Brief summary of my MIST experience
The MIST program came to my attention as I searched for a new career after being injured and permanently disabled while working in the emergency medical services on an ambulance. I was determined to develop and expand my life-long work as a Taiji and Qigong instructor, as well as develop an internet based outlet for that training. Learning how to create and deliver an effective wellness awareness and training program was my primary goal. I had spend my first career responding to medical emergencies and delivering people to the hospital. I want to make my next career about delivering people skills and knowledge that will help them avoid being forced into that medical industrial complex.
I entered the MIST program spring of 2020 with a concept for my capstone project that related to wellness and self-cultivation which I called “Transformation Through Qigong.” I had no idea that COVID-19 would exacerbate the international sedentary pandemic in the years to come. So, in the fall semester of 2020, the courses I took lead me to substantially reduce the scope of my project. It had to fit into a comprehensive hour-long training. I wanted that training to have the most impact possible on the people who most needed it. The revised project simply addressed one key gap that endangers the lives of so many people in our times: sitting too much. That is when I resolved to create a training episode that would encourage people to get up and move more throughout their day.
Of all the excellent courses and learning opportunities I was exposed to during the MIST program, the one that stands out the most is the learning teams that I had the privilege to participate in. Working together on projects helped team members forge bonds of mutual respect, support, and frivolity that remain unwavering. With many of these people, I feel this bond will last for years to come as we bounce ideas off one another and seek each other out for support during our future careers.
This program has also exposed me to an entirely new vocabulary and the extended understanding of learning and teaching theory and methods that goes with it. The technological skills I have developed will facilitate furthering the reach and the accessibility of my teachings and ideas. The network of peers with whom I have had the pleasure to work will be an enduring resource. The professors worked diligently to demonstrate in their own courses those best practices of learning theory and teaching models which they presented over the 16 month program to MIST students. And all this took place while our world suffered through a pandemic the likes of which had not visited humanity in over 100 years.
I look forward to implementing the knowledge and skills I have learned during this program, and further developing the work I have accomplished with my capstone project “Get Up and Move.” I hope to take the small episode of learning I created here and grow it into a valuable and far-reaching program to help people around the world improve their health and wellbeing by being more physically active. The reduction or even elimination of too much sedentary behavior at work and at home will surly benefit both individuals and society greatly.
I entered the MIST program spring of 2020 with a concept for my capstone project that related to wellness and self-cultivation which I called “Transformation Through Qigong.” I had no idea that COVID-19 would exacerbate the international sedentary pandemic in the years to come. So, in the fall semester of 2020, the courses I took lead me to substantially reduce the scope of my project. It had to fit into a comprehensive hour-long training. I wanted that training to have the most impact possible on the people who most needed it. The revised project simply addressed one key gap that endangers the lives of so many people in our times: sitting too much. That is when I resolved to create a training episode that would encourage people to get up and move more throughout their day.
Of all the excellent courses and learning opportunities I was exposed to during the MIST program, the one that stands out the most is the learning teams that I had the privilege to participate in. Working together on projects helped team members forge bonds of mutual respect, support, and frivolity that remain unwavering. With many of these people, I feel this bond will last for years to come as we bounce ideas off one another and seek each other out for support during our future careers.
This program has also exposed me to an entirely new vocabulary and the extended understanding of learning and teaching theory and methods that goes with it. The technological skills I have developed will facilitate furthering the reach and the accessibility of my teachings and ideas. The network of peers with whom I have had the pleasure to work will be an enduring resource. The professors worked diligently to demonstrate in their own courses those best practices of learning theory and teaching models which they presented over the 16 month program to MIST students. And all this took place while our world suffered through a pandemic the likes of which had not visited humanity in over 100 years.
I look forward to implementing the knowledge and skills I have learned during this program, and further developing the work I have accomplished with my capstone project “Get Up and Move.” I hope to take the small episode of learning I created here and grow it into a valuable and far-reaching program to help people around the world improve their health and wellbeing by being more physically active. The reduction or even elimination of too much sedentary behavior at work and at home will surly benefit both individuals and society greatly.