OWHE Blog
Alexis’ Journey to OWHE Sep 21 2017
You can be anything you want to be when you grow up.
This phrase was told to me often, but it wasn’t always shown. While my childhood was full of support and encouragement, it was lacking in the knowledge that comes from growing up with career-minded parents or mentors. My dad bought and sold used office furniture; my mom was a preschool teacher’s aide. I loved my childhood. I have no criticism of my parents in terms of the unconditional love I was given. So is it wrong to criticize my circumstances?
Currently, I’m an academic counselor for first-generation students at Oregon State University. Like many of them, I had no career or college counseling; I had no one challenging me to develop myself beyond midterms and finals.
Diversity is not Your Business, Nor Mine, for that Matter Sep 14 2017
Premises of the following opinion: (a) we, the writer (I) and the reader(s) (you), were born to be equal (i.e., biologically homo Sapiens, regardless of the subspecies variation); (b) everything else we might identify with or be identified as is in flux; (c) things that we don’t have names for do exist.
In this spirit, I’d like to share with you my story with that which we colloquially call “diversity”.
Learning to Lead Sep 6 2017
Do you see yourself as a leader? Leadership encompasses many skills and attributes. Of course, a leader is someone with vision who makes high-level decisions. A leader is someone you can usually pick out of a crowd. It seems that their chromosomes equipped them with their leadership abilities. They are the ones with loud voices who get things done! Leadership is so much more. I have come to realize that leaders are not born. Leadership is a learned skill. You must believe in yourself and take action.
Annie's Journey to Mentorship and OWHE Leadership Aug 16 2017
My journey toward OWHE board membership can be traced all the way back to senior year of high school. As a young, driven, and often overwhelmed high school student, I found myself in the high school counselor’s office often. In the pursuit of wisdom, I sat with my counselor day after day asking questions about school, relationships, and my future. We talked about everything from boyfriends to body image and college application to career considerations. Her mentorship left me with a deep desire to share the goodness of mentorship with others. I wanted everyone to experience the incredible support I had received.
How to Succeed When You Want to Give Up Aug 8 2017
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. – Calvin Coolidge, 30th US President
My personal experience working in higher education for the last five years has led me to the conclusion that education is a powerful tool to enhance lives and improve the world. Unfortunately, our approach often belies our efforts. To reach our objectives — to impact students and share knowledge — we must be determined and persistent in our approach, and respectful and empathetic in our process.
Learning in Oregon; More than just Lewis and Clark Aug 8 2017
I’ve never struggled much with the concept of equality as an idea; it always made sense to me that everyone should get a fair piece of the pie. As the oldest of three children, I needed to get to the kitchen first to make sure that two pieces of Cherry’O’Cream could be divided into three before my brother Dryller got in there to enjoy both! I was sheltered growing up in a small New Mexico town. I graduated with ninety-eight other students, so naturally we knew each other. I had friends who were white, Asian, Native American and Latino. I heard Spanish spoken in the homes of my friends and attended pow-wows celebrating classmates. There was not a “wrong side of the tracks”, rather some friends lived in big beautiful houses and others lived in well-loved trailer homes. These housing differences were not based on racial lines; one of my friends with the biggest house was a person of color, and I lived in one of those well-loved trailer homes.
Getting to Know OWHE PDX Aug 8 2017
Inspired by our 2016 Annual Conference, Portland State University (PSU) created their own campus chapter of OWHE one year ago. We reached out to the institutional representatives, Ann Mestrovich and Sarah Kenney, to find out how they got started and what their plans for the future of the PSU OWHE chapter are.
How did you get involved with OWHE?
Ann: Being new to higher Ed and wanting to create a stronger network, I attended my first OWHE conference three years ago. After coming back from 2016’s conference, I felt inspired by the women around me to continue to pursue the professional development we were all seeking. So I volunteered to be a campus liaison and love working with my new friend Sarah!