Welcome Back to the Beach š
Dear SI Campus partners:
We hope that you had a wonderful Fall 2021 and a safe, relaxing Winter Break. It felt like time flew by, and we are excited to be back in action. We continue to look forward to working with YOU - our amazing faculty, staff, and administrative partners ā to facilitate studentsā success at the Beach!
Fall 2021 focused greatly on reconnecting with students and colleagues, as we were able to slowly transition back to campus. It was an experience, to say the least, navigating a hybrid work and learning environment, but the SI Leaders and Mentors helped us handle challenges and new learning experiences with grace and appreciation.
Although we are starting this semester in an online environment, we hope to return to the Beach soon and continue building a sense of community among the SI Leaders and their students during these challenging times. We also look forward to promoting professional development among our staff and the academic success of students enrolled in SI.
As always, thank you for your ongoing support of SI! We are always thankful for all of our partners at the university as we continue helping students achieve their goals. Please know that our door is always open (virtually or in-person) if you ever want to check-in and catch up!
All the best,
Lyndsay, Timurhan, and Lori Joy
CSULB Hosts Regional Training for the International Center for SI
The SI program at CSULB was proud to host the International Center for SI's first Regional SI Supervisor Training of the academic year on our beautiful campus on December 9 - 10, 2021! Our campus welcomed approximately 20 colleagues from all over Southern California, Utah, and even Georgia to engage in this interactive, in-person professional development.
The Regional SI Supervisor training covered topics and objectives relating to SI including identifying areas to support, the role of stakeholders across the program, training and supervision of student staff, theoretical frameworks and pedagogy underlying SI, and effective learning strategies and activities.
CSULB's SI Coordinators even had an opportunity to share various aspects of our program, including our intensive pre-semester SI Orientation, outreach to campus partners, and building community with the student staff. 6 SI Leaders and Mentors were also invited to serve on a panel to answer questions about their experience working in peer education and best strategies for engaging with students in a collaborative, learning environment. This was an excellent opportunity to connect with others who work in similar positions or areas on different campuses, as well as showcase the hard work of our program.
SI Celebrates the end of Fall 2021
SI hosted its end-of-Fall celebration on Friday, December 17, 2021. The SI Coordinators planned and hosted a winter holiday-themed event to celebrate the SI Leadersā success and work throughout the semester.
The party featured a White-Elephant Gift Exchange, a Photo Booth, and a variety of holiday themed minute-to-win-it games. The entire evening was one last-hurrah to share laughs and spend time as a work family. This semester, the SI Coordinators also recognized House Bifrost as this semester's championship belt winners!
The highlight of the event was celebrating 6 SI Leaders who have went above and beyond their job duties and made a recognizable impact on their students, their peers, and the SI program as a whole. As a result, the SI Coordinators recognized the following SI Leaders:
Ellie was awarded the SI Leader of the Semester award. This award recognizes an SI Leader's overall exemplary performance in the position. Ellie facilitated amazing SI sessions, modeled positive SI Leader behavior, served as a resource to peers, and was an overall positive presence in the program! Ellie did so well that we asked her to come back as an SI Mentor for Spring 2022!
Fadi was awarded Most Professional Growth in SI. This award recognizes a SI Leader's professional and leadership development throughout the semester. Fadi worked extremely hard to build relationships with his peers, seek feedback, and experiment with his SI sessions, which transformed him into a powerful leader in the classroom!
Ashley won this semester's Community Builder award! This award recognizes an SI Leader's exemplary efforts to connect with their students and create an inclusive and friendly community in the classroom AND among her fellow SI Leaders. Ashley's efforts blew us away, especially considering the difficulties of connecting to students in an online environment!
Luis was awarded for his Dedication to Student Success for going above and beyond for his students and peers! Luis received some of the most positive feedback the SI Coordinators have seen, which inspired them to create student testimonial videosĀ for the program. Luis also helped SI Leaders by creating brand new activities and revamping existing activities for all SILs to adapt for their own sessions.
Liz Baumann Earns the "Big Joe" Award
At the end of Fall 2021, the SI Coordinators recognized Liz Baumann, one of our longest tenured SI Mentors, the "Big Joe Award." This award recognizes outstanding SI Leaders for their hard work, dedication, and passion for supporting CSULB and beyond. For 5 semesters, Liz had a huge, positive impact on the students, staff, faculty, and administration that had the fortune to work with her in her roles as both SI Leader and SI Mentor.
Although Liz will be stepping away from the program in Spring 2022, she will be continuing to support children impacted by their parent's cancer as Director of CSULB's chapter of Camp Kesem. In this role, she will plan and coordinate the organization's national summer camp for these children. She also oversees a team of staff to facilitate training, deliver camp supplies, and plan activities with the kids. Please check out their latest work at @campkesem_lbstate on Instagram!
