Jamie Connell

ACAD 1104-H3

December 2, 2019

Dr. Romine-Gabardi

First Semester Reflection

Over the course of my first semester in college, I have made new relationships,

found new interests, and most importantly, learned new things. I have learned new

things in all of my classes, but especially in ACAD. When I first came to visit ISU before

I decided I was going to attend here, I wasn’t so sure about it. I had never even heard of

Pocatello and I was gonna move my entire life there? Since I got an offer that I couldn’t

refuse, I ended up deciding to come here. Since I’ve moved here, I have learned so

much about the community through my first-year transition course that I never thought I

would have. I didn’t think much about this town, but coming from a large city, I

appreciate the sense of community that is within Pocatello. During our city-as-text

explorations, I learned about Pocatello’s neighborhoods and all the local restaurants,

stores, and businesses. The sense of community that I have learned about has

provided me with a great sense of belonging. To me, this is important because if you

don’t feel like you fit into the place you’re living, then chances are that you won’t want to

stay there for long. Since I am here for the next four years of my life, it’s important to me

that I feel welcomed, which I do. My goal for the years ahead of me at ISU is to

accumulate a 3.5 GPA and eventually be an honors mentor. I don’t think I will be able to

become a mentor for a few years while I get adjusted to this new and very busy lifestyle,

but at some point, I would like to do that. My mentor has been there for me and has
been such a great resource and I want to be able to be that for somebody else who’s

coming to their first year of college. If I could change one thing about my experience

during my first semester, I would probably attend even more honors program events to

better network myself and make new connections within the program.

In my first semester, I made a lot of new friends. Since I am not from here, that

was a big concern of mine coming into the new school year. However, I was nervous for

absolutely no reason. It was way easier to make friends than I thought it would be.

Classes, campus events, and honors program events were all great ways that I was

able to make new connections. When it comes to impactful connections, I got really

lucky having Jamie as my ACAD teacher because whenever I saw her outside of class,

she always made it a point to say hello to me. I felt like I actually made friends with her

as my professor and I am forever grateful for that connection I was able to make before

she leaves for Oregon. I also made a really good connection with my humanities

teacher, Dr. Levay. Since he used to teach at Harvard, he will be a great resource that I

will be able to utilize in the future. Not only that, but I genuinely enjoy talking to him and

having intelligent discussions because he is a very intricate person so he makes for a

fun time. Both of these professors significantly impacted my first semester experience

because if you don’t like your professors, you have a really hard time getting yourself to

go to their classes. But since I liked both these professors, I learned a ton of material

that I never would have learned in other courses.

From here, I plan on attending ISU for the next three and a half years. With the

skills that I have learned in ACAD like emailing professors and looking for a deeper

meaning in the community, I will move forward as a more educated and knowledgeable
person. I feel like I look at the world through a different lens because of my city-as-text

experience. The community never really used to mean anything to me, but now when I

move forward with my degree, I will appreciate the community of Pocatello. The biggest

lesson I learned this semester was to reach out to my professors. Since I am on the golf

team, I miss a lot of classes and it was really great to see how cooperative and

understanding they were when I communicated with them about missing classes,

assignments, and upcoming tests. Professors aren’t as intimidating as the movies make

them seem, they are there to help you succeed. So, next semester, I will make sure to

make good connections with my professors and communicate effectively so that I can

make both of our lives easier. The biggest piece of advice I’d give myself for next

semester would be to get involved. Attending different events paid off so great this

semester in terms of making friends so if I continue to be involved, I can further my

connections and be able to network myself even more while making new friends. With

that being said, some steps I can take to maximize my experience here at ISU through

the honors program is finding the calendar for the honors events. If I go through it and

am able to know about the events ahead of time, I can make sure that I’ll be able to

attend them and won’t be caught off guard. If I can do this, I can attend as many events

as my calendar allows.

Over the past year, I won the individual state title which contributes to both my

personal and professional trajectory. With my personal trajectory, I want to be the

number one player on the golf team and succeed to my highest potential. With my

professional trajectory, I want to go into the golf industry and be able to teach people

and winning state individually is something that I will be able to put on my resume that
will pay off in the long run. Along with that, being admitted into the honors program is

something that I take pride in. Not many people are selected for the honors program, so

it will contribute immensely to my professional trajectory once I get into the competitive

field of business. It will also help contribute to my selection for retaining an internship

next summer. Honors program members really stand out so hopefully, it pays off next

summer when I am looking for an internship. All in all, I have thoroughly enjoyed my

first-semester experience here at ISU thanks to my professors, advisors, and mentors. I

couldn’t have asked for a better college experience thus far and I can’t wait for what the

future holds.