Lindsey Huling's Blog

Technology

Wednesday, October 20th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

Technology has come so far in recent years I begin to wonder what else can be invented. While much of technology can be seen as a bad thing, there are also many good aspects that have come out of the phenomena. Since I would like to be an event planner I am going to look at the positive and negative sides of technology within the event planning field.

The first positive aspect that I can think of is the amount of information that can be sent to potential clients without having to take the time to meet with them in person. By taking pictures of event spaces ready for an event and emailing it to a client, that potential client will be able to better imagine their event taking place. It also makes it more convenient for clients to view venue websites to see if that area could be a potential event site. In the end it saves time for both the event planner and the potential client. Another positive aspect of technology in the event planning field is the amount of awesome effects it can have on your event. Clients are now able to have projection screens, state of the art DJ equipment, and the most incredible lighting you will ever see at their events. It is no longer only the rich and famous who have lavish events because thanks to innovations in technology it is easy and cheap to have an over the top ball, wedding or fundraiser.

Of negative aspects, I think one problem is the loss of communication between the planner and the client/potential clients. One may rely too much on email and that message may get lost or fail to send, without one another knowing. I remember over the summer I worked for an organization and a women requested information about our venues via our websites automatic request forms. She did not leave a phone number, only an email address. When I went to email her, the address would not go through and therefore I could not send her the information. About a week later she sent another request stating she was angry we had not sent her information. As it turns out, I compared her email addresses and she misspelled her email address on the first request. All because of one misspelled word our department was yelled at for not sending information, eventually everything was cleared up after we said what happened, but customers often have trouble finding out they were the problem. The second problem with technology is broad but true for all careers and that is distractions. Whether it is an add, facebook, YouTube, your email, whatever it is people who are at work on a computer have trouble with being distracted. This takes away from being with your clients or working on their events, and according to our lecture it takes up almost 6 hours per work week.

As a future event planner, the software package I found was EventPro. What I liked the best about the software was that it was specifically aimed for event planners. Many other types of programs say that you can organize your schedule and calendar, which is great, however with event planners we need an extremely detailed schedule. The top applications I liked most about the program were:

• Itineraries- not only did the program let you schedule the event but it allows you to add an itinerary describing the times of each activity all that can be e-mailed directly to the attendees and clients.
• Set up requirements- there is a function allowing the planner to see all of the chairs and tables available. By a drop down button you are able to take those chairs and schedule them for your event. This application assures the planner they will have enough chairs and tables for each event without any confusion.
• Name tags- Though it may seem lame, I liked that there was a function strictly allowing you to create name badges. This helps save time in trying to format a document to the right size for the name tag you want.
• Automatic Reminders- There is an application allowing the planner to set a to-do list. From there the items will be sent periodically to your e-mail, reminding you to complete it.

Since I am currently not actually using the product it was hard to find flaws of the program, from what I could read though I could really only come up with one flaw:

• There could be problems with the program and if there are it could mess up all the events that have already been planned.

Sebo Center

Friday, October 15th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | 1 Comment

My first impression of the Sebo Center was that I was very impressed by both its size and what it holds within in it. As one of the newer facilities on campus I think it is nice to see a modern, high tech building such as this one. I like that in the majority of areas, whether you are walking or in an office, the view is of the football field. I was especially impressed with their lock and key system. The fact that you can just deactivate a key, I feel, is a great feature to have in a building. I have worked for organizations where key access was necessary and there was always a problem of the keys getting lost, stolen and so on. Considering the stadium is not very well secured, I am happy to hear that areas within their building are.

When it comes to meeting the needs of BGSU sports players I definitely think it is a great advantage for football players and other sports players. They have a much more up to date training facility, they have a large rehab area complete with swimming pools, and they even put in a long lasting turf field. Of all of the amenities offered I am really glad to see that all sports players, in any season, are able to use the newer and nicer work out facility. This means they are getting better equipment and less of a crowd than there is at the student recreation center. The only disadvantage to the facility is that it seems sports players need to be there often and it is pretty far away compared to the rest of campus. While we were at the Sebo Center, we saw swimmers rushing in who had clearly just gotten out of the pool. As a swimmer I would find it annoying that I had to work out in the pool and then walk, bike or drive all the way to the Sebo center just to run or workout again.

