Janine: Hello and welcome back to the Transfer Talks podcast. My name is Janine and I'm a Transfer Jacks peer mentor and joining me today is a fellow Transfer Jacks peer mentor. Cora: Hi, my name is Cora Brown and as Janine said, I am a Transfer Jack peer mentor. I joined the team last August of 2022. I also go to school for business economics and a minor in political science and I'm expected to graduate this following December. Janine: You're almost there. Cora: I'm almost there. Janine: Almost there. Cora: Yes, so close yet so far. Janine: I know. And I just want to say before we kind of get into things that it's been such a joy working with you, even if it's only been like a year, like I've been saying this over and over again, but this is probably the best group of people that I've ever worked with being here for so long. Cora: I love working with all of you guys. It's enjoyable coming to work every day and being around ones that we love and bond with. Janine: Yes, I love coming to work every day for once. Cora: Yes, absolutely. Janine: All right, before we get started, so we're going to get into some lighthearted things, you know, some fun. The Dub or the hot spot? Cora: Hot spot, you know, because it has like a buffet style and I can get burgers and get pizza, I can get ice cream, I can get steak if I want. Sometimes they have steak, but I just like the buffet style. And when I've been like the Dub or the Doob, how are you going to pronounce at this point? I feel like it's just it's so crowded and there's always lines and it's very compact and it's I feel like it's a lot louder in there. And I know like for me, sometimes I go down there and like do homework. And when I try to do it in the Dub or the Doob, it's a lot harder because you have a lot of people walking by and it's kind of hard to like focus. Janine: I agree. I mean, I like the hot spot and I also like the Dub, but the hot spot has this like one place that makes sandwiches and like wraps. And those are my favorite things ever. But I did not know that the hot spot sometimes serves steak. I've neer seen that. Cora: With the 360 grow. Sometimes they do steak. Janine: Good to know. Cora: And they also do like very Thanksgiving. They do like a Thanksgiving feast. Janine: Right. Cora: For like a Christmas feast, which is always nice. You're stuck in flag staff can't go home yet. Janine: That's awesome. Cora: Yeah. Janine: Okay. NAU gold or NAU blue? Cora: Oh, that's a hard one because my favorite color is blue, but I also do like gold because it reminds me of money. And as being a business econ student, that has to work with a bunch of like finance and you know, what's going on the economy. I like money. So I'm going to say gold. But I mean, if it was a lighter blue, I'd be like, oh, yes, hardcore blue. Janine: Yeah, because NAU blue is like dark. Cora: Yeah, Janine: not a fan of dark colors. But yeah, I agree. Cora: I think it makes me a little sad. But the gold is like, yeah, money. Janine: Okay. North or south campus. Cora: So most of my classes are in south campus. But I course, you know, I work more in like central campus. I used to go to North campus when I was doing like my science credits. And like my labs, I was the only time I would go up there. And funny story, I would go from the south campus, walk all the way to the student union, get sushi, and then walk all the way to North campus and eat and then go to my class. So for me, I would secondly say south and central campus, because I feel like there's just like a lot more going on. There's a lot more people, a lot more excitement. And I feel like once you get to like North campus, it's like dead. Janine: Yeah, I mean, I do like south campus because that's where I also spend a lot of my time fellow business major. Cora: Yes. Janine: But I love North Quad. Cora: It's pretty. Janine: Yeah, North Quad is so pretty. So that might be where my bias lies is because of North Quad. Cora: Yeah, and it's also like during the springtime, it's really pretty to take pictures there, especially if you're graduating. Janine: Yes. That's on my graduation picture list. Cora: Yes. Janine: Okay, morning classes or afternoons last evening classes? Cora: Okay, let me just start. I don't like any classes. Janine: That's so fair. Cora: I have experience having 80am classes and I, my mom would always say like I'm a horrible person a week ago. Like my mom would come in in the morning in high school and be like, core, get up and I would cuss my mom out and throw a pillow at her. Janine: That sounds like my sister. Cora: And I have like no memory or recollection of it, but that's just what my mom says. And you know, that's my mom. So I believe her. But I just don't like waking up and especially because like I'm someone that's like, Oh, just give me like an hour. I'll get ready in 20 minutes and I'm out the door. Unless it's early in the morning, then I'm a little whip like more sluggish. Janine: Right. Cora: I also have experience having classes at like five o'clock at night. And I also did the Oh, I got all day to do my homework. I'll do it after class. And then I get a class and I'm exhausted. Yeah. So I would say like, for me, I would prefer having like afternoon classes are the best because I get to sleep in, go to class and then I'm free for the rest of my day and I can do what I want. Janine: Right. So like anywhere from like the 11 to like 2, 3 o'clock, right? Cora: Yeah, I like that time. Janine: I feel, yeah. I mean, I don't love an 8am, but like 9:30, I