Be Heard

The following is a call for those creative among us.  When the world spins out of control, sometimes the best thing we can do is control the things we can control.  And sometimes that means crafting language to share your voice and your message.  What has your world been like?  What story can you tell others about the experiences you are having?

Deadline:  June 15th

Submissions:  voices.in.isolation@flcc.edu

Information:  beth.johnson@flcc.edu

We Gathered and It was Good

We had a party.

In attendance was a number of students, plus Assistant Vice President Cassy Kent, Provost Jonathan Keiser, President Robert Nye, Board of Trustee Member Donna Mihalik, and Chemical Dependency Counseling Coordinator and Professor Mary Murphy, Access Services & Resource Sharing Librarian April Broughton, Admissions and Financial Aid Counselor Katia Chapman.

Sound intimidating?

It wasn't.

Most of them showed us a pet.  Dr. Nye chatted with us as his dog sat on his lap.  Cassy turned her camera to show us her beautiful Golden Retriever named Pearl.  April went outside to show us a turkey, a parade of chickens, and their alpacas.

And there were students with us, too, of course.  Robin, Bucket, Sierra, Cambrie, Laura, Rebecca, Emma, Heidi.

Oh, the pets.  That was the moment I stopped being nervous about how it would go.  How can we be nervous or anxious when we are holding cats and dogs and even a tortoise up to our cameras?

How could I worry that it would go well when we are all laughing and can HEAR the laughter of multiple people coming from our computer speakers. 

There was serious conversation, too, as we got asked about our general well being and how we were managing in these strange times.  We got to pick the brain of the president and ask questions that were on our minds about what is happening at FLCC now and in the future.  It was open, candid, and honest.  It was heartfelt and it mattered.

One student almost didn't go.  Earlier in the afternoon, when I asked if they were ready for our party, said "I'm gonna try. This has been a rough day."  They were there.  They laughed, too.  We got to support each other and there was nothing specific anyone had to plan or do.  Just being there and seeing faces, hearing voices, sharing silly stories and serious thoughts. 

Thank you, Honors Friends.  It did my heart good and I think it helped everyone else who was there as well.  Perhaps we can meet again and you will join us.

Just look at these smiles....

The heart of Honors is beating and it is strong.

Standing Together While Apart

Meeting Link:  HONORS PARTY!

Password:  curious

What strange times we live in.

Once again, I'm not going to talk much about the pressures facing us all - because we know them.  No matter your situation, you have challenges facing you in these strange times and it may sometimes feel like you're alone.

Once again, I'm going to remind you that you aren't.

There are so many ways to stay in touch with folks and that's one way that technology is actually helping us.  Technology can often be a double-edged sword, but right now, it's the best way to stay in touch.  Whether it be text messages, Facebook messages, Zoom, Webex, Facetime, TikTok, phone calls, or even letters - there are ways.  If you are feeling like you aren't sure how to reach out, please tell me.  Let's find a way for you to get in touch with other folks who might need or want someone to chat with.  We can try to recreate the casual conversations that happened in the hallways, in the cafe, in the classrooms before and after class started, or even random greetings in the restroom as you waiting in line or washed your hands.

It's true that we are all getting inundated with meeting requests, emails, Blackboard announcements, and media reminders of how much things have changed in the last month or so.  It makes a lot of us tired and it can feel completely overwhelming.  But, we can also control some of it.  We can find ways to use technology to help us feel connected with those around us.  We are all in similar boats and there's no reason why we can't exert a little effort to row those boats a little closer to one another so we aren't just shouting into the fog and hoping for a reply.

Come to our Webex party next week and let's make some connections.  Doesn't have to be about school or homework - we can talk about gardening and cats, Netflix shows and nature walks, where we scored some hand sanitizer or what baking fail we just had in the kitchen.  And we can ask how each is doing.  And maybe you can make a connection with someone there and so that you have someone you can reach out to if you need a friend.

Get sunshine and fresh air.  Stretch your legs and fill your lungs.  And then remember that technology can bring us together at time when we have to be a little farther apart in person.

You see, it's not REALLY social distancing.  It's physical distancing.

We need each other.

We just need each other from a bit of a physical distance right now.  But that doesn't mean we have to be alone.

Physical distancing.

Word cloud created at Word It Out using the article "Maintaining Relationships While Practicing Social Distancing" at Psychology Today.

Party Time!

Honors Studies Event!

Come chat with friends and share a laugh or two.  Honors Studies and Honors Club invite you to drop in for a chat.

