On My Way : Jeremy Moore

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 6

Drawing from Manning’s article on the “Philosophical underpinnings of student affairs work on difference,” draft an entry for your course blog that is approximately 300-500 words in length reflecting on how you see yourself fitting into the various paradigms she identifies.  Which paradigm seems to most reflect your beliefs about and definition of diversity within higher education administrative practice?  How have you seen this philosophy represented in the action research you’ve done so far, and how do you anticipate it might continue to emerge as you complete your dissertation?  

After reading Manning’s article, “Philosophical underpinnings of student affairs work on difference”, I reflected on the various paradigms presented by Manning. Some, such as cultural pluralism, resonated strongly as I also considered my action research and thinking of how many first-year commuter students are often forced to adapt to the majoritive narrative of being on a residential campus. As Manning shares, “developing mutual understanding, valuing differences, and increasing cultural awareness and competence are issues within the cultural pluralism perspective” (2009, p. 5). However, getting to a place where the campus community can allow for these actions to more fully occur still takes incredible work and energy, and it can often end in an unsuccessful result. 

Social justice is another paradigm presented by Manning that is often discussed and talked about in higher education, but the understanding of what social justice can often vary between individuals. As Manning states, “yet without an understanding of oppression, action related to transformational change, and passion for equitable sharing of power, claims of social justice may be another perspective in disguise” (2009, p. 7). Social justice is often a term used to discuss a mobilization of efforts, support, or challenge towards achieving fairness and equity for all. In many ways, the work of advocating for, and resourcing a group of students within a larger student community is work that may be striving to meet this objective. 

One of the ultimate goals of my action research is to be able to be best positioned to tell the story of our students and their lived experiences as well as to best position my current intervention efforts and those future efforts which hopefully will come later on. As a scholarly practitioner, it is important to me that I understand that understanding a problem and seeking a solution can be well-intentioned, but that it can also be harmful to propose solutions without fully understanding the problem or the people involved can be unethical and harmful to those we seek to serve. 

The video included in this module discussed how researchers should reflect on new methodologies about/around student experiences and how to capture students lived experiences that are more holistic and respectful of the student themselves as a participant. One way I have piloted and hope to include in my ultimate research is data collection through artifacts. It is my hope that through this effort, participants can help in co-constructing their own understanding and explanation of the problem of practice from their perspectives. Additionally, I am hoping to employ semi-structured interviewing as another strategy to help inform my data collection efforts while also leaving space for each participant and not approaching my research as a “one size fits all approach”.  

Another important consideration brought up in the video was the idea that our context matters as researchers. In the case of Western ideologies, self-authorship is discussed and how in higher education a student’s journey is seen as individual and unique. However, in many cultures, having a shared or planned path can be natural and encouraged. Families often play a larger role in this collectivist approach, and as a researcher, I must consider how this attribute of collectivism can be honored and valued in my action research. 

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 5

Draft an entry for your course blog that is approximately 500 words in length reflecting on:

1. which contextual attributes seem most relevant for comparing and contrasting postsecondary institutions to one another, for purposes of conducting research.

2. which contextual attributes seem most relevant for comparing and contrasting postsecondary institutions to one another, for purposes of general benchmarking and strategic planning, and

3. which attributes of your selected institution are most important to explain in your action research dissertation setting description.

When I consider what contextual contributes seem most relevant for looking at peer institutions and benchmarking, I believe there are several general attributes that are commonly utilized in practice. One of the most common strategies I have seen employed in my workplace is to look at other institutions in our same athletic conference, which in the case of my institution is the PAC 12. Although this should not be the only variable and should not be employed without also reviewing other attributes in tandem, it can be a good starting place as institutions in the same conference often are of a similar size, research classification, and may even be in the same geographical area. When reviewing the Chronicle of Higher Education’s tool, “Who Does Your College Think Its Peers Are?”, I saw many of our PAC 12 partners on the list, however, there were some notable exceptions such as ASU. Therefore, it is also important to look at other attributes such as public versus private, enrollment, expenses (often also tied to public/private), and admission rate. Many of these attributes can easily be viewed when using the previously-mentioned tool.  

When viewing the comparison/contrast between postsecondary institutions for a research perspective, it is important to first make sure that both institutions are part of the same research classification and accreditation. It would be a useful endeavor to also explore the research activity of those postsecondary institutions being further explored--what is the publishing rate of the faculty/staff at the institution? Is the institution an active member of the related associations or conferences? Does the institution host any such organizations, associations, or publishing bodies? 

When I consider my own action research and the setting of my research, I have actively utilized benchmarking as an active tool and resource. It is a little more complex when viewing the postsecondary comparison/contrast, as there is a limited body of professionals charged with the same professional practice as myself or dedicated offices by which this work may be occurring. I am fortunate to have a strong peer within my state and also that our office has a strong connection with an international organization that has expanded these relationships. Often this style of benchmarking may be less about the exact attributes such as size, but more of the similarities of our students, their behaviors/activities, and how resources have been obtained or created to solve similar opportunities or challenges. 

Additionally, when I am looking at other institutions for my action research, I am also looking at variables such as how many of their students reside in on-campus housing versus off-campus living options, the average rental prices for that market, and the number of commuters attending the institution. In some ways, also looking at completely different institutional profiles can also be an extremely valuable exercise. For example, for my research focus, many community colleges have developed specific programming, services, and resources for commuter students since many community colleges are exclusively commuter institutions. As my institution is more commonly seen as a traditional residential campus, it can be helpful to explore different these different settings to more fully conceptualize potential solutions. 

