How I've grown/What I've learned

How I Have Grown/What I Have Learned

Brian Seda

            I have learned many things in my first semester of college. The transition from high school to college was a very easy transition for me. I knew that I was ready to go to college and achieve all that I wanted to. The Hixson seminar class has taught me many things. I feel that I have grown as a person since stepping foot on the Iowa State campus in August.

            The first thing that I have learned about college is how much time and effort you need to put into studying to receive good grades. I now know that in order to achieve the grades that I want, I have to put in the proper studying time. Another thing that I have learned is how to take good notes. When I first got to Iowa State my note taking skills were not very good, but I have gotten a lot better at writing down the key points from lectures. The last thing I have learned is how to properly balance studying and free time. I know that if I study too much then eventually I will over study and begin to dislike school. I know that it is important to take breaks from studying once in a while and just relax with friends. These are three things that I have learned in my first semester of college.

            I feel that I have grown as a person in my first semester of college. Through the Hixson class I have learned a lot about diversity and why it is important in our society. I know that this is important for me to learn about to help make me a well-rounded person. Another way that I feel I have grown is I now feel very independent and capable of achieving whatever I set my mind too. My first semester of college made me realize that I could have success in college classes and learn a lot of new information. The last way that I feel I have grown is academically. I now feel that I have improved my study skills and note taking skills. This improvement has led me to improving my test scores and I am now able to achieve my desired grades.

            Overall I feel that I have had a good first semester here at Iowa State. I have made life long friends and I have also learned a lot in the classroom. I am glad that Iowa State has lived up to my expectation of being a top of the line university. I am confident that I will receive a good education here in my four years at Iowa State. Hopefully when I graduate from Iowa State I am able to achieve my dream job of working in the sports business area.

            I am confident that I will continue to grow as a person and learn a lot more in my four years at Iowa State. I am happy to be here and am excited to continue my collegiate education next semester. I am looking forward to applying to the college of business next year and I hope to learn a lot more about business as a whole. I would not want to be any other place because I know that Iowa State will help me achieve all that I want to achieve both in and out of the classroom. 

Diversity event-Our year in America's Racially Divided Economy

Cultural Diversity Event

Brian Seda

            Attending the cultural diversity event our year in America’s racially divided economy was very interesting. This event helped open my eyes to an issue I had never thought of. This issue is the lack of African American owned businesses and businesses that employ African Americans. Maggie Anderson and her family pledged to only buy from African American owned businesses for one year.

            This experiment that the Anderson’s took part in was very controversial. According to Maggie she said that we need to bring back African American owned businesses and support their businesses. She was very passionate about this issue and she wanted to persuade us to support African American owned businesses. This issue is a major issue that we need to address.

            During the speech she stated many facts that helped point out how big of an issue this really is. One of her facts is that a dollar in the black community only circulates for six hours. This means that once a dollar is earned in their community it only takes six hours for this dollar to go to a business that is owned by another race. For other groups the time is much more than six hours. For the Asian community it is 28 days, and in the Jewish community it circulates within their community for 19 days. This means that there is a lack of African American owned businesses.

            Maggie’s main message is that we need to try and help African American people open up businesses and when they do we need to support them. She says if we do this then our economy will be much better off in all-racial classes. Right now she says that the black community is struggling because it is hard for them to own a business and when they do no one supports them. She also states that not enough businesses are hiring African Americans, so they are having economic troubles. Her solution to solving the problem is to get the issue out there and tell people that it is important to support black owned businesses.

            Overall I thought that the presentation was very interesting and I learned a lot. I was previously not aware of hos big of an issue this truly is. I now know that it is important to support African American owned businesses. Maggie Anderson is also the author of a book titled Our Black Year and one day I would like to read this book to make myself more aware of this issue. I know that going to this diversity event was very beneficial for me and it opened my eyes to a current issue that I was previously unaware of.

What the Hixson award means to me

What the Hixson Award Means to Me

Brian Seda

            Receiving the Hisxon award was one of the best things that have ever happened to me. When I found out that I had won the award I was overjoyed. I knew that this award would help me out in paying for college. I also knew that this award would give me an awesome opportunity at Iowa State. This award will help me achieve my goal of graduating from Iowa State.