can do that. 9:30 is okay. Cora: See, I'm a 9:30 right now and it hasn't really been going well with me waking up in the morning. So I would say like 10, like 10 to two is like a perfect range for me, I would say this, you know, you're up in the morning, you can get like breakfast and all that stuff, let me go to class, then you're done. Janine: That's so true. Cora: Yeah Janine: so I could do I can do a 9:30, but anything earlier than that, absolutely. Cora: Yeah, last semester I had a 9am in the morning and then I had a 5pm that night. So it was dreadful. Highly would not recommend making your schedule like that. And if it is, please find it everyone. It is not worth the stress and the exhaustion having those two time class periods. Janine: Yeah, I absolutely do not like evening classes or like late afternoon classes. I think at one point I had a 4pm class, hated it. Cora: Especially like my afternoon class was Economics Statistics. Oh, so it was not enjoyable. Janine: So fun. Cora: Yes. Janine: Okay, um, sun or snow? Cora: I right now am a big fan of sun. I am tired of the snow and my family and friends say that I look paler than the snow right now. Janine: Oop, oh noo. Cora: So I am so ready for some sun to get some tan going. I'm also tired of driving in the snow and shoveling and you know slipping. Janine: I am so sick and tired of shoveling my car out of the snow. Cora: Like I'm fine driving it. I'm just over it. Janine: Yeah, so you felt, felt, it okay... Fall or winter? Cora: Neither. No, I would say winter only because there's all the holidays and I get to go back to my hometown which is in Reno, Nevada. So 12 hours away from Flagstaff. I prefer, even though I don't like the snow, I would prefer winter because it's like winter break, you know, final or over. You can deep breathe. It's holidays, new years, it's a new brand semester. So true. I prefer winter. Janine: Yeah, I think I'd have to agree with you on the whole winter break thing, but I do like fall better than winter. It is pretty, Cora: But it's so windy. Janine: Yeah. I hate the wind. Cora: Yeah. Janine: My least favorite thing. Cora: Yeah. It's like you try to get yourself all cute, take pictures and wind just smacks ya and you're like your hair's gone. So yeah. Janine: Even now it's so windy. Cora: It's so windy. Janine: Okay. And then last one, fall semester or spring semester? Cora: I like fall semester and my reason is because summer break is a lot longer. So like you can like recoup. And for me, by the time school is about to start, I'm like itching. I'm like, I'm ready to go back to school. I am so bored. I am ready to go back and get back into my life, how I had it. And during winter, I just, I'm so dreadful. Like, I don't want to do anything. I don't want to go back because I'm just like, I'm mentally exhausted. I feel like it's not like a long enough break. So I would prefer fall because like, I feel like I'm, I'm ready to go back as for spring. I am not ready to go back. Janine: I felt that. But I don't know about you. Like I, I like the idea that Thanksgiving break is only like a few days compared to spring break being like a whole week. Like after Thanksgiving break is like reading week finals week. Okay, cool. That's all. But when you come back from spring break, you have like a whole entire half of a semester left. Cora: Yeah. Well, I remember my freshman year here, of course, is during COVID time. So they kind of changed it up. Janine: Oh, you were here for that semester. Cora: It was, I actually really enjoyed because we got out the week of Thanksgiving. So we were here the first week of August, we got out the week of Thanksgiving, and then we went back the first week of January and got Both: out the last week of April, April. Janine: Yeah. Cora: And I enjoyed that so much more, even though like the content of the classes was a lot harder. It was, I liked that method a lot better because I felt like I was able to like recover during winter break. So it was a lot longer at that point. Janine: I mean, I definitely did not like the fact that we didn't get a spring break that semester. But I think that was like a good and a bad thing. Cora: We got an extra month in winter and summer. Janine: Yeah, that's so true. Janine: Yeah. I remember that year. That was the first year I was here. Cora: Yeah. Janine: As a mentor. Cora: Yeah. Those were the first year ever being here on campus. Janine: So much fun. Small world. Cora: Small world. Janine: Okay. So going into some more little serious things. What types of programs, departments, people have helped you throughout your transition from moving away from home and coming here as a freshman and especially coming in as I'm during COVID? Cora: You know, I feel like I've had a lot of people here on campus that has helped me through my transition. And I hate also that our other programs underneath the bus, but you know, being an out-of-state student and especially coming during COVID time, I didn't have a lot of support from my academic advisor. I would reach out to him, like maybe four or five times, try to go on his planner and book a meeting and nothing available. He was like a ghost. And then I had to reach out to a different academic advisor to figure out what exactly I was supposed to need to do. And that's when I found out of my program requirements after I was already halfway through my freshman year. Like I was going into my second semester. I was like halfway through my second semester when I found out that I needed to get