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by drnatalietjtindall

Brief Thoughts On Academic Isolation and Imagined Community

I am in a happy place. I never thought my happy place would be Gainesville, Florida, but alas it is. I have finished the day’s activities for frank(scholar), and I am able to decompress and think through what I have learned and done today.

I learned a lot. I did a lot. I tweeted a lot. And I realized a lot.

The biggest revelation: Being an academic in isolation sucks. (Sucks is a very technical and academic term. I know.)

Isolation is not a term I used lightly. The academic isolation in my department is a solitary, cloistered experience of being the sole person who studies and researches in my academic area. If you are within a journalism program, being a PR scholar makes you an easy target for ridicule, disgust, and animosity. The same holds true in the island of misfit toys and misaligned programs that I consider my department. I am not being overly dramatic. I know what my colleagues have said about PR, what they believe my students are, and what they perceive as content in the PR courses. What I do is not looked upon as something worthwhile; it is considered the dastardly must-have that those pesky undergraduates flock to. Puff Daddy said it best: It’s all about the Benjamins, baby. At my university, it’s all about the credit hours, baby, and the PR major churns out a lot of bodies and brings in a nice chunk of change. [See this blog post for more insight.]

My isolation isn’t like your isolation. Being the only student of color, of certain orientations, etc. can also be the cause of isolation. Finding your community physically can be hard because there is no one else who is doing what you do, looks like you, carries the same weights/burdens/joys of being that avowed identity. The beauty of social media allows us to find our imagined communities. For me, Twitter has been an academic lifeline that allows me to connect and interact with scholars of color and my #prprofs. Because I am privileged as a tenured professor (and before that, a tenure-track professor), I can attend conferences in relative comfort, and in those places I can meet up with scholars who get what I do, do what I do, and just know the experiences I have.

Today was one of those days. I reconnected with people. I met new people. I found a new tribe. At least for today, I don’t feel isolated. I felt like I was a part of something great, grand, moving, and inspiring. One of the most important things that occurred today was meeting in person scholars who I have met or collaborated with virtually and meeting students who are excited about public interest communication. Being in a room with 30 scholars in a TED Talk like experience was a riveting and exciting experience in an otherwise dull research existence that I have. As someone who is isolated by discipline and scholarship in my home department, it is pleasant to be in the company of people who do similar work, are passionate about the same concepts, and desire to make and activate social change.

by drnatalietjtindall

College Internships With Atlanta Shakespeare Company

College Internships With Atlanta Shakespeare Company

Application Deadline: March 4th, 2016 at 11:59 p.m.

Qualified applicants are college undergraduates currently studying acting, directing, theatre education, or similar majors. Interns will assist in many areas of theatre administration and education, mostly centering around ASC’s two summer student programs: Shakespeare Superheroes for students ages 4-13, and Shakespeare Intensive for Teens for rising 9th grade through rising college freshmen.

Intern responsibilities may include stage management, office administrative duties, junior teacher/camp counselor jobs, assistant directing, rehearsal assistance and numerous other jobs around the Tavern.

Interns will be offered a modest honorarium.

Full description and all information is on our website www.shakespearetavern.com under education and internships.

No audition is necessary, but persons interested should electronically submit their acting/performance resume and professional work resume, along with a one-page letter of interest/intent, and two letters of recommendation: one from a high school or college Theatre or English teacher as well as a letter of recommendation from an employer.

We will conduct interviews with applicants at the Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse from 11-6 on Friday March 11, 2016 and Saturday March 12, 2016. Qualified applicants accepted for an interview can also be interviewed by Skype if necessary.

All applicants who are invited to interview will be notified with our final decisions by April 1st, 2016.

We encourage all applicants to fill out and submit the ONLINE form. No snail-mailed applications can be accepted without first contacting samantha@shakespearetavern.com.

Complete information, online form link and FAQ at our website,www.shakespearetavern.com, education page, internships.

by drnatalietjtindall

Soft Skills, Hard Lessons

Last week, someone called me an elitist.