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 4

Draft an entry for your course blog that is approximately 300 words in length and describes how you can use IPEDS data in your professional practice and/or in your scholarship (dissertation or otherwise).

As you may have heard at some point, data is power. Indeed, as scholarly practitioners, we may often find our work coming under ever-increasing scrutiny as budgets shrink and further emphasis on return on investment, or ROI, continues to ramp up. Therefore, being data-driven is more vital now than ever before. How can one be “data-driven”? The first step is to find out what data points you may be able to collect or if you are fortunate, what data points already exist. At many educational institutions and particularly those postsecondary institutions, there are often offices dedicated to research, assessment, and data analysis. On my campus, this office is called the Office of Data Analytics and Institutional Research. Here, I am able to work with staff to better understand what data points may have already been collected either on their own or as part of a larger instrument. This can be a great place to start when many of us may have limited experience working with data collection or analysis. Further, these types of offices may be able to present historical data to help further inform data over time such as retention, persistence to degree attainment, specific demographic information, and much more. 

For this entry, I am focusing on how IPEDS, or the Integrated Postsecondary Data System, can be utilized in my professional practice and research. When I review the IPEDS information for my campus, I immediately see many different data points that can be employed for my various needs. For example, the retention and time to graduation information compared with various demographic characteristics could be used to better understand how different student profiles are or are not successfully completing their degrees and help to better plan for various interventions that could be prototyped. The total cost information can be utilized to conceptualize various socioeconomic barriers that students may be encountering with their total cost of education and how various groups of students may be impacted by these variables (out-of-state and transfer students, for example). 

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 3B

Step 2

In “To use or not to use theory: Is that the Question?”, Adriana Kezar discusses a number of ways that scholars have defined and used “theory” in their work.  On page 326-27, she poses a number of questions for researchers to reflect on to that end.  She then applies those questions to how she went about positioning theory within one of her own research projects.  Using her questions and discussion as a guide, draft an entry for your course blog that is approximately 300-500 words in length, summarizing how you personally define “theory” and how you could use it to study the research question you identified in Step 1.

I personally define “theory” as a way of seeing how something is and further explaining how something is in a way that is (hopefully) easier to understand. Further, I feel that theories help to create a shared vernacular to assist in the understanding of a concept between multiple individuals. This is important as individuals often see things in different and unique perspectives. 

Generally, when viewed from a scientific perspective, a theory is unfounded or unconfirmed and serves as more or less as a hypothesis for how something may happen or occur. This is typically true for social theories when attempting to explain a phenomenon or occurrence when discussing something occurring in a person or groups of individuals. 

Theories also often attempt to explain relationships between different thoughts or ideas, again making them easier to understand or conceptualize. I do not believe that theories are firmly rooted. What I mean by this is that they can be refuted, expanded and built upon. This is important as something the conditions by which a theory has been developed can also change. What we know now might not be what we know in the future. Therefore, many theories are not static, unless it is something that is unable to be changed due to its properties (such as perhaps a theory of relativity, for example). 

The research question I shared in the previous post, “How does the student perceive the importance of, and their satisfaction with, the information they have received on various issues?”, would benefit from an application of theory. It is important for scholarly practitioners to understand that theories are important when studying various phenom and also taking into account the identities of the individual(s) being studied. One example of this as it pertains to my research question is how a first-generation college student might potentially rate their satisfaction with information received differently from a student who has other family members who have postsecondary education experience. Additionally, depending on where the student is at in their own transitional experience to college, they may answer this question differently if one was to ask at the beginning of the semester versus later on in the students first semester. 

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 3A

Step 1

Draft an entry for your course blog that is approximately 300-500 words in length. Begin by stating at least one preliminary research question(s) that your action research dissertation project may address. Then discuss how well the different paradigms and methods you learned about in this module’s readings (and in other courses, if applicable) are suited to study that question. More specifically:

Analyze Possible Paradigms:

Which research paradigm do you think best aligns with the question; why?  What are the strengths and weaknesses of that paradigm?  

Which research paradigm(s) would offer little support or direction to address the question; why?

Analyze Possible Methods:

What is at least one method you could use to study your question, within the paradigm you’ve identified; why?

Which methods would be inappropriate to use to study your question, within the paradigm you’ve identified; why?

For this topic’s blog entry, I am exploring one of the preliminary research questions which I am hoping to explore further through my action research dissertation project. The question I’ve chosen to explore further here is, “How does the student perceive the importance of, and their satisfaction with, the information they have received on various issues (e.g., financial aid, job opportunities, campus events)?

For this particular question, I’ve chosen to align with a constructivist research paradigm as the understanding is that learning is an active, constructive process with the learned positioned centrally in the co-construction of knowledge. Within a higher education environment and particularly in situations where the student may be exploring their own understanding of a particular topic or phenomenon, I feel that this approach is a strong one. Despite being able to influence some of the conditions that may exist within the environment as a staff member, the experience in a higher education setting is largely left up to the student to navigate or interact with themselves (attending on-campus social events, for example). 

Constructivism takes into account that the learner is constructing new knowledge from their previous knowledge and inputs.  However, no two learners/students will necessarily have the same prior experiences to lean on or from, as such it can be challenging at times to structure an environment, program, or initiative that can take this into account. Another primary criticism of constructivism is that in situations where there may exist a right and a wrong answer, it is challenging to integrate the freedom of thought, expression, and construction into the equation. Fortunately, for the purposes of my research question, this is not as much a challenge as I am focusing on individual student’s thoughts and lived experiences. 