the business professional program. Janine: Right. Cora: Halfways. I had no idea about that. And I actually just found recently out that peer jacks were supposed to be our mentors for transfer, for not transfer students, sorry, for incoming out of state students. And I didn't really get that support. I don't remember them ever reaching out to me or like wanting to inform me of this kind of program that I was in. So for me, I just kind of had to dig around. There's a lot of sleepless nights that I just was like on any use webpage, like going in and out through and wooly and all that stuff. And figure out what classes I need. But once classes became back to in person, I had amazing professors and one of my favorite professors is Ryan Fitch. He's one of our econ professors. He teaches econ 284 and 384. And then also environmental economics. And he's also became my business, how should I say business program advisor in a way. Janine: Okay, like a mentor almost. Cora: Yeah, he became my mentor. And he helped me with registering for classes and kind of telling me what the classes are like. And even still to this day, I go to him and ask him about like graduate school, because I am considering going to graduate school and the different kind of like certificates that I could get, currently if I could. And he just like really helps me out. And he's such a fun, caring guy. And of course, he has this little bit of sass and he makes his jokes regarding to econ, which is always just enlightened to hear. But a lot of the econ professors have really helped me out even just a little. And a few of my accounting ones, even though I hated accounting, they also helped me out. So I would say a lot of the business teachers helped me out a lot more than I expected them like you would consider like academic advisors and peer mentors. Yeah, but that's just my experience. Janine: Yeah, I mean, I've had a completely different experience from you, especially because I switched back to business after having transferred and spent a year here. So the biggest help for me was academic advising. So but I don't disagree with you on the whole thing of like realizing how much the business college professors want to be there for you. Like, we're in two different programs. So obviously, we interact with different professors, but even the management professors are like, wow, they care a lot. Cora: They do. Janine: And it's so nice. Cora: And especially it's a it's a different feeling because I did a community college back in high schools. I did like doing wrong. Okay, so I'm not considered a technical chance, but I did do some credits. And they did not care. They didn't care if I was there or not. I would go up and ask them because I was taking Spanish. Well, first off, that was a bad choice. I was taking Spanish. And I would go up to them and be like, Hey, how do you like pronounce this? Because, you know, I'm dyslexic. I have a speech impediment. And they'd be like, Have you been doing your homework? And here when I go to my econ professors, I'm like, Can you explain this graph? I'm like, Oh, yeah, let me get out some markers and draw on the white board and do like an entire demonstration, which has been really helpful. Janine: That's awesome. But yeah, I love the professors in the business college. They're so fun. And they're so caring. Cora: Unless you teach accounting, then I have some issues with your classes. Janine: I've never taken an accounting class here. So I wouldn't know. Cora: For you, transfer students or anyone that is listening that is considering to go to NAU for any type of business, accounting is hard. Janine: I believe that. Cora: Yeah, just go to your professors. Accounting is hard. Janine: Okay, let's take it back a little bit. Some more fun questions. What do you like about campus or the NAU environment in general? Cora: I like how like wide open spread it is. In my hometown, you know, we're like a fish bowl, we're surrounded by a bunch of mountains. And our campus is UNR. So University of Reno is squished in between downtown and different high schools and then also like the jails. So it's like right in the middle of everything. And it's just like a little line. It's like one building per row kind of. Janine: That sounds like my hometown, where my high school is literally across the street of the university and then down the streets of the community college. Cora: Yeah, yeah, exactly. And I feel like here in Flagstaff, you know, you have the main road, but the minute you cross that main road, it's campus. And I feel like it's it's its own area in Flagstaff. And then, you know, once you get out and then it's like downtown, but it's so spread out that I don't feel like I'm like a sardine. I feel like, you know, it's gorgeous, it's beautiful. I love, you know, coming to the Student Union and just like looking out the window, or you're going to be in the parking garage and parking my car and seeing the mountain and all the beautiful trees. Like in Reno, it's all nothing but desert. So sagebrush. Janine: Gotcha. Cora: You know, it's it's a little different from like Phoenix. It's not that hot, but it is also a very cold environment. So I like you love waking up in the morning, see like frosts on like all the little bushes. Janine: Love that. Cora: Then I come here and it's like, wow, there's actually snow. There's actually, you know, nice, beautiful pine trees, which if you wanted to get close to pine trees, you'd have to drive two hours out to California, or two hours out