Ducks @ Oregon - University of Oregon

Snap Decision

Leah S.

January 9, 2010 - 12:32 PM

Oh man, I regret to inform all of you that this will be my last blog. I have made the snap decision to not continue at the UO. I am already hoping to transfer in the spring and I would have blogged for one more term, but after some reflection and talking to a counselor I realized that I really just kind of want to take this term off. If you remember earlier this week when I showed you have stressful my life has been the last few years, I just really need the break. Now that is not to say that I recommend putting off starting school or just taking a term off because you feel like it. I have valid reason behind my decision; it's too expensive for me now to continue out of state. Taking a term off will allow me to save a large chunk of change and hopefully find a job to earn some money before the start of next term.

 

Now I say don't put off college because too many people who do that decide that getting a paycheck is better than going to school. You really need a college degree to do just about anything anymore so please just go to school. I'm not a hundred percent proud of my decision because I never saw myself stopping school for any reason. As my dad says, I'm always balls to the wall. In other words I do what I want because I know that I will make it work somehow. It is just that after my summer I realized some things about me and my life that I don't like and this term is just one scary step toward getting myself out of the rut I am in.

 

My last piece of advice I can really give I learned from my boss from my summer internship. He said that I need to learn to enjoy the process. Now he was talking about this summer, but you can fit it into everyday life as well. After talking things out with a counselor (you see family and friends tend to be a bit biased) I really realized that I have essentially been the same person for twenty years. I have always been predictable. I'm changing that now. Anyway when I was talking to the counselor he really liked my little life quote. He said that at least 90% of our lives are spent in the process. If we learn to enjoy that then all of life will be enjoyable. So I plead that you all learn to enjoy the process, live in the moment, don't let yourselves get stuck in a rut, sit down every so often and reevaluate your goals and how you are going to reach them, and just enjoy life. If you do that I would bet against anything that you will live a fulfilling life and a happy one too. Go to school too. Don't let my decision influence you. I have many personal reasons for doing this and all are valid to me. You are all different people.

 

I want to thank all of you who have read my blogs, thanks to all who have donated, and thanks to the wonderful Regan and Tiah for being so awesome and so supportive. I wish everyone the best of luck and if anyone ever wants to keep in contact with me I would love it. There are means to it. So thanks to all again, it has been a wonderful 4 terms at the UO because of all of you! GO DUCKS!

 

 

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Behind the Scenes

Leah S.

January 8, 2010 - 11:25 PM

Ok, so I know all of you out there just totally love our blogs! We can see this. At our last meeting we were told that the website has seen a 3,000% increase in traffic and the amount of money given as gifts, which help the students around campus or go to school, has almost tripled in one term what is normal for an entire year. Like I said it shows.

 

Anywho, I thought I would take you behind the scenes because we do a lot as bloggers, but I don't think anyone realizes quite how much the lovely ladies that put the blogs together do. Regan Middleton-Moreland and Tiah Lindner are the two ladies that make our blogging possible. Regan is a 2005 graduate from the UO with a major in anthropology and a business minor (which she recommends to everyone because it is only 6 classes). She has worked with the Annual Giving Program (AGP and I'll discuss in more detail further down) for over three years. She started out as a caller, as a student, making fundraising calls. While doing this she realized that she really enjoyed fundraising and somehow wanted to continue working with it. Although she left the UO for a few years after graduation she returned to start working in a higher position within the AGP.

 

Then we have Tiah who is a 2001 UO graduate with a major in English Literature and a Film Studies certificate. She has been with the AGP for a little over two years now. She too, left the UO for a few years after graduation. She served in AmeriCorps, went to NYC and was in school and worked for peace and social justice for a year, and then worked for non-profits in Portland. She then realized that fundraising seemed to be a theme in her life. She is more on the technical and PR/Marketing side of it, but nonetheless it runs in her blood.