Another aspect of the facility I wish was different has to deal with the field itself. Since it is a new turf field I wish it was capable of holding soccer games as well. As I past soccer player myself, I did enjoy using turf fields and feel people are more likely to come to the game when it is in a nice facility. I also think it would have been beneficial to BGSU to use the field dually because it could have saved them money from having to continuously maintain the current soccer field. Over all I think the facility is beneficial to the BGSU sports teams because it offers high tech innovations to prepare them for games and get them physically fit, even if injured.

I have compared the BGSU stadium to that of the Cleveland Browns Stadium.  What really caught my eye about the Browns Stadium is that it is used for way more than just the football games. The stadium can be used for soccer games, concerts, American Idol auditions, and football games for other schools. By being such versatile space it greatly increases the stadiums revenue and also gets the Cleveland Browns name out into the public. People who come from different cities or states to attend an audition or concert may not have had any idea that the stadium existed or noticed what Cleveland has to offer. This inadvertently creates revenue for both local hotels and businesses. As for the Cleveland Browns training facility I feel one disadvantage is that it is not located at the Browns Stadium, it is located in Berea, Ohio. One advantage of this training facility is that it has turf fields that are able to be used year round for training. I think if BGSU had an indoor turf field for its sports players, it would put our teams at an advantage when it comes to training and conditioning.

Symposium Speaker

Saturday, October 9th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

Among speakers that the homecoming symposium I chose to go to see Kathryn Bobel, because I was interested in also working in the sports industry. She is currently the Co-Director of Group Sales for the Hickory Crawdads, in Hickory, North Carolina. The Crawdads, a minor league baseball team, are a baseball Class A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Kathryn’s presentation was all about her personal experiences with the team, since she has been with them for two years, how she landed the position, and how to act during an interview.

The most important thing I learned from listening to Ms. Bobel’s speech was that in the end, everything will work out alright. She spoke about how in college she was very stressed and always worrying about the future. When she said all that I understood how she felt because I too often worry about the future and worry about not succeeding. She told us about great organizations to get involved with in order to further our careers in sports, companies to contact, and job fairs to attend, all in hopes to help us out in the future.

It was also interesting to hear her tell us about possible internship opportunities we could have with her, since she is currently in charge of hiring all the interns. I have already emailed her my resume and hope to here from her soon about the possible internship for this upcoming summer. Over all, I learned a great deal more form the speaking symposium than I ever would have thought.

Student Recreation Center Reflection

Saturday, October 9th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | 1 Comment

While touring the student recreation center I definitely learned a lot and saw a different side of the center than I normally do. If I were to take two elements of our recreation center and compare with others around the nation, I would choose our weight room/machine area and the dance room. I know that we did not see the dance room on the recreation center tour but having used it, I feel it could be used for many more activities.

To begin I would like to critique the weight room/ machine area on the entry level of the recreation center. Since one of the things I learned while on tour was that the current weight room area was not originally intended for that use, I feel the SRC has many aspects that could be improved. I feel the area is very loud and on busy days if people are trying to read or study while working out it can be very distracting. I also think it is really out dated with all the wood paneling and I am happy that they are redecorating piece by piece. The book talked a lot about how both color schemes and noise are important in a layout and I think BGSU’s recreation center could really use a touch up.

I have compared the area to that of the University of Missouri’s machine area, also known as the ‘jungle gym’. I really liked the area they had not only because they had newer equipment, but because of the spacing that all the machines were in. They had your standard weight room with free weights and dumbbells but one aspect that I really liked was their quiet room. The quiet room is filled with cardio machines that allowed students to work out and study quietly. They also have the weight machine and quiet room areas carpeted, absorbing all the noise from the machines and people talking. By adding sound panels to the wall or carpeting part of the areas with the machines, I feel the noise could be decreased by quite a bit. Another aspect I liked about the University of Missouri’s recreation center is that they had a refreshment bar, selling smoothies, health supplements and beverages, and regular drinks such as water, Gatorade and PowerAde.

The second room I am critiquing it the dance room, which we did not tour by, is another area of the recreation center that I feel could be used more wisely. It currently is used for all the group ex. classes such as abs, yoga, Pilates, zumba, and step. I love going down to that area because it is very secluded and open, allowing for everyone in the classes to have enough space. Since there are already a few balls, free weights, and weight bars, I think it would be great if the dance room could be open throughout the day for women to use as a free weight area. Many girls are too intimidated to use the free weights on the entry level free weight area because that is where all of the men are. The only other area that is really designated for women to use is the area upstairs with all the cardio equipment. The area is tiny and there are very few weights to use. If the dance room was open during the hours surrounding the classes, I feel it would be a huge hit and tons of women would make use of the bigger area.