to Tahoe to get that kind of experience. So it's kind of nice because it's like it's warm here, kind of feels like a desert, but also it isn't. It's all in one. Janine: It's all in one. Cora: All in one. Janine: It's mixed. Okay. So what do you wish people understood about the transfer experience having been a mentor for the past almost year? Cora: Yeah. So at first, I thought I had a good idea of it. And I was very wrong. Every experience is very different. I have had students that have come to me and is rocking it and doesn't really need my help. And is going through it. And then I have had students that are struggling to adjust. I've had ones that have increased mental health issues. I have those that are having issues making friends, or I have those that just kind of feel a little bit like an outcast. Janine: Right. Cora: And all of that is interesting to hear, you know, not being a transfer student, but also hearing their experiences and all their experiences are very different. Like one, for example, it's a older lady. And she is in now beginning entry classes for business. Okay. And her previous university, she was going for a different degree inside the switch and is now with 18 years old. And she kind of feels a little bit like an outcast. And is having a hard time making friends, because you know, 18 years, they want to go out and party, go to the fraternities. And she, you know, she just wants to go home and have a nice night. So she's having a hard time adjusting to the environment of being with younger students. And is having a hard time meeting older students in her eyes. And then I have the one that's the exact opposite. I have one that did a lot of credits their first two years out of high school and their university, and are now in like senior level classes, and they're the youngest in their classes. And that's a hard adjustment to make friends. But they're slowly doing it, which is actually like as a mentor, makes me really happy that they are. Cora: And they're rocking it. And I know it's a big adjustment. And you're like, Oh, I'm older, Oh, I'm younger, like, no one's gonna like want to talk to me, because I'm this or that. But really, here at NAU, I feel like it's a very accepting place. Janine: absolutely, very accepting place. Cora: That is for sure. And their experiences, I just kind of taught me that every transfer experience is very different.You can't just say like, Oh, I'm a transfer student, Janine: Right Cora: Because that can mean a lot of things, right, experience wise. And for them, I'm very proud of all of my mentees that I have met with and talked to. And you know, ones that I haven't met that are doing really well, because they've got put in a difficult situation for many reasons of leaving their previous one and put persevered and continued to their, or they continue to do their studies, Janine: Right. Cora: Which for me, education is like the biggest passion in my life and also in my family's life. And to see them continually do it makes me really warm hearted, like they can do this, like they are strong enough, they will keep fighting through it just because their experience is different doesn't mean that they're not as strong as the other students. Janine: Yeah, absolutely. I agree. And yeah, you make a good point with everyone's experiences being different, like even our team, everyone's experiences have been so different. Like, I've been here for four years, I could have been here for two, that didn't work out. But you bring up a good point as far as to being able to watch people grow, especially like, being here from fall semester to spring semester and still meeting with them and seeing how much things have changed for them. Cora: Absolutely. It's quite a wonderful as a mentor to watch. And I have something come up to me, like, or I passed this class, now I'm going on to this one, like, what's this class like, it just, it warms my heart. And I'm just glad like I was able to like help, even though like, I'm not a transfer student, it may not have those experience, but I can't really, as a student, that is very dedicated to their studies just as much as they are. Janine: Let alone someone from out of state, right? Cora: Yeah. Janine: Obviously, your experience coming from out of state to NAU is very different from someone who's moved from another city in Phoenix to Flagstaff. Cora: My first time being in Arizona was me the day I was moving into my door. That was the first time I've ever been to the state. Janine: Oh my goodness. ora: I really just was like, well, you know what, let's go for it. Janine: We're just gonna wing it. Cora: We're just gonna wing it. That's just like, you kind of have to do. And I think our transfer students do that too. And they're like, let's just wing it, see how it goes. Janine: I've noticed a lot of them do that. Cora: Yeah. Janine: And honestly, good for you, props to you. I could never. Cora: Hey, we always say in the business, take risk. Janine: That's so true. Cora: Unless you're a risk lover, then we kind of have some issues. That means that you love to take a lot of risks and that kind of scares me as a human being. Janine: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Okay, so on this whole topic of being a mentor, what's something that you've learned from your mentees? Cora: Never give up. It's hard. School is hard. You know, going to classes every day, it's always hard to keep going every single day, especially with how long the semester is and how tough these classes