After day 2 of Understanding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, this is what I have so far.
Mission - Engage and equip others in our school to increase cultural competency and decrease intentional and unintentional intolerance, bias, or blind spots; resulting in our students' increased ability to more effectively contribute within their home communities, post-secondary training paths, and eventual career workplace settings.
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
Sunday, November 10, 2019
Is Intolerance Just a "Blind Spot" For Some Folks?
Day 2 of a professional development seminar took place at the ROE last Thursday. One thing that was discussed early in the day was the idea of "blind spots". I kept wondering to myself if the use of the term blind spot was a nice way to spin prejudice and discrimination. I kept wondering if using the label "blink spot" was accurate. Since last Thursday, I find myself feeling a little mixed on the notion.
I believe if the intolerance genuinely is innocent ignorance, then using the label of "blind spot" may be accurate and helpful to an examination, discussion, or analysis of how discrimination or prejudice may exist. In thinking about our own school, I'm confident we have students with "blind spots". In fact, an important part of the message on Thursday is that we ALL have blind spots as humans, and that we shouldn't beat ourselves up over that reality.
If the intolerance, though, is an intentional intolerance after having an opportunity to explore possible blind spots, then the label no longer seems to be appropriate. The intolerance then seems to be legitimate discrimination and/or prejudice. I expressed at the end of the day that I truly believe that we are making positive strides towards improved cultural competency and improved acceptance of others, but my fear was that the folks with intolerance seem to hold more intensity in their feelings.
What brings me to think about this is that on Thursday evening, I was asked by another teacher to co-sponsor our new RHS Minority Club. I still am not sure as an older white male that I'm a perfect fit for the role, but I genuinely do want to be helpful if I can be. And I think having a discussion with the members of the club about "blind spots" that exist in our school will be helpful to the members and potentially helpful to our school.
A big part of the Day 2 training also discussed ways for schools or organizations to attempt to eliminate bias. I admit that I'm still working to wrap my brain around that concept, even though I believe I understand the definition of bias. Maybe a little fear exists in my brain that more bias is in there whether or realize it or not, so maybe it's a good thing I get to explore that a little further. Perhaps the minority club can help me see that a bit more.
A bit of a controversy for the Minority Club is deciding who can be welcomed into the club and who cannot. Apparently, at the last meeting, some students visited who didn't seem sincere. In fact, I know there were some students that attended because they felt offended. While these students didn't express themselves out loud, I think they felt wronged that a minority club could exist and be accepted when a "majority club" might be frowned upon.
I'm interested to see where all of this can lead to help all of our students improve their cultural competency!
I believe if the intolerance genuinely is innocent ignorance, then using the label of "blind spot" may be accurate and helpful to an examination, discussion, or analysis of how discrimination or prejudice may exist. In thinking about our own school, I'm confident we have students with "blind spots". In fact, an important part of the message on Thursday is that we ALL have blind spots as humans, and that we shouldn't beat ourselves up over that reality.
If the intolerance, though, is an intentional intolerance after having an opportunity to explore possible blind spots, then the label no longer seems to be appropriate. The intolerance then seems to be legitimate discrimination and/or prejudice. I expressed at the end of the day that I truly believe that we are making positive strides towards improved cultural competency and improved acceptance of others, but my fear was that the folks with intolerance seem to hold more intensity in their feelings.
What brings me to think about this is that on Thursday evening, I was asked by another teacher to co-sponsor our new RHS Minority Club. I still am not sure as an older white male that I'm a perfect fit for the role, but I genuinely do want to be helpful if I can be. And I think having a discussion with the members of the club about "blind spots" that exist in our school will be helpful to the members and potentially helpful to our school.
A big part of the Day 2 training also discussed ways for schools or organizations to attempt to eliminate bias. I admit that I'm still working to wrap my brain around that concept, even though I believe I understand the definition of bias. Maybe a little fear exists in my brain that more bias is in there whether or realize it or not, so maybe it's a good thing I get to explore that a little further. Perhaps the minority club can help me see that a bit more.