One method I could use (and plan to utilize) in my study would be asking participants in semi-structured interviews or focus groups to bring with them an artifact that they might associate with the question, “How does the student perceive the importance of, and their satisfaction with, the information they have received on various issues?” This artifact would enable the participant to have a level of freedom in selecting a particular symbol or object to communicate their perception and feelings on this question while allowing me as the researcher to better understand their experience---and potentially opening the interview up to follow-up questions that can be more responsive to the artifact and narrative provided by the participant in the moment. 

[jeremycmoore]

TEL 780 - Topic 2: ASHE

The most recent 43rd Annual ASHE conference was held in Tampa, FL in November 2018. The theme was “Envisioning the Woke Academy”. The most recent program booklet described the various program tracks as: “Students, Organization, Administration, and Leadership, Faculty, Contexts, methods, and foundations, Policy, finance, and economics, International, and Community-Engaged Research”. The “Students” section contains several sub-categories including “College Access, College transition, experiences while in college, and College Success And Outcomes”. The Community-Engaged Research program track is listed as a new addition for the 2018 conference.

As ASHE’s primary focus and mission is the study of higher education as a field, I feel this is a fairly well-rounded list of topical areas. ASHE achieves this “through its peer-reviewed publications, annual conference sessions, presidential invited sessions, and other intellectual and professional fora, the Association for the Study of Higher Education promotes scholarly discourse and debate about important issues and ideas, questions, problems, and possibilities in the study of higher education” (ASHE website). However, in reviewing and reflecting on this list it is not clear to me if any of these topical areas are charged with looking into specific student populations, identities, or concerns as a study area itself (first-generation college students, for example). 

As I think about my own problem and practice and research focus area, I feel as though the “college transition and experiences while in college” or the “college success and outcomes” topical areas could both be a good fit potentially if I was to submit a proposal to a future ASHE conference. 

As previously mentioned, the theme for the most recent conference was “Envisioning the Woke Academy”. In reviewing and skimming through the pages of the program book, I see many sessions and more specifically, workshops, that appear to have been focused on critically evaluating and examining systematic and organizational topics trends, and barriers that impact both individuals and systems within the larger organization. 

I was interested to learn about some of the session titles that I would imagine explored the history of higher education and higher education preparation programs and how many institutions and graduate “prep” programs have been heavily influenced by a dominant cultural lens. One such presentation, “Reframing Histories of Higher Education in the Woke Academy”, piqued my interest. Presentations focusing on the changing face of higher education with topic areas such as privatization, the role of trustees or board members, and polciies that may serve as barriers to our students were also of interest. 

The session in the “Brave New Voices and Perspectives on Leadership and Decision-Making” sub-track included a session called “The Student Voice Index: Examining Students’ Access, Role, Influence and Empowerment in Institutional Decision-Making” by Lindsey Lee Templeton, Andy MacCracken, and Amy Bulter Smith, seems, at least on the surface, like it might have an interesting connection to my topic when looking at moving the organization from a place of understanding to a place of action in supporting non-traditional or non-majority populations on my campus. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #13

Step 4

For my next Leadership Challenge, I would like to send some time visiting other offices on campus that are outside of my Division and areas that I would not work with as organically or often. These office(s) may include academic partners and colleagues, advising center(s), or even support staff/resource offices outside of the student services realm. My intentionality with this LC is to better understand what barriers, if any, exist in collaborating more frequently and “reaching across the aisle” to streamline processes and understandings. 

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

I think that this particular change in behavior was a positive one. Individuals who I had reached out to were generally eager and excited to share their experiences and challenges. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module.

(Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

This particular leadership challenge was one that I felt personally connected to as a dual student and professional staff person. I have found that at times it can be extremely challenging and difficult to manage the aspects of both of these identities and knew that several of my colleagues had recently began their own continuing education journeys, Finding a way to share these collective journeys, celebrating one another’s success, while also being able to provide support is very important. Additionally, I believe that for each of these colleagues as well as myself we have valuable ways to continue contributing to our departments and larger organization by sharing those things which we are learning in our programs. However, there currently is not a centralized mechanism to achieve this goal beyond one to one conversations.

As a result of our informal conversations, there was the idea to see about organizing a semi-regular group, most likely over the lunch hour, where individuals who are currently engaged in further studies may be able to come together to share progress updates, ideas, and support one another. Additionally, I had a further idea/thought of this group providing a way to disseminate researching and literature findings perhaps through a semi-structured “research day” for our Division, where individuals could share their research either in a brief presentation format or perhaps even a poster presentation session. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week 13

Provocative Question #7 (LdC)

What does the literature suggest we should do to make our conversations about research meaningful to use as change agents/action researchers? Include Wenger and one other author.

Step 1. Prepare for an on-line Conversation

a.  Consider the Leadership Provocative Question(s); please record quote/ideas from the Wenger text that are appropriate in response to the provocative question(s). These quotes/ideas will help you participate in a scholarly and collegial on-line conversation during the module. Also record illustrative stories or instances from your professional practice appropriate for responding to the provocative questions. Typically, you should provide six (6) quotes/ideas from Wenger and two (2) applications/instances from your workplace setting. Write them in the matrix/table in the template.

