Week 15 | State & Local Government | Reflection Paper - Final

 Larry Feirman State & Local Gov’t.-Week 15

April 27, 2021 Final Exam- Reflection Paper

Q 1:  Given what you know about this topic so far, please reflect on the heritage and values of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in the context of your own values and belief system.

Response:  I believe the best place to begin this response is to confirm what those  values are:

The Hallmarks of a Notre Dame de Namur Learning Community, developed by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in collaboration with SND learning communities, are:

Our Core Values—community, diversity, excellence, goodness, integrity, justice, learning, service—are closely linked to the Hallmarks of a Notre Dame de Namur Learning Community developed by the Sisters in collaboration with NDNU and other SNDdeN learning communities. These values should be considered in the context of the Hallmarks. 

1. We proclaim by our lives even more than by our words that God is good.

2. We honor the dignity and sacredness of each person.

3. We educate for and act on behalf of justice and peace in the world.

4. We commit ourselves to community service.

5. We embrace the gift of diversity.

6. We create community among those with whom we work and with those we serve.

7. We develop holistic learning communities which educate for life.

Response:

Having been raised as a Catholic, by a mother who was to be a nun, but gave that up to marry my father, a Jew, religion was an integral part of my familial life even after my mother passed away at age 38, leaving my dad with four children under the age of seven!  We were at church every Sunday until the age of 18 when we were told we could choose how we wanted to proceed.  Catechism was twice weekly and a requirement, once again by my father and my deceased mother’s siblings.  Although I have chosen recently to conduct my own brand of religion, or spiritualism, the foundation of who I am was very much influenced by this early involvement with the Catholic Church.

My natural inclination has always been to respect others, never to belittle or make someone feel smaller so I could appear bigger; although no one is ever completely perfect.  My father being a Jew would not stand for any prejudices, and that behavior continued when raising my two adopted children ( mix races), and the one failed adoption of an African American daughter.  I/we have always seen the person, and not anything else besides their behaviors.

When time permitted during my working years, and when I was not flying around the world, I was involved in the Catholic school board where my children were attendees.  I also worked within the church for fund raising and assisting families in the community that needed assistance.  My siblings and I were the recipients of assistance from Catholic Charities after the death of our mother.  I learned then, when one receives, one must then contribute at a point in in their lives.

Most recently and having the time to re-enter my community contribution(s), I have re-joined Project Read in Redwood City as a tutor, and working with another Redwood City Non-profit, Friends For Youth, assisting them with operational issues to build their services for the community.  It is a learning process which will evolve into a teaching process.

After leaving an industry where I worked for over 40 years, I decided to return to college, to earn a degree in History and then pursue what I always wanted to do; be a teacher.  I will graduate in May of 2021 and then begin the credential process in the fall of 2021. Nothing much has changed as far as the part I wanted to play in life; return the favors, the help, the opportunities that were afforded to my family and me.

Q6: In what ways, if any, have you had opportunities at NDNU to build a sense of community with others? Who were the “others”? Were they students? Teachers? NDNU staff? Were they people you met through community engagement activities? Were they non-human beings? Who benefited from these interactions? Do you feel that you built a sense of community for those others or with them?

Response

Having now had the opportunity to finally complete my education at age sixty-seven and three quarters, I have been a myriad of experiences, way beyond my expectations from my professors, and surprisingly from my fellow students.  I say surprisingly because of my age and the thoughts of what could I possibly have in common with them.

What we ALL had in common was Covid-19; it leveled the playing field, as suddenly we were all held captive in our homes, classrooms were now zoom rooms, and professors had to suddenly re-adjust their teaching methods, as many students had to return home to  a place they had left so that they could be independent and grow.

Many, if not all of my social life outside of classes no longer existed.  No horse riding, no job, no seeing friends, but allowing me the time to focus all of my attentions on school work and as importantly time to think about my new found life.  Community projects allowed me to pursue involvements I had put off but most importantly, these CP’s gave me a fresh new outlook on community, those in need, and a possible new profession.  

Dr. Cole, Kristen Edwards, Patti Andrews, Bonnie Lui, and Pearl Chaozon-Bauer introduced me to a world that I had not experienced before, and that was a gift to me.  In return, and from what I learned in 2 classes with Patti Andrews was surveys and social thought (community partners); all new to me.  I could relate to professors because of age and experiences, and their gits to me was an introduction to thoughts, books, academia, intelligence; all that I wanted and had not had exposure to and in return I gave my undivided attentions, near 100% attendance rate, personal experiences and comradery.  For and from my fellow students I received acceptance, friendship, and a shared vision, and contribution to the world we are about to enter.  They are just beginning their futures and I am re-creating mine.  From all of that, all of us will contribute to the common good, the betterment of others.

