So now, just slightly over a month after my arrival at Iowa and three weeks into my courses, you are going to get a look at my insane schedule! Yay!!! (Note the sarcasm). Just kidding, I genuinely love my classes. But 20 semester hours per week is a bit nuts. Let’s back up and take a look at it from the beginning.
This is my schedule for this week!
I know what you’re thinking!
- That doesn’t look so bad! She’s got the weekends off!
- That’s crazy! She has 5 classes in one day! And she has dance every single day! I’m tired just thinking about it! (#voluntarydancemajor).
Hey, don’t get me wrong, I love my schedule. As a matter of fact, what you’re looking at is not the complete one. The Honors course on Monday ends in October and gets swapped with a Ballroom Dancing: Foxtrot and Tango course on Wednesdays that goes from October to December. And one of my courses, Literary Readings, is not on my schedule because our student duty is to attend different literary readings around Iowa City and write a few paragraphs proving our presence there.
However, my busy schedule is abnormal. Most students have between 15-18 s.h. I had to get special permission to add the latest course (my Honors Green Room) to my schedule because it upped my hours to 20 per semester.
Which brings me to the most important part of this blog post: “The Green Room” (an Honors course).
On Monday, as part of my course, I attended a talk by Dessa, the famous rapper, singer, writer, at the Englert Theater. This coming Monday is a talk by Peter Aguero and his wife Sara Peters…organized by yours truly and her group with the assistance of two teaching assistants and our dedicated Professor David Gould.
Now compared to events like football at Kinnick Stadium or activities that provide free food, a talk might not seem as appealing to University of Iowa students. But I’m here to tell you that there is much more to the talk than meets the eye.
I personally feel as though The Green Room course is one that is overlooked. Professor Gould invites influential and compelling speakers to participate in The Green Room course; they tell relevant and interesting stories that captivate both students and the rest of the Iowa community. These talks also promote a non-profit organization (last Monday’s was the Domestic Violence Intervention Program and this coming Monday’s is the Iowa Harm Reduction Coalition) and have a musical guest ranging from semi-formal artists to preschoolers performing with one of those artists. The course as a whole offers the opportunity for the Iowa community to become more involved in the events that are going on in the University of Iowa thus bringing the city residents into the college.
This coming Monday, Peter Aguero and Sara Peters are going to combine their talents to create a compelling story for all of us to enjoy. Peter came last year (hence the picture below, donated and approved for usage by Professor David Gould) and was so popular that he’s returning again.
I feel like it would be a shame if students didn’t attend at least one of these talks. Since coming to Iowa, I have attended five literary readings and one “less like a traditional classroom discussion and more like a TED talk” experience through the Green Room and I can honestly say that the Green Room discussion was by far one of the most captivating. Events like this are designed by students for students and the community. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain from attending a talk like this…(Now that sounds like Firenze talking about Lord Voldemort…just goes to show how hard I’ve been studying for my Harry Potter exam)
And with that, I’m signing off, so that I can do well in my exam tomorrow! Wish me luck!
XOXO Emily… (Not Gossip Girl).