boston university orientation schedule

Shiney used fear and intimidation as a means of control. Step 1: Pay your Enrollment Deposit Visit the Beacon Gateway to confirm your admission to UMass Boston & pay your deposit. Also, I understand it was during a pandemic but they lied about how much we would work. We were roommates that summer and commiserated nightly. First-Year Student Orientation - UMass Boston . I desperately wanted the position because it was hourly and we were basically forced to work 20 hour shifts for the 7 or 8 orientation weekends back then. However, McLean noted some of the questions James asked were too personal, including one asking students about their sexuality. She went off on all of us and listed off all these things that went wrong with Orientation, McLean said. Day 1 9-10 am ET Check-in for Orientation When you first arrive on campus, head over to Rich Hall (277 Babcock Street) to drop your belongings off. Im writing this because I strongly believe that BU has a problem dealing with reports of workplace harassment/toxicity/abuse. Theres so much to unpack here. Shiney took advantage of that. Destruction of trust like that has lasting effects. I still have a deep anxiety of doing anything wrong at work, and assume that every mistake will result in unemployment and disgrace. Worst summer I ever had. Im never giving BU another penny. While you can see assigned academic and career advisors on the Academic Advising link, you are not required to meet with your assigned advisor, were all available to help! You should plan to take your first set of exams before you come into the UDC for a full planning meeting. Im so sorry. I did not contribute to this article, but every word in it is true I know of several students in therapy as a direct result of their orientation employment experiences, and my own time working for orientation and the false image of friendliness it advertised (as contrasted with the emotional brutality behind the scenes) certainly negatively impacted my relationship with BU & made me less proud to be part of the universityafter that, my sense of pride/community came from my friends and other students rather than anything associated with the university. Keep in mind that professors are not obligated to sign you in if their section is full. Hes been Elmores drinking buddy for years and his favorite leisure activity is hitting on any female student or employee within 5 feet. The next shoe to drop should be every single person working in the Dean of Students Office, up to Dean Elmore. You can read more about the Title IX protections here (https://www.bu.edu/safety/sexual-misconduct/title-ix-bu-policies/). Boston University 2023. She did help foster some key engagement skills that I was lacking. If you feel like you may have earned a 4 or 5 on the exam, I recommend that younot register for a similar course at BU. She even said that I wouldnt be successful studying abroad because of how I presented myself to her team, even though I had never mentioned studying abroad at any point. Most of them! Really, Shiney? I was CAS Student Advisor for the year 2017. Didnt even bother asking me on what was in my future. Nope! As other people have mentioned below I also want to reiterate that Danny, and other EvCon FTEs, were truly wonderful to work for as student employees. etc but we still all applied. Once classes start, youre welcome to meet any of the professional academic advisors in the UDC based on our individual specialty areas, whoever is available next, or who you are assigned to on the StudentLink. We were not allowed to wear our name badges off campus or when we were off the clock. She needs to go. Yes! I remember having to go around and tell people what our first impressions of each other were and what we thought they could improve on. Find out more about these programs below. Id encourage you to look into your own biases, because they clearly run deep. She told me that I was a coward, McLean said. I worked in various student life and cultural offices at BU and in Res Life, and often found that former SAs were really great leaders and high performing staff. Ive never worked in a more emotionally manipulative work environment. Again, I dont want to undermine anyone elses experience. I worked under James in the summer of 2013 and have specific memories of every single action outlined above. Adrienne: you are probably off teaching and serving as a fabulous, well-qualified mentor. We did not even need to inform her, but I was so afraid that shed find out somehow and Id get in trouble, so I did. I am lucky I stopped working for the office after a year despite the massive guilt that I felt for not returning. Let Robyn know if you have any questions. McLean said she emailed James about an incident involving one of her students in her Orientation group, and James called her into her office to speak. Thanks to ESPN+, you can access live BU sporting events like basketball, hockey and lacrosse, original programming, plus a full library of 30 . Join this webinar to hear from our Student Success Advising area, as well as New Student and Family Programs, about what your student success advisor will offer, how course schedules are built, the support resources available to Berklee students, and more. This webinar will be cohosted by New Student and Family Programs and the Health and Wellness. Its a very inspiring story, and Id always thought she was really really cool at first, until this volatile, mean-spirited behavior started to happen.. She made students earn their right to do certain tasks (such as leading Common Ground), and if you werent given the chance to lead it, you felt like there was something wrong with you. You helped me nip that in the bud, but did it in a way that didnt make