The Return

What is the point of my job?

As the Director of Marketing, the whole point of my professional existence is to get people to notice Shepherds College, to highlight all the unique aspects of the college that set it apart from other programs, and ultimately, to draw students from near and far to enroll in our program, fill our dorms, classrooms and hallways, and bring meaning to the days of all the dozens of staff members who are called to teach these students how to live a life of Appropriate Independence.

So when the students leave on their long Christmas break, my work days feel a little, well... pointless. No Daniela running into my office for a hug, no Andrew to chatter away with, no Joey to ask me about my birthday, no Miranda shrieking at the camera, no Charles to wish me well, no AiA students to buy snacks from, no delicious Culinary Arts creations to sample, no growth – emotional, social, spiritual or otherwise – to marvel over and celebrate. The students leave on break and take the energy, laughter, stories and photo ops with them.

Sigh.

I lose motivation. I mope. I feel tired and pallid. I sort and stack and file and merge and dust. I leave on vacation and come back. The students still aren’t here. I mope some more.

But, you know, the day always comes when the students return and life is restored to campus. That day was Monday.

The students all met as one big group in the Bolthouse Center on Monday morning, their first official day back at school. New haircuts were noticed and new clothing was admired. Groups of students came together, talked with animation, then disbanded to form new groups in another part of the room. I walked among them with my camera hoping to engage them in conversation about their time away. Did Josh’s mom make him his favorite meatballs? Did Ashley get a chance to spend time with all her grandparents? Did Charles enjoy having a friend stay with him over the holidays? Did Christi visit Chicago and eat breakfast under the big tree in Water Tower Place? 

But instead of talking, I got caught up in their precious faces – excited faces, nervous faces, homesick faces – and my questions went unanswered for the time being.

After giving the students a chance to reconnect, Miss Miles called them all to be seated in front of the stage for announcements – their Monday night advisory meetings were now on Tuesdays… and a dear friend and fellow student would not be returning due to a serious illness. Concern and sadness settled over the group, and many students volunteered to pray for their friend.

Nothing relieves homesickness, eases nerves and sets the tone for a fun semester like a bunch of crazy activities, and the staff had those planned in spades.

First, the students were asked to line up and count off in fours.

Each of the four groups had to create one giant snowflake with their bodies, and a little help from the paras.

Then, each group was asked to ball up papers from the recycle bin for…

A big, snowball fight!

Guess which side won.

Miss Miles then had the students divide up by classes. Third year students were dismissed to work at the Salvation Army where they sorted toys left over from the Christmas Toy Drive.

The second year girls left to visit the Agape House where they stuffed envelopes, cleaned the center and had lunch with the Agape girls. The second year guys drove to West Allis to sort costumes at Kim’s Costume Shop.

And the first year students stayed behind to attend to serious business – moving Oreo cookies down their faces using only their facial muscles. 

All is right in the world again. I can see the point...

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.

The Office: As the Dust Settles

My son Mike played high school football. Every Thursday night before game day, one football family would host a pasta night at their home for the entire team.  I LOVED it and looked forward to my turn. 

The planning for this dinner was intense - What to serve, how much to serve, where to serve, where to eat, food to buy, paper goods to pick up, a tanker truck filled with Gatorade to rent, and a house to clean (although I’m not sure why I bothered with this one. Once you cram all the football players in the house, there are no visible surfaces left anywhere.)

I planned months in advance, completely stressed myself out, cooked for days, and counted the minutes until Thursday night.

That's me in the middle wondering where all the food went.

After practice, 70 large, wide, hungry young men took over my home, swarmed the food like a plague of locusts, and left mass destruction in their wake.  A rim of dried pasta sauce in the pans and cookie crumbs on the floors were the only signs that my kitchen once held food. Serving spoons were bent in the middle from hungry guys trying to fill their plates with one economical, but gigantic scoop of meatballs. The fact that my sink was piled full of dishes amazed me since I only set out paper and plastic to eat with. Where did those dishes come from?  

For a moment, the house was filled with loud, dirty, laughing, yelling, beefy guys and then, after a brief flurry of “Bye Mrs. G!” and “Thanks Mike’s mom!” the house was empty and strangely silent.  I sat on a kitchen stool, exhilarated and exhausted, and waited for my heart rate to return to normal.  There was always a feeling of extreme satisfaction combined with melancholy. The event I put so much time, energy and emotion into was a success! But it was also over - and soon these years, and these dinners, would pass.

Mrs. Harvey is going through something similar right now. As Administrative Assistant for Shepherds College, a lot of her time during the last several months was invested in preparing for Orientation weekend, and now those days are in her rear view mirror. She’s cleaning up and moving forward.