Meeting Link:  HONORS PARTY!

Password:  curious

And who knows....Cowcat may even make a PERSONAL APPEARANCE!!

If you have an Honors T-Shirt - WEAR IT.  :)

Something Uplifting

Hello, Honors Friends, and happy spring.

There are so many things I could talk about right now and it has taken me some time to figure out how to blog for Honors now that Spring Break is over and we are learning our new normal, so to speak.  I know many of our Honors folks have various mental health challenges and so I wanted to tread carefully.  This should be a place of support and comfort.  Because that's what Honors is.

I was so uncertain that I asked an Honors Student what she would do if it were her blog.  This particular student was one that I knew would have a good answer and one that would make this blog easier to write because she is one of those who struggles.  She would know what to say. 

Or, rather, what not to say.

One thing she said that keeps running through my head as I draft and re-draft this is "Because it’s an honors blog, I’d be hoping for an uplifting statement near the end, as there usually is."

But you know what?  I'd rather be uplifting throughout.  We know what is going on.  We know the grim realities of the world right now.  We don't need reminding of that...but we might want reminding about things that are constants and things that we can rely on in these uncertain times.  Honors.  Even as our Honors community and experiences have been upturned, some things do not and will not change.

So, this is a blog of reminders and of hope.  You are part of Honors.  That means, you are still part of the Honors family.  Honors is still (another) home for you.  Honors is everything it should be for you - it just looks a little different right now.  But that's okay, because Honors is not only home - Honors is about innovation, curiosity, and forging ahead in spite of and because of challenges and obstacles.

You are not alone and you are not forgotten.  Honors is not forgotten.  It has moved and changed like everything else, but my 'Honors kids' are still my Honors kids.  You know how I know?

A decent number of you elected to take part in the Honors Living History Project**.  That project idea came from Vera Whisman - longtime Honors faculty who saw someone talk about a similar idea in a tweet.  A day later, the project was born.  A day after that, a survey was made.  Two days later, people were signing up.  Honors means reflecting on what's around us and figuring things out through thinking and writing.

Some of you have emailed or Facebook-messaged me.  Some asking school questions, but sometimes just seeing how I was doing.  Honors students are still looking after one another.  Even from a distance, we are still doing that.  I asked some Honors students for help recently and it was amazing how quickly I got answers in the affirmative.

FLCC has an amazing community and Honors is an amazing community within that community.  We got this.  And, to that end, Honors Club and I want you to stay tuned for a Zoom party for Honors and  Friends of Honors.  Let's get together and laugh and tell stories and check in with one another.  If it goes well, perhaps we can do it regularly.  Let's keep the Honors heart beating together.  We are NOT alone.  Any of us.

And so, I leave you with messages of hope and support.  Find me if you need me and I will help however I can.  And I will also leave you with one more uplifting thought, messaged to me by another student as we checked in with one another.

"Honors is strong and passionate; we will all get through this."

**Want in?  You still can.  Email me at trista.merrill@flcc.edu

Unjudge Someone

The following blog was written by April Broughton, who is (among other things) the Honors Studies Librarian.  They are also the organizer behind Human Library, which will take place on Laker Day.  Read on for more information and to learn what it is and why it is so important.  Remember, you can earn an Honors point for attending Human Library and reflecting on it afterwards.  Write a journal about the experience and then a reflective essay at the end of the semester and you can quantify the experience as part of the requirements for becoming an Honors Study Scholar.

April Broughton, Human Librarian

Those of you who have met me know that I am a story teller. And a story collector. Stories are how we stretch curiosity into acceptance, how we learn and grow. Conversations are the medium for some of the most startling and beautiful and impactful stories I have experienced. As a teller and collector and lover of stories, the Human Library is a global project I have been deeply involved in for some time, both as volunteer and event organizer. It is an event that facilitates conversations that might not happen naturally, and through that fosters diversity and inclusion and understanding. 

The Human Library brings together a collection of human Book volunteers who are willing to share their story with visitors, Readers, at the event. It sparks conversations that are interesting and fun and deep and really hard, all in equal measure. And it is magnificent.

I could sing out my love of the Human Library fairly endlessly.

Non Binary Lesbian Book, 2019

This semester, on Thursday April 9^th from 12pm- 4pm, the Library here at FLCC will be hosting its fourth Human Library event. In the past, our Book volunteers have been staff, faculty, community members, and students. Book titles have included Depression/Anxiety, Blind, Borderline Personality Disorder, Tattoos, Burned, Drug Use, Transgender, Muslim Peace Advocate, Veteran, Jewish, Asexual, and more. It is so important that these voices are present to engage in candid conversation with the college community so that we can listen and ask and learn. The Human Library asks us to unjudge our community, and provides a safe space to do so.