Meet the Spring 2022 SI Mentor Team
Every semester, the SI Coordinators identify a group of experienced, stand-out SI Leaders to serve as SI Mentors. This semester, the program welcomed and trained 5 returning SI Mentors and 2 new SI Mentors to support the SI Leadersā development and general program operations. The SI Mentors help SI Leaders:
- Understand their role and program expectations associated with working at CSULB
- Have a resource for questions and feedback other than their direct supervisors
- Receive consistent support from somebody who is working the same position
- Receive ongoing professional development on the best practices and strategies for providing academic support to students
The SI Mentors also helped the SI Coordinators evaluate the SI Leadersā performances and provide critical feedback on how to improve the program. The SI program cannot run as effectively or efficiently without the SI Mentorsā support, and we are so thankful for their contributions every semester.
Recap of SI's Pre-Semester Spring 2022 Orientation
This past winter, SI hired 16 new SI Leaders and welcomed back 26 returning SI Leaders (including SI Mentors). This semester, we pivoted to facilitating our entire pre-semester Orientation in an online environment in accordance with CSULB's updated health and safety protocols. From January 10 - 11, 2022, SI Leaders completed asynchronous tasks and demonstrated their understanding through various tasks and activities.
The SI team continued to utilize a BeachBoard page (screenshot to the right) to facilitate asynchronous orientation. SI Leaders were tasked with completing 4 Modules , each containing videos, tasks, and readings, that provided in-depth knowledge on the theories behind SI, facilitation strategies, planning students' learning, technical knowledge and tools, and administrative duties.
From January 12 - 19, 2022, the SI Leaders participated in synchronous orientation, where they demonstrated and practiced key SI strategies, including:
- Setting goals and expectations
- Conducting full SI sessions and adapting feedback for improvement
- Fostering students' learning in an collaborative environment
- Building rapport with students and peers
- Practicing professionalism and communication
- Identifying key CSULB resources and policies
The SI team continues to emphasize the importance of building community with peers across the program. All SI Leaders were again split into cohorts, a.k.a. "Houses," and each House's members worked to develop relationships with each other and generate friendly competition with other Houses. This semester, each House chose a name based on Nintendo! As with other semesters, all Houses will participate in a semester-long competition and earn points for meeting deadlines, participating in campus events, spending time with each other, and making a positive impact on the academic, professional, and social fabric of CSULB!
SI Leader Fall 2021 Spotlights
Last semester, many of the SI Leaders put in extra time and effort outside of their academics to develop their professional careers and make positive impacts on their communities. Below are just a few highlights the SI Leaders shared from last Fall:
In addition to school and SI, Ashley runs an extremely successful sticker business on Etsy called JasemineFlowerCo! Most stickers are inspired by recent popular culture and hand-drawn by Ashley. She just recently hit 1600 total orders on her Etsy shop. Give her a follow @jasmineflowerco on IG or visit her Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/jasmineflowerco
Fun fact: She also designed the SI graphic w/ the shark and lightbulb.)
Danielle currently serves as a representative of KPMG, one of the "Big Four" accounting firms. In this role, she speaks at multiple events hosted by various clubs and organizations, including the Association of Latino Professionals For America, Beta Alpha Psi & Accounting Society at CSULB, and more!
Even though Danielle is still working on her degree, she was already offered a full-time position for Withum, a nationally ranked public accounting firm providing advisory, tax, and audit services! Danielle will begin her new role in January 2023.
Gizelle has been volunteering for the COPE Health Scholars program since December 2019. She first helped out at St. Mary's Hospital in downtown Long Beach, and now she's at Kaiser Anaheim. In both hospitals, Gizelle has helped multiple departments with secretary work, taking vitals, and assisting patients with daily needs such as ambulating, discharging, and bathing.
Morgen interned with Heart of Ida, an organization in Long Beach that provides resources for older adults to help them preserve their independence and cheer when assisted living is necessary.
She also served s the Vice President for Eta Sigma Gamma, where she was recognized as a great leader, advocate, and role model for others in the organization.
Ravneet worked as a Project Manager with the Society of Women Engineers. Her biggest project was organizing and working on the 2022 NASA Big Idea Challenge, which asks teams to create alternative modes of travel for moon rovers that avoid traditional wheels. This opportunity gave its members more technical engineering experiences while working towards their degree!
Wendolyn works as a Social Media Intern for CSULB's MATH & STATS Department. Check out her posts on Instagram at @csulbmathandstat
In December, Wendolyn represented CSULB in the highly prestigious 82nd William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition (hosted by the Mathematical Association of America.) This annual contests consists of two, 3-hour sessions where participants work individually on 6 challenging mathematical problems covering a number of concepts.
Escape Room Secret Passcode: WELOVESI