On Writing a Masters Thesis, pt. 001: Introduction

An introduction to my graduate thesis work on social media identity development

Greetings!

The school year is well underway and seeing as I am in my second year of #SAGrad, I am turning a lot of my focus on two things: my integrative thesis paper, and my eventual job search. However, for now, I must focus on creating my thesis! And I figured, what the hell?

Why not blog my progress! Note: Much of this first post is very preliminary—sort of a collection of thoughts, angles, potential. I am still working through many aspects of what this final paper will look like, I simply wanted to offer a working progress report on how this thesis writing process will take place for me.

The analytics from #NASPA14 were very impressive!
ALL OF THE ENGAGEMENT

 Mission/Purpose: Let's talk about what I hope to accomplish with this thesis. In my heart, I have faith that institutions can engage with its students in a congenial, jovial manner—a manner in which students WANT to see what their institution is up to on social media. I have faith that institutions can establish policies of developing stronger relationships with their students through social media, which could influence retention, campus climate, and campus involvement. Sure, I can have faith I these things, but how do I go about proving or even discussing these things in a thesis. Social media are still relatively unproven in the eyes of the public, let alone in the scholarly world. So it would seem as though I have an uphill climb in some regards in trying to establish a Masters thesis about social media. However, I am determined. I know that our students are on social media.

I engage with our students on social media.

There is active learning and development happening on social media. Sure, some engage differently than others—I attribute this to the fact that students are constantly in different stages of identity development than others. Thus, since students are at such different stages, institutions and student affairs professionals must recognize that some students will not respond to certain modes of communication. If institutions/professionals don't make an effort to meet students halfway on social media, there will always be a disconnect. I currently work and study at an institution (UMass Amherst) that has a massive disconnect with social media and its student population. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, because I would argue that the vast majority of institutions are terrible at engaging students through social media. So, UMass is not alone in this. Yet, there is hope! Many administrators at UMass have placed trust in me to go forward in this research in hopes that it can influence and educate how we approach engaging students online, as well as how we develop policies around social media! Therefore, I am quite thankful that I have faith from my institution. Yet, it is also kind of intimidating. But here we go!

It's all about student development in social media.

Theory & Identity: Much of my mission in conducting this research for my thesis is rooted in my belief that social media can and does support the identity development of students. danah boyd (2014) discusses a phenomenon known as context collapse, which can be best described as instances when generations collide—e.g. parents feeling out of touch, youth feeling as thou older folks don't understand them. These collapsing contexts are the basis for why the mainstream media constantly harps the negative aspects of social media use among my generation and younger—the so-called, digital natives, These collapses not only harm the benefits of social media, they also create barriers between generations, which can be equally harmful if we ever want our society to coexist functionally online. My hope in developing this thesis will be to prove ways in which students utilize social media platforms and online technologies throughout their development—for better or worse. In doing this, I anticipate that these data will provide administrators, professionals, and faculty with useful information on how to support their students through social media instead of approaching the subject from a place of fear and confusion. If you have suggestions for lenses and/or perspectives for me to gauge this research through, please let me know! I am all ears!

Been reading that danah boyd book under the best circumstances.

Research: You must be wondering how I hope to obtain all of these data for my thesis work.

Or you aren't, in which case, GET READY TO LEARN ANYWAY! I am currently creating a social media survey that I hope to not only spread around to students at UMass Amhest, but also on the INTERNET! So, if you would like to be data in my thesis, please take part in my survey once I post it. Trust me, you'll know when it is posted. My primary assistantship is in the Center for Health Promotion at UMass, where I work on peer health messaging. This is my beacon of social media work this year. Through this work, I will be able to collect specific data on the many platforms our offices utilize on campus. I also have access to TAing a course on Embracing Diversity, which has over 125 students for potential surveying. Pretty excited to see how this goes. I am also doing a number of smaller pieces of research collection like utilizing a few focus groups with students here at UMass, as well as tracking a number hashtags during my research. There are also some books! Oh, you bet there are books in this research! Like many who are reading higher education books, I am going through Rey Junco's new release, "Engaging Students in Social Media: Evidence-Based Practices for Use in Student Affairs," for the purposes of this research. So get ready for some posts about his work. I am also going through danah boyd's latest release, "It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens." This book takes a more qualitative approach toward how social media and technology can function to benefit the development of student identity. In addition to boyd and Junco, I am reading Erving Goffman's 1959 book, "The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life." These three books, among many other articles, will contribute to how I develop my literature review for my thesis.

