Tell us about yourself.
My name is Manford F. I’m a Sophomore majoring in Special Education. I chose my major because I want to be a Special Ed. teacher. I was originally going to be an Elementary Education major, and I actually was working in an Elementary school earlier this semester – however, I changed my major because of that experience. I liked Elementary Education but I didn’t love it. I reached out to people, got some feedback, and realized that Special Education appeals to me more.
Part of the reason I chose Education in general is because I’ve always looked up to teachers. My dad is a teacher and a lot of his friends were teachers. A big part of my decision was made because of how much I enjoy myself whenever I get to teach other – I really like helping people.
What brought you to Augsburg?
StepUP was absolutely the reason I came in the first place. However, once I got here, I loved the class sizes. Personally, small class size is important for me to succeed. I like to have personal one-on-one talks with teachers and you can’t get that at other colleges where there’s three hundred kids in one class and one professor. The teaching styles of the professors here are also awesome -they know what they’re doing, especially in the Education and Teaching department.
If I had to highlight a specific instructor, I’d have to say Elise Marubio, the American Indian Studies professor. She is so incredibly well-educated – anything that I asked, she knew the answer to. She was able to express her knowledge to the students in a way that not just was easy to comprehend – she could also relate it to us in a way that was interesting and personable. That’s the class that I learned the most in.
What do you see yourself doing post-graduation?
Since I’m only a Sophomore at this point, I don’t know for sure. If I’m able to I’d like to travel while I’m still young – I would love to explore South America. I’ve always had this dream of backpacking across the South American countryside. Outside of achieving that dream, I’m planning on eventually going back to Alexandria, MN where I grew up. I’d like to teach there and have a family and all of that stuff.
What was the deciding factor on you attending StepUP?
It was my overnight visit here. I met up with one of the current students and stayed with him for a night in the flats. This particular student was well known in the community and he knew everyone. I was so impressed with the community here and felt like I could talk to anyone almost right away. Most importantly, we all had something in common – addiction. Regardless what we’re addicted to, we have that in common. The goal of higher education is something that we all share as well.
Now that I’m actually here, I love the community. I realize now that that’s what got and kept me sober. When I was using, I was always trying to find a place where I could be myself and be accepted. I could never find that place until I came here and found these people who were just like me. I feel like I don’t have to hide from myself here, which is amazing. I can just be myself and be sober. This community is what allowed that to happen.
Who in StepUP do you look up to?
My friend Bo is a huge inspiration to me. We met last year because we used to play ping pong together all the time. Through his friendship, I’ve gained a sense of spirituality. I never had that until I met him – it’s one of those friendships that ends up changing your life and how you look at things. It’s still something I’m working on – I’m still finding my spirituality. I’ve learned to look up to that idea whereas when I started here, it didn’t even cross my mind and if it did, I didn’t entertain the idea. He’s really opened my mind in a lot of positive ways, and I’m grateful for our friendship.
Do you have any words of wisdom to impart to new students?
Number one: don’t skip classes. You are here to get an education. Don’t forget it.
Secondly, connect with people in StepUP. Be that social person and make friends. Find people that do the same things that you do and be your real self with them.
For me, it’s all about finding people who allow you to be yourself and allow you to be vulnerable around them. It’s easy to isolate, but I’ve found that the more social I am, the happier I am in general and the better I do in school. For example, doing homework with your friends. It’s something small that contributes a lot to the way that you end up doing in classes and strengthens your bond with your friends.
Lastly, I’d say that it’s also important to branch out of StepUP. It can be easy to get sucked into this sort of StepUP bubble. Get involved in extracurricular activities, so you can be with people you have something in common with – even if that something isn’t addiction. I’m in an intramural soccer team with a bunch of StepUP kids. We won last night, 10-4, and I’m pretty sure the team we played was the Augsburg baseball team. It was funny, they were all doing drills, warming up, etc. before the match, and then there’s us – we’re a man down, all pretty out of shape (for the most part), and we absolutely dominated! It’s a lot of fun.
Thanks, Manford!