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| Photo Credit: Jennifer Clark |
I've known Jennifer from my days as a grad student at the University of Houston - Clear Lake (UHCL). I was an active participant in many student organizations on campus. I worked closely with Jennifer in the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS), Sigma Alpha Pi, honors society. The year that I joined was the founding year for the UHCL chapter, also serving as the Events Coordiantor. It was exciting to be a part of something that took off and is continually growing on campus, thanks to Jennifer's excitement, dedication and commitment to the students. Some exciting new: in Fall 2014, UHCL will become a full 4 year university from a higher level Bachelor's and post grad university, which means that Jennifer will have more students to help guide in having a sucessful, , memorable and well-rounded college experience. Read about Jennifer below!
Photo Credit: Jennifer Clark
1. Name: Jennifer Clark
2. City and State: Houston, TX
3. What is your educational background? (Include colleges/universities and degrees attained)
4. What types of courses does your degree require?
(If no degree, put "N/A" or list certificates)
Human Development, Cognitive/Social Development, Psychology, Education, Student Development Theory, Organizational Leadership, Counseling
5. What were the most challenging classes you took and how did you overcome those challenges? (If no degree, put "N/A" or list certificate classes taken)
Statistics, Research Methods. I developed a mental block when it came to mathematics when I was in high school. I always loved subjects like English, History, Music – basically, anything Humanities related. I lacked patience for math and science. I believe I sold myself short. When I first started college, I was a musical theatre major and was in a program that was heavily concentrated on music, vocal performance, acting and dance. This was a three year program and I put off college-level math as long as I could. When I started taking my general education courses so that I could complete my Associate’s degree and transfer to Cal State Fullerton, I enrolled in the starter course for math, even though I had tested higher. I had never learned how to properly study math, and I wanted to learn correctly. I applied the study skills I’d developed for my other courses that helped me to be successful (mostly, a lot of note-taking and summarizing chapters and making flashcards for myself), and also forced myself to do more than was necessary. Most math books have answers in the back of the book for some of the questions. I made sure I practiced by working through the sample questions, and the questions that I could check my work on. I gained confidence in my math skills, and I graduated with a 3.92 overall GPA when I finished my B.S. at Cal State Fullerton. My particular major (Human Services/Psychology) required a Psychology Statistics course, and while I haven’t used a ton of what I learned since my career took a different path, I occasionally analyze statistics when I develop my annual report to show the effectiveness of our programs.
6. Did you complete any internships/co-ops during school? If so, where did you intern or co-op? (If you didn’t complete any, put “NA”)
In undergrad, at Cal State Fullerton, I started off as a Psychology major. I soon learned that it wasn’t exactly what I had in mind – my desire was to be a counselor. I found out about the Human Services major from a student co-worker. Human Services combined what I loved about Psychology (understanding behavior and motivation) and also taught me to hone my counseling skills. At the same time I was completing my studies, I discovered a career path into Student Affairs. I worked on campus in the New Student Information Center, gave campus tours, and was an Orientation Leader year-round. I was given opportunities to attend conferences for higher education student affairs professionals, and I found my calling. When it came time to do fieldwork/internship for my major, I wanted to gain more experience with student programming. I had an internship with the Women’s Center/Counseling Center (at Fullerton, these offices were combined), and I also had a year-long internship with the Fullerton First Year program, serving as an FFY mentor. As an FFY mentor, I co-taught a First Year seminar course with a faculty member and a student affairs staff member, and provided one-on-one advising to more than 25 freshmen. Additionally, I worked for the College of Human Development and Community Service (HDCS) as an enrollment manager, and visited community colleges to represent our College during College Fairs. When I went to graduate school at Miami University, my assistantship/internship was with the Student Activities office, and I was responsible for coordinating Miami’s annual student leadership conference, advised a leadership peer mentors group, and coordinated the campus cable channel. I also did an internship teaching a Career Development class, as well as co-facilitated a Leadership class for one of their living/learning communities at Miami. During the summer between my two years in graduate school, I returned to Cal State Fullerton’s HDCS and designed a Student Success program to assist academic probationary and at-risk students, as well as continued to help with enrollment management.
