The Rock Blog

Well this is it. My last day of classes. For all of you incoming freshman this might seem far, far away for you. But that is what I thought to as I watched my friends graduate over the last 3 years. But now this is real. It is my turn.
I have 100% seen the transformation in my personal and professional life over the past 4 years. Slippery Rock is a school of opportunities and incredible relationships. The education I received will help me to best serve my clients as a certified therapeutic recreation specialist in the future. I am sad to leave but ready to take my education into the real world.
So, keep shinning, and remember that you will be blessed to be a student at Slippery Rock University. The Rock Solid Education will be with you forever!
All for now!
Have a wonderful summer friends!
Kaitlin
🙂

I asked another friend what was one aspect of SRU she wished she had known before coming to SRU and she practically shouted at me: that computer test! Oh yes, I guess that is something ya’ll should be aware of…

The computer competency test is taken during the freshman orientation weekend. The test takes about 30 minutes and covers questions about everything from computer systems to word/excel programs. I was fortunate enough to have taken good computer classes in high school that I passed the computer test.  If you don’t pass, which many people do not, you are required to take a 1 credit computer class for 1 month during any of your 4 years at SRU.  The computer class is not a big deal but if you are able to test out of the class, that is best, of course!

The reason SRU requires this test is because computer competency is sooo important for success in the workplace no matter what your profession. There is defs a difference between social technology and professional technology and that is what this class will teach you!

If you want more info on this placement test check out this link: http://www.sru.edu/academics/colleges/cbiss/Pages/SRUComputerCompetency.aspx

All for now- enjoy the sunshine today!

Keep shining!

Kaitlin 🙂

The college orientation – are you excited? Nervous? Unsure of what to expect?
That’s ok! We all were there at one time! But don’t worry you will have a terrific time at freshman orientation here at SRU! First of all you will learn a lot more about where you will be living in the dorms, the food at boozel, and your class schedule for the fall. All of this information will make you more assured that you made the right decision picking SRU for your undergraduate degree!
Secondly, the orientation team of upperclassmen students are honestly some of the best kids on the block! They are very upbeat and are prepared and willing to answer any and all questions you have about college life. College can be a big transition for most of us, but these team members will make you feel about home right away- and add in some good laughs!

For more information about orientation weekends, check out this link:
http://www.sru.edu/academics/enrollment/orientation/pages/orientation.aspx

You are going to LOVE your time here at the Rock! Be excited and expect the best 4 years of your life!
All for now!
Be blessed today!
Kaitlin 

This winter has dragged, and dragged, and drug a little more… but today is a sign of life! It.is.warm! As President Norton of SRU said this morning to a number of recreation therapy practitioners at the TR conference for my major, “I promised that Slippery Rock is a sunny place, physically and emotionally, but whether that means it is warm is another factor all together!”  But today it is spiking a great 55 degrees while walking about campus! This means one thing… spring is on the horizon!

Spring on Slippery Rock’s campus can be seen in some traditional fashions. One such sight is Frisbee players and baseball throwers in the quad along with some blankets with people studying, hanging, and sleeping.  Spring also means that the overall emotional atmosphere of the campus is lifted a lot! Sunshine tends to do that! I personally love sitting in the quad in the sun while my friends play songs on the guitar or the yuke that we call can sing along to.  Such great college memories! Hopefully that will happen more frequently soon with the nicer weather!

Well after a long but wonderful day at the TR conference, I am signing off!

Hope all Is well with you all!

Kaitlin 🙂

When walking around campus this past week, I am constantly reminded of how diverse Slippery Rock is in the possible careers and professions it prepares students for during their 4 short years.  And that’s the catch: you only have 4 years to explore and learn as much as you can from the Slippery Rock educators! The majors and minors that Slippery Rock offers are far and in between. We have everything from accounting, to exercise science, to art sculpting, to biology, to pre-law, and so many others. This is one of the reasons why I like to promote Slippery Rock as a great college is because if you come in undecided you will be able to find some field that interests you!