Step 2. Hold an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here  about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

Andrea: Shares the provocative question. Teachers need access to research in order to inform their practice. But not ramming it down their throat. Wegner p. 249.

Margaret: Communicating the vision

Sarah: Struggled with question at first. P. 225: Those who can understand and translate vision can be architects of tomorrow. Leading by example. Growing innovative knowledge.

Margaret: Selected pg. 89/99: Bringing in with us new things into the community of practice and new work environment. As you grow with that group, you have new learnings and understandings.

Andrea: Wegner p 115: new things come out of old. New scientific explorations.Glean things from different places. Talking with colleagues in other locations. Broaden the conversation. Teacher down the hall does this because they read about this in a journal. Stay abreast of research.

Margaret: Kotter & Leading Change. Also works into what we are talking about now. Communicating the vision. Went to observe airfield. FAA and putting planes together. Individual there said it was important for all of the details to be reviewed so nothing goes wrong mid-air. Finding new ways of implementing a lesson. People we are dealing with and their education.

Andrea: What a great analogy. Did I teach them the whole cycle? It is about them being able to take off and land. Engle and Conant, Module 9. We are all educators. Listening to one another and learning. Learning community. Having plane take off and land.

Margaret: How we talk about things with researchers. Using the term problem of practice. This term was foreign with someone not associated with this program. People can forget about what things can be like in the day to day. Being down to earth is key. If someone doesn’t understand it, there can be other ways to explain it. 

Sarah: Show Undercover Boss. Kind of forgetting how everyone else does it. How do all of the pieces dwindle down to the bottom. Additional reading: Bjohane and Johansen (p. 30). Furthering the multi voice raises awareness and contributes to aim of collaboration. Take a step back at the end of the day and going back to the simpler times. Put ourselves in the other person’s shoes. Coming together as a team.

Andrea: Brings it all together. Using the research to help build and support our practice and not dictating it. People can shut down and people don’t know what is really going on. Wegner p. 82: Competent engagement. Making sure the conversations aren’t dictorial. 

Margaret: Heath & Heath: insights gained on a story. Story of the man who went overseas and children who were malnourished. Trying to solve problem of communication. Using people around the problem to help solve it. Talk to people in the community as well is important aspect. Wegner 275/277. 

Andrea: Thank you everyone. 

Step 3. Determine your Leadership Challenge

Based on your own quotes/ideas from Wenger, your workplace experiences, and new insights you developed as you reflected on your peers’ work, what behavior do you want to experiment with/try out for your leadership challenge in the next few days?

I want to engage other colleagues who are currently studying in various programs to see in what ways we may be able to operate as a learning community on our own and if there are mechanisms by which we could share our collective learnings, understandings, and research. 

Step 4. Implement and Reflect

Reported in the next report.

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #11

Step 4

As a leader within a state organization, I am interested in learning what activities and engagements my fellow state leaders in other regions are planning or implementing. I plan to reach out to these peer leaders and to organize a time for us to virtually connect to discuss our respective chapters and what innovations we may be working to try out in the coming months. Additionally, I would like to engage my local state leaders in reviewing what activities we plan to conduct in the coming months and how we may be able to differentiate these offerings from other things we or others have done in the past.  

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

By reaching out to others, we had an opportunity to share ideas and learn more about mutual challenges each of our smaller organizations faced. We were able to learn more about these challenges in greater depth and exhibit some transparency around our feelings towards these challenges. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module. (Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

For this Leadership Challenge, I scheduled a time to speak with other leaders that are affiliated with an organization that I am a leader in myself. We are spread throughout the country and each group or chapter has varying size and resources. The purpose of this meeting, facilitated over a video conference, was to learn more about what things each group had going on at the moment, future plans, but perhaps more importantly to learn about our collective challenges and opportunities. As we are somewhat governed by a larger, umbrella organization but operate somewhat anonymously, there is not always consistency in what we are doing and how we are doing it. It was refreshing to have a frank dialogue about these opportunities and how each of our organizations provides value to our states in different and diverse ways. 

As was discussed in the last Leadership Challenge video, emotion and fear can sometimes play a large role in how we conceptualize change and react to change. In many cases, our perspectives here are framed from previous experiences we have had, and often these memories relate to negative or less than idea situations. As our larger organization has recently undergone some reorganization as well as some new direction/focus, many of the smaller organizations were then left wondering how everything fit together and how we translated the vision downward. I believe that in the coming months additional information will continue to develop and be released that will assist in this process and through this conversation with my peer leaders, I understand that everyone views change differently and will have different types of questions and concerns. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week 11

Provocative Question #6 (LdC)

As your identity changes, what can you do to foster continued connections and even grow your engagement in CoPs that can influence your ability to innovate?

Step 1. Prepare for an on-line Conversation

a.  Consider the Leadership Provocative Question(s); please record quote/ideas from the Wenger text that are appropriate in response to the provocative question(s). These quotes/ideas will help you participate in a scholarly and collegial on-line conversation during the module. Also record illustrative stories or instances from your professional practice appropriate for responding to the provocative questions. Typically, you should provide six (6) quotes/ideas from Wenger and two (2) applications/instances from your workplace setting. Write them in the matrix/table in the template.