7. What company do you currently work for?
University of Houston – Clear Lake
8. What is your job title?
Assistant Director of Student Life for the Student Leadership, Involvement and Community Engagement (SLICE) program
9. What are your day to day tasks?
I am primarily responsible for coordinating all aspects of our SLICE program, which includes marketing, recruiting presenters and recruiting students to participate in our programs, planning an Annual Student Leadership Conference (open to college students all over Texas. We usually average attendance of 325 or more per year.) I am also responsible for designing and facilitating our annual 3-day Student Leadership Retreat for forty students, held in the Fall semester. I coordinate our Fall and Spring Leadership Workshop Series, and also create and teach several of the workshops for that series. Last year, I launched a week-long Emerging Leaders Academy for new students. I advise and develop the Executive Council for our UHCL student chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success, which has had more than 3000 students join its organization since Spring 2007. SLICE is the campus clearinghouse for volunteerism both on-campus and in the community, so we communicate with local non-profit service organizations to find out what volunteer needs they have and then communicate this information to our students. We host a Community Service Fair in the Fall semester, featuring 25 plus non-profit organizations; we coordinate a UHCL Day of Service in the Spring and work with student organizations to plan service projects all over Houston and Galveston. I also oversee our Servant Leader Scholar Program, which recognizes participation in leadership development programs and community service performed. Additionally, I am part of the Student Life Office team and provide support for office-wide programs, such as Student Government Association, Student Organizations, Chili-Cook Off, New Student Orientation/Programs, Student Leadership Banquet, etc. Since my programs are seasonal, no day is exactly the same. I am always planning details for an event in the future. Daily tasks include communicating with students, faculty, staff, and the community; problem-solving; meeting with students one-on-one; supervising two student assistants for SLICE and making sure they have what they need from me to successful complete their work. I participate in other campus committees and attend meetings. We are currently gearing up for having our first group of first-time freshmen on campus, so I am also researching and benchmarking four-year leadership development programs (classes, portfolio programs) to design curriculum and create a proposal to implement phase 1 by Fall 2014. I also have to assess all of my programs, so we have students complete evaluation forms, and that data has to be calculated and analyzed.
10. Do you work independently or in a team environment? Which do you prefer?
I work both independently and in a team environment. I am given a lot of autonomy in my role, since I am pretty much the Director of the SLICE program. I occasionally receive directives from our AVP of Student Services (such as developing the First Year program for leadership, or researching grant opportunities), or from my boss, the Director of Student Life (who also oversees the Coordinator of Student Activities and Organizations, and all the other functions of the Student Life Office.) As Assistant Director, I assist him where-ever needed, and I support the other programs that come out of our office, whether it is attending a Broomball Tournament with our Fitness Zone – Recreation and Wellness Coordinator, staffing an information table during Student Organizations Expo, presenting a workshop during New Student Orientation – we work as a team to deliver these large programs to our student body.
11. What type of skill sets are needed for this job?
The technical, or “formal” answer to this question is an understanding and knowledge of student development theory and also it’s practical application. My job requires a master’s degree in higher education/student development. You must know how to create a programming budget, how to appeal to students, staff and faculty to recruit their participation, program design, educational pedagogy, communication (written and verbal), conflict management and resolution (especially when working with a team of student officers in an organization). You also need to know how to be resourceful, both financially and in terms of always keeping an eye on trends in leadership development and higher education. I attend conferences around the country and take advantages of workshops for Leadership Educators and those who work with Service Learning programs. I network with colleagues in the same field and we share ideas and strategies. Additionally, a successful Student Affairs practitioner is an educator, a mentor, a counselor, a supervisor, a colleague, a team-player, and sometimes, you have to be a miracle worker (squeezing rocks to find money to pay for things when you don’t have much of a budget.) We have learned to be very creative and resourceful so that we can provide high quality experiences for a low-cost, and I believe that starts with high quality people.