Excited for a book that can teach us
so much about how to support our
students through social media!

Questions Moving Forward: I have very high expectations for this thesis. And I realize that I’ve left much to be desired in this first blog post, but I look forward to filling in some of the gaps with the next post! I am very aware that this is going to be a challenging thesis to work on. I like challenges. I like creating new conversations and developing new data in he field of higher education. Here are some of the preliminary questions that have come up during the early stages of my thesis writing process:

- How do we differentiate between the factors that necessitate social media usage--i.e. person, process, service/platform, outcome/interaction?

- How can this research influence the development of social media policy on college campuses?

- How do social media platform challenge and transcend each other?

- If people aren’t interacting with an account is is still “social” media?

- Is active interaction a basis for definition of “social” media?

- Why should institutions invest in social media if there is no profit?

- What theories support students development through social media?

- How do students prefer to interact on social media?

- How do we maintain anonymity in an arena where we don’t have privacy?

- How do we manage past versions of ourselves?

So, there is my initial brainstorm about all of the chaos I am trying to work through in order to create this thesis. I am excited to continue blogging through this thesis writing process because I feel this will be a fun, transparent way to shed light on final projects in student affairs/higher education graduate programs. Hope you are all well. Get ready for part two shortly! - Craig.

A Charm City Summer

Looking back at my time as a NACA Summer Intern

Now that my NACA summer internship at Towson University has been over for a month, I decided I should compile some final thoughts on the experience.

Granted, I have shared a lot over the course of the summer through my Twitter account and my video blog, which you can view here! Yet, there was much more to my experience than what was shared on social media.

Note: You can easily watch this handy dandy video—my last of the summer—that showcases some of my final thoughts and images from my summer experience.

Baltimore: The Charm City

When I got into Baltimore, I met up with my fellow intern colleague, Kristen Vega (@KristenVega4), who is from the University of Miami (Ohio), and she is a fireball! So much energy. I love it. So we got along from the get-go. And certainly made the most of our summer.

Here we are showing some love to the steps
of the Supreme Court in DC.

Being able to spend the summer alongside someone as passionate about student affairs as her was quite invigorating. We both came from the west coast originally, so life in Baltimore definitely took some adjustments.

However, that didn’t stop us from exploring the city together and on our own throughout our stay.

By a stroke of luck and genius on behalf of our supervisor, we were housed on the University of Baltimore-Maryland campus, which placed us in the middle of the city! It was a wonderful location for getting the Baltimore city experience.

I ate this huge apple turnover. All of it.

Yet, Baltimore is very charming—hence, its nickname, the Charm City. There are some absolutely beautiful villages and neighborhoods. AND THE FOOD! I loved running though the town, exploring and adventuring through a nearly endless tour of American culture.

Okay—enough about Baltimore.

Onto some of the lasting experiences from the internship itself

Towson University

Through all the chaos of arriving to a new institution, I came to recognize very early on that Towson University is a really neat institution. There are a lot of young professionals with very eager goals for their organizations. Every administrator and staff member has been incredibly warm and eager for fresh blood to be in the mix. And the initiatives on campus are very enlivening and innovative.

John Cena and I had a lot of fun exploring the Towson
campus this summer! Here is Stephens Hall.

 Towson isn’t a massive institution—around 22,000 students—yet, it is growing rapidly. It is just outside of Baltimore, so it is still somewhat of a commuter campus. Yet, within in seven years, enrollment has increased by 6,000 students. The campus is booming and there are many plans to build multiple new residence halls on campus very soon. So, you know…JOBS!

Towson is one of the fastest growing mid-size public institutions on the east coast, which allowed me to learn and work in a different institution that is quickly becoming a powerhouse in the Mid-Atlantic. It was refreshing to meet so many administrators who are dedicated to progressing high education, instead of reinventing the wheel. I felt like everyone I worked with actually gave a shit about their work and the students that worked in our offices.