 

These ladies came up with the amazing blog idea after a bit of research. They found that blogs seemed to really draw people's attention and was particularly good for students searching for colleges; the whole personal experience thing. Regan realized, while working with the call center, that people liked to hear first hand stories. That is when they brought the idea to the right people and got a year to try it out. As you can see from the numbers up top, it worked and worked well. They wanted to redesign the AGP site and help people see where their gifts are being used and how they are helping students (whether it's programs on campus, towards scholarships, helping with remodeling a building, or anything academically related). Thus, blogging came to be.

 

The reason fundraising is so important is because the UO receives only 9% funding from the state, roughly 30% from tuition, and the remaining portion comes from private and outside sources. The fundraising on campus differs from college to college or school to school, but they all go towards academia. Everyone on campus (faculty and staff) care about trying to help the students the best they can. AGP deals with smaller annual gifts (anything under $25,000). There are many facets to AGP too. There are people who travel nationally and internationally to help alumni stay connected with the campus. Without them staying connected it is harder for them to see the good use their gifts are being put to. The greatest part, or so I feel, is the personalized letters, emails, and postcards people get thanking them for their gifts, telling them what it went towards, and just keeping in touch with them. You can see that Regan and Tiah really care and that they put a lot of effort into helping alumni stay connected to the school and help the students while in school.

 

As you can see there is a lot more to us than just our personal stories about how great classes are (or aren't), how amazing our sports seasons are (or aren't), how terrible campus food is during your fifth term eating it, or our favorite spots to study around campus. There are tons of people all working to collect money to help students and even faculty with their daily lives and jobs. So thank you to all who have helped whether it is reading these blogs or donating a gift. All of it is greatly appreciated.

 

 

 

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Oh No! Crisis......of Me?

Leah S.

January 6, 2010 - 4:13 PM

Wow it is totally only Wednesday, the third day back to school, and I'm already overwhelmed. You see I have so much going on and I don't seem to remember which was is up right now. My biggest stress and biggest problem is the lack of funds right now. I really can't afford to go to school anymore. The sad thing is that last year I could just say that I really couldn't afford out of state, but would somehow figure out a way to make it work. This year though I can't even afford in state almost. I mean I could make in state work, but holy cow man. It is so expensive to go to school anymore. I just don't know what to do. Do I drop a class and try to find a job through school (in addition to this amazing blogging job of course!) and spend time actually searching for and working on scholarships (that are national of course so lower my chances of getting because I'm not some crazy genius)? Do I just take my sixteen credits and do all that? Do I do sixteen credits and just use my extra time to work on scholarships? Am I going to have extra time to work on scholarships after all my schoolwork, whether it is 16 or 12 credits? Do I have to give up my weekends on it? I just don't know!

 

Then there is the problem of me not really, honestly, truly having a break since before starting college. Here is a quick (although it is kind of lengthy) rundown on the last few years of my life:
October 2005- hosted an exchange student for a month, February to June 2006- work at Papa John's, mid June to mid July 2006- spend a month in Germany with hosted exchange student, mid July to mid September 2006- work again at PJ's, mid August to beginning of February 2006-host another exchange student, September 2006- quit PJ, end of Sept./beginning of Oct. to end of December 2006- work again at PJ, February to end of August 2007- I was an exchange student in Germany, September 2007 to February 2008- work again at PJ, February-September 2008- quit PJ and start working at Hollywood Video, September 2008 to June 2009- freshman year of college and started blogging, summer 2009- internship, September 2009 to present- back to school and blogging again.

 

All of this doesn't include all the homework I had throughout high school and college either or all of the side projects and meetings I had for my internship, blogging, and this year I'm a member and officer in NSCS so I have duties for that as well. So you see how I haven't really had a break. My breaks have consisted of stressing over the money I don't have and a lot of the times trying to do stuff for my internship this summer. Somewhere in there I fit a personal life (although very small). I'm so overdue for a break. I mean Mexico was an awesome break, but it wasn't long enough. Arizona was also awesome and relaxing, but I did plenty of stressing while I was wandering the desert. I need (and quite honestly deserve) a nice long break with no stress (HA! Wouldn't that be amazing?).