Step 2. Hold an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here  about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

KC introduces group and provocation

Shawn: Challenging Simon video and Apple. Why do people purchase their products? Why they do what they do and it being a biological process. It is a biological process but also a physiological process. Disenfranchised grief with Native Americans. Your experiences and how you respond to things. Native Americans have historical shame and make decisions based on things they had no control over gives experiences of children in the classroom and their past experiences. Sylvan Thompkin and Nathenson in 1992 that created the “compass of shame” discusses the use of language. How someone may look at things. Simon ignores the power of persuasion.

KC: So fascinating. Not heard of historical trauma before. How does this tie to communities of practice in terms of identity. How can you combat people may not knowing the background(s) of others and be able to relate.

Shawn: Micro-aggressions in CoPs that are racist and bring back shaming memories. Identity is the core of who we are and we go back to our past experiences to make decisions about the future

Alex: Is there room for the passion Simon is talking about and does that power of persuasion fit in with the biological process and can they co-exist? 

Shawn: People can develop self-efficacy; Nathenson’s research and the compass of shame. People go to one of those four areas and overcoming those areas through development of resilience and self-efficacy to use the shaming experiences to help one grow. Nine step scales so they can coexist but Simon says it’s purely biological

Alex: I started thinking of my own PoP. Looking at emotions and achievement emotions. Shame can be a negative thing but can be a positive thing, too. Control value framework and reframing things as the “pleasant” and “unpleasant” and how it is received.

Shawn: How it is received is clearly based on physiological aspects of experiences.

KC: Problem of practice and residual from having hard silos in organization. Also working with people who have worked somewhere for a long time. No one likes silos and having a trust element and identity. Trusting others and having them trust you. 

Shawn: Moving from public high school situation to working for the state. Everyone is their own silo. Have a leader who is trying to move beyond that. Wegner talks about negotiating within Community of Practice. How can you negotiate the innovation and strengthening the identity. 

Alex: Hits towards quote: Wegner chapter 8: imagination requires the ability to dislocate innovation and in our communities. Things that might not be our normal and incongruence with our identity. New opportunities to learn. Interested in how you would breach those silos, KC, on your campus. Two silos: student and academic affairs. Came from organization that was much more stratified. 

KC: New president within few years. Reach across the aisle. Trying to draw a person from opposite side to have them be a part of that. Building that trust. Sometimes people need the courage to try something different. People being afraid to try something new. 

Shawn: going back to the quote about imagination in both your situations, it is a real powerful thing that humans have the capability is that we can imagine a different place without actually being in that place. We have the ability to do that. That’s what you both need to do in your PoP is to get them to imagine what it is like to be in a different place and really feel what they’re feeling

Alex: That’s powerful stuff

KC: We have one minute left. Any other pressing thoughts that we had?

Alex: No, that was good.

KC: We talked about things outside the Wegner to include other resources in our discussion. Appreciated your perspective, Shawn.

Shawn: Wish we did more things like this.

Alex: Appreciate the challenges to the things we read. I don’t do that enough…to stop and question rather than to process.

Step 3. Determine your Leadership Challenge

As a leader within a state organization, I am interested in learning what activities and engagements my fellow state leaders in other regions are planning or implementing. I plan to reach out to these peer leaders and to organize a time for us to virtually connect to discuss our respective chapters and what innovations we may be working to try out in the coming months. Additionally, I would like to engage my local state leaders in reviewing what activities we plan to conduct in the coming months and how we may be able to differentiate these offerings from other things we or others have done in the past.  

Step 4. Implement and Reflect

Module 11 LdC - Reported in the next report.

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #9

Step 4

Based on the Wegner text and the fishbowl conversation this week, I have been inspired to look more at how my academic colleagues and partners and myself an work together more fluidly and more collaboratively. There are some current opportunities that have been pushed out to our campus community as we begin a process of evaluating services and programs for first-year students and transfer students are also included in this dynamic. One specific idea I would like to try out for this leadership challenge is to see about engaging some of these key strategic partners in the development of a white paper which we can submit for inclusion in these larger discussions that are currently underway. I believe there are plenty of ideas and directions we could go in utilizing a working group I am currently on to drive the creation of this document in a short amount of time.

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

I felt empowered and inspired in building relationships and bandwidth/capacity with colleagues. The process of working collaboratively on a project was also quite rewarding, particularly in seeing the final product which everyone had contributed something for and to over the course of our work together. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module. (Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

To kick off this particular leadership challenge, I reached out to colleagues, primarily on my transfer student working group, as well as other strategic partners from across campus, to see if they were interested in collaborating on a document together. Once this information had been obtained, we worked collectively to establish a focus for our white paper and also to review the guidelines for submissions. Several individuals reviewed papers which had already been submitted to the central institutional website. 

In order to facilitate this collaborative process of inquiry, we created a Google Doc which everyone had access to edit, review, and modify. Over the next week, individuals added in details, research, and references which were applicable to the support of transfer students. When we had finalized this process, everyone was invited to a final round of reviews/modifications before the white paper was submitted to the central database. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week 9

Provocative Question #5 (LdC)

As related to your job, how is change initiated in your organization? Do CoPs matter in the process of initiating change? Of operationalizing change efforts? Of institutionalizing change?

Step 1. Prepare for an on-line Conversation

a.  Consider the Leadership Provocative Question(s); please record quote/ideas from the Wenger text that are appropriate in response to the provocative question(s). These quotes/ideas will help you participate in a scholarly and collegial on-line conversation during the module. Also record illustrative stories or instances from your professional practice appropriate for responding to the provocative questions. Typically, you should provide six (6) quotes/ideas from Wenger and two (2) applications/instances from your workplace setting. Write them in the matrix/table in the template.

