What You Should Know about BMAL 890

Remember how I gave you the little piece of advice: form a great relationship with your chair? I hope you did that. 

I tend to go a bit above and beyond. 

I knew all along that I would meet with my chair in person and present my final project during this journey.

I flew down to Arkansas at the end of November 2024 and met with Dr. MeLisa Rogers in a conference room of her daughter’s office. 

We loaded up the PowerPoint, and I did my thing. It took about an hour or so, and at the end she said, “I want to be the first to introduce you as Dr. Robert Forto, congratulations!” 

We hugged and took a few photos. 

We then headed over to a local steakhouse and had dinner. We were now colleagues. 

As I mentioned in my previous posts, the relationship you form with your chair is invaluable. She was my constant advocate, and she went to bat for me so many times. I am glad that I took the time to meet with her, and I am confident that we will stay in touch for years to come. 

Besides all of that, let’s talk about what to expect in 890. As I said, I presented my project at about 3 pm. I had dinner and then drove back to Oklahoma City to catch a flight the next day, heading home. By 8 pm that day, I submitted my final project to the admin reviewer, along with my signature pages. By 1:00 a.m. that same day, I received admin approval. I completed the course and program in about 8 or 9 hours. 

I submitted my graduation requirements as soon as I returned home, and I received my diploma by mid-December.

All that quickly. 

So what’s next for you?

I urge you to reach out so we can have you on my podcast, Peak Experience. I have interviewed several members of our cohort about their academic journey, and I would love to share yours. 

I would love to stay in touch with you,, and who knows, maybe we can work on a projecttogetherr 

But lastly,

Congratulations, Doctor. You did it!