Mind you, I had an earlier kerfuffle with the same person about directions to my office and where to park in downtown Atlanta, and I think that colored our perceptions of each other and  the later conversation.

I was called an elitist during a conversation about curriculum change. She believed I was an elitist because I said that (a) we have too much to teach in our own curriculum to attempt to layer another thing to what we currently do, (b) that students should play their own part and role in learning about etiquette, business skills, and other soft skills, and (c) that we should direct students to campus PRSSA and Ad Club for training.

My esteemed colleague said that (a) I was an elitist, (b) that my recommendation was elitist because students couldn’t afford those activities, and (c) that they don’t know what skills they are missing.

At the moment, we were pressed to move on to point #3 of the 11-point agenda. I channeled classic Jay-Z and did what the Notorious HRC did in this photo: brushed that dirt off my shoulder.
clintonbrush2_xhrlua

After a cocktail, dessert, and a good night’s sleep, I thought about that moment and that accusation, and the following questions popped up in my head.

  • What can we offer PR students beyond the book learning?
  • Is it too much of an expectation for professors to teach students every hard skill, soft skill, and theory involved in the practice?
  • Why do professors assume that all students don’t know or aren’t clued into business etiquette? Why do we assume that just because students attend certain universities and fit certain demographic profiles that they cannot afford to participate in certain activities? (As a former campus adviser to several organizations, I can attest that people hustle up the money and pay for the things they want to do.)
  • What are the expectations for professional student organizations?

I don’t have all the answers. (If you have some suggestions or ideas for these questions, drop them in the comments below.) But I have a partial answer to the first question. The question led me to theory, in particular social cognitive theory. As Bandura (1977) stated:

Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do. Fortunately, most human behavior is learned observationally through modeling: from observing others one forms an idea of how new behaviors are performed, and on later occasions this coded information serves as a guide for action. (p. 22)

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W.H. Freeman.

As the architects of instructional design within our classrooms, there is merit to this. Bandura’s social cognitive theory rests on the ideas of imitation, modeling, and reinforcement; rather than telling people what to do, we show them how to act through our actions and behaviors. Those people then copy that behavior.  Cue the Bobo doll experiment. With positive encouragement, these actions can be repeated time and time again.

How could this work in an overtaxed PR classroom?

It could work in a myriad of ways. For example, email communication could be a stand-alone module, replete with videos, lecture notes, slide shows, and such. Or a professor could model appropriate email communication, detail her/his/their expectations for professional electronic communication in the syllabus, and hold her/his/their students to a high standard for the quarter/semester/intersession.

Another example is the introduction of teamwork into the class. Mention the word “teams” in classes, and students will thrash about and foam at the mouth, moaning and groaning about how they hate teams, detest working with other people, et cetera.

Most have never been told how to work within a team or how to handle conflict within teams. Instead, professors and instructors forced them into groups with zero expectations and boundaries. I built a teamwork module that I use in my campaigns classes within the first three weeks of the semester, and I model for them team behaviors as well as walk them through the strategies for building a strong team culture and dynamic. That shifts the atmosphere from a toxic, “I hate teams” mentality to a moderate, “Let’s see how this works” mindset. I follow up with positive and negative reinforcements for the behaviors I witness. Teams that are working together and addressing conflict appropriately get rewarded with praises and points.

Teaching the hard skills is an easy task, but teaching the softer and finer points of life beyond the textbooks is difficult. When teaching our students, we have to go beyond the large concepts, the great historical figures, the GPS testing, and the critical thinking skills. There is a lot to cover in the strategic communication classroom; I do think that we as professors can stretch to teach our students hard and soft skills. I do this regularly in my classes, but I rarely force those skills into formal lessons or modules. I sprinkle in business etiquette and professionalism into the class during the 16 weeks I have those students. It is my belief that we as professors have to give my students life lessons that will ease their transitions into the advanced classes, internships, relationships, and the job market.

by drnatalietjtindall

Job Opportunity: Community Engagement Coordinator, The Feminist Women’s Health Center (Atlanta, Ga.)

