Closing Post

As I wrap up my thoughts on the semester, I feel as though I've grown a lot. There have been changes in my life, and even bigger changes to come when the semester is over. Currently, my major is public relations and my concentration is in communications. After taking two communications courses this term (Comm 101C and Comm 174) I have come to realize that I find communication studies much more interesting than I thought. Although I only have one semester left here at SJSU, I plan on changing Communication studies from my focus to my minor.

I look forward to the next chapter of my life this summer, as I have announced in a previous post that I will be studying abroad. I'm excited for these next steps in my life, and to become a graduate of San Jose State University. I'm proud of myself for getting this far, and plan to push myself to do even better things when I return from my trip. I really enjoyed this class and learned basic necessities that will be vital for me in any career I choose.

Media

As we have recently discussed in class on chapter 9, Media is changing and developing as we speak. It's constantly molding to entice us all, and grab our attention. Technology is always advancing to take new forms so that we are connected through social media at all hours of the day. Personally, I don't even want to know how many times a day I check my Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and text messages because it will disgust me. Don't get me wrong, I love social media and the connections it ables people to make and maintain, but sometimes I wish we could go back to the days when cell phones were first being used for emergencies only.

The issue that worries me about media and technological advancements are that there is no room to grow as an individual, create your own thoughts, or have an imagination, when there is constantly some form of technology surrounding you that affects your thoughts and behaviors. I remember when cell phones were starting to become more common and I got my first Nokia in 7th grade. Looking back, I probably shouldn't have even had a phone until I got to high school. It makes me sick to see five year olds with iphones now.

All of this media forced upon children is a recipe for disaster in my opinion. From the womb, children are already facing extreme media forces. The media is teaching kids that it's okay to exploit women, participate in social and physical aggression, and look a certain way because appearance means everything. It's hard to think of ways to be proactive for these situation, but I think with persistence the media could change for the better.

Delta Gamma

Yesterday, I officially became an Alumnae of Delta Gamma, Gamma Eta Chapter. It's a bittersweet feeling to know that my four years in DG are really over. I joined the house in fall 2008, without knowing much about sororities at all. When I came to SJSU I knew I wanted to get involved on campus with some sort of group because state was known as a commuter school. I never thought for one second that I would join a sorority.

Four years later, I couldn't be happier with the choice I made to join DG. I met such an amazing group of strong, independent and beautiful women that I can call sisters for life. I made connections with people that will be my best friends forever. I networked through the greek system to better my education and career skills. I increased my social skills, and not to mention learned a lot about myself as a person.

Communication has been a large part of DG and will continue to be a huge factor in greek systems in general. Good communication is necessary when you live in a house full of 90 girls. I have learned so much through living and working with Delta Gammas, as well as creating daily routines. I've learned how to work well with others which has been especially helpful for me because I am an only child. Growing up it was always just me and my mom, therefore, it was all about me. I never had to share a room or make decisions concerning anyone but myself. I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to join DG and I wouldn't change any of my experiences even if I could.

Travels Abroad

I have always been interested in learning about intercultural communication and different cultures around the world. When I was sixteen, I had the opportunity to travel to Italy for two weeks with my best friend. Looking back on that day, now that I’m twenty-one, I don’t think I appreciated everything I was able to see and experience while I was abroad.

This summer I am taking an international public relations course in Paris, France for three weeks. I am blessed to have this opportunity and I can't wait to see what Paris has to offer. One of my best friends, Morgan, is attending this summer course with me as well. After we applied for the program we decided that France just wasn't enough and figured out a plan to visit more countries.

Our final itinerary for our trip is starting in England for a few days, Ireland for a week, Paris for three weeks, Italy for a week, Spain for a week and Ibiza for a few days. I feel so incredibly blessed for this amazing opportunity and I can’t wait to immerse myself in new cultures. I’m trying to read about France and learn a few phrases in French before I leave. There is no doubt in my mind that I will come back home to the States with some great memories. I’m ready for this change in my life and welcome it with open arms. 

PR Major

I am public relations major with a focus in communication. The first semester of my sophomore year I decided to change my major from business management to public relations. I had only taken a few classes in business, but right off the bat I knew it wasn't for me. I struggled for a while to figure out what I really wanted to do until I chose pr, and now I couldn't be happier with my decision.

For my pr degree I have taken all the necessary classes to graduate. The only thing I have left to take is units, as well as, one other communications class. I have one more semester left at SJSU until I graduate in fall 2012. The past four years have flown by and I can't believe I only have a few month of college left.

After I graduate I plan to get a job in SF or LA. I love big cities and I think I could find a good pr job in one of these places. After I take a few years to travel and work I plan on attending graduate school. I want to be really sure of what I want to do with my life before I go back to school again. I’ve been contemplating a graduate degree in mass communications, but since I’m not one hundred percent sure I think it would be best for me to wait a few years. 

Beauty Bowl

A huge part of my college experience has been with Delta Gamma, a sorority here at SJSU, and every year we participate in Kappa Sigma’s philanthropy event called Beauty Bowl. Every Greek fraternity and sorority on campus has a philanthropic group that they donate to as an organization. Usually, each house will put on a fun event that Greeks can participate in for a good cause.

Kappa Sigma’s Beauty Bowl is the biggest and most competitive event the Greek system holds. Beauty Bowl is a flag football event, where the sororities participate as players and the fraternities participate as coaches.

This year Delta Gamma was doing better than ever. We won three games in a row, but ended up playing a team we had already won earlier that day. The communication between Kappa Sigma, who put on the event, and everyone else was terrible. No body knew what was going on and because of the way they had set up the brackets, Delta Gamma was out of the competition because they lost by one point, to a team they had already beat. That team that we beat also had previously lost two games.