me cry (a low bar, to be sure, but with Shiney, that was what I aimed for). Thank you to the Freep and everyone in the comments for sharing their stories and opening my eyes to the extent of the damage done, that it wasnt just me or the people who got yelled at during those summers for making minor mistakes who experienced the emotional abuse. To this day I am afraid of her. Never, ever did I think I would see the day Shiney James harmful behavior came to light. I dont think upper admin did anything about it and it still makes me mad to this day. Like so many others, what surprises me most about this article is that it took so long for all of this to come out. She gets away with so much because her employees are usually only 18-20 years old and depend on the job for housing, and because most of the abuse isnt in writing. None of us ever wanted to be near her. But I feel very remorseful that I didnt realize that by staying on good terms with her, I was perpetuating this system of abuse. An advisor will review your schedule and send back your advising code. Makes me upset to think my whole group spoke up to have people be victimized years later. The person, who has since graduated from BU, said they remember James exerting extreme control over student employees, breaking their spirits and invading their privacy. I had a roommate that was a PA that was closer to Shiney, but she would still come home every day of Orientation crying because of how Shiney treated her. Had an absolute blast that summer and met some of my favorite people in the worldall in despite of not because of Shiney James. What Makes a Great University? Important Dates and Deadlines Course Placement Info Summer Emails For Parents and Families Orientation includes special sessions for families that allow you to interact with other parents and speak with senior administrators and faculty about academic and student life. I came in early to work, with a playlist prepared, only to find that there were no speakers in the room. Everything else discussed in the article and comments has been spot on, so I would like to learn more. Basically same thing happened to me. Boston University policy also requires you maintain a cumulative GPA above 2.0 and that you earn no more than 16 credits with the grade of D. Students must also receive grade of C- or better in all Questrom required courses and in any courses applied towards a declared concentration. I now look back and thank God that all of that fell through, yet Im still saddened by the collective abuse me and my colleagues endured that summer, a lot of which has had severe and lasting effects even in our real world jobs. Who [says] that to a young woman and tells them that they dont smile enough, as a woman?. I was in a good place! There needs to be repercussions for Shiney and all those that enabled her. Drop-in hours and mode (in person or virtual) are listed here. To echo an earlier comment, youre onto something important and huge and need to keep holding her and her enablers to account. Look for one of the Questrom-specific sections: CAS FY101 sections Q1, Q2, Q3, or Q4. About this event 85 days 8 hours Mobile eTicket BU Families, Congratulations to your student and welcome to the Boston University family! Incoming Student Orientation | Harvard College Dean of Students Office Beginning June 1st, registration is available to all students regardless of which Orientation Session they come to. Enjoy an aerial and walking tour of the Heights to better familiarize yourself with our campus. Then, after having gone above and beyond to make sure one family felt safe on campusand even getting a handwritten thank you note from that family afterwardsShiney made sure to single me out in our breakdown meeting as a staff saying that I shirked responsibility while complimenting me in the same breath. Fall orientation will take place Saturday, August 26, through Saturday, September 2, 2023. There are not always two-sides to the story. Or the time she was mad at an employee and forced him to walk across campus during a storm without an umbrella. such a strange lady and job. It saddens me that this continues to happen 10+ years later and that nothing has been changed. Peoples feelings matter. Because of her position and the small administrative team that runs Orientation, former employees say they felt like they had nowhere to turn. I felt like the worst person in the world. As a CSC PM, I interacted with her pretty frequently and thought she stood for supporting student initiatives and diversity. In every job Im in I feel the need to work against the assumption that I am bad and do not care about my work. The lucky ones had grad assistants and COPs who would provide cover. Im too tired to write more. after getting the job offer, I asked her about it BEFORE ACCEPTING THE JOB, acknowledging that I understand if missing meant i couldnt work for the programshe calls me in, called me a liar, said i didnt believe in personal relationships or respect. Ive just recently started unpacking how my summer made me feel worthless, unprofessional, and deserving of mistreatment for *years*. A day that stands out from my time working for Shiney was when she screamed at us for a good ten minutes (I dont remember the reason). Frequently Asked Questions - Questrom School of Business: First Year One hopes that whole department will clean house. As a 2020 Orientation Student Facilitator, I actually challenged staff on this and reminded them that it goes against federal labor laws to not pay us for breaks less than 30 minutes. She told low income students they couldnt work other jobs in their free time, she refused to write a letter of rec for not smiling, someone said they had their first ever panic attack on her office while Shiney sat