Today was the conclusion of the second of four weeks of the Summer 2011 Kellogg Institute. It is going very quickly, and we are being exposed to more information and resources than I could have ever imagined. I have copious notes and a plethora of computer files and online links, but keeping it all organized, physically and in my brain, is becoming a challenge. It might be easier for all of us if we were not all so exhausted. Tomorrow will mark two weeks of sleeping on the gray foam-and-duct-tape mattress each of us has been issued. And, it will mark two weeks of existing without much air conditioning, as we know it. (There is air conditioning here, sort of, but mine is more a source of moat water than cool air.) No complaints, but is IS very different here!
Speaking of the moat; it is back with a vengeance. My university-issued scanty towels are all that is keeping it from taking over the entire room. It has become a bit of an attraction; fellow Kelloggers stop by and knock on my door just to see the moat. This afternoon, two men clad in "Appalachian State Physical Plant" polo shirts were IN my room when I returned from class. Apparently, news of the moat had reached the powers-that-be, or at least the powers-that-maintain. They both looked extremely puzzled. Though no formal apology was made for any inconvenience I may have encountered in living with a moat in my room, both seemed appropriately abashed at the depth and breadth of the waterway. They eventually left. The moat remains.
Group presentations were today in class, and though I generally do not appreciate group work at this level, I really did enjoy working with my group on this project. All of the presentations, done by the different groups, were top-notch. I don't know why I didn't expect to like my fellow Kelloggers as much as I do; each one brings his or her own knowledge and experience to the discussions, and each is passionate about developmental education and college teaching. We have become very close, and I still have not encountered a single classmate here with whom I would not be pleased to collaborate on anything.
I have a very busy weekend of pretty much nonstop research and writing. It has been strongly hinted that the sooner we submit our practicum prospectus papers, the happier everyone will be. I plan to work on the research for that, tomorrow, starting at the National Center for Developmental Education Library, which is open on Saturday from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. I also have to make sure my brain presentation for Monday evening is in good shape. We each have two assignments for the speaker, next week, on multiculturalism -- this is a speaker who is not the same guy they had last year, a guy who Joseph Kaye said was excellent. This is a new guy.
Monday evening, I am having dinner with Barbara Bonham. She emailed me that she is looking forward to picking my brain on brain research and resources. Wow. It's her brain that is interwoven throughout my entire dissertation, and she is interested in mine? She is also very curious about what has gone on at Edison since she and Hunter did the review of the department in the spring of 2010. She's going to pick me up, and she said we'd probably go someplace that Hunter doesn't like, since it will just be the two of us.
More tomorrow ...
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