Towson Flag and Maryland Flag!

I was granted an opportunity in Student Activities at Towson, which was a nice return to my event planning roots during my undergrad experience at Oregon State University. This return to form showed me that maybe going the student activities route is possible for me!

I never really considered going the route of Student Activities, but after learning a lot about social wellness and how the role of activities can benefit a campus community in many ways, I was hooked.

It was great to work with the Summers at Towson initiative.
Cannot wait to see how far it grows next year!

However, I’m still not sold that it is the route I will take—I’m still quite smitten with going the university relations route—yet, gaining the experience and the transferrable skills will surely help me in the long run.

Especially for job searching. Hooray. JOB SEARCHING!

Alas, I had a A LOT of fun doing student activities—as expressed through my video blog. We did a lot of different activities this summer and I’m so glad I was able to facilitate a fun summer for the Towson students this summer.

Took many students to see the Orioles play baseball!

NOTE: If you haven’t followed along with my Twitter or Instagram action, we put on so many events this summer! I have included many pictures throughout this blog, and here are the posters for both months that was had events this summer!

Supervisor!

My supervisor was a badass named, Dirron Allen. He has been at Towson for nine years and has climbed his way up being the Director of Student Activities. Dirron is very straightforward—yet, chill. Dirron was equal parts motivational and challenging.

And I definitely feel that he shaped me a lot this summer.

He was honest, up front, and genuine.

He, and the rest of his staff, made sure I never felt alone in this job.

I was supported the entire way.

I recognize this isn’t a common experience for most folks in summer internships, so for that, I am grateful to have had such a positive experience.

So thankful to have had the support of such a brilliant
role model of supervision this summer.

Dirron was more than willing to answer my blunt questions about the landscape of race and gender in higher education. He was also very open throughout my time at Towson when discussing the realities of navigating higher education politics. I am thankful that I had such an open and honest supervisor to learn from this summer.

Dirron, practices the Building Blocks of Social Wellness in his supervision style—or, “The Nine” as he calls them. These nine facets comprise his personal version of Odidson’s Interpersonal Wellness System Model, where fun is simply the byproduct of student activities work. Dirron feels the worth of student activities is proven to Towson University through dedication to social wellness—so these nine fundamentals serve as the building blocks for his department to create a solid foundation as leaders and agents of change.

Final thoughts

Do a summer internship.

Especially if you are serious about entering the realm of student affairs and/or higher education.

I honestly went through NACA because it was the least invasive of the three internship programs (others: NODA & ACUHO-I). I also knew I didn’t want to do orientation work or housing over the summer, so being able to do student activities for the summer certainly shaped my experience quite a bit!

Baltimore on the Fourth of July was magical.

This summer—my first summer away from home—was highly valuable in a number of ways. Having a mental break from school was nice because year one of graduate school was certainly a mind-blowing in a number of ways. It was also quite freeing to be on my own with my recently acquired knowledge.

Living in Baltimore was definitely a social experiment for me. I’m not a big fan of cities; however, Baltimore was a great warm up to city life for me. Being in a completely different social environment opened my eyes to many alarming issues that are still incredibly rampant throughout our country—namely poverty, racism, and ridiculous elitism.

Finally, working at an institution like Towson was very refreshing because it had an ACTUAL diverse population of students. This was a nice change of pace for me since I’ve only worked at/attended predominantly white institutions (PWI). My perspective was changed in hearing many stories from student populations I would’ve never had access to if I hadn’t have this internship.

John Cena didn't want to leave.

Back to Mass!

All in all, leaving Massachusetts for the summer and being somewhere other than Oregon for the summer made this one of the most challenging and exhilarating summers of my life.

And now I am eager to return to work and class at UMass with a fresh set of eyes. I am ready to approach this year with revitalized excitement for the challenges in my way as I attempt to create some new research, as well as perform in an unconventional assistantship.

I get to pilot a series of mental/physical/sexual health marketing campaigns for the Center for Health Promotion this year. That should be fun! I also get to help in the development of the UMass Social Media policy committee as well as Social Media Wellness Week—so, needless to say, I am stoked to create some new things this year!

