Standing Out

Today I was nominated by a classmate for the Honor Council at The University of St.Augustine! "Employed" to uphold the standards of the University, the Council serves to internally protect the reputation of the physical therapy profession at the graduate level. A distinguished privilege; it will come down to a vote from my class as a whole and I'm excited to be the first student nominated! As an active participant in all of our classes, I build my reputation as a vocal and participating student in the overall learning process. Its my unlikely B.S. degree in Health Physical Education and Recreation that I attribute to my ability to instruct others and communicate effectively.

This semester has been a trying one. Medical Physiology and Skills challenge my ability to learn very detailed information and retain it for practical use in the courses to come.

Early on I yearned for a study group to best attack the massive volume of information presented to us in an accelerated fashion. It wasn't an easy task even for a highly sociable person like myself. The Purple Class demographics reflect the profession as a whole - white females making up the majority of practicing therapists. Their male counterparts seemed my biggest challenge to reach in terms of building my social network. There were times my ability to perform well in class seemed to annoy them, especially early in the semester. I made a curriculum adjustment, dropping anatomy just before midterms. This allowed me to focus on the material at hand and retain more information and perform better on tests. This strategy is often praised by faculty who call it a more normal approach to PT School and prepare students better for clinical work. So, far, the second half of the semester has reflected that to a "T." My grades improved in all areas and I'm looking very good going into finals...


A second bright moment in my day arose just after our last Clinical Massage laboratory.
After seeing me train my body in the gym yesterday, our instructor found out from other students that I'm a skilled dancer. After class he approached me offering insight to a unique clinical internship that might be available during the 6th term. Two alumni of the University now work for Cirque du Soleil. My personal interest in dance and ability to perform complex movement pattern piqued his interest and thus he shared with me a very interesting chance at having a very special clinical internship down the road.

Folks, my insides are doing back flips! What a wonderful intersection along my path to have a faculty member offer such a parallel opportunity with my vision for a non traditional approach to treating patients!

I can say with preparedness, that time is on my side. I thanked God immediately for making me exactly who I am and for showing me the door to what may be a foot into my future! I'm excited and have to meet a classmate at 7pm. One hour to eat and chill... then its back to being a student...a stand out student at that!