There are a lot of things I am proud of both personally and professionally. While I have led a full and rewarding career, I have had my share of successes and failures. What I have realized over time is that servant leadership is the true catalyst to build true change in our world. I have been fortunate to have a platform to make a positive influence in small ways through my work. Here are a few things I am particularly proud of and hope that they influenced those who participated as much as I was influenced by those that participated.
Honors Seminar I - A Deep Exploration of Our River
In 2012 I was asked to develop a student centered, project based & experiential learning course for the St. Cloud State University Honors Program. While I had lot's of ideas, it took some time and thought to really put together something that had purpose and was not just another special topics course. Since the Mississippi River is arguably the most significant geographic feature in our region, I wanted to explore it further with the students. One of the things at the forefront of my mind was trying to see what the students saw. No quizzes, exams or other typical academic formalities. The whole course was a guided experience to not only help the students understand the significance of the river, but also to allow them the freedom to explore so new ideas on learning. Student photo galleries, books about those who floated the river, shared learning on river ecology and video interviews of local citizens on what the Mississippi River meant to them made the course incredibly powerful and purposeful. While I have adjunct taught numerous courses, A Deep Exploration of Our River was one of the most challenging yet rewarding courses I have ever taught.
In 2012 I was asked to develop a student centered, project based & experiential learning course for the St. Cloud State University Honors Program. While I had lot's of ideas, it took some time and thought to really put together something that had purpose and was not just another special topics course. Since the Mississippi River is arguably the most significant geographic feature in our region, I wanted to explore it further with the students. One of the things at the forefront of my mind was trying to see what the students saw. No quizzes, exams or other typical academic formalities. The whole course was a guided experience to not only help the students understand the significance of the river, but also to allow them the freedom to explore so new ideas on learning. Student photo galleries, books about those who floated the river, shared learning on river ecology and video interviews of local citizens on what the Mississippi River meant to them made the course incredibly powerful and purposeful. While I have adjunct taught numerous courses, A Deep Exploration of Our River was one of the most challenging yet rewarding courses I have ever taught.
College 150 - Adventure Leadership
While I had taught COLL 150 Discovering the College Experience in the classroom for two years, eventually I had the opportunity to redevelop the course into an outdoor context with a heavy reliance on building student resilience. The Division of General Studies liked my proposal and for the last two years we have offered the modified course that uses project based, student centered and a real world context to help students make a successful transition into their first semester of college. College 150 - Adventure Leadership incorporated a 4 day backpacking trip in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Michigan's Upper Peninsula during Fall Break. Students are responsible for teaching outdoor living skills, developing social norms, meal planning, navigation in a wilderness context and traveling together in small cohorts. We have some empirical data from evaluations that shows a strong indication that this course has built resilience in the students and led to factors that can contribute to higher retention.
While I had taught COLL 150 Discovering the College Experience in the classroom for two years, eventually I had the opportunity to redevelop the course into an outdoor context with a heavy reliance on building student resilience. The Division of General Studies liked my proposal and for the last two years we have offered the modified course that uses project based, student centered and a real world context to help students make a successful transition into their first semester of college. College 150 - Adventure Leadership incorporated a 4 day backpacking trip in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in Michigan's Upper Peninsula during Fall Break. Students are responsible for teaching outdoor living skills, developing social norms, meal planning, navigation in a wilderness context and traveling together in small cohorts. We have some empirical data from evaluations that shows a strong indication that this course has built resilience in the students and led to factors that can contribute to higher retention.
Sustainable Bicycle Initiatives
Since 2005 I have worked with a wide variety of talented & passionate students to create a more bike friendly culture at St. Cloud State University. This spring we were able to fund and install two Dero FixIt Bicycle Self Service Repair Stations on campus. Through the hard work and tenacity of student staff & recent alum, Chris Meschke we were able to place each station in a high visibility, bike friendly locations. Chris's work has resulted in new potential for bicycle literacy and opportunity to serve both the students and community. In 2012, Evan Parkhouse, former student employee and alum, created and established the first bike sharing program at SCSU, the Husky Re-Cycle Program. The program provides free bikes to check in/out for our international students living at Lawrence Hall. It has been a huge success and we are hoping for more bike sharing programs down the road.