Hope you enjoyed this! And I hope it helps paint a picture of the experience of one #SAGrad during a summer internship!

Best of luck with the upcoming year!

LET’S DO THIS!

-Craig.

So, You Want to Bike on Campus?

Here are some tips on successfully navigating as a campus cyclist

As an Oregonian, I’ve experienced my fair share of cycling.

In fact, Portland, Oregon is the most bicycle-friendly city in the country.

I mean, hell—our bike lanes look like this!

More than anything, I especially know the commute to and through a college campus.

When I attended Oregon State University, my primary mode of transportation was my bike! Not only was this a great form of exercise, but it also allowed me to learn my town and my campus inside and out.

And through the years I’ve spent biking on campuses, I’ve encountered a number of issues I feel I should at least write about to inform folks about easy ways to survive as a campus cyclist.

Feel free to share this with anyone heading off to college for the first time!

I know it’s that time of year.

So hopefully this can save some folks a headache or two.

1. REGISTER YOUR BIKE

Year after year, what’s the NUMBER ONE most stolen item on a college campus?

You guessed it: Bikes.

At this point, most institutions offer a bike registry through campus public safety, or an office of the like. So, on the first day of school—or, whenever you bring your bike to campus—go to this office and register your bike!

It’s that simple.

And if you’d like some more information on this topic, checkout Mount Holyoke’s guide on Bike Theft!

This is step one in making sure you actually get to keep having a bike to ride on campus.

There is another essential way to keep your bike, which is…

2. INVEST in a good lock!

Buy a bike lock from KRYPTONITE 

OR USE THIS TO LEARN WHAT YOU MIGHT NEED

OR ENJOY GIZMODO’S LOOK AT THE BEST LOCKS

Protect your bike!

Some campuses even have bike safes!

Invest in that if you want your bike to be truly protected.

3. If you have multiple bikes, don’t ride your best bike to campus.

Like I covered in tip #1, bikes are constantly stolen on college campuses.

If you happen to have multiple bikes, commute with your cheapest bike—just on the off chance that it might be stolen.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t have expensive bikes, or that you shouldn’t ride them to campus—but without a combination of #1 and #1, you are cruising for disaster.

PUN INTENDED

4. Buy a light, or two, or three. ALL OF THE LIGHTS!

Seriously, you cannot have too many lights.

Especially if you’re like me and you spend long nights at the library, you need to be seen when you leave campus. People need to know you’re on wheels.

Bicycles are dangerous. So make sure you are seen.

Go Oregon State for having a great bike safety campaign!

 5. Ride responsibly.

This means KNOWING THE LAW.
Any road rule that applies to a car ALSO applies to a bike.

You are not above the law.
Bike with traffic, NOT against.
Stop at stop signs.
And be aware of your speed.

Don’t swerve in and around people.

Don’t bike faster than you can control.

Learn how to use your brakes appropriately.

Time your route so you aren’t riding erratically.

6. DO NOT BIKE ON SIDEWALKS

Most campuses are made up of streets or paths—sidewalks are designated for pedestrians who are walking. Bicycles are not supposed to travel on them.

So don’t. This is my biggest cycling pet peeve.

Respect pedestrians and ride in the street or at a good distance while on a path.

And if you’re too afraid to bike on a street, you shouldn’t be biking in the first place.

Note: But that’s just my blunt opinion on the matter.

7. Invest in wheel fenders (guards).

If I had a nickel for every time I’ve seen people with pants that look like this:

I’d have a few dollars.

If you don’t know what wheel fenders are, click here. 

They will literally save your pants and protect your ass.

Protect your ass. Save your pants.

Buy fenders.

8. Bring a change of clothes.

Especially as the weather starts to turn in October and November, you might want to bring some extra socks with you, or a change of pants, or a shirt. I’ve practiced this for years. Yeah, it takes up some space in my bag, but I’d rather have dry clothes while I’m at work or class.

Also, biking can get REALLY sweaty—depending on your commute—so it helps to have a spare shirt just in case. Because you never know, you know?

9. Be aware of your surroundings.

This is an extension of tip #5.

What I mean here to be ever-conscious of the path you are biking on.

(Note: I know I wrote that in the present progressive—because I assume you are reading this while riding a bike. Obviously.)