Job Announcement

Community Engagement Coordinator

REPORTS TO: Community Education & Advocacy Manager

The Feminist Women’s Health Center provides accessible, comprehensive gynecological healthcare to all who need it without judgment.   As innovative healthcare leaders, we work collaboratively within our community and nationally to promote reproductive health, rights and justice.  We advocate for wellness, uncensored health information and fair public policies by educating the larger community and empowering our clients to make their own decisions.  www.feministcenter.org

Responsibilities include:

  1. Recruit, motivate, and engage supporters, interns, and volunteers into grassroots advocacy activities; training, intern, and volunteer programs; special projects, and committees.
  2. Proactively identify and encourage growth and leadership opportunities for volunteers including developing internal programs to provide training, education, and recognition to volunteers.
  3. Strategically align volunteer and intern skills, talents, and availability with organizational needs.
  4. Assist with identifying key constituencies or community partners and cultivating partnerships in support of reproductive rights, health and justice.
  5. Ensure and maintain timely data input of volunteer records in email list serves, database, etc.
  6. Plans and implements volunteer engagement activities such as weekly advocacy days (Jan-April), volunteer nights, film forums, phonebanks, trainings, tables, events, and other activities.
  7. Trains volunteers and supporters on the advocacy process, tabling & outreach, reproductive rights, health and justice issues, grassroots fundraising, etc.
  8. Represents FWHC (as well as other team members) in legislative coalitions, community events, tables, speaking engagements, and other functions as deemed appropriate by Supervisor.
  9. Write up-to-date content for websites, alerts, volunteer listserve messages, action kits, etc.
  10. Supervise organizing & outreach Interns and administer the internship program components.
  11. Assist Supervisor to ensure that department fundraising goals are met, including coordinating volunteers on grassroots fundraising events and working on volunteer-related grant proposals.
  12. Work with other staff and volunteers of the Health Center to coordinate activist, volunteer, and supporter recruitment and mobilization, with support from other CEAN staff.
  13. Organize, guide, and grow all new and existing activist volunteer committees of dedicated, highly motivated and skilled volunteers who have a particular interest and aptitude as needed (i.e. Legislative Advocacy, Event Planning, health education, community outreach, etc.), with support from appropriate team members.

QUALIFICATIONS:

  • Bachelor level degree preferred. Two or more years of relevant work experience is required.
  • Understanding of and commitment to reproductive health, rights, and justice issues is required.
  • Familiarity with leadership development, volunteer coordination, or community organizing required.
  • Must have excellent organizational skills, including computer skills. Attention to detail is a must.
  • Must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including written skills. Public speaking ability or facilitation experience preferred.
  • Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively, manage multiple, simultaneous projects and meet deadlines.
  • Ability & willingness to accommodate a flexible schedule, including some nights & weekends.
  • Must have access to a reliable automobile and a driver’s license.
  • Upbeat, positive, personable, and ability to relate well with diverse people and age groups.

Please submit a COVER LETTER and RESUME to: Feminist Women’s Health Center · 1924 Cliff Valley Way · Atlanta, GA  30329

Fax:  404-417-0878 or Email: jobs@feministcenter.org

Feminist Women’s Health Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer

 

by drnatalietjtindall

Advice for Student Writers: Writer’s Block Is Real

Calvin and Hobbes

 

Writer’s block is real. That’s all. Writer’s block can only be overcome by writing. As Anne Lamott wrote in Bird by Bird [affiliate link], “writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts.” Let this be an encouragement to you, dear student writer. Write really, really bad first drafts. You won’t be able to edit a blank page, so put some thing down on those pages. Write in winding, disjointed, and meandering sentences. Write out all the things you need to. Write something awful, but at least write. Then you have to revise that into something meaningful and beautiful. Turn in the revision (maybe your third or fourth revision) later in the semester.

by drnatalietjtindall

Job Opportunity: EDUCATIONAL SERVICES PROJECT MANAGER (FULL-TIME), CATMEDIA – Atlanta, GA

EDUCATIONAL SERVICES PROJECT MANAGER (FULL-TIME)  – Atlanta, GA

IMMEDIATE OPENING! !  