Step 2. Hold an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here  about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

Wyatt: Introduces the Provocative Question. References an anecdote about a process of initiating a phone claims unit that was introduced earlier in the Wegner text. Leaders in this situation held a  meeting wherein concerns were shared but the feedback was not utilized and the unit went live anyway. Staff bring challenges to administrators and ultimately what happens is that administrators generate a solution and push it out to the staff members within the change process. Staff try to incorporate the new change into their current practices but this doesn’t always work. Wegner talks about identification and negotiability. We are trying to figure out how the change impacts us in localized community. Change occurs with enactment of practice. 

Matt: TedTalk from Steven Johnson (TEL703). Couple of things that really spoke to me. Have liquid networks at work. Starting grassroots processes that move the organization forward and better support of processes all the way up the line. How we brought Voicethread to Arizona.

Jennifer: Things getting pushed down from the top. In community in practice have to have an identity and negotiating meaning together and when we are not having a say in something, it makes us not want to do what we may need to do. On pg. 207, identification and negotiability, rooted in identity, power derives from belonging as well as exercising control over what we belong to. The joke is that all ideas go to Administrative Cabinet to die. This is because teachers and administrators cannot make changes without getting buy-in from everyone. 

Matt: Faculty Senate holds a great deal of power over change; doesn’t go there to die because the want to be innovative but they are so guarded about change that it takes a lot of evidence. Takes a lot of people willing to pilot it and work hard to implement and drive change.

Wyatt: My situation is not quite like that because frequently initiatives get developed and we don’t have a lot of initiatives that are identified at the lower levels and sent upward, but what does happen is that big picture ideas get presented by the upper levels but then the operationalization of those initiatives must be worked out by the lower levels in details, etc. So there is some level of ownership a Singapore American School, where I work, was recognized by Solution Tree for our structured PLCs; science department and then cross-divisional and then everyone is also involved in another PLC outside those areas; for example, NGSS was adopted by the upper admin, but the enacting of the standards is being negotiated by the lower levels because that is where all the work is at; we’re keen on implementing NGSS because we do see it as a good move, but our primary identity is as a classroom teacher not as a curriculum designer, hence the frustration.

Jennifer: It is interesting because I’m smiling because your frustration is the exact opposite of what our frustrations have been; admin decided there were problems and told us how to fix it; same components but polar opposite of how can we find some balance. One of the quotes from pg. 184 regarding “engagement also requires the ability and legitimacy to make contributions to the pursuit of an enterprise to the negotiation of meaning and to the development of a shared practice.” You are being given that ability to participate. It goes on to share about negotiability. 

Wyatt: I totally agree; Matt, any other connections or comments?

Matt: One last thing going back to the TedTalk and summing up my institution; at about 12:14, we need to get away from the thinking that we need to protect and safeguard our ideas and actually get them out there and connect them and instead doing opposite; Those groups that really drive change: I’m a member of a couple committee on campus where we crowd-source our proposals/ideas; there are so many constituencies who are trying new things that we need to get the sharing out there; Bringing groups together and finding gaps. We don’t make the final decisions but in a grassroots sense can really effect change if we work together. 

Wyatt: Alright. To summarize, one of the things that is really key to making change sustainable is to ensure that the people involved are able to find meaning in it and identity with the changes taking place.

Jennifer: How does this tie into Teacher ownership and how that is essential?

Wyatt: Thank you and goodbye from all! Signing off!

Step 3. Determine your Leadership Challenge

Based on your own quotes/ideas from Wenger, your workplace experiences, and new insights you developed as you reflected on your peers’ work, what behavior do you want to experiment with/try out for your leadership challenge in the next few days?

Based on the Wegner text and the fishbowl conversation this week, I have been inspired to look more at how my academic colleagues and partners and myself an work together more fluidly and more collaboratively. There are some current opportunities that have been pushed out to our campus community as we begin a process of evaluating services and programs for first-year students and transfer students are also included in this dynamic. One specific idea I would like to try out for this leadership challenge is to see about engaging some of these key strategic partners in the development of a white paper which we can submit for inclusion in these larger discussions that are currently underway. I believe there are plenty of ideas and directions we could go in utilizing a working group I am currently on to drive the creation of this document in a short amount of time. 

Step 4. Implement and Reflect

Module 9 LdC - Reported in the next report.

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #7

Step 4

For this LdC, I have chosen to reach out to colleagues who are part of our University system, but at different campuses to see what efforts they may have currently underway related to transfer and commuter student support on their respective campuses. 

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

My change in behavior recently in relationship to this leadership challenge has been to find strategies to connect with colleagues who do not work in my Division or organization. As our larger institution is divided into academic and student affairs functions, amongst others, I have been trying to visualize the overall learning experience for our students and how we can work together as part of the larger organization. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module. (Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

Over the past week, I have further explored what efforts are currently underway in terms of a unified experience for our students across the University system. I reached out to a colleague who serves on a new working group for a unified student experience and will be conducting a presentation for them in the next week. In addition, I attended an interest group to learn more about a new initiative that is being spearheaded through a Gardner Institute, a renowned group that provides guidance for the first-year experience on college and university campuses. Following this interest group, which was made up primarily with academic support staff and faculty, I inquired about what ways, in any, I might be able to get involved. I am excited to hopefully be able to have an opportunity to serve on one of the smaller task groups working with this overall effort. 