are. Never give up. And the days that I feel like I am going to give up because I'm stressed or pressured or either one, I never want to give up because I just look at my mentors and it's like, you know, they transferred schools and decided to change their degrees and is living a brand new life, but they're still never gave up. Janine: Right. Cora: So it kind of just like for me, as someone's like this close, like I'm not going to lie, this last semester, I was really close to giving up and throwing into the towel because, you know, school's hard. It's hard to, you know, take care of yourself and especially for me, you know, I'm on my own. I don't have any family members down here. All I have is my close friends and my co-workers, but it's hard to not have that support. And I think a lot of our mentees also experienced that yet. They're doing amazing. So I've learned to never give up like they are. Janine: I love that. I really do. Okay. Um, going back to a little bit of life-hearted. What's your favorite memory being at NAU? Cora: Oh man. Um, I don't know why, but the first one that pops up was me getting ran over by those robots. Janine: Oh my goodness. The amount of times that those things have ran over my feet. Cora: Yeah. I was by Riley Hall and for those that don't know, once you get out of Riley Hall, there is a road and then you cross that road and there's like a little like concrete area... Janine: Oh yes. Cora: -and then there's another road and then once you pass that, you're on the main walkway. So I was walking at a robot in front of me and I was like, okay, I'm going to follow the robot. This will be fun. I was, I don't know where I was going. I was going somewhere and I was walking behind the robot and then we get to the second part where like a little concrete thing is and I'm about to go for it and there's like a parking lot that's like right there. Janine: Okay. Cora: And a car came out and the robot censored it and it backs up into me and it like went up my shin like it fully like, Janine: oh my goodness. Cora: It was like, mom, I'm scared and just climbed me. It climbed me and I fell backwards and there was a girl that was behind me. Janine: Ohhh Cora: She caught me and she almost went down too because like, you know, I'm a bigger girl. She was really tiny and she caught me and then like we were like looking at each other like the robot just tried to kill us and then the entire time like once we got away from the robots or like we are going, that car is staying. Robot can stay here if it wants to be a good girl robot. And her and I just like walked the rest of the way. I think I was going to the dining hall and we just talked and just like was hysterically laughing that the robot just tried to kill us and that was like what my third fourth week here. Janine: Oh my goodness. Cora: So those robots were like everywhere. So that is so great. I still got like phantom pain from it on my legs. I can feel it. It hurt. That robot's heavy. Janine: Those things have ran over my feet. I have no idea how many times. They're such a convenience but at the same time such an inconvenience. Cora: Yeah. Yeah, especially like when you're walking straight and then it just like cuts you off and then it stops right in front of you because it senses you and you're like, wait, what? Janine: No, that makes no sense to me at all. Cora: I get to try to protect yourself but it also is hurting me. So yeah. Janine: Okay. And then last question we have is what's your favorite part about being a mentor? Cora: Making a difference. I like how I'm able to give the support that I never got especially like, you know, I'm in charge mostly with business students and not a lot of them, you know, they come here, they don't know about the business program or the pathway events that they have to do on the suitable app and like me, I didn't know that either. So I like to be able to give that support so they don't have to like worry and stress because like when I'll tell you when I found out that I had to do that, I was in a panic mess. Like I didn't know how exactly I was going to do it. I didn't know how to. I didn't know what the suitable app was. I had to like figure that all out on my own. So if I can like add that support to my mentees, I would love to do that and I do love doing it on a daily basis and also, you know, helping in enrollment. That was a hard thing to figure out on my own because, you know, your first semester here, they enroll you in and then your second semester, you're on your own. It's like, wait, but you never taught me how. Yeah. And I know the academic advisors are extremely busy with their jobs and can't get to everyone and are booked out for weeks and months on end and if I can add that support to my students, I would love to do that. And I also just like love working with our team. Janine: Our team is so great. Cora: Our team makes me laugh and smile every day. Janine: Yeah. I love that that's what you love about being a mentor though. I think of all the different things and then that's something that I don't really think about on a regular basis. So yeah, I love that. Cora: It's fun being a mentor and I hope to continue what it is. Janine: It's so much fun. Yeah, that's why I did it for three years. Cora: It's a hard job, but it's also a very rewarding one. Janine: It is so rewarding. Janine: All right. Well, thank you, Cora, for joining us today. We really appreciate you taking the time to join us and share your experience with us. Both: Cheers.