and watched, she broke worker compensation laws. She started off our debrief meeting (over a wonderful, catered lunch as described above) by slamming the propped up sign below, and blaming us for taking her away from her ill parents to retrieve the sign herself, instead of wondering if maybe the 18-21 year old staff members were exhausted, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Drop-ins are designed for quick questions and last 15 minutes or less. Students and families are both welcome to the first hour, and the second hour will welcome only students, as they will be placed into Zoom breakout rooms by instrument. BU failed the Class of 2023 with its controversial commencement | Editorial, Bubble Burst: Social media isnt essential, even in your freshman year. Fall 2023 New Student Orientation Information | Berklee The former student added some male workers, who she said was often not productive, would never get in trouble. Keep in mind that professors are not obligated to sign you in if their section is full. One instance made every coworker break down and was reprimanded for not showing enough passion. I think this article really sheds light and even paints a better picture than the one I experienced. She also realized that one of my coworkers had an unreciprocated but rather innocent crush on me and repeatedly assigned me to work intimately with them in order to learn how to navigate sexual harassment culture. Staff members will be present from One Stop Student Services (registrar, student accounts, and financial services), as well as New Student and Family Programs. She doesnt say much in a multiple round interview process instead opting to take diligent notes on everything you say to use it against you once you accept the position. Agreed. This suggests that its not just one or two disgruntled former employees griping out of spite. Not only with Shiney, but he would often verbalize his trust in me to others or go to bat for me when he sensed that people saw me as lesser. Shiney did indeed treat me horribly as well as others. The latest sounds, stories, ideas, and events. But then to retaliate forced students to come in at 4:30 AM to start work to account for the lunches. Taking a course outside of BU can be a great way to make up credits towards the required 133 credit minimum, or taking courses towards a minor. Danny and some of the Event Managers would step in in difficult situations, whether with someone like Shiney or a difficult client, and made it a safe, fun and productive working environment. Out loud. Thank you for publishing this. Thousands of students over decades have worked for Shiney many of which would disagree with these sentiments. With Shiney, you were never right unless she liked you and saw you as someone she could mold and manipulate. Around ten of us reported her to the university in 2014, so there is a paper trail. This is just one example that I feel is poorly explained or reported on to advance the idea that Shiney James is horrible. Nothing about the way she treated you or anybody else on this thread is okay and its clear that she has caused so many people a lot of pain. Theres a way to deliver feedback and show tough love (if thats what you even want to call it) without being abusive. I am still unpacking a lot of this. I respected him all the more in return. Youll be receiving an email from SCOMSA later this week outlining the various social events taking place during the week and weekend. I was constantly afraid of messing up, and reading these accounts is making me remember all the mental gymnastics I had to go through to try and just have an uneventful workday. Its not easy to monitor authority. Worked in the orientation office with Shiney James for several months during the school year a few years ago and so much of this article resonated with me. We worked insane hours and I know not a single session went by without me crying or having a panic attack. Your tuition covers up to 18 credits per semester, though a standard course load is 16 credits (four 4-credit courses). I have a preponderance of evidence to share, if BU wants it! I remember being one of several who were two minutes late for one morning meeting and for two days of the three-day session had to wake up an additional hour early to give each individual employee a wake up call by knocking on their door alone with none the others needing to join. The student claimed during initial introductions at training, one female student supposedly jokingly remarked that she did not know the full name of Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and that her Orientation position meant she wouldnt have to remember it. Hey Emilia and Adrienne just a note to say I remember working with you both and TEN years later still hold you in high regard as lovely, professional coworkers. . If the University wants to talk to me about this I gladly volunteer. I dont want to ruin anyone ones career but some action needs to be placed to make sure shes held accountable for bullying students. A 20 year old who had worked so hard to get to where she was, on the verge of senior year feeling like one small accident might ruin her life (at the time that is truly how she made me feel). Love to all fellow Orientation survivors. This would be a one time cost of $500 to $1000 per person, and would put an end to their abuse. They know this happens. Shines, if youre reading this, you and everyone else can know exactly who I am. While I was never on the receiving end of Shineys tirades, Ive seen it happen to others, and have heard plenty of other stories to know that all of this excellent reportingand the outpouring of anecdotes in the comments and on Twitteris 100% accurate. She then sent me home down a back stairwell so nobody would