 

Do you have project management experience? Can you effectively negotiate and provide excellent customer service? Our firm is seeking a proactive communicator to work with a high-performing team to manage educational services for government clients of CATMEDIA.  To be successful in this professional position, you need to interact effectively with all stakeholders. This highly transactional position requires responsiveness to ensure deadlines are met with maximized outcomes.  Under established guidelines and processes, you will experience the freedom to organize your work and the independence to effectively meet team and client goals.  The most successful individual will naturally exhibit a strong attention to detail and be highly self-organized.  This position is framed within a fast-paced, multi-tasking environment.  Possession of an advanced degree and relevant work experience will be an asset to this program.  

 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

The Project Manager will take ownership of the following tasks:

  • Administration of educational support services for CATMEDIA’s clients.  Highly transactional position involving email, phone, fax, and other communication tools to achieve the program team’s mission results.
  • Work directly and diplomatically with internal and external stakeholders to ensure objectives are met timely and efficiently.
  • Quarterly, monthly and weekly reporting.
  • Work collaboratively with program team on continuous improvement efforts.

 

QUALIFICATIONS

  • Master’s Degree
  • 2-3 years experience in project management, educational space experience preferred.
  • Demonstrated ability to solve problems, analyze situations effectively and administer solutions
  • Successful customer service experience with exceptional time/organizational skills.
  • Organizational Change experience or Degree is a plus!
  • Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills, with ability to work with diverse groups.
  • Must be able to pass a Federal background check.

 

TWO-STEP APPLICATION REQUIREMENT

 

  1. Reply to creative.staffing@catmedia.com email address with your cover letter, resume, 5-page writing sample, and references.

 

AND

 

  1. Register and complete an online Culture Index Survey at this url:

https://ciims.cindexinc.com/job/ac5215

 

Please select the Educational Services Project Manager job for completion of the Culture Index Survey.

 

This survey gives us a snapshot of your natural workplace strengths and is a routine hiring step for ALL applicants. We are automatically notified when your survey is submitted. Your application will not be considered until this online survey is completed.

 

ABOUT US

CATMEDIA specializes in Creative Services, Program Management, Training, and Human Resource Management. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, we are process developers, communication strategists and information designers who combine creative thinking with appropriate technologies and professionals to create the tools and/or environment needed to successfully support your leadership, technologies, programs, and organizations.

 

Patent pending on several technologies and processes, we are problem solvers and thought leaders. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) rely on CATMEDIA to assist them with their requirements, armed with the knowledge that we will provide “what box?” thinking and solid thought leadership. Great pride is taken in the quality of work produced and customer satisfaction gained from a job well done. As a result, in our latest Dun and Bradstreet Open Ratings Report we garnered-for a second year in a row- a score of 93.  Recent awards include 2015 GA Fast 40, Inc. 500 List for 2014 & 2015, SBA Georgia Success Story 2015, Forbes Magazine Women Business Leaders June 2015, Exceptional Ratings in Federal Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS), Telly Awards, Addy Awards, Axiem Awards, Small Business Commerce Association and the 2015 Atlanta Business Chronicle Pacesetter Award.

 

Regardless of the size of the client or project, CATMEDIA is committed to providing the highest quality product and/or world-class customer satisfaction within the scope of the client’s budget and schedule. Let the CATMEDIA team use your creative business and technical skills to help achieve your organization’s goals and objectives.

 

by drnatalietjtindall

On Overfunctioning, Margins and the Functioning Perfectionist

[Republished from the Langley Harper blog]

I despise navel gazing. I hate talking about myself, so typing out this blog post has me alternately breaking out in hives, sweating with dread, and cringing in horror. I hate showing my hand, revealing my feelings, and showing my own humanity, so bear with me as I get through this.

With the new year comes new year’s resolutions, vision boards, themes, goals, and words to guide what we want (and believe we should obtain) within the next 365 (or 366 if it is a leap year) days. I have and continue to do a mix of all of these every quarter, and my 2015 was a melange of awful and awe, where most of goals bit the dust. The awful job wise is captured here in this post. The awe has been seeing friends married, engaged, having babies, seeing new things in my life come to fruition after years of waiting.

