Robert Forto

Midlife in College

Weeks 115 to 117 of 186 (BMAL 780)

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Weeks 115, 116, and 117 of approximately 186 are in the books in my doctorate program.

Time is flying by this summer! It is hard to believe that we are already into the second week of August. In many years past, I would be gearing up for a new term that starts on the last Monday of August each summer. It is almost like a rite of passage. But not this year. As I have said, I am taking a little break until the second fall term, which starts in late October, for various reasons.
Once you start your project courses at Liberty, you must be continuously enrolled. We were supposed to go on a Great White Shark dive trip, but it was canceled because the Mexican government closed the site until 2023. And three, I just needed a little break for my sanity. I have been constantly enrolled since August of 2014. That is eight full years without a break on this midlife in the college journey.
Oh, a bit of breaking news…I already know what to do when I finish this program, and honestly, I am pretty excited about it. I will sign up for another Master of Arts in Ethnomusicology (M.A.). I have been thinking about something like this to round out my college experience, and I want to take a couple more years to explore this cohort. It has classes like Seminar in Ethnic Music: Native America, Anthropology of Music and Music, Orality and Storytelling. 

 

Michele also started up her Wellness Wednesday podcast, and we are adding a new co-host and bringing back our Peak Experience podcast starting next week.
Listen to the latest Endless Summer | Wellness Wednesdays

Oh, if you are on Twitter, I highly encourage you to follow the hashtags, #AcademicChatter and #AcademicTwitter both are great threads with advice, motivation, and a very supportive community and if you wouldn’t mind, give me a follow at @robertforto and send me a tweet letting me know you found my blog helpful!

Score: */*

To read the paper:

No papers until October! 

Weeks 113 and 114 of 186

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Weeks 113 and 114 of approximately 186 are in the books in my doctorate program.

Well, as they say, we are in the dog days of summer. It is refreshing to have the first break from school in more than eight years. Yes, eight full years of continuously enrolled in a class at one university or another. That is a LONG time.
During that time, I never missed an assignment. I wrote papers everywhere; on the beach in Hawaii, at a bed and breakfast in New Hampshire, in countless hotel rooms, on too many airplanes, in the middle of a blizzard, in my truck… But more than any place else, at a seat at my local Starbucks.
It is hard to believe that my daughter was just moving on from high school when I started school. This week she turns 25. During that time, I became a grandpa and started wearing glasses. The point is that you are never too old to forget your dreams.
You can do it!

Oh, if you are on Twitter, I highly encourage you to follow the hashtags, #AcademicChatter and #AcademicTwitter both are great threads with advice, motivation, and a very supportive community and if you wouldn’t mind, give me a follow at @robertforto and send me a tweet letting me know you found my blog helpful!

Score: now 102/103

To read the paper:

Forto 780 Research Paper

Week 112 of 186 (BMAL 780)

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Week 112 of approximately 186 is in the books in my doctorate program.

Another course in the books! Can it be?

BMAL 780 is done and the last coursework class is done for the program. I have been enrolled in college non-stop since the first Monday of August 2014 and today I submitted (hopefully) my last discussion board post!
Most of my peers hate the discussion board posts but I truly believe this is where the real learning happens through the collaboration of those in the class.
I also have the first break in almost eight years as I don’t start the next phase of my program until late October.
I will not be stagnant, however! I have at least 300 items on a to-do list that I just need to get done plus several projects around the Fort including a deck and 36 dog houses.
Thank you for all of the support from my peers that have read my blog and found it helpful. Especially to Derek for the kind words.
Hi Robert, I just wanted to drop you this note to personally thank you. You don’t even know it, but you have helped me tremendously through the Liberty program. Your answers in the groups are very helpful and I have read so many of your papers online as a model for each of my papers. So thank you very much.
I am looking forward to the next chapter and I will continue to update the blog as I move through it. Stay tuned.

Oh, if you are on Twitter, I highly encourage you to follow the hashtags, #AcademicChatter and #AcademicTwitter both are great threads with advice, motivation, and a very supportive community and if you wouldn’t mind, give me a follow at @robertforto and send me a tweet letting me know you found my blog helpful!

Score: now 102/103

To read the paper:

Forto 780 Research Paper

Week 111 of 186 (BMAL 780)

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Week 111 of approximately 186 is in the books in my doctorate program.

We are just finished Week 7 BMAL 780 Strategic Leadership for the 21st Century. This past week was another literature review. This time on Measuring Effective Leadership in Family Business. It took me six hours from start to finish sitting in a chair at the local Starbucks to write this paper. I don’t know how many times I can re-write a paragraph essentially saying the same thing I have said in just about every paper for the last two years to avoid self-plagiarism!

Coming up is the last week of the term and there is a discussion board post and replies and a research paper due by Friday. I hate the short weeks. After that, I have off until late October before I start BMAL 785 which is essentially a pre-season game for my doctorate project. I am so looking forward to being done with the coursework!

My wife Michele and I are thinking of renting an Air BnB for me in Portland during my last sixteen-week term next year to really hone in and focus on the last steps of my project. I think it would be good for me to just have a place to write and think. It may be a pipe dream! What do you think? Let me know in the comments or on socials.

Oh, if you are on Twitter, I highly encourage you to follow the hashtags, #AcademicChatter and #AcademicTwitter both are great threads with advice, motivation, and a very supportive community and if you wouldn’t mind, give me a follow at @robertforto and send me a tweet letting me know you found my blog helpful!

Score: now 99/100

To read the paper:

Forto 780 Lit Review 2

Week 110 of 186 (BMAL 780)

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Week 110 of approximately 186 is in the books in my doctorate program.

We are just finished Week 6 BMAL 780 Strategic Leadership for the 21st Century. This is the first of three short literature reviews that we have to write for this course. I like this course because it really seems to prepare the student for the rigors of academic writing that will come in the next four courses where we work exclusively on our doctorate projects.

This past week I spent in Wisconsin at a sled dog conference where I spoke about the importance of podcasts for mushers and then the last few days in the Seattle area where Michele and I kicked off the summer leg of the Rock n Roller Coaster Tour Across America. It is going to be an epic summer!

Oh, if you are on Twitter, I highly encourage you to follow the hashtags, #AcademicChatter and #AcademicTwitter both are great threads with advice, motivation, and a very supportive community and if you wouldn’t mind, give me a follow at @robertforto and send me a tweet letting me know you found my blog helpful!

Score: now 99/100

To read the paper:

 

Forto 780 Lit Review 1