            The Hixson award will help me out a lot financially. This award makes it easier for my family and I to pay for college. This award makes me be able to attend Iowa State and not have to pay full tuition. It means a lot to me to only have to pay half tuition for four years while here at Iowa State. This allows Iowa State to be one of the cheapest yet best college options for me to attend.

            The opportunity that the Hixson award presents is second to none. This award means that I am able to attend Iowa State and achieve my dream of graduating from Iowa State. This award means that I will be able to learn from some of the best professors in the nation for four years. It allows me to become better rounded while learning so much new information while being here at Iowa State.

            The last thing that this award means to me is that I will be able to try and achieve my dream job one day. My goal is to graduating with a degree in management and a minor in sport recreation. This award will help me achieve this goal. After college I want to go to graduate school to receive my masters degree in sports management. Then I would like to work for a professional sports team or maybe in a college athletic office.

            Overall the Hixson award means a lot to me. For me it means the opportunity to achieve my goals. The award also means a lot to me because it will assist me in paying for college. Receiving the award was a true honor and I can’t explain the feeling I received when I opened the envelope and found out that I had won the award. I am going to use the Hixson award to help me achieve my goals and dreams while here at Iowa State.   

Cultural Diversity

Cultural Diversity

Brian Seda

            Diversity is one of the key aspects of our society and there is a lot of diversity in the world we live in. We live in a world full of diversity everyday. Learning about diversity in our Hixson class was very interesting. I learned a lot about how diversity and how we are affected by it daily.

            The presentation about diversity in our class was very good. I learned a lot about all of the struggles and challenges that diversity presents in our world. I also learned a lot about the diversity in the Oakland school district and how the people are affected by it. I think that the presentation will make me think more about the diversity that is present here at Iowa State. The presentation will also make me think about how diversity plays a big role in our society.

            My outlook on diversity has changed a lot since high school. In my high school there was absolutely no diversity at all. When I got here at Iowa State I quickly realized how much diversity there is here. I know that people here are from a variety of backgrounds and all of us have a story of how we got to Iowa State. I learned that diversity is very important and it is what makes us all unique people.

            Diversity is very important to our culture and education. It is important for us to learn about what makes all of us so diverse. We need to understand the different cultures that we all come from, so that our society can function properly. If we didn’t learn about diversity then our society would consist of cliques of people who don’t want to learn about other peoples’ culture or background. I think that if this happened then it would be the cause of a lot of fights and anger in our society.

            Overall diversity is extremely important for us to learn about. It is a key component in our current society that we live in. Diversity is what makes all of us special in our own way. It helps make our society unique and exciting to live in. Diversity will continue to have an effect on our society, so that is why it is so important for people to learn about diversity and how it affects the world we live in. 

Social Media Week Blog

Social Media Blog

Brian Seda

            There are a number of things that I learned during social media week. For this week I created a twitter account and I followed a variety of people on twitter. I also had to blog twenty tweets and I this was my first time every composing a tweet. I learned how fast information is spread through twitter and I also learned how you could find out news through twitter.

            I had a lot of different feelings towards my participation on twitter. Overall I thought that twitter is kind of waste of time except that you can find out some useful information on twitter. I thought that twitter is almost just like Facebook and I didn’t think there was too much of a difference. I think that I will continue to use twitter after creating a twitter account for social media week. I like that you can find out information of what is going around here on the Iowa State campus.

            Social media can help me accomplish my goals by letting me know all of the opportunities that there are here on campus. Twitter will make me more knowledgeable on events that I can go to that will give me a break from school and homework. Around the world twitter is being used as an outlet for businesses and professional sports teams to get their word out. It almost serves as advertising when businesses and sports teams tweet about the events they have going on. These tweets are read by thousands of people who are following their business. Twitter is a cheap way for businesses to quickly get the word out about a sale or upcoming event they are having.

            I was really surprised about how twitter can help you relax and serve as an outlet for you thoughts. I was also shocked about how news can spread on twitter and can play a role when it comes to disasters like the Mexico City gunmen. I was also surprised about how Facebook can actually be a negative and can lead to tarnished friendships. The last thing that surprised me was how you can look for jobs on twitter.

            Overall I thought that these articles gave me an insight to the variety of uses that twitter can provide. I learned a lot about how to use twitter and why twitter may be better then Facebook. I thought that social media week was fun and exciting to participate in. I will continue to use twitter in my daily life to follow my favorite athletes and sports teams.