see me. No other students should experience her treatment. I was never a direct employee of Shineys, but did work for FYSOP summer of 2014 which had a decent amount of overlap with orientation. Not really, no. Fellow 2010 staff here. I worked as a Program Advisor during the Summer of 2014. She broke me down to a vulnerable state and then used my vulnerabilities against me- would grant me a day off to deal with health concerns and then turn around and say that I owed her for that. It fit with the whole experience that summer of forced vulnerability and having your entire being dissected in the name of personal and professional growth (for a goddamn minimum wage summer job). Bravo to the FreePers who worked to bring this to light. I had gone to Cafe Royal across the street to collect myself and stop crying. Her job was to build community, welcome incoming students, and ensure a safe and comfortable environment in which students could thrive and experience growth. Students can explore a variety of courses and innovative learning experiences while developing six essential capacities and fulfilling Hub requirements. As a loud and outspoken person that did great with the students, that shouldve been enough. Shiney could have given other students millions of dollars and been the kindest person ever (and she was very kind to her favorites), but if these terrible things still happened then her selective kindness is besides the point. Perhaps the comments here will be used to actually take action against this person; she has no business interacting with developing adolescents many of whom look to her as a mentor (since she advertises herself as one). Hats off to the Freep for finally letting us be heard. There are three ways to get in touch with UDC advisors once the fall semester begins. I got that. Why do students take this job? There arent specific pre-law requirements or a designated track. But we do hope that the schedule that you finalize with your advisor is the final version. Fall 2023 Accepted Students | Graduate Medical Sciences We were told that not being able to be vulnerable would hurt our ability to make friends, and students who didnt share were implied to be at risk of failing the supposedly just for fun! freshmen experience class. In my experience, Shiney told me at the beginning of an orientation session that she wanted to talk to me but not till the end of the session. You can talk with your academic advisor about: When can I do full four year planning with my academic advisor? $500-$1000 is not easy money. How awful Shiney is to work for was and still is an open secret. Undergraduate orientation is required for Berklee College of Music and Boston Conservatory at Berklee students entering their first semester. I dont agree with my writing placement results. Great reporting, but this was a horrendous read. And everyone who experienced that abuse by Shiney deserves to feel safe and important too. Some of my memories I just dont remember from Orientation and I think thats pretty consistent with other people I know that are just like, Ive really tried to not think about it, and now, I just know it was an awful summer.. When one of McLeans female peers asked James for a letter of recommendation, McLean said James rejected the request, allegedly telling the student they didnt smile enough., Who says that? McLean said. Shiney told me that since this student was not in my orientation group that it was none of my business and that I should stick to my own students. Theres absolutely no way the deans office didnt know about this. Explore . I extend myself to anyone who endured abuse at her hands. when you work, your meals are paid for. PDF BOSTON UNIVERSITY Summer Term 2023 It boggles the mind that someone with such poor judgment could have been entrusted with the management of dozens of student employees every summer. I figured I would pop over, say sorry and we would talk it out. I tried to shove all these bad memories at the back of my mind so I dont remember her exact words but I will never forget the time when she yelled at me in front of full time employee. Dean Elmore pretty openly buys underage students alcoholic drinks, including one night during my summer (2018) working orientation when there were a group of student advisors with him for a community-building informal chat (or something like that) at Scoozi. She then proceeded to yell at me for being emotional and unprofessional and left me in tears while my other SAs consoled me. What the example shared does not explain is that when the activity is facilitated, no one is forced to share or move to places that call out specific personal details in fact, the prompts are open-ended such as which part of your identity do you think of most often participants then can select a different part of the room to move to which represents the facet of their identity they think of (e.g. . Students need to know its okay to speak out and speak up when abused or witnessing abuse and always when their wellbeing is affected. Reporting matters, this story included. I was stunned, truly stunned. When I was considering applying to the position I reached out to a former SA, and when I asked them for advice on working with Shiney they said just keep your head down, and when she has you apologize to her over something cry because thats what shes looking for.. I interviewed with James in 2012/2013 for an UNPAID International Student Mentor position. Orientation student leaders go through an extensive application process, where they interview with James herself. All staff that year participated in the first impressions exercise. I hope so. This woman should have been removed from her post years ago. I was shocked by her response and pushed back on her answer. Are team building exercises and reflecting on our identities important? 