Wow I am really bad about this blog thing, but I am back. Here is the quick update on my life. First I am almost done with my first year of my PhD. It has flown by waaaaaaaaaaaay too quickly. It really does seem like just yesterday that I was packing up my car and leaving Texas, my family and most importantly my girl. However at the same time much has happened over these 8 almost 9 months that I have been in Bloomington. One of the greatest revelations that I've had over this year is that PhD students are necessarily smart. Don't get me wrong there are some brilliant students doing amazing work, but they are the exception not the rule. Most of us are simply dedicated students that have the ability to endure the academic grind. Anyway... here are the latest updates in my life.
Right now I am very stressed out about our first semester review. In my program after you complete your first 18 hours, the professors in the program meet and critique your work up to this point. It is really a mechanism to identify weak students and "support" them, which usually means asking them to leave the program. I don't know how true that is, but I am nervous about the process. They ask us to explain in 4-5 who we are, what we have done, and how we plan to reach our future goals. Many of these questions I am still grappling with and have no definitive answer, and even if I did it is doubtful all those things could be properly described in 5 pages. So I appreciate your thoughts and words of encouragement.
This week I received two wonderful pieces of news. First, the sun was actually going to make an appearance this week. That may seem insignificant to you, but we have seen nothing but gray skies and clouds for the past three weeks. I am ready for summer. The spring here is ridiculous; cold, dreary and rainy just about sum it up. I can't wait to get out in the sun. Second, I was just elected President of BGSA and selected as Graduate Emissary. Now I will blog and get paid for it! I'm super excited about connecting Black graduate students to IU and supporting them through their experience with BGSA. My friends Carl, Seth and Tia are the executive officers in BGSA and we are gonna shut it down this year.
This summer I am very excited. The month of May I will be in Texas. I have an internship at TCU working with Daron Turner, he is a senior student affairs officer and the chief diversity officer for the institution. I'm hoping to learn a little more about what he does at the university. The internship will also be paid. Which I am ecstatic about. The details are still being worked out but suffice it to say that God is good. I can't wait to be back in Texas and see all my family and friends. Indiana has been wonderful but I need another shot of Texas to get me through this next academic year. If you are in the lone star state, hit me up I'd love to see you. I got to get back to work. Hopefully I'll hear from you all soon.
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