12. Did you have a mentor? If so, what was the most
important lesson he/she taught you?2. City and State: Houston, TX
3. What is your educational background? (Include colleges/universities and degrees attained)
- M.S. Education (College Student Personnel) from Miami University, OH (2002)
- B.S. Human Services (Mental Health/Counseling) from California State University, Fullerton (1999)
- A.A., Citrus College (1996)
Human Development, Cognitive/Social Development, Psychology, Education, Student Development Theory, Organizational Leadership, Counseling
5. What were the most challenging classes you took and how did you overcome those challenges? (If no degree, put "N/A" or list certificate classes taken)
Statistics, Research Methods. I developed a mental block when it came to mathematics when I was in high school. I always loved subjects like English, History, Music – basically, anything Humanities related. I lacked patience for math and science. I believe I sold myself short. When I first started college, I was a musical theatre major and was in a program that was heavily concentrated on music, vocal performance, acting and dance. This was a three year program and I put off college-level math as long as I could. When I started taking my general education courses so that I could complete my Associate’s degree and transfer to Cal State Fullerton, I enrolled in the starter course for math, even though I had tested higher. I had never learned how to properly study math, and I wanted to learn correctly. I applied the study skills I’d developed for my other courses that helped me to be successful (mostly, a lot of note-taking and summarizing chapters and making flashcards for myself), and also forced myself to do more than was necessary. Most math books have answers in the back of the book for some of the questions. I made sure I practiced by working through the sample questions, and the questions that I could check my work on. I gained confidence in my math skills, and I graduated with a 3.92 overall GPA when I finished my B.S. at Cal State Fullerton. My particular major (Human Services/Psychology) required a Psychology Statistics course, and while I haven’t used a ton of what I learned since my career took a different path, I occasionally analyze statistics when I develop my annual report to show the effectiveness of our programs.
6. Did you complete any internships/co-ops during school? If so, where did you intern or co-op? (If you didn’t complete any, put “NA”)
In undergrad, at Cal State Fullerton, I started off as a Psychology major. I soon learned that it wasn’t exactly what I had in mind – my desire was to be a counselor. I found out about the Human Services major from a student co-worker. Human Services combined what I loved about Psychology (understanding behavior and motivation) and also taught me to hone my counseling skills. At the same time I was completing my studies, I discovered a career path into Student Affairs. I worked on campus in the New Student Information Center, gave campus tours, and was an Orientation Leader year-round. I was given opportunities to attend conferences for higher education student affairs professionals, and I found my calling. When it came time to do fieldwork/internship for my major, I wanted to gain more experience with student programming. I had an internship with the Women’s Center/Counseling Center (at Fullerton, these offices were combined), and I also had a year-long internship with the Fullerton First Year program, serving as an FFY mentor. As an FFY mentor, I co-taught a First Year seminar course with a faculty member and a student affairs staff member, and provided one-on-one advising to more than 25 freshmen. Additionally, I worked for the College of Human Development and Community Service (HDCS) as an enrollment manager, and visited community colleges to represent our College during College Fairs. When I went to graduate school at Miami University, my assistantship/internship was with the Student Activities office, and I was responsible for coordinating Miami’s annual student leadership conference, advised a leadership peer mentors group, and coordinated the campus cable channel. I also did an internship teaching a Career Development class, as well as co-facilitated a Leadership class for one of their living/learning communities at Miami. During the summer between my two years in graduate school, I returned to Cal State Fullerton’s HDCS and designed a Student Success program to assist academic probationary and at-risk students, as well as continued to help with enrollment management.
