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The list of reasons to stop using social media may be nearly endless, but I’m still on Facebook and Twitter and every once in a while I look at Instagram. (And yes, I know I just told you something about my age.) I spend less time and post less than I did when I was a…

A few days ago, I enjoyed the daily post of Matthew Dicks. His title was, “How to transform your child into a writer.” While his example and suggestions were specific to writing, they could apply as easily to any creative endeavor. Actually, they could apply to any attempt to try something new, especially something that…

Or in more formal style, ‘to whom are you listening’? Whichever version you prefer, it seems to me that the question becomes more important each day. Today I was part of Laura DeVeau’s Fireside podcast Think Tank https://firesidechat.com/lauradeveauand I found myself talking about listening. Laura does a weekly hour on topics of higher education and once…

Early in my career when I worked at UT Austin, first in student conduct and later with services for students with disabilities, I spent a lot of time working on systems, procedures, process, rules, regulations, guidelines – you name it we were trying to understand, create, refine and define it. After I had been there for…

When was the last time you felt like the child in this picture? There’s a large chance he’s a bit unsure about what’s going to happen when the pitcher throws the ball, but he’s determined to handle it. He’s new, doesn’t know much yet besides the fact that at some point if the baseball gods…

Last week, I got a text from my mom asking if I was ready to travel with “to act Italians.” Now my family has known for a long time that Siri doesn’t speak “Oklahoma” and we’ve become reasonably adept at deciphering my mom’s text messages. Usually, reading it out loud makes it possible to understand,…

Suddenly, much faster than is reasonable it’s August and time for the new academic year. RAs are returning, new students are arriving and the pace is picking up. Even if you don’t work on campus, there are signs that the neighborhood school will be starting soon. In our case, the middle school track team is…

“Memory” is the signature ballad of the musical Cats which opened on Broadway in October of 1982. It ran for eighteen years and is still one of the longest running shows in Broadway history. In June of 1982, I started my first ‘real’ job as Assistant Dean of Students at McMurry College (now McMurry University). This means…

In the summer of 1998, I had the opportunity to participate in a NASPA program, the Stevens Institute. I’ve forgotten the rest of the name, but generally it was designed for Student Affairs staff who were interested in moving into more senior roles. An amazing faculty led by the awesome Larry Roper created a learning…

I’ve had the chance to do some fun things over the course of my career. I was invited to do a workshop for women athletes on ethics that followed a speech by Barbara Jordan. I had just told my supervisor I wasn’t going to accept any extra invitations for a bit, but I wasn’t going to turn…