Post Video Questions

What is Macro Practice?

    

      When I first answered this question, I gave the basic definition of macro practice and how it compares to micro practice.  While this answer still holds true, I have my own perception of what macro practice really is.  Because of my 432 class as well as my internship, I now have some firsthand experience in macro work and a new realization.  Macro work is EVERYWHERE! It can be as simple as reaching out to various collaterals on behalf of an individual or as intricate as creating community events to support a cause.  To me, macro work is all about networking and forming connections with various community professionals in efforts toward helping individuals and/or the larger community.  Our community events that we did this year are an example of macro work on a larger scale.  My internship in juvenile probation is also macro work but on a smaller scale.  As a probation officer, I have to be in contact with many other professionals regarding one child on a regular basis.  Consistent visits to the many different schools all my probationers are in as well as their homes, makes the job more macro than micro too.  After this year I feel as though most career paths within the social work field are a blend of both micro and macro.  I am finding it more and more difficult to be in a career where I would just focus on one form of practice.  With thus said, it is vital to be experienced with both micro and macro work in order to be better able to assist others in the community. 

What are your Leadership Qualities? 

           I still feel as though I have the same leadership qualities as I said I had before.  Some of these traits I was able to put into use during this semesters week of events, and others stayed on the back burner.  I feel as though one of the most pertinent qualities to have as a leader is the ability to follow through on your word.  Saying that I will do something and then actually doing it shows that I am dependable and can be relied upon.  It also sets the stage for the other people I would be working with.  Another important leadership quality that I have is just simply being able to talk with other people on a genuine level.  Conversation comes naturally to me and this is helpful when trying to facilitate a group or event, along with being able to network within the community because you never know when you’re going to need the help of someone else.  One last leadership quality that I have is organization.  I think in order to “lead” anything one has to be organized and methodical in their approach to the task at hand, and I think that describes me well.       

How are you an Activist for Social Justice?

     I want to keep the answer to this question very simply.  My reason for doing so is because my answer is something I can actually live up to throughout my day to day life.  I think one of the most crucial ways of being an activist for social justice is speaking up when I see or hear something that is ignorant or derogatory towards other people.  Correcting people’s ignorance can sometimes make a difference.  I feel it is even more important to never remain silent when there is an injustice done.  To me, keeping silent about the injustice is almost like condoning it!   

    

   

Assessment, Learning, and Advice!

     Our community events left me enlightened and speechless.  The only word I can really think of to describe the week is; POWERFUL.  It was hard to think in the beginning of the semester, our classes could pull off such amazing events.  Also thanks to greek life for making Take Back the Night so successful.  For me personally, I enjoyed Take Back the Night the most and felt it made the biggest impact on members of our community because it gets very deep and personal.  The students who spoke that night are admirable and brave to have shared their stories in front of so many people.  The fact that the President of BSU walked with us in the event is huge.  This gave me a new appreciation for BSU because it showed how student involved the school and its faculty members actually are.  
      The Clothesline Project I think also went well.  The locations where the project was set up came out great, however, I don't think it engaged the student body very well.  From what I gathered no one really wanted to make any T-Shirts which is completely fine, but it would've been nice to see students actively participating in the project.  I suppose however, this type of event is geared more towards a showing of other people's T-Shirts in order to make an impact.  

     The movie night did not have a very good turn out in my opinion.  I don't think this event was promoted very well and also I think there was a big lack of communication between classes.  Somehow I was not aware myself that there would be a panal of speakers at the closing of the movie until I showed up at the event and found that information out.  I originally thought it was only going to be a movie showing.  The Vagina Monologues was a huge success with a turnout of about 200 people.  Thanks to A New Day for all the performances and planning.

     My learning has increased dramatically from this week of events and all the effort put into it.  First I'd like to note that I have learned to trust most of my peers.  I despise working with large groups of people because quite frankly I just don't trust people to do the things they say they're going to do.  I'm aware that is not the best outlook to have but I'm honest and that is how I feel most of the time.  However, this semester I have a new found appreciation for my classmates and I've learned that I need to have faith in the people I work with.  Everyone did an amazing job.  When it comes to the pressing issue of violence against women, I have realized the amount of people it affects is ridiculous.  At Take Back the Night, the though entered my head; what if everyone in this crowd that is a survivor had a halo of light above them?  I almost feel as though survivors would weigh out the people who have never experienced woman directed violence.  It goes to show how important it is to raise awareness and to educate our community.

ADVICE FOR FUTURE CLASSES!

     1)  Take a deep breath!  This class in general is achieveable even though in the beginning it may seem EXTREMELY overwhelming!  Trust me! I wanted to quit as soon as I saw the syllabus!  ;)  

     2)  Utilize your professors knowledge, guidance, and support!  If you have Laura she is very understanding and easy to talk to but does have high expectations! 

     3)  Keep an open mind when working with your peers!  If someone your working with isn't doing what they're supposed to or is slacking in general or even oversteping boundaries, don't let it upset you too much.  Keep in mind what is important at all times....... The event, it's outcome, and your ability to raise awareness of the problem.   

     4)  I recommend changing the setup of the events in regards to what class does what.  Our three classes all worked on the same events.  However, one class became the event coordinators, one class became responsible for promotions, and the third class was responsible for fundraising.  I did not like this set up at all.  I would have preferred each class to take on a separate event because firstly it is easier to communicate between just your own classmates....instead of two whole other classes.  Secondly, our organization of the even week didn't really allow many people (especially those from the fundraising and promotion) classes to have much of a say in the events nor did we really get an opportunity to run any of the events because students from the event coordinating class did that. I think it would have been to nice for my class to pick one event and them split up amongst ourselves into coordinating/promotion/fundraising.  

     5)  Biggest thing this semester - TIME MANAGMENT! Stay focused and don't fall behind because it will be difficult to catch back up! 

     6)  Email was the best form of communication in my opinion. An idea may be to make sure the class meets as whole at least once a week and dedicate at least 45 minutes to the discussion of the events!

That is all the advice I can come up with at this moment.  Good luck to the next class!