Essentially, campuses are ALWAYS under construction, which means potholes, nails, glass, jagged rocks, etc. THEREFORE, you need to be aware of your surroundings so that you can spare your tires from exploding every day. My record is THREE popped tires in one week!

Note: Pack a spare tube.

10. Turn down your music—or, ride without it.

This is an important tip.

I know it landed at the bottom, but this is vital to being aware of your surroundings.

If I listen to music while I bike it is either instrumental music, or something turned down—something that won’t completely distract me while I’m operating my bike.

This is important because if someone—or a car—needs to get my attention, I can hear them and respond accordingly.

BONUS: Don’t be a Jackass.

Sure, this could have simply been said during point #5.

But I felt it deserved its own point.

Campuses get crowded and bikes can be highly dangerous.

So bike responsibly.

End of list.

Hope this helps!

To My Mother—of Whom, I Never Knew

I saved this Post Secret card that I found over six years ago in
hopes that one day I'd get to meet my biological mother.

Hello all.

I have returned to report some somber news.

As some of you know, I am adopted—I was born to very young parents and was almost immediately placed up for adoption. For those closer to me, you all know this is a much more complicated story.

Today I learned that my biological mother died last month at the age of 43. She apparently struggled for years with a combination of cancer, incarceration, and drugs. Not in that order, I assume.

I am just beginning to process how this feels seeing as I have no memories of her as my mother, nor do I have really any connection to her other than the fact that she gave birth to me. Never having a relationship with her is one thing, realizing I never will is another thing.

The only true emotion I have right now is a lack.

Knowing the woman who created me is no longer on earth—regardless of whether I knew her or not—is terrifying. I've watched my adoptive parents (of whom I obviously refer to as "mother" and "father") struggle with illness and aging and have survived. And yet, this woman is no longer.

I do not know her struggle. I do not know the pain she felt before she died.
All I know is she gave me life. All I know is she is the reason I live today.

This is why right now all I feel is a lack.

I thought I would have a chance to meet her one day.
I thought I would bury my pride and resentment of her abandonment so that I would have a chance to meet her one day.

But I was wrong.

She actually reached out to me on Facebook a year ago, to which I did not respond.
I actually wrote about this incident last fall during my first semester of graduate school.

I just revisited what I wrote in October and broke down in tears because I thought I would have more time to possibly one day reconnect with her.

I was wrong.

* * *

Off My Chest

My predisposition to failure began at birth. I was born to a woman who dropped out of high school during her junior year and never returned. Instead, she began a life devoted to drugs and alcohol. I would later learn she went sober when she reluctantly became pregnant with me. After my adoption, I did not hear from her until very recently—September 2013—when she sent me a poorly worded Facebook message apologizing for abandoning me.

Apparently she struggled with whether she should send the message to me for over three years.

I have yet to reply. I have no idea what I should say.
Maybe I will write to her someday. For now, I leave the message blank.

Perhaps by the end of graduate school I will reply to my biological mother’s Facebook message. I will tell her she lost out on having a son of whom she could be proud. I will tell her of my accomplishments. I will tell her of my struggles. I will tell her the reason I choose to not drink or do drugs is because she abused those substances for so many years.

I will tell her how difficult it has been to watch my father slowly die before my eyes.

I will tell her I am not alone.

I will tell her I am a motivated man willing to create change in this world.

I often wonder whether I am anything like my biological mother.

I often wonder where I inherited my optimism and my determination.

My smile and my laugh. My eyes and my horrid teeth.

Maybe I will find out in two years.

For now, the message remains blank.

* * *

That was what I wrote.

And now I will never have the opportunity to write the message to her.

I thought I'd have two years.

I was wrong.

I didn't even get one.

At least I can be thankful she gave me the chance to have a normal life.

Goodnight.

-Craig.

[GUEST POST] Take Risks!

Yet another GUEST POST for the Student Affairs Collective!

I love contributing to this page.

And this series, the #SABeginnings series, asked grad students and new professionals to share their story of beginning their lives in student affairs.

I decided to write about my perspective on why I decided to leave home and fly 3,000 miles from hom ein order to get a new experiences on the east coast!