I compared our dance room to the University of Cincinnati’s multipurpose room. Here you can see that the room is used for group exercise classes, spinning and dance. I think that they have utilized the space similarly to the way BG has but I believe they use it more than our university currently does. To me the dance room right now is almost a wasted space. It is nice, open and clean but is not being used the way I feel it should. I think the university could follow the seven point formula and be able to see the potentials in revamping the dance room in order to make better use of the area.

Risk Management and Negligence

Friday, October 8th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

1. Do you feel an entity or individual demonstrated negligence in the facts presented in either the Popke or Steinbach article?

I feel both the articles have some negligence in them, whether it is the cause of someone else or because of the lack of duty. According to our class discussion given on September 21, 2010 negligence is an unintentional tort that injures an individual in person, property or reputation.  With that said I still feel that each article has negligence and in some instances pure accidents in my opinion.

The cheerleading article by Michael Popke, I felt was done very well. Cheerleading can be a very dangerous sport and in the fatal accident of Ashley Burns I feel it was not anyone’s negligent act that caused her die. Later in the article there was a brief write up about the death of a cheerleader who was not caught by her teammates. While I am sure the girls teammates did not purposely let her fall, it was in my opinion still a negligent occurrence. Whether she fell thorough due to someone was not paying attention or she being too heavy for the team to carry, her teammates could have prevented it in some way. Since I am unsure of the situation specifically I can only state options that could have prevented the accident such as, having had more lifting practice, having a head coach help to catch the flying girl, and having made sure all the girls were awake and paying attention to the practice.

In the article about field event safety in track and field written by Paul Steinbach, I feel that multiple of those accidents easily could have been prevented and were caused due to individual negligence. The article beings with a man who died due to a blow to the head from a shot put, the man, who himself was a 30 year officiating veteran of the sport, was standing in the way of the shot put sector. To me, this man is definitely at fault. He is a veteran of the sport, knows the injuries that could occur and knows the boundaries of the shot put area. It was part of his duty to be paying attention to who was throwing at the time and where the shot was landing. It is unfortunate to have lost him in this manner but I truly feel he should have known better than to walk in the area during the practice.

Another accident within that article was a 12^th grader who threw his shot, went to retrieve it, and got hit in the head by a teammate throwing another shot. I would definitely categorize this incident as ordinary neglect meaning, both parties involved failed to act within a reasonable matter. The 12^th grader retrieving his shot should still be aware of his surroundings and the athlete preparing to throw should look down the sector before even beginning to get into position. Thankfully the senior turned out to be alright, but it is still an accident that could have easily been prevented.

2. What role do you think the facility itself plays in this case and how can risk management and the prevention of negligence be included in the facility or area design process?

I think that facilities are able to help reduce the risk of accidents and prevent negligence in certain situations. As for the incidents written about in the cheerleading article, I do not think the facility could have prevented either of those. Same goes for the 12^th grader who was hit in the head with a shot put, both of these incidents I blame on the participants themselves and feel that the facility should not be held responsible. As for the man who was killed after being struck in the head with the shot put, while I do feel he should have been aware of his surroundings I do feel that the facility could have taken precautions.

In chapter 7 of our book, Facilities Planning and Design for health, physical activity, recreation and sport by Thomas H. Sawyer, the importance of signs is discussed. It is here that I feel the facility should post signs around the shot put and discus area warning attendants about potential flying objects. Signs should be posted throughout the field, where the majority of onlookers sit and watch. One way I think the fatal shot put accident could have been prevented id by blocking of the playing area with a rope. This way when participants are throwing they are the only ones allowed within the area. I feel this rope idea would also be very beneficial to the discus area too. Since discuses are throw way further than shots I feel the discus area sees more children and attendants wandering through the area.

Another object I think could be helpful t the facility is the installation of an emergency safety device, as described in chapter 2 on page 25. Since track and field sites also tend to be located near football and soccer fields, I think more than one sport could benefit for the device. Much like the blue safety lights here at bowling green, these devices would allow teams to immediately call for help when injuries occur. This would hopefully increase the chance of survival for the hurt individual.

