Chatelaine 205: Building well rounded members

We are all students. Whether we are in our first year or are life long learners, we all fit within our educational eco system.

This past week, as we do every year, my job welcomed new Freshman to campus. The class of 2030. They are moving into dorms, finding their way around campus, meeting new people, getting excited for classes and those things they are about to learn. They are experiencing freedom, living on their own for the first time.

The only people who arrived on campus before them were the student athletes, band, and those students in Presidents Leadership Program. These students, along with faculty and staff, helped the freshman move in. They carried boxes up to dorm rooms, provided water, gave directions, and made these new students welcome.

I spent a good amount of time Monday morning providing directions as Freshman made their way to various theaters around campus to hear their Dean's welcome speeches.

As classes start, people get settled, find their way around, and establish their routines. They are building friendships, brought together by chance or by a common interest. Through all of these new experiences, the faculty, staff, and other support help make them feel at home. By the time the Spring comes around they are fully integrated and are ready to help the next set of students starting the next term.

When a new employee starts at CNU, they are given a set of Key Traditions. These traditions apply to everything we do, on campus and in the SCA.

1. Friendly, Caring, and Energetic Service

2. Anticipating and Meeting Needs

3. Unrelenting Attention to Detail

4. Inspiring and Uplifting Others

5. Putting Students First

6. Transforming Lives

When students start, they sign the Honor Code. Each student receives a penny after signing the honor code at convocation. At commencement, the graduates throw their pennies into the Geese Fountain. The penny is a symbol of loyalty and trust, as well as honor and integrity. During the first week of school, students in the President's Leadership Program (that's the University President), and those who are aiming to achieve a service certificate participate in Day One of Service. This is one of my favorite events of the year. About 400 new Freshman hop onto busses and vans with staff and upper classmen leading over 40 teams. The teams spread throughout the community to schools and community organizations, all in need of some kind of help.

Last year my team went to a local high school and helped setup bulletin boards and prepare the school for students to arrive the following week. This year my team went to an organization that assists families with parenting classes, family play time, and helps to curb abuse and neglect. Other teams helped clean up yards at museums, painted sheds at schools, helped with food pantries, and so much more. This day is called Day One because it is an introduction of the students to the community they will be a part of for the next four years, and possibly beyond.

These traditions are not dissimilar to what we strive for in the SCA. We hear the phrase "Always be a Chatelain" or "Everyone is a Chatelain" repeatedly. We are our own best advocates if we provide friendly, caring, and energetic service. We want to put our best foot forward at all times. That means knowing when to take a break, when to bring in reinforcements, and how to anticipate and meet the needs of every new person we meet.

Anticipating needs and inspiring/uplifting others work in tandem in the SCA. If we find out what a person is interested in, we can introduce them to people who share a similar joy and leave them gaining a new friend and feeling inspired to learn more about that art. Setting someone on a path and providing guidance, whether it is a complex embroidery stitch or lace making or how to throw a simple flat snap, is what we do. When we meet a new person and introduce them to all the wonderful things the SCA has to offer we need to narrow the focus fairly quickly so we do not overwhelm them.

One thousand hobbies in a trench coat. We have all heard it, many of us live it. When someone new is starting out, encourage finding a balance. Don't start with everything. Pick one or two things that spark joy and learn them, then branch out into more topics or narrow the focus even further. Love cooking? Awesome, here's a few generic medieval cookbooks. REALLY love 13th century Spanish Iberian or 15th Italian. Here's a lot more books just on those things.

When we put our students, or newcomers, first, we prioritize making them feel important, wanted, and engaged. When we fully engage new members they want to come back and be a part of the greater society. Well rounded members make realizing our dream easier.

Encourage new members to come to meetings and try things out. Get to know the people. The more they become involved, the more likely they are to want to stay involved. Encourage those interested in the arts to come hang out at fighter practice and those interested in fighting to try their hand at an art. Encourage them to volunteer, by helping with setup/teardown, by retaining, by shadowing someone with a position of responsibility.

Starting in the SCA is very much like starting at a new school - figuring out what classes you want to take, what you want to major in, where you will hang out when you're not in class. It's really about finding your people, and helping a new person find theirs. As long as groups of people are inviting, willing, and accepting of new members, we will continue to grow and to thrive. We were all freshmen once.