I feel life is only truly experienced when we take risks.

So enjoy the read!

Click here to access the ENTIRE ARTICLE!

Here are some previews of the article:

"I strongly believe that if you want to be a well-rounded professional in this field, you need to experience as many new environments as possible. And that means, at some point, you need to leave home."

"Comfort is stagnation.
Risk is invigoration."

"Beginning something takes risk—it also takes courage.

Being willing to leave your comfort zone is so important. And I will admit that I get frustrated when people in our field literally land-lock themselves to one state or region. BRANCH OUT! I know some folks have families—yet, for most of us just starting out, we are generally fairly young and have so much time to explore what the world holds for us!"


See you soon with my blog about my summer experience at Towson university!

-Craig.

[GUEST POST] Five reasons to join the weekly #SAGrad Chat!

I know, I know, I know!

I've been absent for a few weeks.
My NACA summer internship here at Towson University has been keeping me busy.

Luckily, I've doing doing a lot of writing and prep for the upcoming fall semester at UMass Amherst.

A big aspect of my summer has been serving as the Grad Student Liaison for the NASPA Technology Knowledge Community, which has granted me access to manning the @SAGradMOD Twitter account. The account has grown by almost 300 followers since I inherited it in April 2014!

My project for the summer has been establishing the #SAGrad chat every Wednesday night at 9pm EST! We have had some great conversations this summer and I wanted to write a piece that would support more grad students to get involved with our weekly chats!

Luckily, my good friends over at the Student Affairs Collective were kind enough to give me a necessary outlet to share this incredible opportunity for my fellow Student Affairs graduate students!

Below I've listed a few of the reasons why folks should get involved and you can Click here to access the rest of the article!

PREVIEW:


"2. Lots of real talk.

Let your hair down. Let’s get real.
Grad life is a struggle and we all want a forum in which we can relate and be real.

I applaud our consistent contributors to the #SAGrad chats who have been authentically sharing their insights in hopes of helping others learn from their experiences.

Through the first few chats we’ve already had this summer, we’ve discussed Summer Networking, Grad Student Mental Health and Wellness, Developing Professional Identity, Dynamics of the Cohort Model, and Professional Boundaries. Among other topics that pop up along the way.

And there are many more chats to come."

"3. The learning never ends.

Yes, we have school. We also have work. We also need to continue our learning.
And what better way to learn than from your colleagues?

We are in this together, so we might as well connect and continue our learning together as well.
This way, in 20 years, we will look back on our time during #SAGrad with fond appreciation for how much we were able to help each other grow through these weekly chats."

I will be back soon with a few of my personal blogs that folks have come to expect from me!

Be well, all!

- Craig

[GUEST POST] Seven Ways to Incorporate Technology & Social Media in Student Affairs Grad Programs

Hello again!

Here is another guest post I wrote!
This time I wrote for the NASPA Technology Knowledge community blog.

I have a lot of feelings and ideas about how Student Affairs Graduate Programs can incorporate social media, technology, and blogging into their execution and preparation for fellow graduate students. So here is that post!

I will write my culminating paper/integrative thesis on a topic like this during the next year and I am eager to get into that research.

Click here to access this blog post in its entirety!

- - -

Here is a taste of the blog post!

"In order for us to keep up with our students, who are undoubtedly very well-versed in social media and technology, we need to do the same by incorporating social media outlets and certain forms of technology into our classroom discussions now. This way we can engage in conversations and maintain meaningful interactions with our students beyond simple face to face communication."


"1. Acknowledge Social media as a form of professional development

In order to continue with this list, we must create a lens of viewing some social media outlets as viable forms of professional development. Because the wonderful thing about utilizing social media outlets like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and blogs is that they are essentially free professional development...."


"5. Course blogs

One way of facilitating classroom discussion is through blogging. Instead of discussion boards, which I feel are a bit antiquated, students and faculty should be encouraged to maintain a course blog. These don’t necessarily need to be public, but consistent posts can realistically replace paper assignments for many courses. I look forward to my independent study this fall where my course will be explicitly done through blog posts and a final research paper...."


- - -

I will be back shortly with another post to share with the world!

Stay tuned!

-Craig.