One idea I am considering for my advocacy project is arguing for more wellness days throughout the school year whether or not students have a spring break. The wellness days we had were few and far between but greatly needed, appreciated, and desired. The rigors and demands of being a college student mean that students are under a great deal of stress and a hefty workload. However, mental health should be of utmost importance. The audience for this would be Penn State administrators and possibly professors. It’s taking the larger scale issue of needing to incorporate mental health days in all grade schools to the Penn State level.
I think that the ‘Photographer as Witness’ piece is ethical. Consent was given from Maggie and she even asked to have her story published as a method to help others in similar situations. If she did not want her story published, then I would not say that this piece was ethical. The piece was based on facts and was truthful. It enlightens the audience and does not obscure the plot line with author interjections. This piece is also a form of advocacy and art. It educates people on a quite common thing that isn’t often discussed while also telling a story.
This was a topic I also had on the drawing board but decided on something else; but still this is a great idea and I stand behind it. Given the year we have gone through, nothing came easy and I do not believe we only deserved three wellness days. Some of the wellness days were even pointless because I had to spend them doing work or studying for something that was the next day. To target the Penn State Administration would be a great audience, I am excited to see where you go with this!
You should 100% talk about this idea. Some of my friends, Maria Colon, Canyon Marks, Gavin Willis, and Shreya Sharma, who are in the honors college, STILL HAD CLASS on the wellness day. They had a lab that was mandatory. I also had a Bio 230W exam on the second wellness day of this semester, which really sucked. Yesterday, I ended up doing homework that was due today instead of relaxing like we are supposed to. To be quite honest with you I do not think I have spent a single wellness day truly getting well. I am sure many students suffer from this as well, and the university needs to do a better job at addressing the reality of a wellness day – GIVING STUDENTS NOTHING TO DO BUT ENJOY THEMSELVES AN ENTIRE DAY FOR ONCE. I mean cmon, if we arent given a spring break, this is the least they can do. We really need more of these days, and it should be a SCHOOL MANDATE that NO CLASSES or EXAMS are given on these days. AND THAT’S THE TEA!!