Tech Tip: Another Meeting Notification System

http://www.meetwithagenda.com/

There are a lot of meeting notice sites out there. This one really is the easiest I've used. It does not require an account to get started. You can let the site send the email notices to your meeting attendees or you can elect to do that yourself.

For follow up, a simple link to "Attendance Details" allows you to see who has accepted or made a comment. Each acceptance generates an email to the organizer, besides.

Disclosure statement: I have no relationship with MeetingWithAgenda and I have not received any compensation or free product for mentioning this service. (This blog's only monetary reward comes through google.adsense links, which are selected by Google, not by me.)

© 2010 Mary Bold, PhD, CFLE. Email contact: bold[AT]marybold.com. The content of this blog or related web sites created by Mary Bold (http://www.marybold.com/, http://www.boldproductions.com/, College Intern Blog) is not under any circumstances to be regarded as legal or professional advice. Bold is the co-author of Reflections: Preparing for your Practicum or Internship, geared to college interns in the child, education, and family fields. She is a consultant and speaker on assessment, distance learning, and technology.

Recommended Gift for an Evaluator

Eva the Evaluator is not a story book. What it is… a low-cost, slim paperback with 4-color illustrations that resembles a children's book. Of course, it is intended as a children's book. I consider it a better choice for the adult professional evaluator it seeks to describe.

The story of Eva is not so simple. In fact, it demonstrates that evaluators' work is hard to explain. But this little book brought a smile of delight to the administrator I placed it before, making it the best holiday gift I gave this year.

Eva the Evaluator by Roger Miranda
ISBN-10: 0984158804
ISBN-13: 978-0984158805
Reading level: age 9-12

Disclosure statement: I paid for my copy of the book and I have not received any compensation or free product from the publisher for mentioning this book. (This blog's only monetary reward comes through google.adsense links, which are selected by Google, not by me.)

© 2010 Mary Bold, PhD, CFLE. Email contact: bold[AT]marybold.com. The content of this blog or related web sites created by Mary Bold (http://www.marybold.com/, http://www.boldproductions.com/, College Intern Blog) is not under any circumstances to be regarded as legal or professional advice. Bold is the co-author of Reflections: Preparing for your Practicum or Internship, geared to college interns in the child, education, and family fields. She is a consultant and speaker on assessment, distance learning, and technology.

Assessment Folks Will Appreciate Yale's High School Musical

My guess is that assessment folks will not be confused, irritated, or dismissive of the new Yale recruitment video, "That's Why I Chose Yale." The almost 17-minute production has drawn criticism from lots of viewers but also some good-humored appreciation.

This is why assessment folks will approve of the video:

1 - Every institution has a responsibility to communicate to prospects what students experience on the campus. It doesn't matter that Yale doesn't need to promote any more applications from prospects. The Yale video incorporates important factoids about the school: there are 17 dance troupes and 36 student publications, there's someone called a freshman counselor, "profs" join students for their study breaks, and on and on.

2 - Few prospective students read a viewbook cover to cover, or even a trifold brochure. The Yale video is engaging—teenagers will watch it to its end. (You may, too.) It doesn't matter that the songs are cheesy and the message is not subtle. The video addresses adolescents' need for self-focus just as cheesy-and-not-subtle video entertainment has for decades. Witness Beach Blanket Bingo, Saved by the Bell, Seventh Heaven, and High School Musical. All have spoken directly to adolescents' desire for wholesome happiness in spite of protestations to the contrary.

3 - The Yale video reflects real Yale students. Authenticity extends to the writing, the production, the performances. As the credits disclose, the talent ranges from Yale Class of '06 to Class of '13. The Dean of Admissions receives an acknowledgement (Class of '75) so the credits roughly reflect the ratio of old adults to young adults appearing in the video. The production does an excellent job of casting average-looking middle-aged people who cannot compete with the really talented and good-looking young people. It never hurts to differentiate between old adults and young adults when your audience is just entering the young adult category.

Perhaps Yale doesn't fret over how to document its recruiting methods but if there's an outstanding link to be included in an accreditation report, this is the one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGn3-RW8Ajk

© 2010 Mary Bold, PhD, CFLE. Email contact: bold[AT]marybold.com. The content of this blog or related web sites created by Mary Bold (http://www.marybold.com/, http://www.boldproductions.com/, College Intern Blog) is not under any circumstances to be regarded as legal or professional advice. Bold is the co-author of Reflections: Preparing for your Practicum or Internship, geared to college interns in the child, education, and family fields. She is a consultant and speaker on assessment, distance learning, and technology.