First go at the Capstone Project Proposal ...

DIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS & LEADERSHIP

___________________________

A Project

Presented to the Faculty in Communication and Leadership Studies

School of Professional Studies

Gonzaga University

___________________________

Under the Mentorship of

Heather M. Crandall, Ph.D.

Communication and Leadership Studies

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In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Arts in Communication and Leadership Studies

___________________________

By

Brandy A. Lee

June 2010

 

Thesis Proposal and Preliminary Reference List

Brandy A. Lee

COML 680

Gonzaga University School of Professional Studies

June 15, 2010

 

THESIS PROPOSAL

            The Star Trek Mission Statement is, “To explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.” Oftentimes seeking diversity in education seems to mirror this statement. For many educators, they don’t know how to work with persons or teach students from another culture; and for other educators, it is a step in directions no one knows how to seek.

            At Roy High School, the need for understanding diversity and how to capitalize on it is growing exponentially every year. The diversity of the school doesn’t deal with just ethnicity, but with demographics such as finance, family structure, and educational support at home. The faculty at RHS is 100% Caucasian. There are a handful of teachers who have spent anywhere from 18 months to two years outside of the United States and who speak other languages.

            In speaking with Gina Buttars, the new administrator at RHS, she states the need for diversity training for faculty and staff in the school is one of the key factors for student success. Many teachers are working with the stigma that the Latin American students don’t care about education, or that they will not succeed; or that the Special Education students are in school just to go through the motions; or are uncomfortable with promoting the idea for students to step outside of their social, academic, and cultural boundaries.

            This project will focus on building part of the Professional Development Plan for RHS this coming year, with a focus on Diversity Communications & Leadership. This project will focus on creating tools to facilitate diversity communications and leadership training among the faculty and staff at RHS. Also within this project there will be surveys and other methods of measurement created to help measure the progress, successes and failures of the materials.

Methodology

            My intended method for the creation of the Diversity Communications & Leadership component of the PDP at RHS is to research theory and other scholarly information in order to create a base for the project. I will also be creating survey instruments to be used as part of the instrumentation to gauge progress, opportunities for improvement, and the overall success of this portion of the PDP.

            Participants of the end product will consist of faculty and staff at RHS. There are more than 100 at RHS who teach a varying array of subjects. The project will focus on helping teachers not only understand, but to implement this Diversity Communications & Leadership training into their classrooms, thereby helping to increase the success rate of students across the board.            

Additional Information Collection

            In addition to the information that will be gathered within RHS and Weber School District, information will also be gathered from other local schools and districts who have been working to impliment similar diveristy trainings. This will help to ensure the efficiency of information being discemninated and not to repeat previous fauxpa’s. Information will also be continually sought from outside professional development agencies, etc. to ensure that all of the necessary components are included.

Preliminary References

Bertelsen, D. A., & Goodboy, A. K. (2009). Curriculum planning: Trends in communication studies, workplace competencies, and current programs at 4-year colleges and universities. Communication Education, 58(2), 262-275. doi:10.1080/03634520902755458

Buys, W. E., Carlson, C. V., Compton, H., & Frank, A. D. (1968). Speech communication in the high school curriculum. Speech Teacher, 17(4), 297. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ufh&AN=9565933&site=ehost-live

Caruso, T. (1972). High school speech and english: A communication department. Today's Speech, 20(4), 33-37. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ufh&AN=22096357&site=ehost-live

Dannels, D., Housley Gaffney, A., & Martin, K. (2008). Communication competencies in design education: An unconventional scholarship of teaching and learning protocol for communication across the curriculum. Conference Papers -- National Communication Association, , 1. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ufh&AN=44853279&site=ehost-live

De Marzio, D. M. (2010). Dealing with diversity: On the uses of common sense in descartes and montaigne. Studies in Philosophy and Education, 29(3), 301-313. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ879815&site=ehost-live; http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11217-010-9179-6

Hanson, T. L. (2008). Teaching speech in texas: The challenges (and rewards) of teaching speech communication in texas public schools. Texas Speech Communication Journal, 33(1), 74-77. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ufh&AN=33662924&site=ehost-live