I have also chaired a working group for transfer students for the past year and a half. Following the start of the school year and things settling a little more, I am working currently to get this group back up and running and have invited colleagues who work in different departments and units other than my own to be involved in this group. This year I have solicited new staff including academic affairs, admissions, and more to have a voice and to be part of our larger resource and information sharing efforts. 

Further, I had the opportunity, along with my supervisor, to visit our Colorado Springs campus and to sit in on one of their Town Hall meetings to see how their institution is working to address concerns and opportunities for retention. During this visit, I had the chance to connect with colleagues and hear what efforts they have underway and also to compare and contrast what differences and similarities exist between our respective institutions. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week 7

Provocative Question #4 (LdC)

How can your behaviors shape your action research study to be a collaborative action research study?

Step 1. Prepare for an on-line Conversation

a.  Consider the Leadership Provocative Question(s); please record quote/ideas from the Wenger text that are appropriate in response to the provocative question(s). These quotes/ideas will help you participate in a scholarly and collegial on-line conversation during the module. Also record illustrative stories or instances from your professional practice appropriate for responding to the provocative questions. Typically, you should provide six (6) quotes/ideas from Wenger and two (2) applications/instances from your workplace setting. Write them in the matrix/table in the template.

Step 2. Hold an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here  about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

For this LdC, I participated in the fishbowl. Some of the areas I wished to focus on myself during this conversation was being able to see that we have control through our own behaviors and how through this we can shape the reactions of others. To this end, I selected the following quote on p. 175 of the Wenger text: “engagement is an interesting dimension of power; it affords the power to negotiate our enterprises and thus to shape the context in which we construct and experience an identity of competence”. As I work in student affairs but also work with colleagues in the academic affairs parts of campus as well, there can sometimes exist a level of “sandpaper effect” between the different functions of the institution. However, in many ways I view my role as a broker in building and maintaining relationships, both internal and external. For my action research, I will at times be relying heavily on colleagues and strategic partners in order to assist in communicating and implementing my future innovation, as well as working with other departments to gather some current data to inform continued directions with my action research. 

However, brokering these relationships can take a tremendous amount of work and time to be invested in them in order to be successfully sustained/maintained. In this way, I view these relationships like bank accounts where you are constantly investing into them, and at times making withdraws. When I think about my own work context, I tend to get so much more done when I am collaborating with colleagues---even if it is just walking across campus and running into someone. There is something about this style of organic interaction that tends to inspire movement and progress towards an end goal. Something that doesn’t necessarily happen when you are just engaging over the phone or via an email. 

Step 3. Determine your Leadership Challenge

Expand your social network to include knowledgeable individuals beyond your workplace setting. Find 1-3 others not in your institution, who have a similar problem as yours. Establish a dialogue with them whereby you compare situations and learn from one another's experiences.

Submit the channel you used to connect (Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Alerts, discussion boards, email, phone call, etc.), who you connected with (a group or individuals), and a summary of your interactions thus far.

For this LdC, I have chosen to reach out to colleagues who are part of our University system, but at different campuses to see what efforts they may have currently underway related to transfer and commuter student support on their respective campuses. 

Step 4. Implement and Reflect

Reported in next report. 

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #5

Step 4

I am going to reach out to colleagues who I have met at previous conference opportunities or trainings that may work in sister offices to my own or may be conducting research on transfer and commuter student support. I intend to reach out via LinkedIn, Facebook, or email and see about setting up a time to talk on the phone or video-chat. 

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

My continuing change in behavior has probably affected others in my own CoP through efforts to strengthen collaborations and build connections. By reaching out and conducting inquiry and sharing, I would hope others would also be inspired to do the same in their own way and continue this cycle of collaboration and engagement. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module. (Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

For this Leadership Challenge, I had an opportunity to speak with a colleague of mine who works at Syracuse University as the Director of their Off-Campus and Commuter Services office there. This individual’s office had recently been engaged in some benchmarking activities and had reached out to our office to inquire about our programs and outreach activities so following this, I decided to reach out to see what things they were doing in their organization and what similarities and differences might exist between our two offices. 

What I found out from our conversation was that although our institutional profiles and demographics do differ significantly, there are many shared challenges and opportunities as our offices are about the same size which presents its own set of challenges. My colleague is also currently in the latter phases of her own doctoral program journey and is currently working on their dissertation around commuter student support. We had the opportunity to talk a little more about this research and how it might also relate to some of my action research ideas and directions. I came away from this conversation feeling energized and refreshed and also had some new theoretical frameworks to explore further and see if there is applicability with my research focus.

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week 5

Provocative Question #3 (LdC)

How can I positively influence my CoP through participation in “broader configurations of networks?

Step 1. Prepare for an on-line Conversation

a.  Consider the Leadership Provocative Question(s); please record quote/ideas from the Wenger text that are appropriate in response to the provocative question(s). These quotes/ideas will help you participate in a scholarly and collegial on-line conversation during the module. Also record illustrative stories or instances from your professional practice appropriate for responding to the provocative questions. Typically, you should provide six (6) quotes/ideas from Wenger and two (2) applications/instances from your workplace setting. Write them in the matrix/table in the template.

Step 2. Hold an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here  about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

Andrea: Introduces the group and introduces the provocative question for the week.

Andrea: Multi-membership. Chapter 6: what is my identity? Chapter 7: How do I participate or not participate? Chapter 11/12: Orgs and education.