7. What company do you currently work for?
University of Houston – Clear Lake
8. What is your job title?
Assistant Director of Student Life for the Student Leadership, Involvement and Community Engagement (SLICE) program
9. What are your day to day tasks?
I am primarily responsible for coordinating all aspects of our SLICE program, which includes marketing, recruiting presenters and recruiting students to participate in our programs, planning an Annual Student Leadership Conference (open to college students all over Texas. We usually average attendance of 325 or more per year.) I am also responsible for designing and facilitating our annual 3-day Student Leadership Retreat for forty students, held in the Fall semester. I coordinate our Fall and Spring Leadership Workshop Series, and also create and teach several of the workshops for that series. Last year, I launched a week-long Emerging Leaders Academy for new students. I advise and develop the Executive Council for our UHCL student chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success, which has had more than 3000 students join its organization since Spring 2007. SLICE is the campus clearinghouse for volunteerism both on-campus and in the community, so we communicate with local non-profit service organizations to find out what volunteer needs they have and then communicate this information to our students. We host a Community Service Fair in the Fall semester, featuring 25 plus non-profit organizations; we coordinate a UHCL Day of Service in the Spring and work with student organizations to plan service projects all over Houston and Galveston. I also oversee our Servant Leader Scholar Program, which recognizes participation in leadership development programs and community service performed. Additionally, I am part of the Student Life Office team and provide support for office-wide programs, such as Student Government Association, Student Organizations, Chili-Cook Off, New Student Orientation/Programs, Student Leadership Banquet, etc. Since my programs are seasonal, no day is exactly the same. I am always planning details for an event in the future. Daily tasks include communicating with students, faculty, staff, and the community; problem-solving; meeting with students one-on-one; supervising two student assistants for SLICE and making sure they have what they need from me to successful complete their work. I participate in other campus committees and attend meetings. We are currently gearing up for having our first group of first-time freshmen on campus, so I am also researching and benchmarking four-year leadership development programs (classes, portfolio programs) to design curriculum and create a proposal to implement phase 1 by Fall 2014. I also have to assess all of my programs, so we have students complete evaluation forms, and that data has to be calculated and analyzed.
10. Do you work independently or in a team environment? Which do you prefer?
I work both independently and in a team environment. I am given a lot of autonomy in my role, since I am pretty much the Director of the SLICE program. I occasionally receive directives from our AVP of Student Services (such as developing the First Year program for leadership, or researching grant opportunities), or from my boss, the Director of Student Life (who also oversees the Coordinator of Student Activities and Organizations, and all the other functions of the Student Life Office.) As Assistant Director, I assist him where-ever needed, and I support the other programs that come out of our office, whether it is attending a Broomball Tournament with our Fitness Zone – Recreation and Wellness Coordinator, staffing an information table during Student Organizations Expo, presenting a workshop during New Student Orientation – we work as a team to deliver these large programs to our student body.
11. What type of skill sets are needed for this job?
The technical, or “formal” answer to this question is an understanding and knowledge of student development theory and also it’s practical application. My job requires a master’s degree in higher education/student development. You must know how to create a programming budget, how to appeal to students, staff and faculty to recruit their participation, program design, educational pedagogy, communication (written and verbal), conflict management and resolution (especially when working with a team of student officers in an organization). You also need to know how to be resourceful, both financially and in terms of always keeping an eye on trends in leadership development and higher education. I attend conferences around the country and take advantages of workshops for Leadership Educators and those who work with Service Learning programs. I network with colleagues in the same field and we share ideas and strategies. Additionally, a successful Student Affairs practitioner is an educator, a mentor, a counselor, a supervisor, a colleague, a team-player, and sometimes, you have to be a miracle worker (squeezing rocks to find money to pay for things when you don’t have much of a budget.) We have learned to be very creative and resourceful so that we can provide high quality experiences for a low-cost, and I believe that starts with high quality people.