McDevitt, M., & Kiousis, S. (2004). The civic bonding of family and school: Bridging the domestic sphere and the public sphere. Conference Papers -- International Communication Association, , 1. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ufh&AN=45284058&site=ehost-live

Mills, C., & Ballantyne, J. (2010). Pre-service teachers' dispositions towards diversity: Arguing for a developmental hierarchy of change. Teaching and Teacher Education: An International Journal of Research and Studies, 26(3), 447-454. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ872970&site=ehost-live; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.05.012

Miron, G., Urschel, J. L., Mathis, W. J., Tornquist, E., University of Colorado at Boulder, Education and the Public,Interest Center, & Arizona State University, Education Policy,Research Unit. (2010). Schools without diversity: Education management organizations, charter schools, and the demographic stratification of the american school systemEducation and the Public Interest Center. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=ED509329&site=ehost-live

Ngo, B. (2010). Doing "diversity" at dynamic high: Problems and possibilities of multicultural education in practice. Education and Urban Society, 42(4), 473-495. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ880431&site=ehost-live; http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013124509356648

Ryan, J., Pollock, K., & Antonelli, F. (2009). Teacher diversity in canada: Leaky pipelines, bottlenecks, and glass ceilings. Canadian Journal of Education, 32(3), 591-617. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ859264&site=ehost-live; http://csse.ca/CJE/Articles/FullText/CJE32-3/CJE32-3-RyanEtAl.pdf

Cinder Blocks

Q. In the Architecture and Imagination section of class, we looked at how Mario Botta envisioned the concrete block as significant and we listened to a new way to "see" music (and PVC piping) by The Blue Men Group. We recognized various ways to conceive of an arch (from the Romans to Antonio Gaudi) and we thought about how to "see and see again" the way something as simple as a doorway can inform our behaviors. We finished our face to face time with images of Louis Sullivan of the Chicago Style (and Frank Lloyd Wright) and with the quote "form follows function."
 
Discuss any relationship you see between Architecture and leadership. As you think about your role as a leader, how do you envision the "functioning" of an organization/group that is significant in your life (family, work, volunteer groups, religious communities, or any other group of significance to you) - specifically, what is your vision of the group's purpose or mission? As you "see and see again," how does our journey through Architecture and Imagination inform your ability to design the form that will help to achieve that vision? Feel free to draw from any of the material from the class.

A. I thought a lot about the cinder block. Strange, I know. But I was intrigued by it. The question was posed, "How would you phrase that in the sense of positive and negative space?"

The block not only builds, but it takes up space. It can create many different things. The block is strong, but it can also be demolished in a fell swoop. It can do some great good, or some serious damage. Things made from cinder block and either be really ugly, or something beautiful.

There are many metaphors that can be pulled from these descriptions. I see leadership with the potential of all of the aforementioned and more. In my functioning life, I see a need to build block by block and have a secure foundation for which to build upon.

In art & architecture I see much of my life. There are iconic things, there are historical things, modern things, and the like. History is part of who we are, it informs much of the design of who we are today. We all have iconic moments throughout our lives for the good or the bad. And somehow, we need to keep up with the trends of the life that will swoosh by us if we are not cognizant of it.

Some of my notes I had written for pondering were:
- Home: Finding your place in the world ... How does your home make you feel?
- We must be purposeful about making space, about being divergent.
- Any answer is a good answer.
- Small things can mean a lot.
- Be creative and it is only as strong as the weakest link.
- There are many things we can duplicate, but we can't duplicate people. We need our people!
- One-point perspective = One vanishing point
- How do you create possibilities?
- The arch ...
     -> How can we use the arch in leadership? What are the existing metaphors?
     -> How can we create openings?
     -> How can we cause people to look up?
- Form follows function ...
- Less is more ...

I am still pondering on the cinder block ...

Reflections about COML 502

Q. After experiencing art, film, and drama on the Gonzaga campus in Spokane, what are your initial thoughts about each of the sessions? Which session was your favorite, and why? What surprised you the most during your three days on campus? How would you describe Spokane to a friend?

A. I mentioned before that this is a lot of information to take in over 2.5 days. But it was good to soak everything in and enjoy learning how to think about leadership from a different aspect. Each professor brought their own unique view and everything seemed to building upon each other.