A bit of a controversy for the Minority Club is deciding who can be welcomed into the club and who cannot. Apparently, at the last meeting, some students visited who didn't seem sincere. In fact, I know there were some students that attended because they felt offended. While these students didn't express themselves out loud, I think they felt wronged that a minority club could exist and be accepted when a "majority club" might be frowned upon.
I'm interested to see where all of this can lead to help all of our students improve their cultural competency!
Tomorrow Is Annual Physical Day!
It's a good idea to get an annual physical, right? Admittedly, tomorrow's physical has me feeling more optimistic over previous years. When I turned 50, it occurred to me that it was time to start monitoring my health more closely, so while I knew the news wouldn't be great, it was time for me to "face the music".
And the first physical wasn't so great. Dr. Wang informed me that I needed to lose some weight and that it was time to get a colonoscopy. Fortunately, the blood work and urinalysis didn't show any serious concerns, which was good news. The colonoscopy showed three polyps that weren't serious, but instead of another one scheduled in five years, my next one was scheduled for three years. (And I think that will be next year...damn.) I did get to talk to the doctor about my knee problems, and I started a medication geared toward relieving the pain in my knee caused by arthritis.
And last year's news really wasn't so great either. My weight had not decreased, and while my "numbers" weren't awful, they weren't great either. I was still taking the Meloxocam for my aching knee, and the "spare tire" around my mid-section was increasing. Dr. Wang once again courteously told me that I really could benefit from losing some weight.
Now it's 2019, and I'm enthusiastic about tomorrow's visit. I know I have more weight to lose and more health benefits to pursue, but my weight is down a little, I haven't taken Meloxocam since June, and I'm feeling better. I already received a call on this year's blood and urine results, and the report I received was "normal". I'm hoping, then, that the rest of the numbers tomorrow also show a more positive trend then past physicals. While I don't expect Dr. Wang to dance a jig of joy and excitement, I hope to avoid "the look" and reminder about dropping weight.
UPDATE
So I attribute the "new me" to intermittent fasting, getting some work done on my knee at Frontline Spine and Sport, and a morning stretch/yoga routine. I've since added a couple of other "healthy aspects" that have seemed to help.
First, I'm getting down to Turning Point and completing a couple of multi-joint strength training exercises I use to do regularly "back in the day". I'm getting three sets of bench press and three sets of squats completed 2-3 times a week. While I think I should be doing more, this recent addition is a good step toward doing more strength training work.
Also, I've added an "ab routine" to the morning yoga/stretch routine. It's a little 10-minute ab workout which is very tiring. In fact, the first few times, I really had to adapt the routine to my very weak core. I'm getting stronger, and I'm noticing that the increased core strength seems to be helping me on the basketball court to officiate better. I feel stronger, and my knee seems to hurt less.
Of course, it's not surprising that increased core strength would assist me feeling better. I know from experience and all the research that fitness starts with the core, but core work is HARD! I'm trying to stick with it, though. I think I'm getting 5-7 routines completed each week, and I think I've been at it now for about a month.
These two items have not really had an impact on weight loss. I seem to be hovering around 219-222, and I have been there for awhile. That's okay because I haven't been doing a lot of exercising and expect the exercise amount to increase now that basketball officiating season is here. I'll keep you updated!
And the first physical wasn't so great. Dr. Wang informed me that I needed to lose some weight and that it was time to get a colonoscopy. Fortunately, the blood work and urinalysis didn't show any serious concerns, which was good news. The colonoscopy showed three polyps that weren't serious, but instead of another one scheduled in five years, my next one was scheduled for three years. (And I think that will be next year...damn.) I did get to talk to the doctor about my knee problems, and I started a medication geared toward relieving the pain in my knee caused by arthritis.
And last year's news really wasn't so great either. My weight had not decreased, and while my "numbers" weren't awful, they weren't great either. I was still taking the Meloxocam for my aching knee, and the "spare tire" around my mid-section was increasing. Dr. Wang once again courteously told me that I really could benefit from losing some weight.
