Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Wvuafm Tuscaloosa.
[00:00:09] Speaker B: Happy Sunday, y'all. You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone. And my friend, we were just talking about. It's been a minute.
[00:00:17] Speaker C: It's been a hot minute.
[00:00:18] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:00:18] Speaker C: I'm so happy to be back, though. How are our listeners out there? Are you excited to hear us back on the airwaves?
[00:00:24] Speaker B: I mean, I would think they would be. You know, they probably. You know, they were like, okay, August has rolled on by. We're well into Sun September. Where are the new episodes from fit to be tied?
[00:00:35] Speaker C: Do they come to work anymore? Yes, we do.
[00:00:37] Speaker B: We do. We're probably working a little too much, which is why it's taken us a while to start the recording, but. Okay. So, admittedly, I was thinking about, you know, in this five minute segment, we usually. We're kind of all over the place. So I was like, what could I talk about with Nika before we get the show started? And let me preface by saying what I'm about to bring up to you is not the topic of our show. The topic of our show today is really kicking off this semester, talking about all things health and wellness, introducing some new staff members on our campus. But before we get into that, in our following segments, Nika, I decided to go on Wikipedia, and I found list of Gen Z slang. There were a couple of things that I highlighted because I was looking at this list earlier today, and there were only out of the, like, 17 pages, there was only maybe less than ten that, like, I'm familiar with.
[00:01:37] Speaker C: Right.
[00:01:37] Speaker B: And so I wanted to. I was gonna see if you are familiar with some of these.
[00:01:41] Speaker C: Well, I'm so glad that you brought that up, because today, as I was lecturing in class, I used the word homies.
[00:01:46] Speaker B: Uh huh.
[00:01:47] Speaker C: And they laughed. And I was like, you know, like your posse. And I was like, I just need to shut up because I am 97 years old at this point in their minds. So, yeah, I bet I don't know a whole lot.
[00:01:58] Speaker B: Well. But I'm also wondering, you know, we both have children, and I don't know how much of this slang has infiltrated them. Like, I'm wondering for your oldest if does she use any kind of.
[00:02:08] Speaker C: So, my oldest is ten.
She'll say some things like cap and bussin. I don't know what they mean, though.
[00:02:18] Speaker B: Okay, well, those are some of the ones that I highlighted to talk to you about. Okay.
[00:02:22] Speaker C: But you know what? Let's be fair. We could pull out some stuff from the archives. And we could probably debilitate the new generation. They would have no idea. We could talk in white Morse code almost.
[00:02:33] Speaker B: I think we could.
[00:02:34] Speaker C: And driving extensions.
[00:02:35] Speaker B: Yeah, this is true.
[00:02:37] Speaker C: This is true.
[00:02:37] Speaker B: Do you want to know what the Wikipedia definition is of Bussin?
[00:02:41] Speaker C: Yes, I would love to.
[00:02:41] Speaker B: Okay. Extremely good. Excellent. Also used to describe good food. So an example would be, this salad is bussing. I should use that. I really love salads. So.
[00:02:53] Speaker C: So I'm glad I don't have to wash my child's mouth. That was soap.
[00:02:56] Speaker B: That was an okay word. I feel like you and I both know what Bougie is.
[00:02:59] Speaker C: I know Bougie.
[00:03:00] Speaker B: It's mainstream enough. Another one I was gonna ask you about. Okay, how about, do you know what drips means?
[00:03:07] Speaker C: Something to do with clothes, right?
[00:03:08] Speaker B: Yes. Trendy, high class fashion. I cannot wait to talk to our guests about some of this at some point in the show, because they're looking at us like they're already laughing, these poor old ladies. Okay, so an example would be, cool drip. Where do you buy it? So next time I see you at church, when I really like your dress, I'm gonna say, cool drip.
[00:03:29] Speaker C: That's busting.
[00:03:30] Speaker B: I'm gonna say, did I do it right?
[00:03:32] Speaker D: I don't.
[00:03:33] Speaker B: I don't know, but. Oh, okay. There's one more, and then I'll really stop.
[00:03:38] Speaker C: Are y'all having secondhand embarrassment for us, like, our guests are having for us right now?
[00:03:43] Speaker B: I'm having embarrassment for myself right now, but I'm already. I'm all in.
[00:03:47] Speaker C: We're committed.
[00:03:48] Speaker B: Yes. Okay. Do you know what Riz is?
[00:03:51] Speaker C: No. And I've been worried about this. Is this a bad thing?