Perhaps my favorite session was either the Art session or the Architecture session. I am a little biased since I teach art, but it was interesting to ruminate on all the different angles (no pun intended).

In the Art session I was able to let go and be who I am. As I mentioned in an earlier post, when we did the drawing portion I watched as people nervously stared at their paper, gripped their pencil tightly, and tried to grasp the drawing from an angles perspective. It was all very interesting to me. In the end, I didn't care if I had an exact replica as long as I came pretty close and made my personal interpretation (a leadership rumination for another time ...).

I enjoyed the Architecture portion mostly for the sheer fact that we were outside doing some practical application. I also enjoyed pondering how it tied in to imagination, leadership, and our lives in general. Every building speaks to a certain time in architecture. Our own leadership styles and lives speak to influences from moments in time. We are all intrinsically tied together and it is awesome to be in awe of the plethora of events happening all around us.

In reflection of the classes, I also noticed a difference between my two on-campus experiences. This is a simple observation and nothing to take offense at, but the persons who are in the ORGL program seem to be much more left-brain oriented, get the task done, and not-so-touchy-feeley. I had a hard time synthesizing with those who were there, and other ORGL-like classes I have taken, because my approach if different.

I am the all-inclusive, lets go do things, let's create together. And perhaps that is the difference in the experiences. Last time I was here we were creating all the time; we were applying all the time; and we needed to come together as a team in order to have a successful experience. This time around was all about information sharing and not so much the application process (which I thought we were going to experience both).

At first I felt alone. And I admit I did it to myself. I am a middle ground introvert/extrovert. When I am not in my element, I stay inside and observe, process, and enjoy things happening on the outside. When I am in my element, I am all about participating. I did not do a very good job about pushing myself this weekend to get outside of my comfort zone as much as I could have.

Overall it was a good experience. I have a friend from the COML program that is there this weekend and it was fun to share with her all the fun places we went to. Also, I have two other college friends who are in this program and it has been fun to share about our experiences as I am now finishing and they are about half-way through. Spokane is a wonderful place and Gonzaga makes the experience that much more fun. GO ZAGS!!

COML 502 - Day 3

Wow! I would have to say this is a TON of information to take in over the course of three days. But it has been good for me to learn and to recognize some things not only about myself, but about others.



Leadership and Architecture


Dr. Hoover was animated in her delivery as we talked about architecture, spaces, and how it is all around us. Perhaps it spoke to me because it is something I truly enjoy and I will be teaching in the Fall. Or that it is something I would like to actively engage in to integrate into my Capstone Project.

It was also nice because we got to go outside for about 30 minutes. That broke up the time in class to allow us to stretch, create, and enjoy what we were learning. It was also an engaging opportunity to apply our learning.

Upon finishing the morning session I hiked over to Dr. Cradall's office to talk about my Capstone Project. She was unaware I was doing an independent study this summer, so I am about three weeks behind. Thankfully I don't have full-time work this summer. I am looking forward to pushing through and getting this completed over the next few months.

She is awesome and gave me some very helpful information. I am looking forward to working on my project. I feel good about it and most importantly, I feel inspired about it.

I was supposed to head to the library after meeting with her, but I had a temporary freak-out moment because I couldn't find my debit card or ID. I thought perhaps it dropped out of my pocket in the Law Building, but to no avail it was not there. But I got a nice speed walk across campus in the meantime ;)

Eventually, after tearing things apart in my car I found them. Few! I promptly put them in my wallet and left for class.


Imagination and History

We are learning about the Rule of St. Benedict. It is an interesting concept. I am having a hard time staying awake and perhaps it will mean more to me once I read it. Dr. Carey isn't the most imaginative, engaging speaker. Or perhaps it is because it is the end of the course and we have been bombarded with information and learning over a period of 2.5 days and we've been in this classroom for the majority of the day.