Borderline Personality Disorder Book, 2019

The Human Library is an event that has always radiated so much of what it means, to me, to be a part of Honors. It is a space to stretch beyond your comfort zone to accommodate curiosity. A place to listen and learn and add to the conversation all while supporting the community around you. It is a space to be unabashedly you and welcome others into that space with you. It’s a hard event, don’t get me wrong. It’s hard to be so honest like that, walls down and engaged. But it is absolutely beautiful to watch the Books all support each other, to watch the Readers learn and laugh and cry right along with the volunteers. It’s the same feeling I have gotten, often, after leading a really involved Honors seminar- exhausted but also really excited and ready for more.  I love it. And I think you will too.

Human Library Bookshelf, 2019

So consider this your invitation to stop by the Human Library on Laker Day, April 9^th. Listen to the stories we will have collected here, and add in your own voice as you question and explore and learn. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at april.broughton@flcc.edu.

I am looking forward to hearing your story.

LFG: Salamander Quest!

Vol 14 No 15

The blog below speaks for itself.  I hope you can join the quest!

Hi all!  

                My name is John Bateman and I am an instructor in the Department of Environmental Conservation.  I’m in my second year at FLCC, and currently teach an honors section of   I’m a herpetologist by trade (herpetology is the study of reptiles and amphibians), and I specialize in salamanders and frogs.  Outside of the classroom, I organize a large volunteer effort to help save amphibians down at FLCC’s Muller Field Station on Honeoye Lake, and this is the reason I am reaching out to you.

                The frogs and salamanders I work with endure winter underground, with some of them spending that time completely frozen.  When March arrives and signs of spring start showing up (warm days and rainy nights), they thaw out or awake from their sleep, and begin their migration to their breeding grounds to complete their life cycle.  Down at Muller Field Station, this is quite the treacherous journey for them as County Road 36 bisects their path.  It turns into a real-life game of “Frogger” (some of you may have to Google that game), and many don’t make it.  There is a larger issue at play here, too.   Globally, amphibians are experiencing significant declines.  There are more species of amphibians threatened by extinction than those of birds and mammals combined, and this is why I work with these animals.  In 2019, we moved close to 4,000 frogs and salamanders across the road over four nights and had less than a 5% mortality rate.  That total number moved is actually low compared to past years.  There have been single nights where more than 5,000 were moved in just a few hours!  As for the roadkill, my goal is to get that 5% even closer to zero, but I need your help.  The amphibians make their crossing over about a ¾-mile stretch of road, so I need a lot of people to cover that large of an area.   Don’t feel like you need to be an expert in amphibians to help, as I will cover the basics on proper handling and ID techniques.  And no, they do not bite.  While you may not be crazy about the idea of handling something that is wet, cold, and most likely unappreciative, it is a noble cause.  Without our help there would be carnage on the road, and we’re not sure how long their populations would persist without our intervention.

                While you might not be keen on amphibians (yet…), they play a vital role in the environment.  They are eating the insects that you consider pests, and are also food for the more charismatic birds and mammals you might be fond of.  Perhaps, too, you’ll gain an appreciation for these critters.  These animals rarely evoke enthusiasm, are often misunderstood, and deemed insignificant or persecuted by humans (heck – the word herpetology is based off the Greek herpes, meaning a creeping thing), but their lives have value.  I’ve been fortunate to have crossed paths with a few students who share my passion for these creatures.  Some of them shared that they found a love for amphibians because they, too, felt society viewed them in these negative ways and were able to draw parallels between their lives and that of a toad.  I hope you might be willing to look past any inherent fear or preconceived notions you might have of these creatures as they will not hurt you.  I promise.  Plus, there’s the possibility of seeing some other cool animals, like screech owls and flying squirrels.  Memories will be made, selfies will be taken, and you’ll go to bed that night knowing that you did a good deed.

                If you are interested I invite you to reach out to me.  My email is salamanders@flcc.edu, or you can pop by my office (#2238 in the conservation wing) and I can add you to the group chat.  The nights we work depend entirely on the weather (warm and rainy), and I do my best to send alerts out a day in advance.  Carpooling is recommended, and most nights there will be a 15-passenger van bringing folks down and back.  We typically work from 7-10ish.  Hope to see you there!