[00:03:55] Speaker B: I don't know. And so, honestly, I don't know if some of the things I'm saying are actually, like, bad words. So production will just, like, edit it out later.
[00:04:04] Speaker C: Okay.
[00:04:04] Speaker B: Sorry. So Riz is one's charm, seduction skills. So, like, if we're talking about somebody, it's like, oh, he has all the Riz. He gets every girl.
[00:04:15] Speaker C: Okay.
[00:04:16] Speaker B: Example that was used. It's short for charisma.
[00:04:21] Speaker C: Oh, charisma is just too much to say.
[00:04:24] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:04:26] Speaker C: So rich. It's just a mouthful.
[00:04:27] Speaker B: Yes. Other things on here, you know, red flag.
[00:04:32] Speaker C: I get that.
[00:04:32] Speaker B: Totally get that.
Salty.
[00:04:35] Speaker C: Salty. I love some salty. I use that all the time.
[00:04:38] Speaker B: Do you know Sigma?
[00:04:41] Speaker C: No.
No.
[00:04:43] Speaker B: It says an independent male on top of the social hierarchy.
[00:04:49] Speaker C: Okay, so Alpha's not.
[00:04:52] Speaker B: Yeah, I don't know.
[00:04:52] Speaker C: It's not Alpha.
[00:04:53] Speaker B: I don't know, but also. Okay, so there's. So one of our guests is from Ohio, and I noticed that Ohio is also listed as slang. I'm not gonna talk about it until this guest comes on in a little bit. Cause I wanna know if they are aware of this so we can talk about it. But, yeah, anyways, just lots of. Again, you know, Mika, as you can see, lots of stuff going on here.
[00:05:18] Speaker C: Lots of stuff. Well, I knew I was old when I turn on SiriusXM on, like, the, you know, today's music channel, and I have no idea who anybody is.
[00:05:28] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:05:28] Speaker C: So I just flip it back to my nineties on nine, and I just live in my own little happy world.
[00:05:32] Speaker B: Yeah, I'm on nineties at nine. Pop two k. Yeah. Eighties on, eighties on eight. Yes.
[00:05:36] Speaker C: All of those are my lanes that I stay in.
[00:05:39] Speaker B: But. Okay, we've gone over, so I'm just gonna stop. We need to take a break, y'all. You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the capstone. And we are going to talk all things health and wellness after this break.
[00:05:57] Speaker A: Wvuafm, Tuscaloosa.
[00:06:06] Speaker C: Welcome back, listeners. You're listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Mika on 90.7, the capstone. And props to you. Look at me. Props. Old slang for hanging in there with us after that first segment.
We are older and we own it and we're okay. But, you know, to balance it out, we have some fresh, young energy in the room today.
Our guest for our first show of the fall semester. I'm so excited. I'm gonna let you introduce them. You know them much better than I do.
[00:06:41] Speaker B: I do. You know, and I can't remember, you know, the last time we had a show in the spring. I may have alluded to us being in this mode of the upcoming summer with hiring some new staff members. You know, when we think about student health and wellness and the different health priorities of students, we wanted to make sure that we had new staff members to really compliment the work that we're doing. So this afternoon, I am very pleased and honored to introduce Miss Vanessa Garcia, who is one of our new health promotion specialists, as well as Mister Brendan Rosman. And so, you know, what's exciting about both of these new team members is not only are they new to our department, they're new to Tuscaloosa, and they're new to Alabama.
[00:07:24] Speaker C: Welcome.
[00:07:25] Speaker B: Yes. And so we wanted to take some time at the beginning of the show for them to introduce themselves. So I'm gonna let y'all duke it out and see who responds to us first by telling us a little bit about yourselves, including your educational background and life prior to working here UA.
[00:07:46] Speaker E: Hello, everyone. First off, thank you so much for having me on today.
My name is Brendan Rosman, and I was born and raised in Ohio, which I'm almost hesitant to say, just with the reactions I get from saying that, but I was born and raised in a town called Finley, Ohio, which is a small town in northwest Ohio. I went to Ohio state for undergrad in grad school. In undergrad, I majored in human development, family science, and minored in education and human nutrition. I then went into straight into grad school, where I pursued a master of public health degree and specialized in epidemiology.
In life prior to UA, I was working at a restaurant for about a year, trying to find jobs. So I'm very thankful to be in this position where I am today.
And, yeah, over to you, Vanessa.
[00:08:46] Speaker B: Hello.