During the first part of his presentation not only was I sitting on the front row, but I was falling asleep ... Oops ... So, to combat the issue I had to move and sit where I could plug my computer in and keep my fingers busy and my mind awake. There are a lot of people who are struggling as I look around the room. I don't feel so bad anymore ;)

But while I was sitting in the back there was a concept that struck me. The whole idea of the Benedictine Law is to become like Christ, to become one with Him, and basically how one attains Charity. I pondered on this and the question was raised: If one is to attain these things, they need to be a Benedictine Monk?

My background gives me way to say "No." Christ teaches us many times in the scriptures, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matt. 5:48) and then later on after His ressurection, "Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect" (3 Ne. 12:48). So, if it is a commandment in the scriptures are we all to become monks?

Perhaps I am completely misunderstanding and will gain greater enlightenment once I complete the reading, but it seems so contradictory to so many other things we are asked to do by our Father in Heaven. One of my comforts comes in the greek translation of the word "perfect". In greek it means to become complete, made whole. I know that as I continue to rely on Him, I will one day become complete through His Atonement.

The day ended with dinner and good laughs. I sat at a table with people I hadn't really socialized with and it was awesome. Tony Andonoro was the only male at the table, but these women are strong, intelligent, and fun. It is so wonderful to be around women who are pushing themselves and striving to create something better not only for themselves, their workplace, and for those who associate with them each day.

I have been fed! (intellectually, temporally, and spiritually ...)

COML 502 - Day 2

Well, the day started off rough ... I didn't get up until 7 a.m. and needed to be in class by 8 a.m. So, I was about five minutes late getting to class ... When I walked into the class there was one seat left at the tables and I watched someone "conveniently" move their stuff to make it look like it was taken. For a moment, I thought someone may have stepped out for a moment. But I have been sitting here for nearly an hour and no one has come through the door. Good start ...

This morning's session is Leadership and Drama. It has been a pretty interesting morning. The very person who excluded me from the table ended up being in my first group. She is interesting along with the other people who we also in the group. We participated in activities that caused reflection about how drama plays a role in our everyday leadership lives.

At one point, Tony said, "The floor is dirty ... The floor is dirty ... This floor is dirty ..." Then he stood for a while at the front of the room, and within about 30 seconds someone got up and took a stick and started to "sweep" the floor. A few others followed after her and "vacuumed", "mopped", and got the leftovers.

While we were conversing about the experience I brought up hint dropping. This simple remark incited about 45 minutes worth of conversation and debate. Was it better to be a hint dropper? Or was it better to be a direct communicator? What are your thoughts?

In the end, I came to the conclusion of how important it is to know your team. Each person communicates differently and we have mostly been raised with different communication patterns. In certain groups stronger communication works better than other groups where softer communication is needed to create buy-in and ownership.

The afternoon session was Leadership and Film. We watched Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989), a Woody Allen film. It was really interesting to watch it 3-4 scenes at a time and to dig deep into the film in the sense of relationships, religion, and ethics. In the theme of "Seeing and seeing again" it was interesting to think about stopping to see again. What happens if you stop for a moment? What will you gain by sleing down to see?


We were also looking at the idea of pentamento. It is the idea of repentance. This film visits this idea in an interesting manner. Woody Allen does a nice job of weaving a interesting tapestry of lives, morals, and virtues. I would be interested in viewing the film again all the way through without interruptions and seeing that I observe the second time through.

At the end of the session people were planning on dinner. I was thinking I would spend another night by myself. But I had some people invite me to go with them to the Irish pub downtown. I explained to Mary that I didn't drink, but I would love to go for the social. She said she was going for the food and it was no worries. It was a good time. We ended up hanging out for a while, chatting, and eating some good food :)


So, for a day that started off pretty crappy, it ended pretty well. You never know what a day will offer. But if you allow one small thing at the beginning to ruin the rest of it for you, you never know what you will have had the opportunity to enjoy. So, keep going on even when you feel it is a crappy day. You just might be surprised ;)

ORGL 502 - Day 1

Today was a good day. But in reality, what day that starts out with a bike ride isn't a good day. I spent a few hours riding around the streets of Spokane in probably some less favorable places. But it was good to see the area and I sincerely adore some of the homes that are here.

Once I arrived at the river I found some trails and spent some time milling around in the woods. I watched the river flow vigorously while birds swooped about picking up bugs and who-knows-what-else. I also saw tons and tons of gophers. They were everywhere!