To kick off the year, after draining experiences with my job and service commitments, I said this on Twitter: “So far, 2016 is shaping up to the year where I half ass the required stuff, quit the unessential, focus on the true/real things, and chill.” Classy and elegant, it is not, but it’s real.

Upon later reflection, I decided to adapt the Chris Brogan model of resolutions, in which he advises that a person pick three words “that will guide you in the choices you intend to make for 2016. They should be words that let you challenge yourself as to motives and decisions. They should be words that help you guide your actions.”

I instead picked two phrases. My 2016 is the year of increasing the margins and the reduction of over functioning.

Over the Overfunctioning

Overfunctioning is when one unit works harder than the other units in a system. According to Will Meek, a licensed psychologist :

“Over-functioners (OFs) are usually seen as people who “have it together”, are detail oriented, organized, and reliable, and are typically viewed as being reliable workers, partners, and parents.”

Classic characteristics of over-functioning include being overly focused on another person’s problems or life situation, offering frequent advice or help to the other person, actually doing things that are part of the other person’s life responsibilities (and believing that “if I don’t do it, then it won’t happen”), feeling anger when help is not “appreciated” or the UF doesn’t change (or even want to), the OF believing he/she knows a better way for an UF to be living, and frequently feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and neglecting self-care. Over-functioning can be seen as a type of “enabling”, even though the intent is the opposite.”

Many women (and some men) have the character arc toward over functioning. I did until my last semester when things started to unravel at the seams. What I had carefully crafted and done.

In spite of my own research on black women in academia who try to do it all and be it all, of thinking that I could continue to add more to my schedule and my life, it all fell apart.

This article in Forbes slapped me in the face: I am an over functioning perfectionist.

Again, I scored an A+ on the seven questions the author posed, but this wasn’t the type of quiz I wanted to pass with flying colors. She followed up with the following advice:

“Shed the need to do it all perfectly, and embrace help from all those who will give it. And learn to trust that you aren’t meant to handle everything yourself, and live two or more lives within your one.  Identify where you can take action to ask and empower others—your spouse, children, colleagues, subordinates, etc.—to take on more responsibility, wherever possible and appropriate. An essential corollary to this is freeing yourself from guilt and shame about needing and wanting help, and remembering that getting help is a way of saying “yes” to what matters most.”

Thus, I received clarity on what my 2016 goal should be: recognize the overfunctioning, reduce the constant need to be perfect and do everything, and create margin and white space in my life.

The Margin Call

2016 is about creating the room for the true priorities and essentials that I need for my life. Because of my graphic design and newspaper layout experience, I call this white space. White space is the negative space. White space gives the eye a rest or breathing room on a page full of text and images. A design firm described it as such:

“the portion of a page left unmarked, the portion that is left blank, or (as Mark would quote) the empty space in a page. In web design terms, it’s the space between graphics, columns, images, text, margins and other elements. It is the space left untouched in order to smooth things out and transform a page into something elegant. It is also the blank space that reminds us that simpler designs are beautiful and that we don’t need to create a layout filled with text and graphical elements to deliver a clear and direct message.”

Shoes lined up by color along the wall

Richard Swenson, M.D. describes margin like this in his book,Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives: “Margin is the space between our load and our limits. It is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed. It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations. Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating. Margin is the opposite of overload.”

