The Department of Sociology currently has three initiatives that would benefit from your help!
The first is our student travel initiative, which takes several forms. This includes experiences such as the Detroit Field Study and similar brief, domestic "study away" trips that are integrated in certain courses. During these day-long trips, students engage in hands-on work with their Ball State instructors and community partners, take guided tours of museums and neighborhoods, and meet with leaders of grass-roots movements who are changing their cities. Although such experiences are more affordable than a study abroad, they still carry per-student transportation costs. Your help will enable more students to have access to such experiences by reducing their out-of-pocket costs. We are also excited to re-launch our summer study abroad trips to Costa Rica; we aim to increase accessibility by helping to offset student travel costs for this as well. We are also pleased to continue funding student travel to present at conferences, such as the North Central Sociological Association annual conference. Your help in paying for student transportation, lodging, and other costs is very much appreciated.
Our second initiative involves one aspect of our comprehensive career preparation program. In any job search, little things can make a big difference… Like knowing how to highlight your strengths at a reception, knowing how to network with a diverse team, and even knowing which fork to use at the closing interview meal. Hiring managers tell us that having soft skills matters and we know not all students have had opportunities to learn these unspoken rules or, even if they have, they may not feel especially confident in these formal settings. How do we help students develop these soft skills? Through practice at the Career Center Job Search Etiquette Dinner. Your donation of $15 can sponsor a student to attend the dinner and give them that interview edge. You might ask, does $15 really have an impact? Students tell us that $15 represents a significant portion of their food budget. As a result, many opt out of the Career Center Job Search Etiquette Dinner experience and this further widens the gap between students who have the background and confidence and those who do not. Bridge the gap and give the edge… little things can make a big difference!
Third, we recognize that some students face financial barriers to participating fully in university graduation ceremonies because they cannot afford a cap and gown. As such, funds will be used as needed to offset costs of this ceremonial garb for those sociology students who demonstrate a need.
Every gift that you give counts, and we are so grateful to all of you for your continued support. Thank you for helping to enhance and enrich our students' educational experiences at Ball State!
