You are on page 1of 3

Jesse Meza

UNIV 392
Scott Harris
13th July, 2015

Process Recording
Following my involvement with the Summer Scholars Program, the position
posits a series of interactions with a diverse set of students. That being said, a
diverse set of students implies a diverse set of mindsets. The spectrum varies; as a
college coach, I have met students who have both loved the program, hated the
program, were transformed by the program, or were forced to attend the program.
The resulting feature of such a selection of interactions with these students sets the
college coach in a difficult position: How does one reconcile with the students who
are forced to attend the program and have no intention of reaping its benefits?
Such a situation can be heated when attempting to assuage a students
anger in attending the program. For example, while working for the Summer
Scholars program, many students are required to live on campus with their college
coaches. I remember dealing with a student, whom I will refer to as Amy, who
clearly did not want to be a part of the Summer Scholars Program. Many of the
interactions I would have with Amy would result in a backlash of empty threats,
sarcastic comments and a slur of curse words. One day, when the entirety of the
groups behavior resulted in their early bed time as punishment, Amy was
distraught and outraged at the idea that she had to be held responsible for the rest
of the groups actions. When one of my colleagueswhom I will refer to as Greg
attempted to assuage her anger by delineating the logic behind our madness, she

began to lash out at Greg, with disrespectful comments that were directed not only
at him, but the entire Summer Scholars staff in general. Amy stated that the
Summer Scholars staff had no structure, that it lacked communication skills, and
more importantly, that Yall just fake as hell. When I heard these comments, I
rushed to my colleagues aid and asked the student to wait in their room until a
Graduate Program Coordinator could speak to her. This is when the argument got
heated. Amy began by stating I wasnt talking to you, so go back to where you
came from and sit your ass downYou all are being immature. I thus responded,
You want to talk about being immature? Because your disrespectful comments are
a real display of where youre at. Now please go to your room until you cool down.
At this point, my mind was flying and up in the air. To me, my logic was perfectly
reasonable, and justified as well. Not only was she causing a scene in front of the
other students but she was failing to recognize me as an authoritative figure in the
room. Obviously, she is on the wrong side of the argument! No, she responded.
At this point Im fuming on the inside. How? Of all things how can you be this
disrespectful? Its ridiculous! Soon after this incident, one of the Graduate Program
Coordinators talked to her and decided her appropriate repercussions.
Looking back on the incident now, I realize my mistake. Despite the fact that I
was on the right side of the argument, I completely overlooked the fact that I was
dealing with a teenager. As I reflected on the incident, I remembered my
experiences as a teenager. One of the things that used to peeve me was when
friends would gang up on me when arguing. It felt as if I was being attacked and
had an unfair disadvantage. Not only did it peeve me, but it also used to embarrass
me. I hated being put on the spot. Especially when the adults would do it point out
my deviant behavior. This made me realize that over the years I had switched roles:

I was now the adult making a scene outout of a students misbehavior, jumping to
conclusions and assuming that they were up to no good. Not only did I rush to the
scene, but I stepped into the conversation out of personal conviction for the matter
as opposed to letting my colleague handle it. It is reasonable to expect backlash if
all the authoritative figures are teaming up on you and you are on the wrong side of
the rules.
If I were to attempt to redo my interaction with Amy, I would have definitely
observed the situation instead of taking ownership of it. I would also be more
vigilant of my age privileges and roles as they do affect my interactions with the
students. Self-awareness and respect on my behalf would have worked better in this
situation. Especially because Amy responds well to Greg and not me. That being
said, I recognize that age differences are a reality in terms of mindsets. Despite the
fact that my interactions with Amy are a roller coaster, Bridget Wesley once told
that the easiest way to avoid the roller coaster is to simply refuse to get on it. In
other words, to full heartedly remove your emotional ties to a contextual dependent
situation to maintain not only a level of integrity, but also a patient and collected
mind as well. Meaning that if my emotions were not tied to the comment that Amy
madehad her comments not made me angryI would have reacted in a very
different way.

You might also like