[00:08:46] Speaker D: Yeah, thanks for having me on here as well. My name's Vanessa. I was born and raised in Laredo, Texas, so that's like border town. So literally across the border from Mexico. So love my heritage, love my home. I went to Texas a and M University for undergrad and for grad school. So my bachelor's is in sociology, and then my master's is in health education. So I feel like they kind of round out each other really well. I really like how sociology kind of plays a little role in public health to kind of understand different students needs based off of all the things of sociology.
And, yeah, I think that's just a little life. Prior to Eua, I worked at Texas A and M as well. I was a GA at the health promotion office, so I helped out a lot with their interpersonal violence prevention program, also helped out with their alcohol education programming and first year experience programming. So I had a lot of interactions with students, first year students as well, and, yeah, it was a great time, and I'm glad to be here at UA now.
[00:09:52] Speaker C: Well, welcome. We are so happy to have you here and happy to have you as guests on our show.
[00:09:57] Speaker B: Yes. Well, you know, Brendan, first let me say, we always love having friends from outside of the SEC join us at UA. And I know Vanessa just mentioned her grad assistantship at Texas A and M. Can you tell our listeners about your GA position at Ohio State?
[00:10:14] Speaker E: Yeah, I was the graduate assistant for the student food pantry at Ohio State called Buckeye Food alliance, and when I started my master's program, that position wasn't something I really thought about doing, because epidemiology is really something that's research focused, based on data. And I just applied for that job not really knowing what it was. But I'm so thankful that I did because it changed my perspective about going to undergrad in grad school and the different struggles people can face, especially when it comes to food. And that really opened up my eyes to the different work that college campuses can do. And through that process, I was able to serve the student body at Ohio State, whether it was serving food or toiletries, things like that.
[00:11:02] Speaker B: I love that. Nika, I don't know if you know this. I know that they're trying to expand a lot of the food pantry offerings for our students at UA. They're doing some things in student life and then some partnerships with West Alabama food Bank, so.
[00:11:15] Speaker C: Right. And I know that they have a program where students can donate some of their meals so students can swipe for meals.
[00:11:22] Speaker E: Yes.
[00:11:23] Speaker B: Yes, yes, yes, yes.
[00:11:24] Speaker C: That's awesome.
[00:11:25] Speaker B: Yes. So, Brendan, thank you for sharing that. And so, you know, I know I alluded to y'all being new to our team, but can y'all tell us a little bit about your roles in the department? I know as one of the folks that hired you, but, like, what are.
[00:11:40] Speaker C: You listeners know and our listeners?
[00:11:43] Speaker D: So, my role in the department of Health Promotion and Wellness is mainly focused on alcohol and other drug education.
So focusing on making those presentations whenever they're requested for students, as well as making programming for different events. So, like, alcohol awareness week. That's coming up in October.
So, yeah, that's mainly my role here.
[00:12:03] Speaker B: Very nice.
[00:12:05] Speaker E: And my role will be mainly focusing on financial wellness and also general wellness here at the university.
So with financial wellness, it's going to take a little bit for it to start again, but we're working on doing presentations in the classrooms and also starting the peer financial coaching again.
[00:12:24] Speaker C: Very cool. Very cool.
It goes back to what we do at health promotion. The planning, the assessment. The planning, the evaluation. You know, I think our listeners probably think these are things that the students are having issues with.
Doesn't everyone who goes to the University of Alabama have money, have unlimited resources?
No.
[00:12:48] Speaker B: Right.
[00:12:49] Speaker C: They don't.
[00:12:49] Speaker B: Yes. You know, and I feel like, you know that firsthand, Nika, especially in your advisor role, too, you know, hearing the circumstances that students are coming from and so, you know, with. With alcohol and other drugs, like, we know that that's a, you know, a well known topic across all college campuses. You know, we have football season coming up. But for financial wellness, you know, sometimes when we're going into the classroom and telling students about that, you know, hearing those two words together can be surprising. And you, as a seasoned health educator, like, you know, I would say you could probably confirm, like, it's relatively new in the field, too.
[00:13:26] Speaker C: It's not actually on the wellness wheel. Some people put it on the wellness wheel. I put it on the wellness wheel. But from our listeners, you know, the wellness wheel is all the different dimensions of your life that can affect your wellness. So if your intellectual wellness is not healthy, it's going to affect the way you're social and physical and spiritual. And some of the old models still don't have financial in it, but some of the new ones do. Because, I mean, as our listeners can tell you, if you're worried about finances, the rest of your health is going to be suffering as well.
