CSC 322.01, Class 04: Prepare for partner meetings

Overview

• Preliminaries
  • Notes and news
  • Upcoming work
  • Extra credit
  • Questions
• How to work with your partners!

News / Etc.

• I will email you your groups.
• Meet Susan Sanning, associate dean for community outreach

Upcoming work

• Think about your projects.

Good things to do

• See the CSC 321 Web site.

Questions

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Introduction

• I want to learn how to effectively communicate with nontechnical people.
• I want to get away from Grinnell.
• Build something useful that functions, as opposed to those useless toys that PM made us write.
• Building a project from the ground up.
• Experience working with a team. (Susan Sanning says teams will drive you crazy)
• Good grade. Bzzz.
• Learn how to listen to people, or at least make them think that I’m listening to them.
• Practice working with people.

What do Grinnell townsfolk think of Grinnell students

• Arrogant
• Privileged / rich
• Weird hippie druggie
• Slovenly
• Don’t keep their word. Too many Grinnell students sign up to do things and then don’t show up.
• [They also don’t know what a liberal arts education might be.]
• It’s really important that you set expectations and that you keep them.
• It’s equally important that you don’t overcommit.

Improving relationships

• Build trust!
  • Set expectations, such as for communication (how, when, how much advance notice, how long to wait for followup).
  • Be clear when you can’t make it, and only for legitimate reasons. (“I planned badly and have a paper due in an hour.”)
  • Plan well, with your calendar handy. Note: Academic advising can give you a semester calendar.
• Dress codes.
  • Dress professionally.
  • In the US, we don’t generally consider t-shirts and sweats and pajamas as professional. (As College students, jeans and polos are probably fine for men or women.)
  • Take your cues from your clients!
• Learn the personalities of the people with whom you work.
  • How do you deal with people who don’t want to criticize? Pay attention to body language. Give people options. Present yourself honestly.
• How do you figure out what their goals are?
  • “Let me consult with Prof. Rebelsky and my mentor about what they think I can do this semester.”
• Note: As soon as you realize that your goals are too lofty.

About Mayflower

• A continuing care facility.
• Most start as independent living: Apartment, house, duplex.
• As health changes, there are different levels of care.
  • Sometimes bringing care to your living spaces
  • Sometimes moving you to an assisted living space
  • Sometimes moving you to a full-time care space
• They never kick anyone out.
• You will be putting in stories of people as they come in. That information will help caregivers.
• Started as retirement community for cong. ministers.
• JB Grinnell thought the retirement and the college community could feed each other.

What do you know about our community and its members?

• Lean Republican.
• “Iowa Nice”. Some are genuinely nice, some are nice to your face but not so nice behind your back.
• Some have limited education.
• Many are resistant to change.
• 30-50% of community is at or under poverty level.
• 30-40% of K-12 students are on free or reduced lunches.
  • This is an undercount. Particularly in HS, kids don’t want to be known as on free and reduced lunches.
• Unemployment rate in Grinnell is about 2.5%.
• Grinnell has a lot of working poor, people who are underemployed.
• Grinnell does not pay property taxes for our main campus.
• What does homelessness look like in Grinnell? Usually, couch hopping or large numbers of people in small location. Lots of landlords are not good.
• A lot of our organizations rely on volunteers to keep the community going.
• Because we’re a small community, you can make a big difference.