break, but I’m also excited to see what the next semester has in store. I’ve got lots of fun things in the works already, and I’m excited to learn even more!

Until next time! 🙂

Megan Reiffenberger