[00:13:56] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. Brendan, when you were at the food pantry at Ohio State, did you notice that correlation a lot with the students just as far as them, when they're coming in for resources, talking about how their stresses financially were affecting their physical health?
[00:14:13] Speaker E: Yeah, no doubt. Food is fuel, especially for college students with so many things going on. So just being at the food pantry, you notice students trying to stretch their dollar every day. And like I said, food impacts so much when they're going in the classroom, trying to work out, trying to have a social life, get enough sleep, all of that. So you very much noticed how impactful food was when the students were coming in and how much they were trying to stretch what they got from us as well.
[00:14:42] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I know in the next segment, I want to dive into some questions with Vanessa related to alcohol and other drugs. But before we take a break, we'd love to hear what made you all interested in health promotion in public health. Like, kind of.
What caught y'all interested in that? I'm curious.
[00:15:05] Speaker D: So, when I was a sophomore in college, one of my friends had experienced something that did have an impact on her wellness. And so that kind of gave me that passion and that drive to be like, okay, I want to make sure she knows there are people here on campus to support her. And we were at different universities, too, so I had to really dive into what her university offers. And I didn't really know a lot about health promotion at all either. Really thought of public health as a degree, either. I didn't know much about it. So when I became a senior in college, I also became a peer mentor. So I was helping first year students transition to a and m. And I was paired with a health promotion specialist at a and M. So I really got to see firsthand what she did as a job and really got to help her build the syllabus, build the curriculum, and understand how health promotion plays a huge role in students experience in and out of the classroom.
[00:16:03] Speaker B: Awesome. Brendan, how about for you? Because, like, I hear epidemiology and then I just think somebody has to be really intelligent for that.
[00:16:11] Speaker C: Or maybe numbers. Yes, yes.
[00:16:14] Speaker E: Yeah. So a big part of it is the job I had at Buckeye Food alliance, and that work I did. But then also a lot of it was just personal struggle throughout undergrad and grad school, and especially being a male on a college campus, I think you're more inclined to think, to be prideful, and to man up and not share what you're going through with some of your friends, because it's a constant of go out, try to look good, try to get girls.
But at the end of the day, I think it's so important to look out for the brother beside you. Because men's mental health, I don't think is talked about enough. And I don't think it's comfortable for guys, especially my age and going through college, to just be able to have those honest conversations with each other. And I think those can honestly save lives. So for me, being a male, and I know she had told me this, but she believes I'm the first male to hold this position at UA. And that's something that means the absolute world to me and something I don't take for granted and something my parents and family and friends, all from Ohio, very proud of as well.
[00:17:34] Speaker C: It is something to be proud of.
[00:17:35] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:17:35] Speaker C: I love it.
[00:17:36] Speaker B: On that note, we gotta take a break, y'all, cuz I wanna dive into, like, all the questions, like, all the questions for Vanessa. I wanna talk more with Brendan. You and I need to. We got all this stuff going on, but y'all grab a drink of water, use the restroom, do what you gotta do. We are taking a quick break. You are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone.
[00:18:01] Speaker A: Wvuafm, Tuscaloosa.
[00:18:10] Speaker B: Welcome back, listeners.
[00:18:11] Speaker C: You're listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone.
[00:18:17] Speaker B: And. Sorry, I had, like, I should probably rerecord this, but we're not going to. This is the.
[00:18:23] Speaker C: This is the real.
[00:18:24] Speaker B: This is the beauty of radio shows and all the things. I just had a brain blip for a moment, and I was like, oh, we're recording right now. But if you're just now joining us, you are joining us in a great conversation with Vanessa Garcia and Brendan Rosman, both new health promotion specialists in the Department of Health Promotional Wellness here at UA. And just before the break, both Vanessa and Brendan were talking about their passion for work and health promotion and health education, and, you know, kind of within the same vein as we talk about the health issues that you all are focusing on. Vanessa, alcohol and other drugs. Brendan, general wellness and financial wellness. I kind of wanted to have a roundtable discussion for us. You know, when we think about health issues for our college students, what makes those unique compared to the general population, or even just compared to our faculty staff on campus?
[00:19:18] Speaker C: What do y'all think? I kind of alluded to it while ago, and I said, I think the general population thinks that the student population doesn't experience some of the same issues that they do, but that's not always true. Yes, they are unique, but they do experience some things that, you know, say a 50 year old in that population, like financial wellness, right?
[00:19:41] Speaker B: Absolutely. Well, you know, and I think even just the existence of us having a health promotion department specifically for our UA students, but then we have completely separate initiatives for our faculty staff.