72 East Concord St. I imagine many of the anonymous are younger and still fearful of retribution in some way. If you witnessed Shineys tactics, and these are your takeaways I cant help but conclude that you are replicating this behavior in your current profession. for sweeping this under the rug for years. Shiney James is an emotional abuser, and the adults and BU administrators that enable her are cowards. I will always remember the hurtful comments she made about my relationship, to my face and also behind my back to a friend of mine, even though the relationship was the best thing I had going for me at the time, and even though she had never even met my significant other. I had an awful experience with Shiney, one that took me years to heal from. Orientation - Suffolk University If you dont see your question here, Contact us! I had the strange experience going from being one of Shineys **favorites** to barely even meriting a hello from her by the end of my summer working for Orientation. I remember being called to her office where she scolded me until I cried and then being sent to the storage room to compose myself. BU accepts credit for the following international exams: The Questrom Ascend Fellowship is open toBlack/African-American, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, Pacific Islander, and first-generation college students. My time with her at orientation was by far my worst experience at BU. The contrast between the Shiney-led atmosphere and his off-duty attitude was jarring to say the least, made for a bizarre summer. Youll learn. This is why Trump was elected she said, nobody cares about anything anymore. Shiney was very upset at one of the two white groups for failing to come up with any inventions they felt should be solely attributed to white people. During one particularly challenging session, myself and two other staff forgot to retrieve a sign from behind StuVi2 that frankly none of us knew was there. The servant leadership work of orientation crafts good leaders and good people. He said, Its okay, and told me to find a seat. That is not a healthy work environment. Shiney James was the definition of toxic. I personally experienced similar manipulation, lack of support, and abuse from Dean Elmore. I will never forget having worked for her and the bells let me know shes coming are constant nightmares. Work-study students (myself included) in other BU offices/departments went into panics when Shiney came around and were desperate to avoid her. I dont think I could have gotten through without you. Join us for a drop-in question-and-answer session with staff members from New Student and Family Programs. Shiney is an absolute monster. Thank you!! Part of your Orientation experience will be staying overnight in our West Campus Residences. Dean Elmores right hand man back in the day used to have inappropriate relationships with incoming students. I promise the real world isnt like this and Im here for you if you feel the lasting emotional affects of this behavior. Being cruel to someone does not build character. thats saying something. It saddens me deeply. This is a crazy read, I hope the right steps are taken! the anxieties I developed while working for Shiney have affected me as recently as working at my CURRENT JOB years later. all of this is to say. For some reason our year had less communal berating from Shiney than previous years, but the environment was still tense. To any ladies who want a channel to talk about it email me. Thank you Mike! Honestly. As in, we had to explain what we did not like about one another, how we thought one another came off, what we thought one anothers problems were. You can find your assigned advisors on the Academic Advising link of the Academic tab on your StudentLink. Session Schedule Blackboard Parent & Family Orientation Student Leadership Opportunities Contact Us Welcome to Orientation This is the start of something great. Its not the center; I guess its not even consequential. I was not keen on opening up to people going into the summer, and the repeated attempts at forcing deep, personal conversations that I didnt want to have did nothing but push me further into my shell. You must send a screenshot of your planner to, If youre really set on a course thats full, you can try to use the Add/Drop period during the first two weeks of the fall and spring semesters. It is easier to frame it as a tough learning experience that helped me grow instead of trauma. Some AP courses, like macroeconomics, microeconomics, calculus, and statistics can meet requirements that you need for your degree. This story hurts my heart to read as it brings up so many traumatic events during my time as an Orientation leader in 2011/2012. The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University, Before her first-hand experience with James, McLean said she had not heard of James behavior. Students can explore a variety of courses and innovative learning experiences while developing, Your planner is a place where you can add a ton of sections and see how they fit together, but adding a course to your planner doesnt reserve your seat in the course. So with all of that as background, I must say that as I read this article and the comments above, I cant help but be deeply saddened that recent Orientation staff members have been deprived of the wonderfully rewarding and formative Orientation experience I had. Freep: Your next story needs to be Dan Solworth. But okay, now I knew her expectation. BUs Office of the Ombuds, a resource through which community members can seek confidential guidance and support, declined to comment as a part of standard practice.

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