ADA Scavenger Hunt

Friday, October 8th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

After observing many of the different ADA adaption’s made on campus I finally came up with a list for ten positive and ten negative aspects on campus. For many of my positive discoveries I used the BGSU Disability Services Student Handbook that I found on the BGSU website. The handbook lays out a great deal of accommodations that the university has for people with disabilities. It also has contact lists for the correct administrators to get in touch with if you have a disability.

Positive Aspects of ADA on BGSU Campus:

• Renovations are currently being made to many areas on campus, allowing better handicap assessable areas. An example would be the sidewalks along Ridge Road near Eppler and Olscamp, they have been newly paved making smoother and easier for wheelchairs to ride upon.
• All buildings have electronic doors to open up so that those with disabilities can open the doors easier.
• In all of the newer buildings, such as the union, there are a lot of open areas with large hallways making it easier for those with disabilities to get around.
• The Jerome Library has a whole service dedicated to helping those with disabilities. Since they know that some people with have trouble retrieving books, articles or other documents, handicapped students are able to request their information and have it be available within 24 hours.
• Founders’ residence hall has what I believe to be one of the best ramps for disabled students. It is easy to get into their hall as well as get into their dining facility.
• Although our recreation center on campus is not the best, I do think it is wonderful that our pool has the equipment necessary to get someone in the pool who has a disability.
• BGSU has four different scholarships alone, to give out to students with disabilities.
• BGSU provides, free of charge, rental of tape recorders and video cameras for those with disabilities who may need the help during class.
• BGSU provides exam accommodations for those with disabilities; these accommodations include extended time, oral tests, modifications, reader services, scribe services, etc.
• For those students who are hard of hearing, the university provides them with one of three services, an interpreter, or one of two computer programs; Typewell Meaning-for-Meaning Translation, or, Computer Assisted Real-Time Captioning (CART).

Negative Aspects of ADA on BGSU Campus:

• Some buildings, such as the Kreisher Sundial, make it very difficult for those with handicaps to get into their facility. The only way to directly get into the Sundial is by stairs, if you have a wheelchair or any other disability you must go through the dorms, take an elevator to the second level then find your way to the eating facility. The other problem with this is that in order to use the elevators you must have a PED to the building.
• Since some halls are very old, many of the door ways are very small and it can be a tight squeeze for someone to use the bathroom even when they have no disability. Since these rooms are so small I would think it would be very difficult for those with disabilities to use the restroom in older halls.
• While I am unsure of how many students with disabilities live on campus and have a car, I have noticed that in the on campus parking lot (Lot 12), there are no handicap spots available. Even if there are currently no students who would utilize the spaces, I believe they should have the option.
• As far as I know, BGSU campus busses do not accommodate to those with wheelchairs and other disabilities. While wheelchair accessible busses are expensive I feel those students have just as much of a right to take the bus around town or around campus, especially on a cold day when it is hard to maneuver the wheelchair through the snow.
• Many of the doors on campus, as in Eppler, tend to be very heavy, with people who have trouble using their hands; it could be very difficult for them to open the door.
• The classroom we use for this class is very tight. The desks are always smashed together and there is little room to roam around. If you were in a wheel chair it would be hard to get around our room and there is only one table for those with disabilities to sit at. In many rooms that I have classes in, there are only desks, no tables for those with wheel chairs to sit at.
• In many large lecture halls the only way you can sit at tables is if you walk up or down steps. This poses a problem for many students with disabilities because if you are in a room where you must walk down steps, that means you are far away from the lecture and will most likely have trouble seeing and hearing the professor.
• My roommate has told me many times that when she uses the elevators in the music building that they get stuck continuously, to the point where she no longer uses them. If someone with a disability had to use these elevators each day it would not only be annoying to get stuck, but is could cause them to be late or even miss a class.
• After reading the article in class about student recreation centers on college campuses not being well suited for those with disabilities, it got me thinking about our own recreation center. I definitely do not think the SRC is well equipped for those with disabilities because for general machine and free weight usage, there is little room for people with disabilities.
• Of the resident halls that I have lived in, during a fire alarm there is only the noise going off, not a flashing light. For those students who are deaf I feel it would cause a major problem for them to not know when to get out of the building during a drill or a real fire.