 

So you see my problem now is what do I want? Do I want to be in school or do I want to take a break? Do I want to work? Do I want fewer credits? Do I want a second job? Whew. You see...a crisis of me. I don't know what I want anymore.

 

Well that is a lot to take in and I actually feel slightly drained after that. Things feel and look different when it's all written out. So until next time...

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WOW 2010!

Leah S.

January 1, 2010 - 9:00 AM

Oh my goodness, I cannot believe that it is 2010 already. Like I said in my last blog I feel like I started college just yesterday. Where has the last year and a half gone? I don't know. I'm really excited for 2010 though. It will bring fun travels, cool classes, boring classes, fights, and changes. I used to hate changes, but I'm so ready for them this year. I want them so badly. I lived relatively the same way for the last twenty years. I'm finally ready for a change. I used to be so scared of it and now I'm meeting it head on and creating some of it as well.

 

I remember when I was like ten that 2010 seemed so far away. I was never going to make it to high school. I was so excited for the next step. Now I just want to take a quick break or at least slow things down a bit. There is no need to be grown up so fast. I know in my heart of hearts that is what I have wanted for so long. I felt it would be better for me. I have a hard time connecting with people my age, but it is due to things in my past that I am getting over, with the help of the UO's counseling center. Now I'm learning how to act my age. I can be who I am, crazy responsible, and still have fun. I just have to not care so much. Well that's not exactly how I mean that to come out. It's hard to explain. Like I'm a super caring person, but I have to not care so much about friend's choices, because I might feel they are horrible choices, but I'm not the one making them. It's easier then.

 

Well I wish everyone a super, amazing, fantastic, wonderful, and every other adjective you can think of, New Year. 2010 holds so much for all of us. We can all take this head on. I challenge everyone to think twice when in a sticky situation, don't fall to peer pressure so quickly, and most importantly HAVE FUN! Enjoy every day as if it were the best ever and the best gift you have been given. So enjoy this day and every other. So until next time...

 

 

 

 

 

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HOME!!!!!!

Leah S.

December 26, 2009 - 7:25 PM

4:15am, wake up call. Not as much fun as most would think (wait, who would think that is fun?). Then the flight left at 6:15am. It was so early. The flight only lasted about a half hour until I landed in Phoenix. Then it was an hour and a half in the airport there. I got myself a lovely bagel (ok it was actually a little on the stale side). Finally it was onto the plane in Phoenix. Then at 10:40am I finally landed in Portland. By 11:30 I was finally home! It was so awesome. I was so happy to finally be home. It is not that I had an amazing time in Arizona with my grandparents, but I was very looking forward to coming home Tuesday. I was all ready for it and then my flight got delayed. Oh well though. I made it home safely and in time for our Christmas celebration. Getting home on Christmas Eve was cutting it close, but as I said I made it in time for lunch with my dad, shower, and then head over to families for dinner and presents. I got some good stuff. I got books that I wanted, gift cards for stuff I want, massage, GPS, and much more.

 

It's not about the presents though. I'm all about family during the holidays. Presents are just perks to the few times a year you get to be with your entire family at one time in at least semi-happy spirits. Call me weird, but it's what I like. I don't see my family too often. I mean we all live nearby, but since starting school I don't see them often. I am at school for three months and then have a three week break, then it's three months at school and then home for two weeks, then it's school again for another three months and now I'm doing this internship so I am gone all summer and leave for school a few days after coming home. I just really don't have time to hardly see my immediate family. I enjoy a few hours with my family.

 

Ok well now that I'm home I'm going out with some friends for some fun times. Home to see the family, which I have done a lot of, so now it is off to fun with friends. So until next time...

 

 

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