I have had many mentors throughout my life. They have been teachers, supervisors, professional leadership speakers I’ve befriended in my years of coordinating leadership conferences. I have learned so much from each and every one of them that I could fill pages just talking about them. However, for the purpose of this blog, I will talk about my high school showchoir and journalism advisor, Richard Kinzler, or “Mr. K.” I was fortunate to have Mr. K as a teacher for all four years of high school. I was on the newspaper staff my Freshman year, and while he never took freshmen on staff, my junior high school newspaper teacher made a good case for me. Half of the upperclassmen on staff were also in show choir, and they all seemed to really enjoy being around Mr. K. I was curious, and I volunteered for extra assignments and stayed after school to help with paste-up. On a whim, I auditioned for show choir at the end of my freshman year, and I made the group, which meant that I had at least two classes every semester with Mr. K. I became Features editor, then Editor-in-Chief of the school paper, which meant that I was ALWAYS at school, and always working next to Mr. K. And, because I was in show choir and we had weekly rehearsals and we choreographed our own routines, Mr. K’s classroom and office became my home away from home. Mr. K worked harder than anyone I’d ever known. He arrived at school before sunrise, and worked well until after sunset. He was there on weekends making sure we rehearsed for competitions and shows, and to make sure we put out a quality newspaper. He was like a surrogate father to many of my peers who found solace at school as an escape from a broken home. He was counselor and confidante. He got upset, and he held us to high standards, and we wanted to meet those standards because we wanted to make him proud. He gave us his entire life. He was not married, he did not have children – we knew we were his children. He passed away a year and a half ago, and I flew home to California for his memorial service. It was held in an old large cathedral in Pomona. Former students spanning more than 30 years of his career came to his service, and many of us came from out of state. Mr. K literally saved lives. So many of his students have credited him with providing them with that safe space when they might have gone down a path into gangs or drugs. Some did fall onto those paths, but Mr. K helped them to find something positive to focus their lives around. Mr. K helped me to find my voice, to believe in myself. He gave me responsibility. I was a shy, quiet, insecure 13 year old when I met him. Other show choirs hired professional choreographers to stage flashy dance numbers for their competitions, but Mr. K knew that if we created it ourselves, we would learn more and we would develop pride in ourselves and a strong work ethic.
I have been in student affairs since 1997, and I have worked in my current position since 2002. I enjoy rich fulfilling relationships with my college students, mostly because of what I learned from Mr. K. I don’t mind the long hours, coming to work on weekends, staying until 10pm or later at night, because I’m investing in people. I believe that people, if given the chance and responsibility to create and serve, that they can transform themselves and others in the process. Mr. K transformed me.
13. What do you believe to be your greatest strength?
I believe my greatest strength is my desire to continue learning and growing. I am like a sponge – I collect information and knowledge and ask myself how I can pass on this awareness to others. I am a very committed and passionate person, and my students that I am blessed to work closely with, know that I have a blast when I’m with them. Whether we are discovering our Strengths on a three-day leadership retreat, doing a SWOT analysis of our team’s performance from the previous semester, or just chatting one-on-one with a student for an hour in my office about their goals and aspirations or whatever is on their mind.
14. What do you believe to be your greatest weakness?
I probably have a tendency to do TOO much. In the past couple of years, I have felt more run down, and last year, I had a few health setbacks. I have to remind myself to take time for myself, because if I do not, I stop being effective.
15. What are some of your accomplishments? What accomplishment are you the most proud of?
I have built SLICE from the ground up. When I first came to UHCL over ten years ago, the Student Life Office hosted an annual student leadership conference and offered a few workshops for student organization officers, but did not have a formalized leadership development program that was open for everyone. Through trial and error, I believe that I have created a very successful program on-campus. However, I would say my proudest accomplishment is my students. Last summer, we hosted our first ever week-long Emerging Leaders Academy, and on the first night, we hosted a panel of alumni who had gone through SLICE programs and served as student leaders in many different capacities during their time at UHCL. This panel consisted of students I have worked with since 2002. To hear them speak with great love and pride about what they learned at UHCL, and especially for the connections they made through SLICE, filled me with such a sense of gratitude that God has placed me here to do what I do. Every day I am inspired by our students and our alumni. I learn so much from them, and am inspired by their stories of courage and the obstacles they have overcome. I’m inspired by the causes they choose to pursue.