I will be returning to NDNU in the fall of 2021 for my teaching credential and to further my contribution to education and the community.

Q.4 Have you, in the context of this or any class at NDNU, had opportunities to apply your classroom learning to address community or social problems? If so, did this make your classroom learning more successful in any way? In what ways, if any, did you find Reflection-Action-Reflection to be a useful model for combining classroom learning with social engagement in this way?

Response:  

Although this may seem silly, irrelevant and such, the opportunity to create a survey(s) this semester and last was a new experience for me.  The formulation of questions, the cadence of ensuring one builds upon another was difficult at first, and then sheer bliss. 

The acquisition of a relationship with a community partner development, relationship, and contribution was personally satisfying but also has given me a window (s) to my next occupation, the role of helping others.  The chance to go back to Project Read and work with school age children on reading comprehension, their homework, just a change of pace for them, and me has been so worthwhile.  Learning more about and seeing inside the non-profit organizations and working with them to improve their work has been an eye opener and the opportunity to understand their business model seeing where change might help (BDP’s=best demonstrated practices from other industries). 

Q7: Have you had opportunities at NDNU to develop or refine your spiritual or ethical leadership skills in working toward a more just society? What specifically were those skills? How do you see yourself applying those skills during the remainder of your education and/or during your life and career after college?

Response

Having been in private industry for over 40 years, I really did not have the opportunity to “practice” spiritual skills, although I tried at all times to be as ethical as possible, being as truthful as possible and not violating the trust of my client.  Client always came before employer, especially in an ethics situation.  That was then, and this is now.

Now looks slightly different, with one major caveat; being the older student in my classes, I always felt I needed to be the spiritual & ethical leader in my dealings with professors and students alike.  Not that this was an effort, but the environment is much different than industry.

I organized student only zoom meetings that were especially helpful during COVID, and especially as this is the last year for my cohorts.  Anxiety and tensions can rise.  I am quite use to the pressure from my “working” life.  I have developed a much more subtle approach to life and to others since I started at NDNU.  I wanted to be a real mentor for my cohorts, a relationship  built on giving, sharing, and helping, with no ulterior motive except to see them succeed.

Q5: How do you personally define diversity? What have you learned during your time at NDNU about the challenges and rewards of embracing diversity? Is embracing diversity of value to the human and larger Earth communities?

Response:  

For personal clarity and guidance, I used the following definition to respond to the question above:  “For the Greater Good Science Center, “diversity” refers to both an obvious fact of human life—namely, that there are many different kinds of people—and the idea that this diversity drives cultural, economic, and social vitality and innovation. Indeed, decades of research suggest that intolerance hurts our well-being—and that individuals thrive when they are able to tolerate and embrace the diversity of the world.“ 

During my lifetime I have embraced all people that I have come in contact with as equals.  Having grown up with Jewish relatives that were holocaust victims, we were taught at a very early age about discrimination of any kind, regardless of race, color, or creed. Our family was also made up of Irish and Swedish immigrants that were, at times, treated poorly in New York, where they entered the U.S. at Ellis Island.  We accepted all people as they were.

After the death of my mother, my father had to hire an adult to watch us during the week when he worked.  She was African American and lived with us Monday through Friday. Mind you, I was five years young and had never seen a person of color ever.  Out of fright I ran to my dad to tell him there was a lady in our kitchen and she was badly burned.  He patiently and lovingly said her ancestors were from Africa, and there, because of the heat and sunlight, there skin had a magic color so they would not get sun burned.  She was our mother for five years!

All my years of working in private industry, of flying all over the world, being involved with people of all colors, creeds, etc., I was always comfortable with meeting new people and learning about their culture, backgrounds, etc.  Getting to know a diverse group of people, places, and ways, was exciting and natural for me.  I believe I was always welcomed by respecting their personage.

My former wife and I adopted three children, all of mixed race.  Unfortunately, the African American daughter we adopted was requested back by the father, after 3 months of being with us.  We were devastated, but did what we thought best for the infant child (our daughter Margeaux).

Being at NDNU over the past four years has been a re-introduction to academia for me, meeting young people of all types.  They are my colleagues, cohorts and fellow human beings.