The piping plover is one of the endangered species we learned about in this week's environmental science class. They are especially unique because they blend in with their surroundings and oftentimes are in danger from natural predators and everyday activities from humans (building on land where their habitat is, which causes a disruption in their pattern of living; or jogging in the sand, where the tiny birds are often not seen, because they blend in so well). So for the few 'inconveniences' we complain about in regards to the plovers, we should be concerned about what our activities are doing to cause their demise or near extinction.

As for this week's Access project, I really am getting the hang of the queries. And I knew I had seen it in action at my job; our systems analyst uses it to pull up the records of the people who have monthly charges for the programs at our facility for either themselves or their children (for adults, it would be Total Facility; for kids, it would be Kids' Club or Afterschool). Access is a really useful program for record keeping; it's similar to Excel in some ways, but I think it's a little easier to use than Excel in that all you have to do is plug in the criteria that you're searching for and the information appears in record form on the screen. In Excel, you'd have to go a little further, especially for such things like the Currency setup.

This week's math case study is proving to be a challenging one; I've never actually done a financial statement before. But it'll help me in my field later in life when I'm working in a corporate environment and won't have anyone to hold my hand and guide me. I'll have to be able to rise to the challenge and show that I can do the work. And Professor Luing encourages us to show her the work before we submit it in the assignment manager so that she can show us where our mistakes are and encourage us where we're doing good.

As for this week's Word project, I'm really fumbling. But I think it's because I'm trying to rush through it instead of taking my time to take the project in. I'll probably be more relaxed when I get to the Berkeley library this Friday and make my corrections there. It'll be nice to be in a quiet environment with little to no distraction while I work steadily on my assignments. I just can't wait to see what the outcome is for all my hard work this semester.

So I got an e-mail early this morning for a student survey, which I gladly and promptly completed. It's nice to know that Berkeley cares what we think (hence the polls and surveys like this). For me, this is what school should be all about: the exchange of thoughts and ideas, not just with fellow students, but with the faculty, as well. That way, the full benefit of the college experience is realized (kinda reminds me of the new movie coming out, "The Great Debaters").

And this week's Business math lessons is on financial statements and ratios. We had to look up some information on the stock market and terms that we had never heard before, like front-end load. This term was unfamiliar to me in my previous business and accounting courses. I like that Professor Luing has us doing more of our own research; that way, when we really grasp the information in the end, we can say we really hand a hand in our own success. I am confident that I will have more opportunities like this as I continue my education with Berkeley College.

Now I know how marathon runners in a race feel in the final stretches: a little weary, but satisfied that it all has a purpose. This week's Word project is the most challenging yet, but it is rewarding in the end when you see the finished product. And it's good training for the working world; we won't have it so easy with the step-by-step guidelines laid out in our textbooks. This week we're not only merging documents, we're saving them as Web pages and e-mailing them. I've never encountered this in any of my previous word processing classes. I think it just shows how really far technology has come, and Berkeley is not only keeping up with the times, but they make sure the students are ahead of the game in comparison to students at other universities.

I even did well in my Business math course this past week. It really just shows the professors' dedication to the students they teach. And this week's environmental science readings look very interesting, indeed--particularly environmental politics, economics, and world views. As I said before (and it bears repeating) how we treat the earth and how we use the resources available to us is all interconnected. And the discussion board on maintaining of species' habitats could prove to be very spirited. I look forward to the posts from my fellow online classmates, as they offer insight and wisdom that I can always apply to a situation that may come up in my lifetime.

I actually saw my picture on the Berkeley College website under the heading "Meet The Berkeley Bloggers"!!! It's something of a big deal, considering I've never had my picture posted on the Internet before. But it's nice to note that it's for something positive, like promoting Berkeley College to prospective students. I'm already looking forward to the next quarter, when I can more fully immerse myself in campus life and have more to share with students coming in and students considering Berkeley.

I really would like to join one of the clubs that the school offers, such as the Finance Club that I saw advertised on the bulletin board at the Newark Campus, or the International Club that I see posted on the Blackboard often. It would help to broaden my view and scope of the world around me, instead of being limited to just one of of the world (my view). As the title of one album says, there is a 'world outside my window'.

