One word to describe Grit…
The past months have been busy ones. Just this morning we have been meeting to talk through new programmes for new universities, colleges and schools. Not only that, we have the pleasure of finally having a full complement of staff, so our team is infused with new energy too. Somehow it seems that the spring is not only the coming season but also a metaphor for Grit – new adventures, new resources, new drive to make a difference to people in as deep and lasting a way as possible.
So, we are using our spring energy to talk about new possibilities, these currently revolve around expanding our work for students from racialised groups, building the programme of work we deliver for professional teams and also creating the space to innovate and invent. We’ll keep you posted on our new ideas as we move forward.
In the coming month I’m going to be taking a trip to Swansea to speak at the UKAT conference with Catherine McConnell from the University of Brighton. We’ll be talking about how critical self-awareness is for staff when it comes to making an impact on and engaging their students.
Often staff are focussed on finding the right tools, frameworks or resources to enable them to make a difference, but – we’ll be arguing – that the deeper work of understanding yourself, your limitations and your blind spots will be most influential in forming the kind of relationships that allow for change. I look forward to reporting back on how the conference goes but also interested to hear any thoughts/experiences/insights you have with regards to this topic.
Enjoy reading about our latest films, partnerships and participants below. We hope the spring is bringing you new energy and optimism too.
Ellie
One word to describe Grit …
We’ve been building up quite a library of films of students talking about their Grit experience – you’ve probably come across it on our Youtube Channel.
But we thought it time to try something a little bit different. Instead of capturing just one story wouldn’t it be interesting to capture half a dozen voices talking about the same thing? So, when we were at Solent University recently, we asked six participants on our Students of Colour workshop to describe Grit in just one word.
This is what they said.
We liked it so much that we plan on making another film on similar lines. We’d love to know what you think. Email jon@grit.org.uk.
The intelligent coaching platform
Our partnership with the Makings, the radical “intelligent coaching platform”, has been growing for a couple of years now. In series of 23 minute (yes, exactly 23 minutes) coaching sessions they work with a whole range of world leading companies.
And now, once again, they have been offering it to all Grit staff. It’s a fantastic opportunity for all our staff to get some incredible support at a one of the busiest times at Grit anyone can remember!
Charlie’s Story
Charlie was towards the end of his second year at the University of Hull when he did a two-day Grit workshop
“I’d always shied away from thinking about my career path while I’ve been at university. I was struggling to see a way though, to see how what I was doing on my course related to what I could be doing after uni. I couldn’t figure out where I wanted to go. I’d lost focus and motivation. I kept asking, “what am I doing this for?”
I had a major sense of imposter syndrome which really wasn’t helping. I was doubting myself, holding myself back, dwelling on things. And this was getting in the way of me taking opportunities when they came up.
And I was all over the place when it came to friendships. I was always worrying about what people think about me. Although I was pretty good at putting on a front, I tended to keep myself to myself.”
Evaluating Grit
Our work with students from racialised groups is going from strength to strength. This year we’re working in Nottingham, Nottingham Trent, Solent, Loughborough, Greenwich and Bath Spa universities. And there are more on the horizon.
So we have asked Professor Kehinde Andrews and Dr Dionne Taylor from Birmingham City University to carry out an independent evaluation.
Professor Andrews is an academic and authors whose latest book is The New Age of Empire: How Racism and Colonialism Still Rule the World. He is Chair of Harambee Organisation of Black Unity and Editor-in-Chief of Make it Plain. Dionne Taylor is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Black Studies.
Interim findings will be available in early summer. Watch this space!