[00:19:52] Speaker C: Right. That tells you right there that there are differences in the.
[00:19:56] Speaker B: Absolutely. Well, and Vanessa, I know you and I, we were meeting earlier last week and talking about alcohol and other drugs and programming, and I. And you mentioned us still being in the red zone. Do you mind telling our listeners what exactly the red zone is and what that refers to when we think about college and alcohol use for students?
[00:20:19] Speaker C: Right.
[00:20:20] Speaker D: So the red zone is basically the first six weeks of the semester, so it's from move in to Thanksgiving break, and that basically kind of defines that vulnerable couple of moments. I guess, for students that come in, they're more vulnerable to sexual assaults and more vulnerable alcohol misuse. So that's something that we kind of want to make students more aware of as they are transitioning into coming back to school or coming to college for the first time, understanding what that looks like and how that can make an impact on themselves and the people around them. So I think going back to that question of what makes college health issues unique is that I view college as its own little community. So even though UA is so big, I feel like there are so many people that know other people. Like, oh, yeah, I know this person. And I, you know, everybody is connected on college campuses, which makes it that much more important for students to have this information.
And why peer education, which we'll probably talk about later, why peer education is so important. We need to make sure that, you know, students are informed of how to take care of each other.
[00:21:28] Speaker C: Right.
[00:21:30] Speaker B: Well, I think, too, you know, you know, again, when we think about that vulnerable timeframe for freshmen, there's so much that is happening there. And as much as individuals are connected, I feel like there's also that pressure to get connected to. We have so many out of state students here on our campus, and so when I think about the different college health issues and when I think about our Alabama model and the different dimensions of wellness, I really love the fact that we have social as one of the dimensions, too. And I think that that's huge. And I really appreciate us having different departments that we collaborate with for providing some of those social opportunities, like university programs and some other things.
[00:22:15] Speaker C: But, yeah, because, I mean, you've got to think about. And I totally agree with the red zone with alcohol, but I feel like we need to also have a red zone for getting acclimated, like homesickness, figuring your way around town, figuring your way. Like, is this the major you came in deciding, like, you thought it in high school, but then you're here, and maybe it's the classes are not working out for you. Did you find your niche yet? Did you find your tribe, your people? I feel like that first semester in college for incoming students is very hard, I think, both intellectually, emotionally, socially. And then we add alcohol into it, we add financial, you know, and then it just. But I think it's.
We don't really think about it once we're out of, like, college that it's almost like when we send our kids to camp, you know, are they making friends? Are they having fun? But then, now it's like we're sending them to a new life and sometimes across the country.
[00:23:16] Speaker B: Absolutely. Well, and I'm jumping around a little bit, but I, you know, I think kind of based on that point, when we think about our own time periods acclimating as freshmen, what did your own health and wellbeing look like? Do you feel like there was, like, a time of transition, like, Brendan, for you, going from Findley to Columbus, what did that transition feel like for you, like, mentally, emotionally, as you were getting acclimated to a new community?
[00:23:42] Speaker E: Yeah, I think the first thing I remember is just being so excited to start that process.
Ohio State was always my dream school, being from Ohio, so I was very happy to be there on campus in Columbus.
But I was also excited to start that process on my own and not be living with my parents.
And after, you know, you start living that life, I remember just thinking, I think this is a little bit more difficult than I thought it would be.
You're on your own. Those decisions you have to make are up to you with your free time, what you do on the weekends, what food you eat. And I think something I didn't expect was just, even though you're in that big population like Ohio state, like Alabama was, it can be lonely at times.
[00:24:32] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:24:33] Speaker E: While you're trying to make those friends, while you're trying to find clubs, while you're trying to find things to do on the weekend. So I think it's just having to be okay with being lonely and having to be okay with yourself.
[00:24:48] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:24:49] Speaker E: And I think a person can find out a lot about themselves through that process.
[00:24:53] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:24:54] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:24:54] Speaker B: Truly. Vanessa, what about for you? Because Texas A and M is not a small school. Yeah.
[00:25:00] Speaker C: No.
[00:25:00] Speaker D: Yes. It's huge. I think kind of the same as Brendan a little bit there. I was really excited to transition into college life and what that would look like, but I think after a while, I kind of lost a grasp on what exactly I needed to do to be successful as a student.