All of us were furious, to say the least, and left the field angry as ever. What irritated me the most about this situation was that it all could have been fixed, had there been clear communication to begin with. 

Tunnel Of Oppression

            The Tunnel of Oppression is a program that goes from school to school to spread awareness about all types of oppression. The tunnel is filled with different sections that contain information about topics such as ageism, sexism, racism, veterans, economics and other issues that influence daily lives. As I walked through each room, I became a bit disturbed with all of the phrases, pictures and videos surrounding me. These issues intertwine with communication studies and gave me an idea of what students can do to be proactive.

The room that hit home for me was the sexism and sexual harassment area. All around the room there were phrases like, “hey baby” and “let me get your number sexy.” There were also empowering poems written by women and how they feel about this type of oppression. I felt a connection with this room as a young women living in a large metropolitan city like San Jose because situations like this happen to me all the time. I think that things like this happen to women my age so frequently that most of the time people just laugh it off and pretend like it's a joke, when in reality it’s demeaning towards women and disrespectful.

I believe that the media is a strong enforcer of belittling women, and making them feel as though looking a certain way will benefit them and make them happy. Everything revolves around outer beauty, and the less you wear the more attention you will receive from guys. Guys on the other hand, are taught to be as masculine as possible and “holler” at girls as much as they can. They are taught through the media to have sex with as many girls as possible, and that treating girls like a piece of meat is the cool thing to do.

It’s important to spread the word and get this out there to other groups of people. Guys can be aware of the disrespect shown to women, and treat all women with a higher respect. Gentlemen should also be good friends to ladies and reinforce polite behavior amongst each other. Girls can also spread the word about oppression and not give in to the medias trap.

I really enjoyed being exposed to the Tunnel of Oppression because I had no idea what it was before. There were a lot of things I didn't necessary want to see or read that happen in every day life and it’s great that people are getting exposed to all of these perspectives. It really was an eye opening experience, and I know that just by being aware that these types of oppressions occur will make me more proactive.

"Who Am I"

I love that we have so much freedom in expressing our thoughts and ideas in this blog. I decided to make this a post a little background information about myself as well as the importance of good communication in our daily lives. As I read through chapter four in our textbook I discovered more insight about the meaning of identity and communication.

Identity in the textbook is referred to as, “a compilation of your experiences as influenced by social, political, and cultural factors that frame and mark those experiences.” Culturally I am Japanese and Caucasian, with my mother being Japanese and my father being White. I am an only child and my parents divorced when I was young. I have always lived with my mom but still kept in close touch with my dad. I have never really been the scholarly type but I have always been interested in fashion, music, traveling and staying active. Even though I am only twenty-one, my perception of the world has changed since I started college four years ago.

I never really thought about communication (in general) until I came to college in 2008. I remember coming to SJSU for orientation and picking up the big book filled with class listings. I was so young and didn't have a clue as to what field I wanted to look into. I chose to sign up for classes as a business management major and after my freshman year decided to change to public relations. After hating all of my classes in the business department it was a nice fresh start getting involved in something I was interested in.

I got my first job when I was a freshman in college as a styles consultant at a store in Valley Fair mall called Metropark. Sadly, the store went out of business about a year ago so I said my good-byes and moved on to another part-time job. I currently work as a hostess at a French restaurant in Santana Row. Between working in two very different fields and going to a university for almost four years I have grown as a person and learned things about myself that I would have never discovered before. Learning about communication is amazing because there is never a point you plateau in your knowledge experience. I hope to grow in this course and learn as much as possible in the few months we have left of school.  

Communication struggles in my life

There are a few struggles in communication I have personally and professionally that link together in different aspects of my life. I have always been a rather shy person and sometimes it’s hard for me to communicate to my friends and family as well as my colleges at work. As I’ve become older I have improved many of my communication skills but I still sometimes struggle with a few things that I continue to try and improve on as I get older.

One of the skills I have struggled with in my life is being able to tell a person how I really feel about a situation that is bothering me. I am not confrontational at all and I tend to hold things in and that is never really the right solution to use. I have kept things inside for too long before and ended up getting in huge blow out fights with some of my best friends and also one of my colleges at my old job. Now that I have experienced those fights it has made me realize how important clear communication is, no matter what the circumstance may be.

Lately, I have done much better telling people how I feel (obviously in a nice manor) and it has really helped me to better myself as a person. I feel much more at peace with my life. Being a part of the communication department adds to that growth in my communication skills. I have taken a few different types of communication courses and they have all helped me improve my skills in one way or another. I am thankful to be a part of the department and classes even though I am a public relations major. 

Communication

Although I am a public relations major I have been interested in communication studies ever since I started at San Jose State four years ago.  The study of communication is so broad that it can really be anything you want it to be. I see communication as a means of interacting between people through norms, actions, feelings and many other unique ways human beings relate. I am currently in an intercultural communications class and I love learning about different cultures around the world. It’s nice to see things from a broader scope rather than most of my classes that only involve the United States and our popular culture. Communication opens your eyes to things that you would never even realize and I always learn something new about one culture or another. I hope to learn more about communication through this introductory class as well.

I think having a degree in communication in great because you have so many possible options for jobs. Every career choice involves relating and communicating with people so I think it would be hard to go wrong being a communications major. With my public relations degree my ultimate goal would be to do PR in the fashion industry. Fashion, design and decorating are my favorite hobbies and it would be amazing to be able to find a job in one of those fields. I also love to plan events and wouldn't mind having a job in the event planning industry. I cannot wait to graduate and get into the real world with an amazing career that I love.