Here are her thoughts from The Office:

“The flurry of Orientation is already past tense.  Students have been in class for 2 weeks, and coming ‘round the corner in another two weeks is Labor Day—already!  I’m still stuck in last year and can hardly believe last year’s first-year students are already this year’s second-year students, spending their mornings studying their major specialty!   

Brian, Christian & Lindsay in their Culinary Arts jackets.

I feel lost. 

I made it to Day 1 of Orientation weekend, but then slipped out of the picture with a back injury.  My first day back was yesterday, and everyone seems to have settled in.  Lockers are full, the weather is glorious, students seem to know their way around, and the remains of Orientation signage and paperwork fill my office table.  

Christian

Joe

Sean resting after working hard at his internship

Ray & Tess clean their tools after a day at the farm.

Our faculty roster has just about doubled, third-year students rise to the challenge of their internships, and the dust has settled as year 5 of Shepherds College is unwrapped.  All that is left from this office view is for me to catch up!”

Cathy catching up.

“…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…” Heb. 12:1

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.

Orientation Day

The countdown is over! All our students are back on campus.

Orientation Day was on Saturday, August 4th. We want you to see what this special day was all about.

The day started at 9am with a campus tour for the students and parents. It wasn’t raining yet so the walk around campus and through the classrooms was enjoyable for everyone.

The Shepherds Campus - artwork by Rolf Goetzinger

All the parents and students went to the gym for a meeting to talk about the details in the Student Handbooks. Topics like campus housing rules, appropriate dress, discipline and the travel policy were discussed.

After lunch, the parents and students split up to attend different meetings. The students attended a Residential Life meeting in the Commons, and the parents attended a session by Dr. Russ Kinkade called “Letting Go.” 

The students and parents all met together in the gym again for a series of meetings on Health, Horticulture and Culinary Arts, and then a Q & A time.

Sherrie & Melba leading the Medical/Health session

Chef McCarthy talking about Culinary Arts

After all this serious stuff, it was time to relax! Parents and students separated again. The parents had an opportunity to socialize and get to know one another over desserts, while the students participated in a team building activity.

To end this full day, Dr. Bill Amstutz, the President of Shepherds Ministries, led a prayer of dedication asking God to help the parents adjust to leaving their child behind at school, to bless the students as they learn new skills, and to honor the hard work of the teachers as they lead each young person on their journey toward Appropriate Independence.

The students hugged their parents one last time. It was time to say good-bye.

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.

Friday's Top Five: The Big Day

Today starts Opening Weekend for the 2012/2013 school year!

We have 24 nervous and excited first-year students on campus getting ready for Orientation tomorrow.

Over the course of the day, each student and their family will do five things before heading back to their hotels for the night:

1.      Check-in

Each family will be visiting the check-in tables set up in the gym at the Wood Center. They’ll receive their name tags and orientation packets which include their schedule of meetings, class schedules, campus maps and all forms to sign.

Mrs. Harvey at the registration desk

Lots of paperwork!

2.      Meeting with the Nurses

The families will be meeting two of the Shepherds nurses, Melba and Sherrie, to discuss the student’s medications and other health needs.

Sherrie and Melba checking medical records

3.      Meeting with the Business Office

Cindy, Tiffany and Linda are waiting at a conference table in the Findley Center for each family to discuss tuition payments and student accounts.

Our lovely ladies in the Business Office - Tiffany, Linda & Cindy

            4.       Meeting with the Advisors

           Our Academic Advisors are looking forward to greeting each family. They’ll be working closely with  these students and parents throughout the school year and know the importance of this face-to-face relationship-building time. This is also the time when the student’s monthly spending budget will be reviewed.

Miss Luchterhand and Miss Pollard

Mrs. Kolkman

Mrs. Luchterhand and Miss Fye

5.      Moving into the Dorms

I think this is the highlight of the day for the students. They’re greeted by a crew of volunteers, students and staff ready to help them unload their vehicles and carry their stuff into their temporary homes for the school year. The dorms are crowded with parents, students, bins and boxes. Everyone is unpacking, making beds, arranging desks, hanging clothes, meeting roommates. It’s an energetic and fun chaos!

Volunteers, students & staff ready to greet the new students

Moving into the girls' dorm

Excited and ready to make some new friends!

The guys' dorm is pretty busy too!

Once these five tasks are complete, the students leave campus to spend one last night with their families before the start of school.

Please pray for our new students as they start their journey toward Appropriate Independence™.

Shepherds College - Guiding Your Transition to Appropriate Independence. Please visit us at www.shepherdscollege.edu.