OWHE Blog
Brenna’s Journey of Growth in Higher Education Sep 6 2018
Struggling with shyness and anxiety as a child, I always envisioned myself in the medical field with the minimum amount of interpersonal contact (including, for a few years, a forensic pathologist!). My anxiety and self-confidence worsened as I found myself in an abusive relationship-turned-marriage at the age of 18. The following years were fairly dark - attempted suicides, flunking out of college, eating disorders, poverty and food insecurity, and general misery and despair. I withdrew even more from others for a variety of reasons, and rarely spoke with others unless I had to at work. While I had always been shy growing up, I was also very independent and opinionated; as anyone who has been in or known someone who has been in an abusive situation, you lose a lot of the essence of who you are.
Announcing OWHE Book Club's Reading Timeline for Difficult Women! Aug 30 2018
Dear OWHE Book Club Readers!
Thanks for being part of the OWHE Book Club! We’re gearing up for the second OWHE Book Club read of 2018! This time we’re reading Difficult Women, a book of short stories by Roxane Gay.
This book is amazing, but also can bring up strong emotions. I’m excited to read it with all of you and talk about it during our Online Book Chat on November 6th, 2018. If you join us on Facebook for the event, you’ll see the questions leading up to the online book club chat!
As for the reading plan, we’ve got you covered!
Q & A with Olivia Stankey Aug 23 2018
Q: Tell us a little about the journey that led to your current role in higher education.
Top 10 Salary Negotiation Strategies Aug 9 2018
There are some instances in life where a few minutes of action can make a big difference in your everyday life. One of those is salary negotiations.
A famous study done by Linda Babcock for her book, Women Don’t Ask: The High Cost of Avoiding Negotiation—and Positive Strategies for Change, provides insights into this. She shares that only 7% of women negotiate their first salary compared to 57% of men. Those who negotiate secure an average increase of 7%.
Empathy and Higher Education – Being mindful and making a difference Jul 26 2018
What does it mean to be a good person? Who gets to define it? Why does that matter for higher education and you? In this current political climate, it becomes so easy to judge others.
When I was a kid I knew I wanted to be a teacher. In those days, it was because I was excited to write on an overhead projector. As I got older and started high school I developed a passion for history. I was able to see that history was more than just names, dates, and facts. Rather, it was a roadmap of sorts that helped me make sense of what was happening in the world. It’s hard to know where you’re going if you don’t understand where you’ve been.
Shared Cubicles: The Search for Community in Higher Ed Jul 12 2018
Adjunct teaching has to be the loneliest occupation. You spend your days (and some nights) with students who are not your friends, who may think you are cool or funny or mean. They may joke with you; they may lie to you, it’s hard to tell. You prepare for classes in shared office space, so if your schedule lines up with other instructors, you might get to know them a little in between printing handouts or posting grades. You relate on brutal commutes, ungrateful students, and summer insecurity. You will not likely see these same folks next term because someone’s schedule changes or has a class canceled or they leave teaching. It’s all possible. You might pass the chair who hired you in the hall, and they will smile and maybe ask how things are going. More than likely they are holed up in their closed-door office along with the other tenured folks. You don’t see them often, partly because you aren’t invited to most meetings.
From Iowa to Oregon: My Journey in Higher Ed Jun 21 2018
I am a product of my environment: physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. As soon as I realized the power my environment had on me I began to see the adjustments I wanted to make to alter my trajectory. Rather than reacting to my daily to-do lists, status meetings, and solving mundane problems that more than likely weren’t my own I began putting my energy into finding spaces that were conducive to who I wanted to be and how I wanted to live.