The only way you get a margin is to create it, fight for it, make it happen. As a scholar, I dig deep into anything I am interested (which explains why my browser history logs hours on Wikipedia, etc.). So I did some research and came up with the following steps and ideas:

  1. Determine what is essential to your life. In the book Essentialisms, the author asked, ““If I wasn’t already involved, how hard would I work to attend?” I created a chart and began to fill it in. That helped me understand what I truly loved doing and what I didn’t.
  2. Here’s to making 2016 a year of breath, space, margin, and essentials. Here’s to those trying to right and do better–while sometimes failing at those things. Here’s to a happy and productive 2016, regardless of your resolutions and plans. Reduce or eliminate the non-essentials. As noted in the chart above, I sent emails and letters, gracefully resigning from certain roles. The world did not implode, and the organizations moved forward. I now have some margin with my time for the things that matter in 2016: my family, my triathlon training, my writing, and my business.
  3. Start with the bad boyfriend treatment. “”If your career is a bad boyfriend, it is healthy to remember you can always leave and go to sleep with somebody else.” I am treating everything the way I would treat a bad boyfriend. Read Amy Poehler’s chapter on this. Work hard at what I love to, but don’t get caught up in the outcomes. Outcomes are what my ego and type A over functioning self loves: the achievement, the accolades. Nope, I’m doing the things I love for fun, enjoyment, and learning. If other things come along, that’s great. But that isn’t the priority.
  4. Be alright with “okay.” I have stopped fighting things that I can’t control. I shrug, say okay and move on. It’s hard. It’s unconventional for type A people like me who shudder and bawk at the idea of letting things flow.
  5. Put it on the calendar and batch things together. Block scheduling isn’t just for school days. You have to schedule in the things that you love. As Michael Hyatt wrote, “assign a theme for each day and then batch similar activities together.”
by drnatalietjtindall

#journalismjobs: Job Opportunities at the Detroit News

JOB OPPORTUNITIES AT THE DETROIT NEWS 
 
Breaking News Editor: The Detroit News is seeking a breaking news editor to coordinate its instant digital newsgathering. The ideal candidate is comfortable in a fast-paced environment and thrives on being first. This candidate is a multi-tasker focused on social media, comfortable reacting to real-time analytics and obsessed with finding the most important breaking and viral stories every day. This person will mobilize journalists on all desks for an aggressive digital news report, as well as work with editors and producers in the management and presentation of its digital platforms. Inquiries should be directed to Dawn Needham, digital news editor, at  dneedham@detroitnews.com or (313) 222-1881.
Business Reporter: The successful candidate is a hard-driving reporter that would join the award-winning business team. Metro Detroit is home to a rejuvenated downtown with tech startups, new retail and restaurants. This reporter would cover Michigan’s evolving business landscape. Inquiries should be directed to Kelley Root, assistant managing editor/local news,  kroot@detroitnews.com or (313) 222-2522.
Features Reporter: The paper is looking for an experienced reporter to cover lifestyle and entertainment issues and trends. The ideal candidate will be a strong writer with an eye for detail and a great story and be interested in developing quick-turn stories for its digital platforms as well as long-form projects. This person should be active in social media. Inquiries should be directed to Felecia Henderson, assistant managing editor/features, at fhenderson@detroitnews.com or(313) 222-2557.
General Assignment Reporter: The ideal candidate for the local news team will have demonstrated an ability to produce both breaking news and enterprise stories, be comfortable on social media and a desire to be first on the big stories impacting the community. Inquiries should be directed to Kelley Root, assistant managing editor/local news, kroot@detroitnews.com or(313) 222-2522.
Investigations Team Reporter: This reporter will research, develop, write and produce groundbreaking, exclusive stories resulting from long- and short-term investigative projects. Successful candidates should be multi-taskers who also are able to contribute research and analysis on major breaking news events.  Typical day-to-day tasks include sifting through records and documents, turning complex subject matter into easy-to-understand copy. Successful candidates will have strong journalistic and editorial judgment, keep up to date on the changing social media spectrum and have computer-assisted reporting skills. This reporter must be a team player who can effectively work and discuss stories and story ideas with team members and editors. All inquiries should be directed to Walter Middlebrook, assistant managing editor,  wmiddlebrook@detroitnews.com or (313) 222-2429.
Sports Reporter: The ideal candidate will have the ability to work on the copy desk, on digital platforms and handle general assignment reporting duties as needed. Qualified candidates will have strong writing and editing skills, an ability to edit and report on deadline and be active on social media. All inquiries should be directed to Phil Laciura, sports editor,placiura@detnews.com or (313) 223-4640.