For me personally, I came into SRU with the idea of going to PT school doing the 3+3 Exercise Science track.  However, I started to understand the passion I have for working with people with disabilities once I picked up the Adapted Physical Activity minor.  So during my junior year I made the decision to switch my major to Therapeutic Recreation to best pursue a career working with people with disabilities.  And I love it! I am constantly reminded of how blessed I am to attend a college where I was able to find a major that fit my passion and dreams! Honestly, Slippery Rock has it all! You can check it out for yourself at http://www.sru.edu/academics/Pages/majorsandminorsalpha.aspx.

All for now, friends!

Enjoy the sunshine today!

Kaitlin

It’s that time of year. The time when the cold weather may leave and the warm spring air is welcome to come to western, PA.  This past week was a roller-coaster of weather.  Starting out with a weekend in the high 50s, low 60s, I loved running through the Slippery Rock woods on the trails behind the ski lodge.  The weather was beautiful and the sunshine felt so good! Monday and Tuesday dropped to the low 50s, high 40s, but I was still able to enjoy hiking the Wolf Creek Trail in Slippery Rock Park with only a light jacket.  And then it happened… the snow returned. Wednesday and Thursday were cold and snowy with the winds adding a slight blizzard feel.  Oh what a week of weather!

This is just a testimony of the needs to pack many different types of clothes and jackets for college life at Slippery Rock.  I personally have two winter coats and two lighter coats and many sweatshirts here at school so I am ready for whatever weather campus may endure today! Although the changing weather can be annoying sometimes, I am thankful for the diversity of seasons that Slippery Rock experiences.  It makes the first snow fall and the first day of warm weather even more special when you can celebrate with your college friends!

All for Now!

Enjoy today, friends!

Kaitlin 🙂

One of the less talked about perks of Slippery Rock is the Compass Leadership Program.  This program is amazing.  I started this 3-step program my freshman year as a member of FLSP. FLSP is the First Leader-Scholar Program.  During FLSP, a group of 25 freshman met together once a week to learn about all areas of leadership.  Some of these included personality styles, ethical issues, conflict resolution, community service, and personal values.  These sessions really helped me jump into my freshman year and I am good friends with a lot of the students in my class who are now leading the school in Student Government and other clubs! I would highly recommend applying for FLSP as a freshman.  It is a wonderful, fun, and rewarding experience!

To get more information about FLSP, check out http://www.sru.edu/studentlife/studentleadership/Pages/flsp.aspx

The FLSP program helped me to complete Level 1 and 2 of the Compass Program.  Level 3 is two part.  The first is an evening summit of discussion of more in-depth leadership topics and ethical issues.  This evening was actually quite interesting and I liked the provided pizza dinner… yummm!  The second part is a 30-45 minute presentation.  This presentation I am currently prepping to give later this semester! The presentation includes personal experiences on all areas of leadership over the last 4 years at SRU.  I am excited to share what I have learned with my friends and professors at this presentation. Wish me luck!

All for now!

Have a super day- stay warm!

Kaitlin

I read a book this week about how putting oneself in anothers shoes can help the world be a better place.  Right now, I am thinking that placing myself in the shoes of a senior in high school about to come to college could be beneficial for this blog.  I have recently been thinking about college life.  College life is a foreign idea to a senior in high school. All you know is what you see on TV which is mainly inaccurate or blown out of proportion… So I asked some of my friends this question: What was one thing about college life you wished you knew before getting to school?  We came up with 3 answers.

1.  Studying in the dorms is near impossible your freshman year

• The dorms are fun, loud, and distracting.  Finding a place like the library, empty classrooms, study rooms in the dorms, or even a quiet booth during a non-eating hour at the dining hall will suit you much better! I am an extrovert so being around people in the dorms makes me want to not study and hang out! Finding the balance btwn studying and hanging is super important as a freshman to succeed in college!