Now it's 2019, and I'm enthusiastic about tomorrow's visit. I know I have more weight to lose and more health benefits to pursue, but my weight is down a little, I haven't taken Meloxocam since June, and I'm feeling better. I already received a call on this year's blood and urine results, and the report I received was "normal". I'm hoping, then, that the rest of the numbers tomorrow also show a more positive trend then past physicals. While I don't expect Dr. Wang to dance a jig of joy and excitement, I hope to avoid "the look" and reminder about dropping weight.
UPDATE
So I attribute the "new me" to intermittent fasting, getting some work done on my knee at Frontline Spine and Sport, and a morning stretch/yoga routine. I've since added a couple of other "healthy aspects" that have seemed to help.
First, I'm getting down to Turning Point and completing a couple of multi-joint strength training exercises I use to do regularly "back in the day". I'm getting three sets of bench press and three sets of squats completed 2-3 times a week. While I think I should be doing more, this recent addition is a good step toward doing more strength training work.
Also, I've added an "ab routine" to the morning yoga/stretch routine. It's a little 10-minute ab workout which is very tiring. In fact, the first few times, I really had to adapt the routine to my very weak core. I'm getting stronger, and I'm noticing that the increased core strength seems to be helping me on the basketball court to officiate better. I feel stronger, and my knee seems to hurt less.
Of course, it's not surprising that increased core strength would assist me feeling better. I know from experience and all the research that fitness starts with the core, but core work is HARD! I'm trying to stick with it, though. I think I'm getting 5-7 routines completed each week, and I think I've been at it now for about a month.
These two items have not really had an impact on weight loss. I seem to be hovering around 219-222, and I have been there for awhile. That's okay because I haven't been doing a lot of exercising and expect the exercise amount to increase now that basketball officiating season is here. I'll keep you updated!
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Ohh...Yaa..Basketball IS HERE!
Alright, so technically, I've been officiating some basketball in recent weeks - youth and junior high girls. A couple of nights, though, I was flipping through the channels on the television, and Nebraska was playing UC Riverside. Initially, I thought it was an exhibition game, which wasn't a bad thing, but then I flipped to ESPN, and Duke was playing Kansas.
I thought to myself, "Why would ESPN being running past games in prime-time, but then I remembered commercials earlier in the week advertising for this championship night at Madison Square Garden. And then it hit me! BASKETBALL IS HERE!
I'm sure in a previous post I have mentioned my passion for the game, and in that post, I probably explained that I really don't know why I have such an intense love for the game. I'm guessing if I did a psychological analysis of my childhood and all the influences on the planet that intervened at particular moments I might be able to postulate some hypothesis (yes, trying to sound scientific there).
But forget the postulations and analyses, I just want to watch it, be around it, officiate it, talk about it, play it. (And I really, really wish I could play, but I'm afraid of my knee and my weight.) It's HERE; it's HERE; it's HERE! And now that it is here, this is really my last weekend of much downtime. After this weekend...pending snow days...I won't go two days in a row without officiating somewhere at some level until late February. And there will be times when I'm out there in officiatingville that I will begin to get road-weary, but for now, I'm eager to get it started.
So let it all begin!
I thought to myself, "Why would ESPN being running past games in prime-time, but then I remembered commercials earlier in the week advertising for this championship night at Madison Square Garden. And then it hit me! BASKETBALL IS HERE!
I'm sure in a previous post I have mentioned my passion for the game, and in that post, I probably explained that I really don't know why I have such an intense love for the game. I'm guessing if I did a psychological analysis of my childhood and all the influences on the planet that intervened at particular moments I might be able to postulate some hypothesis (yes, trying to sound scientific there).
But forget the postulations and analyses, I just want to watch it, be around it, officiate it, talk about it, play it. (And I really, really wish I could play, but I'm afraid of my knee and my weight.) It's HERE; it's HERE; it's HERE! And now that it is here, this is really my last weekend of much downtime. After this weekend...pending snow days...I won't go two days in a row without officiating somewhere at some level until late February. And there will be times when I'm out there in officiatingville that I will begin to get road-weary, but for now, I'm eager to get it started.
So let it all begin!
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