But even if I can't do it now, I can certainly urge other students (first-time or otherwise) to do so for themselves, especially while they're young and have no other pressing responsibilities outside of school. Pay attention to the e-mails that you receive from Berkeley College regarding different activities that are offered on-campus. The polls are another avenue in which you can participate in the Berkeley College experience (particularly if you're online); these polls are really the voice of the student body. For instance, there was a recent poll regarding freedom of speech. It was nice to see that most (if not all) of us shared our views on how far we should extend freedom of speech.

My mom is considering going back to school for supplemental education (oh joyous, happy day!!!!). She's graduated from college and business school, but with the ever-changing job market and the need to keep up with the latest technology, she realizes she needs to continue to hone her skills.

So guess who's been talking up the College like crazy to her? ;) In all seriousness, though, I feel that my mom would greatly benefit from a school like Berkeley. She's certainly smart enough to keep up with the demanding and challenging educational programs and courses that could be offered to her. And I'll even do some research to see exactly what it is they offer as far as her area of interest. I'll even do a little research for my brother, as he's taking courses in Hudson County College, which I think is a little farther away than he needs to be. With the campus in Newark just twenty minutes away from where we live (and he drives), he could concentrate on his field of study.

This means I'm going to go to the Berkeley College website in a few minutes and see what the areas of interest are for both my mother and my brother (and quite possibly my sister, who wants to go back to school to get her teaching degree). And I know that they have campuses in New York, and they probably aren't that far from where she lives in Brooklyn. And as Berkeley has daycare available, she could put my little niece Zakiyah in the nursery while she pursues her education.

And this is not just talk; I'm really satisfied overall with Berkeley as a college. :)

Week 9, ladies and gentlemen, and I'm feeling pretty confident about the end of the quarter. I've been working really hard to show my mettle to not only the Berkeley professors, but all those who had a hand in my re-entering college. I saw a commercial just the other day on television advertising for Berkeley College, and a huge, Cheshire-cat type grin spread across my face. There is no word in the world to describe how I feel about Berkeley College. I'm still having a little difficulty in Business Math, but I know that with Professor Luing's help and my active, attentive participation in homework and Discussion Board activities, I can still pass this course satisfactorily. Education is very important to me, as my mother is an educator (both by trade and by nature).

So I finally went down to the Berkeley campus on Broad Street in Newark to use their library. Everyone was pretty helpful, and I was proud when asked to display my Berkeley ID to the guard for security and identity purposes. It was nice to know that not only did I have a sense of belonging, but that Berkeley cares enough about its students to ensure their safety. And I did get a chance to look at the bulletin board, which was right outside the library. I saw that there was a posting for a finance club of some sort. I plan to go back down this week to use the library again and take down the information for this club, as this looks like something that would be right up my alley, considering I'm majoring in finance. And it could certainly help me in any of my future classes. The only thing I didn't get to check out was the bookstore, but that'll happen in due time. Besides, they're closed until December, so I wouldn't have been able to look around, anyway. But I still want to look around when I go back, at least get familiar with the location. And I understand that this is where we can purchase the Microsoft Office 2007 software for next term. I am VERY excited, as I'll finally have my new computer and won't have to try and save my work to that computer at my local library.

Every single professor this semester has been very helpful. Professor Buonaguro just helped me solve a major problem I've encountered for this week's Access project. As you know (and as I've mentioned before), my computer at home crashed, and I don't have 'access' to Access at work. So I got to the library and thought maybe I'd be able to save it to the hard drive. Turns out that when the librarians shut the computers down at night, EVERYTHING is wiped out (even the files that I created). So she showed me a way to save the files to Blackboard so that should I have trouble saving it again, it would be in my Blackboard files.

Tomorrow I'm off to Berkeley for the final completion of my Access project for this week. Lots of typing, but I don't have to work and I don't have to rush home for any reason. I don't how long I'll be there, but I can get my other coursework done, too, like environmental science and business math (this week in E.S., we're learning about energy and human toxicology). Professor Jackson asked us to discuss on the Discussion Board what we felt the real answer should be for the issue of global warming (less cancer-causing and ozone-depleting agents, anyone?). This should be a pretty lively discussion.