1. Walking to class can be cold! Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

• Dress of success in college means dress for sun, rain, sleet, snow, and hail… all in one day. Slippery Rock weather is very unpredictable and you want to make sure that you check the weather for the day before getting dressed in the morning! Be sure to buy a warm winter coat before coming to college too since its a lot colder walked 20 minutes to class each day than walking from your car into your high school!

1. The campus is SPREAD OUT, yo!

• This is true.  Slippery Rock is build on rolling hills and likes to spread itself out.  Sometimes you will go to 5 or 6 different buildings in one day for classes and meetings.  Sometimes you will have to power walk from class to class to make it on time.  But do not fret! Walking is exercise and exercise is medicine and you will be fine! Just something to be aware of before hitting campus!

Hope this insight brightened your day!

All for Now!

Kaitlin  🙂

Hello everyone! My name is David Beck.  I am a new Rock Blogger and I am a senior here at The Rock, so I don’t have much time with you all. My goal here is to give you as much insight into my experiences here as possible, so you can have the time of your life! I am majoring in Health Services Administration; something I didn’t know about until my sophomore year. This major and field of healthcare is becoming so much more interesting to me as time goes on. It also is becoming more and more competitive in terms of the job market. I am required to complete an internship as part of my degree and I think that it is a great idea for us to do this.  I recently accepted an internship position and have gained lots of insight on what employers expect. As I near the end of my time here, I want to give you as many suggestions and as much advice as possible.

One thing that I wish I could of done more of was getting involved in leadership positions. I was the “quiet kid” in high school, and when I came here, that trend continued for awhile. If it wasn’t for the marching band here, then I wouldn’t have gotten involved as much as I did. I was in the marching band all four years here. During that time, I have progressed in such a way where I earned a leadership position in the band. When I applied for internships, I realized that you can’t just have credentials and the course work to show that you can do a job. Employers want to see that you had experience with other people. You can be the smartest cookie ever, but what it comes down to is if you can communicate with, work with, and lead other people. Showing that you can be a leader is crucial in the work world. I was lucky that I got the opportunity to lead my peers, and the marching band gave me that chance. You can put anything else in place of band, it can be a club or organization, or anything else and my point remains the same. So I guess my advice to you is: get involved with a club, sport, organization, intramural event, or anything! You can find out a lot about different clubs and organizations during your visits to SRU or during orientation. Orientation is when I found out more about band, and in turn led me to join. Also, the Center for Student Involvement and Leadership (CSIL) is a whole office devoted entirely to that. They are all about getting you involved. Visit their wbsite… http://www.sru.edu/studentlife/studentleadership/Pages/ClubsandOrgs.aspx. With band, I was able to meet people before school actually started, so I felt more comfortable with the first steps I took into class.

Well, my first blog was me going on a bit of a rant, but they will be a bit easier to read next time. I hope my advice sticks with you as you grow throughout your time here. Have a great day and I’ll see you soon!

Dave

This is it. I can’t believe it.

Last semester. Slippery Rock University senior!

I had a good conversation with my roommates (three of which are also seniors) the other night ago. We were talking about the importance of living in the moment this semester.  I have encountered some of the coolest people in the past 3.5+ years and I want to really focus on cultivating those relationships this semester.  While I am excited for what this semester brings, I also am in the process of preparing my heart for the future.  Slippery Rock has provided me with an incredible education with more educational learning experience that I could have ever imagined coming out of high school.  I have traveled all over the United States for conferences and trips to further my ability to understand my profession as a recreation therapist.  Slippery Rock has shaped me and I am excited to see what this final semester has in store.

Life at Slippery Rock is nothing less of a passionate adventure!

Be passionate about what you are passionate about. And I can assure you that Slippery Rock has something for you- diversity, athletics, arts, education, and laughter. It’s the place to be.

All for now… until next time!

Kaitlin