Retreats Galore! Orienting Myself to Campus and the Berkeley School of Education
On Thursday, I attended a new faculty orientation hosted and organized by the Office of the Vice Provost for the Faculty, and on Friday, I attended an all-day retreat for the Berkeley School of Education (BSE). Suffice to say, this week has been A LOT in terms of orienting to the Asian American Pacific Islander Transpacific Futures (AAPITF) cluster, the UC Berkeley campus, and my departmental unit. However, there have been a number of crucial discussions and supportive connections that have formed over the past five days. Simultaneously, I also officially published the course website, syllabus, and Week 1 materials for the undergraduate class I am teaching this fall — Educ 190: Critical Studies in Education — which is most likely why I felt exhausted walking back home after Friday’s retreat. Nevertheless, I can’t help but feel excited for what’s to come, especially after feeling and experiencing other people’s palpable joy at being in conversation and relation with one another after the summer months.
Naturally, I kept comparing the interactions and practices at these Berkeley retreats to professional development and conferences hosted in Hawai’i. I found myself missing an opening oli and pule and the sounds of mele or pidgin — all things I took for granted when I was home. I’ll never fully get used to the hand shakes over the hugs and honi. And that’s ok. The rose-colored view of being able to take what’s familiar and unique and “mana-ful” about Hawai‘i and recreate a version of it at Berkeley is difficult when you’re currently 1/1 on campus. But, there are ways I’ve been dealing with this cultural and geographic shift.
Remembering that I’ve experienced this before — and discovered found family and relations to land along the way — has been making this transition easier. Knowing that it takes effort and time to build meaningful connections also helps. Yesterday, the BSE administrators asked faculty and staff to write a six-word memoir about what excites us about our subfields and what brings us joy for the future. I thought of the powerful saying, “I am my ancestors’ wildest dreams” and this led me to “Writing for ancestors, past, present, and future.” This is what brings me joy and what excites me about my research, and it’s a statement that I am committed to remembering when I feel anxious about the “publish or perish” culture in Research 1 universities.
Another activity that I appreciated was a paired learning walk around the Clark Kerr Campus. I really appreciated being given intentional time to be outdoors, to walk (actually hike) up to the top of the campus to check out the campus’ outdoor pool and track facilities with Professor Laura Sterponi. We bonded over our love for physical exercise, and it reminded me of the connection among mind, body, spirit, and heart in the work we do as educators and researchers and the sage wisdom not to neglect the body; it is important for activating our minds.
Lastly, I enjoyed the spontaneous opportunities to build community with new and current assistant professors across disciplines. The three retreats this week provided the space to bond with others organically and formally, and I am grateful to be on the tenure-track journey with so many grounded individuals with skills in time management, digital engagement, building scholarly identities and brands, translating research to practice, and more. As I look forward to the semester ahead, I am committing myself to stay rooted in the real stakes of the world, to prioritize and manage work-life balance, and to remember I am not alone.
