Tonia A. Dousay
Scholar | Educator | Leader
All posts by tonia
It’s kind of like that…
Earlier this week, I read an article from The Chronicle titled, “Running the Zombie Marathon.” Of course it was the title that drew me to the article, but I had no idea that it would be so incredibly relevant to my own life and story. You see, four years ago this week, I was sitting…
The Rewards of Teaching
When you accept the responsibility to be a teacher, there’s so much more that comes with that role than many realize. From the daily obligations to the emotional attachment, the cost of being a teach can be overwhelming. Depending on the grade level, subject, and location, your obligation varies, too. Of course, the individual factor,…
Create a System; Follow It
So, the title of this post comes directly from an article in yesterday’s Chronicle of Higher Education. As a post-secondary educator, I find that I definitely need to cultivate my news from a variety of sources. So, I appreciate the Weekly Brief that pops up in my inbox every Monday morning. As the curator of…
Faculty Job Search or Online Dating
As someone who met her spouse on Match.com, I feel uniquely qualified to compare my current faculty job search to…online dating. Stay with me here. If we consider the position posting to be the initial profile of a prospective partner, then my sending an application packet is much like sending a “wink.” It says, “Hey…
Personal Victories
It has been a very trying summer. I’ve had multiple setbacks on my dissertation, some my fault and some beyond my control (thank goodness I’ve been well ahead of schedule until now). My husband had to have two surgeries three months apart. And in late July, I had to say goodbye to one of my…
Reflections on Year 3
Another year of graduate school has come and gone. Here I stand at the end of year three. A number of my friends (and former classmates) managed to graduate at this point and it seemed like a trend to make our program at the University of Georgia a 3-year program instead of the traditional 4…
Impostor Syndrome
Impostor syndrome…that feeling of being underqualified that pretty much every graduate student feels at one point or another in their career. It doesn’t matter how much experience you have, how much praise you receive, or how satisfied you are with your work. You still have that lingering feeling that you don’t belong in the big leagues with…
PhDc
Two years and seven months ago, I started on an adventure that would bring new friends into my life and take me on new journeys, both physical and mental. To say that it’s been easy would be a lie. But I have been blessed. These blessings have come by way of phenomenal faculty who mentor…
The dream shall never die
Having a graduate assistantship at The Graduate School definitely has its advantages. Sure it takes me away from my department quite a bit, but there are benefits and opportunities that I wouldn’t otherwise have access to. Take for instance my first spring here. My boss mentioned in passing that I was invited to a lunch with…
Visual Learning: Pinterest
According to my oldest pin on Pinterest, I’ve been part of the social phenomenon for about 30 weeks. As I was walking through downtown Athens this weekend, I overheard a conversation where a woman said to her niece that she had “finally checked out that website [she] told her about…you know, the one that started…