Allison: New faculty head in department. Playing role of broker and cultivating relationships over long periods of time. Taking practices back to “home” department. Different CoP may be related but also may not be. They can adapt. 

Andrea: Pg. 108/109: Brokering complimentary connections. Bringing everything together. The way we spread information. Don’t necessarily seek a straight line. We don’t turn our identities on and off. 

Sarah: One of the quotes I found on Pg. 175: “Imagination is an important component of our experience” Look at the different areas and don’t necessarily have to align on every details but to collaborate on finding unity and everyone having a voice or being at the table. 

Margaret: Switched schools at end of last year but has brought new ideas to current work context from experiences at previous school. Working towards building a community of practice and learning about one another and expectations of one another

Allison: Pg. 246: “Most organizations are beyond the scope of their memberships. Engaging in constituent practices. Necessary to learn of how members learn of an organization”. Andrea has been a part of many CoPs so this speaks to your experiences.

Margaret: Working on a Reservation that has previously worked at for 5 years. New principal coming to the table without previous experiences working on a reservation. Principal not yet understanding family structures and customs. 

Andrea: Do you think you could use your role as a multi-member and as a participant to broaden your configuration of your principal’s network? 

Margaret: Building trust with the people you work with and learning the customs. Heritage. It will take time and patience to impart this learning. 

Andrea: Identity as a participant. Pg. 229: Learning cannot be designed, it has to be facilitated or frustrated. 

Sarah: Pg. 178: The process of alignment through time and space aligns participants and their actions. Exciting to see how all of the silos and entities can come together in the end. Give and take.

Allison: Translation. Language person. Being a broker is almost like being a translator---translation is not always perfect word to word. Important concept to keep in mind.

Andrea: Index in the book: translation: see brokering. The idea of allegiance. Pg. 253: Allegiance. Talking with a member of one group and sharing an experience from another group. Asked which group do you belong to? Don’t we all belong to a shared community? 

Sarah: We may all have specific hats we have to wear. These hats can be who we are. We have our own insights and values. We have our own allegiance. Not always negative, can be positive in learning from one another. We all get the same question or instructions and everyone gets to same endpoint but steps are very different as long as we all come together.

Allison: What part of the hat comes to the forefront to address a specific challenge and then recedes. Shifting but not giving up of identity.

Margaret: Not identifying on weekend as a teacher. Not talking about work on weekend or during break time. Can some individuals not take their hat(s) off?

Andrea: Closing thoughts. 

Step 3. Determine your Leadership Challenge

Expand your social network to include knowledgeable individuals beyond your workplace setting. Find others not in your institution, who have a similar problem as yours. Establish a dialogue with them whereby you compare situations and learn from one another's experiences.

Submit the channel you used to connect (Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Alerts, discussion boards, email, phone call, etc.), who you connected with (a group or individuals), and a summary of your interactions thus far.

I am going to reach out to colleagues who I have met at previous conference opportunities or trainings that may work in sister offices to my own or may be conducting research on transfer and commuter student support. I intend to reach out via LinkedIn, Facebook, or email and see about setting up a time to talk on the phone or video-chat. 

Step 4. Implement and Reflect

Module 5 LdC - Reported in the next report.

[jeremycmoore]

LdC Week #1

Step 4

“Based on the information gleamed from this module and the understandings of what communities of practice can be and are elements that can make up CoP, I propose to explore the continued development of a CoP in my own work context. Several weeks ago a colleague and I proactively began exploring the idea of establishing a small open group for staff who identified as mid-level professionals to discuss a range of topics such as starting a family, buying a house, going back to school, and managing up/supervision, amongst many other topics. I would like to continue the development of this group in order to work towards something that can more readily harness the assets and collective knowledge of the group and it’s members as a whole.”

How did your change in behavior affect others in your Community of Practice? Tell the story of what happened. (Be brief.  Write 2-4 sentences.)

My change in behavior in identifying and working to resource mid-level professionals has resulted in continued enthusiasm and excitement around this topic and the idea of a dedicated space for staff to gather. As a result of soliciting staff across my organization for this opportunity, I have already received great interest from colleagues who are eager to broach these topics and concepts together. 

Reflect on your experience with the Leadership Challenge for this module. (Be verbose.  Write 2-3 paragraphs.)

An experience occurred several days ago during a meeting with a colleague where they had voiced a strong and differing opinion about some recent events that occurred on campus that their office was not in support of due to the lack of communication and diversion from organizational policies and consistent messaging. This colleague identifies as a mid-level manager and following their statement which I could tell they were passionate about and also somewhat frustrated as a result of the other efforts, I reached out to them to process and see how they were doing.  In talking, we affirmed the need for a place to process without judgement and to work towards shared solutions.

On Friday, another colleague and I hosted the first of many mid-level professionals “coffee with colleagues” meet-ups. We spoke about topics such as time management when managing others, having children, and going back to school. We also discussed having higher levels of responsibility but little authority to make important changes and how this can hinder progress and also self-motivation and voice. The idea of voice also was elaborated upon specific to how and where we chose (If we do) to voice our opinion, especially when positionally comes into the equation in meetings with higher authority leaders. 

Overall, I felt that this leadership challenge was a successful endeavor and a fantastic learning experience with a community of practice within my work context. I also found myself paying more acute attention to my own levels of engagement and participation, whether passive or action, and hope to continue to do this moving forward.