It's Holiday Time in the Residence Halls!

Happy Holidays! The students and staff in Student Housing and Residence Life have been hard at work to ensure that everyone in our community is able to enjoy the holidays. The holiday season kicked off with a Thanksgiving meal hosted by the staff at the 13th Street Residence Hall on Thursday, November 25th. Since many of our students cannot be with their families or may have never celebrated Thanksgiving, the goal was to provide an opportunity for residential and international students to experience a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. In collaboration with Chartwells, the 13th Street Dining hall staff served dinner to 42 students, double the number in attendance last year. Between 12 and 15 off-campus International students attended the event, which was co-sponsored by International Student Services. Students came individually and in groups to dine together on Thanksgiving Day.

In addition to many holiday gatherings and celebrations within the residence halls, the students and staff at the William Street Residence Hall collaborated with the local organization, Women In Need (WIN), to sponsor a children's holiday party in their East Harlem Center. Women In Need is an organization that provides New York City’s homeless women and their families with safe, clean housing and support and skills to become self-reliant.

William Street residents connected with over 15 children at W.I.N participating in holiday cookie decorating and arts & crafts including making reindeer, angels and snowmen to celebrate the holidays. As part of the "Help the Homeless" initiative at William Street, residents chose W.I.N. as one of the receiving organizations of the efforts of the initiative and hope to continue to volunteer their time throughout the year to support and work with the women and children involved in this organization.

The William Street Community is Making a Difference

In the heart of the financial district, a New School community is reaching out to those in need. The residents of the William Street residence hall have set a goal to raise one dollar, one can of food and one volunteer hour per student resident in aid of the homeless. As part of this initiative, Residential Advisors Iskander Ahmed and Charlie Leibel held a black tie auction on November 21, 2010, to provide residents with the opportunity to volunteer at organizations that provide help to the homeless. A festive atmosphere and fun prizes - often with a practical component, such as lessons in photoshop use - encouraged students to commit to volunteering their time. The event raised $122 in cash contributions and a further 24 volunteer hours. This brought the community very close to its monetary target of raising $400, and as the program continues, the possibility that the community might even exceed its target has been raised.

In addition to rallying material aid, the ‘Help for the Homeless’ program has had the intangible, but perhaps even more enduring effect of increasing awareness amongst the William St community about the situation of some of New York’s most vulnerable residents. The New School is an institution which takes pride in its long tradition of thinking about and promoting social justice, and at William St, students have shown themselves to be worthy inheritors of that social justice tradition.

Submitted by Simone Gubler- Major in Philosophy at The New School for Social Research

Your Personal Brand

One of the newest terms used in the job search business is “personal brand.” If you could design your own personal brand…what would it be?

Employers are looking for high-quality talent who know how to “sell” themselves in a positive and productive manner. The winter break is a great time for you to start thinking about what your current leadership brand is? What skills have you developed in your past and current leadership positions? How can you market them now and in the future?

Not sure where to begin? There are many ways to create your personal brand. Here are a few tips:

• Know your passion. What makes you get out of bed every morning? What makes you smile in your school and work environment?
• Develop your goals and dreams. You have to know where you want to go even if you don’t know how you will get there yet. Dream Big!
• Be honest with yourself. Assess your strengths and areas for opportunities.
• Discover what is unique about you. Determine what you stand for and what makes you different.
• Be visible. Go above and beyond simply because you love what you are doing.
• Attitude is everything...make sure yours is a positive one.
• Ask others for feedback. Ask your peers, mentors, supervisors, family, friends, professors, etc.
• Get a wide range of feedback so you know what areas you need to focus on for personal and professional development.

Now that you have some ideas, create a 30-second introduction of who you are and what you’re all about. Think, “Me, in a Nutshell.”

If you only had a brief moment to make an impact on someone who could

have an impact on your future...

* What would you say?

* What impression would you want to leave?

* What story would you want to tell?

For more information on Personal Branding keep an eye on The New School Events Calendar for workshops and guests speakers who are presenting on the topic.

This information gathered from www.paper-clip.com.