Since 2005 I have worked with a wide variety of talented & passionate students to create a more bike friendly culture at St. Cloud State University. This spring we were able to fund and install two Dero FixIt Bicycle Self Service Repair Stations on campus. Through the hard work and tenacity of student staff & recent alum, Chris Meschke we were able to place each station in a high visibility, bike friendly locations. Chris's work has resulted in new potential for bicycle literacy and opportunity to serve both the students and community. In 2012, Evan Parkhouse, former student employee and alum, created and established the first bike sharing program at SCSU, the Husky Re-Cycle Program. The program provides free bikes to check in/out for our international students living at Lawrence Hall. It has been a huge success and we are hoping for more bike sharing programs down the road.
Lake George Boathouse
I was approached in 2009 about SCSU Outdoor Endeavors taking over a boat rental operation on Lake George, arguably the centerpiece of Downtown St. Cloud. The municipal operation struggled on many levels and I was uncertain of taking on the responsibility of another programming area, but saw an opportunity to create a community asset that everyone could be proud of. The partnership between St. Cloud State University, City of St. Cloud and St. Cloud Rotary has been something I am exceptionally proud of. We have turned a vision into reality in establishing the Lake George Boathouse as a local recreation destination for our entire community. I could not be prouder of the students who run the facility, volunteers who believe in our vision and the incredible working relationships with Scott Zlotnik, Director of Parks & Recreation, Troy Fritz & Tim Wensmen from the St. Cloud Rotary Club.
I was approached in 2009 about SCSU Outdoor Endeavors taking over a boat rental operation on Lake George, arguably the centerpiece of Downtown St. Cloud. The municipal operation struggled on many levels and I was uncertain of taking on the responsibility of another programming area, but saw an opportunity to create a community asset that everyone could be proud of. The partnership between St. Cloud State University, City of St. Cloud and St. Cloud Rotary has been something I am exceptionally proud of. We have turned a vision into reality in establishing the Lake George Boathouse as a local recreation destination for our entire community. I could not be prouder of the students who run the facility, volunteers who believe in our vision and the incredible working relationships with Scott Zlotnik, Director of Parks & Recreation, Troy Fritz & Tim Wensmen from the St. Cloud Rotary Club.
Mississippi River Clean Up Project
St. Cloud State University occupies just over a mile of riverbank along the Mississippi River. When I moved here in 2005, I was shocked and a bit disappointed that there really was no inclusion of the river as an asset to the University or that there had been any effort to create a stewardship effort. One of my first projects was to enroll the Office of Sport Facilities & Campus Recreation in the Minnesota Adopt A River Program. In the Spring of 2006, nine students (mostly staff) started working on cleaning up the river along our campus banks. That small effort was shifted to Fall, when the water was lower, and has grown into an annual event that has become part of our culture. On any given year we may have 30-50 participants with one year having over 100 volunteers. The effort received an LL Bean Stewardship Award through the American Canoe Association, recognition through a number of campus venues and this past year received a letter of recognition from Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton. According to the reports we have submitted the MDNR estimates that we have removed slightly less than 10,000 lbs of garbage.
St. Cloud State University occupies just over a mile of riverbank along the Mississippi River. When I moved here in 2005, I was shocked and a bit disappointed that there really was no inclusion of the river as an asset to the University or that there had been any effort to create a stewardship effort. One of my first projects was to enroll the Office of Sport Facilities & Campus Recreation in the Minnesota Adopt A River Program. In the Spring of 2006, nine students (mostly staff) started working on cleaning up the river along our campus banks. That small effort was shifted to Fall, when the water was lower, and has grown into an annual event that has become part of our culture. On any given year we may have 30-50 participants with one year having over 100 volunteers. The effort received an LL Bean Stewardship Award through the American Canoe Association, recognition through a number of campus venues and this past year received a letter of recognition from Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton. According to the reports we have submitted the MDNR estimates that we have removed slightly less than 10,000 lbs of garbage.