Upon finishing my ride I came home and enjoyed a nice warm shower and got ready for three days of information that is sure to come like a fire hose to the face. It was fun to play with my new make-up I purchased yesterday and to feel ready to go. But it was strange because upon arriving to the location for the meet and greet, I didn't feel like socializing with people ...

I was in my focused learning mindset. I was ready to soak in everything that came my way, but not in socializing. I know it is a necessary component, but I couldn't help but sit back and observe. One gentleman from Monterrey, CA came up and introduced himself. Then I found out there are four persons from Utah in our group. That was nice :)

After socializing we made our way over to the classroom where we will be spending most of our time while here. Like Frankie said, it is perhaps one of the least inspiring classrooms to be in for a class like ours. I enjoyed the rooms we were in for COML 517. They were varied around campus and lighted with natural windows. But it is not to say that creativity cannot happen.

Our first class centered around art, creativity, and using the right brain while letting the left brain go. For the majority of the people there, it was a hard thing to do. The people on both sides of me were wigging out and not really willing to be participants in the activity. I told them to just let go and draw. It is the only way to start.

The first exercise we participated in was drawing upside down. We had a Picasso sketch we were observing upside down and conversely had to draw upside down. It was interesting to observe everyone else struggling with it. I watched them ponder in geometric shapes, gripping their pencil tightly, trying to make sense of the drawing before them. Many people did well with the activity; others struggled.

While I am not a magnificent drawer, I had fun with it. It was redeeming to let go and sketch something out. I also had fun interpreting the drawing as it was not an exact replica of the drawing before me. It was a nice ice breaking activity for people to get into the part portion of the class.

Continuing on with the class we talked about Impressionism and Cubism. Of all the movements to talk about I wondered why those two. Then I realized that Impressionism raised perhaps the most ruckus and caused people to think beyond the bounds they had known, and Cubism almost speaks to the left-brained person ...

The last three activities involved drawing and CLAY! We did a negative space drawing as well as a blind contour drawing. Then we had to create in clay with our eyes closed. I had fun making a mess. Perhaps I was the only one who enjoyed making a mess ;)

Through all of this I had some fine ruminations about leadership, creativity, and how I can improve not only myself but my teaching. Some of the thoughts I had were:

- The process is more important that the product
- Sometimes the process becomes the art (think Jackson Pollock)
- Why do we do it this way? Is there a better way?
- Once you have set preconceived notions you cut yourself off to the discovery of new things.
- Are you taking risks with your work?
- Creativity is just a moment. A moment when we turn the ordinary in to the extraordinary.
- Passion! How do you connect with yours every day?
- How do you add value to what you do? How can you add it to make you lives extraordinary every day?
- Creativity is falling in love with the world!
- Our lens when seeing a problem is critical. If we can't change lenses, we're trapped.
- There is more than one right answer. Don't stop at the first right answer!
- Once you push beyond the boundaries, suddenly you begin to frame a problem into an opportunity more comfortably and confidently. But you can't be afraid of it.
- Don't think about the mistakes. Thin about the next right answer.
- Execute the problem with the best information you have.
- Break the pattern / systems in your life or it will become your prison.
- When you break the pattern then you will really learn to fly and discover you can do a lot more with a lot less.
- Creativity is about technique and perserverance.
- Train your technique. Then put yourself in the place of most potential.
- The light that really lights pictures isn't the light that comes from the outside, but the light that comes from within.
- How do I hold my process and product up to its vision?
- Negative Space: What do we miss because we are so focused on what is there and not so much on what is not there?
- Understanding what isn't there helps to inform what is there.
- What is it that isn't obvious in what we are doing? Don't be afraid to look at the negative spaces. It is everywhere and once you find it the positive space becomes that much better :)
- People struggles with the Impressionist movement because the didn't want to be surprised. They wanted to walk in and know what they were going to see. How often do we think the same in our leadership and everyday roles as people? How often are we too scared to go beyond the normal?

Anyway, enjoy and I am sure there will be much more to share over the next few days! AND once I have had a moment to fully chew on everything I have learned today.