16. What are your hobbies? What do you do for fun?
I love music, theatre, arts and crafts, gardening, spending time with my 10 year old dachshund (Bridget), and spending quality time with my amazing friends and family. As a former musical theatre major, I really enjoy performing and being involved with a production, even if I’m not onstage myself. At the moment, I’m directing several monologues for UHCL’s 5th Annual benefit production of The Vagina Monologues, and this year, I have the delightful privilege to perform one of my favorite monologues from the show. I enjoy being involved in things that bring joy to others. I’ve recently discovered a love for cooking!
17. What did you want to be when you were a child?
I wanted to be a writer. I wanted to be a newspaper reporter. I wanted to play “Evita” or Mary Magdalene in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Jesus Christ Superstar”. I wanted to be in the Mickey Mouse Club (the 70's group with Lisa Welchel from Facts of Life.)
18. If you could switch professions with someone else for a day, what would it be and why?
I really don’t think I would want to… I LOVE my job. But, it might be fun to be a home decorator on an HGTV show like “Design on a Dime”. I love that stuff!
19. What advice would you give girls wanting to go into your field?
I didn’t even know my field existed when I started college. Student Affairs can encompass so many different parts of college life. You can run a Residence Hall, teach First Year seminars, plan New Student Orientation programs, work in Student Activities and do all the fun stuff like bring in bands for concerts. You can plan service projects for the community. You can advise students on what courses they should take for their major and for their career. You can lead groups. You can advise student organizations or student government. If you go into a career in Student Affairs, you have to have the heart for it. You have to have a genuine love for helping other people to succeed. This isn’t a career you go into to become rich. You have to be willing to be flexible with your time. This isn’t a 9-5 job, and every day is different (which is actually the appeal for me.) What I may not take home in my paycheck at the end of the month, I know that the satisfaction and meaning my job/career gives me more than makes up for it. I know many people who make six figure incomes who are miserable. I still pinch myself that I even get paid to do what I do, because I have such a blast doing it. I work in a very positive environment, surrounded by positive people who are determined to help others be successful. We celebrate each other. What could be better than that? If you want to go into Student Affairs, I say take advantage of everything your college has to offer. Volunteer for committees, be a resident advisor, be a peer mentor or orientation leader. Diversify your experience. I went into Student Affairs thinking I would be in charge of New Student Orientation, because that was my introduction to the field, but I discovered leadership programs and it has been extremely fulfilling. Keep an open mind, and don’t be afraid to take the plunge.
95% of the working class are not happy with their jobs except that they pay the bills. Of course, they also create the bills. 5% of the working class are doing the stuff they thoroughly enjoy whether the pay is commensurate with the job skills or not. Jenn is among this 5%. We are very happy to call Jenn our daughter and very happy that she gets this revitalization from her job each and every day. Some folks drink a few cups of coffee to kick into gear. Jenn sits down at her desk and the adrenaline then kicks in. Congrats, Jenn! I kept Mr. K informed of your accomplishments, and he was happy for you...still is albeit from afar.
ReplyDeleteJennifer is an amazing person and I have known her since the day she arrived at UHCL, working outside of Sue Fellman's office in the Bayou Building.
ReplyDeleteJenn is dedicated, compassionate, giving, knowledgeable, talented, gifted, creative, generous, kind, and solid as a rock.
It is an honor to know to her and call her my friend. I suggest that you drop by her office some time and meet her. It will make your day a little bit brighter.
Marlene Morgan
UHCL Alum