And it was lonely, for sure. My roommate was a high school friend, and she was joining all the organizations and doing all the things, and I being a little bit socially anxious, I was not doing that. So it was interesting to see how different experiences we had during that first semester. And I don't want to speak for Brendan, but definitely right now, kind of getting a new grasp on Alabama and what that looks like is also kind of similar to how I felt my first semester in college and trying to get acclimated with everybody and meet new people and trying to make sure that I find my community here as well.
[00:25:57] Speaker C: Right.
[00:25:57] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:25:58] Speaker C: And I like what Brandon said, you know, I'm not sure we teach this ever, but maybe we should start teaching our children this. But being unbalanced for a little moment in time is an okay thing until you can find your balance sitting with the uncomfortableness, sitting with the loneliness, that it's not always a bad thing.
But we don't teach that a lot.
[00:26:20] Speaker B: No, we don't. And, you know, and I know one of the things that I had put for this segment was us, like, talking about how social media has played into that. But, you know, Nika, acknowledging that both of us were in undergrad during a time where social media was not a thing, yet what was what was your own experience like at, you know, coming as a freshman and I'm so good.
[00:26:44] Speaker C: So I came from a very small.
I did not know anyone. When I came to Alabama, I had two roommates that were just potluck, and I did not join a sortie or anything like that. Cause I was putting myself through school, didn't have any extra dollars laying around to do anything extra and fun. So I just kind of came here, and my friends that I had to make were either through my major, like, sitting next to my class and also the student rec center because I had come from always working out, being very active. So that was like home for me. Even though I didn't know the Rick center, I met more of my, I guess, like minded friends there. And that's how I started building my social networks and then going to church. But I cannot imagine as lonely as I know it was there for that whole first semester until I actually made a network of friends watching people live their quote unquote best life in their highlight reel on social media. Knowing that I was not a part of all that, I don't know if I would have been able to make it. I think I might have called my mom and said, come get me.
[00:27:57] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah, probably do. I feel like that would have been the same for me, too.
Facebook back then called the Facebook.
Yeah, that it started the summer of 2005, I think so, the summer between my sophomore and junior year. And obviously, it doesn't have the capabilities that it does now. So no Instagram, no TikTok, none of that. So, yeah, I feel like that's definitely a game changer. You know, when we're starting to think about comparison, one of my favorite quotes is comparison is a thief of joy. But, you know, even when we think about social media's influence on health behaviors and just seeing what our peers are doing, that's going to lead into conversation in our next segment, because I really want us to dive into that. And so on that note. Yeah, let's take a break, y'all. You're listening to fit to be tied with Sheena Nika on 90.7 the Capstone.
[00:28:55] Speaker A: WVuafM Tuscaloosa.
[00:29:05] Speaker C: Welcome back to fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the Capstone. If you're just joining us, we have some great guests today. We have Vanessa and Brendan, who is with the student division of Health and Wellness Health promotion at the University of Alabama. For those of you who are faculty and staff listening, we do have a faculty staff health promotion and wellness. And then we have one for students. And so what we're focusing on today is the student population.
[00:29:36] Speaker B: Yes. And so, you know, with us talking about student health and wellness, Vanessa alluded to this a little bit earlier in regards to peer education. So we're going to talk about that now. Can y'all enlighten us with what is peer education?
[00:29:53] Speaker D: I haven't answering questions, first lady.
[00:29:55] Speaker C: So it's your turn.
[00:29:57] Speaker E: Peer education, especially on college campuses, is all about students teaching other students different important information that can be financial, it can be nutrition, it can be health related, it can be all sorts of things. But I'm pretty sure it's proven that students react better when there's other students teaching them the information rather than instead.
[00:30:20] Speaker C: Of old ladies like us. I get it, I get it.
[00:30:23] Speaker E: But especially on Alabama's campus, I think it's so important to have students out there spreading important information about other students, just having those interactions on a daily basis.
[00:30:38] Speaker B: Absolutely. And I feel like too, especially for more sensitive health topics, you know, learning about something from a fellow peer that you feel comfortable with is going to have better outcomes than Nico, like you said, you know, like hearing it from a professional. Because normally if, you know, even for myself and thinking I back in college, I'm not going to be trying like a new way to eat or work out because my mom or my mom's best friend told me to, or my doctor. It's probably because, oh, this worked for my roommate or, you know, or my sorority sister. I'm going to try it, too. So I really love the fact that we do have peer education on campus, especially with a lot of different departments. But I know for our department of Health Promotion and Wellness, we specifically have project health. And so can you all tell us a little bit about the different branches of project health and the types of programming that they do?
[00:31:32] Speaker D: Yeah, so we have five different branches. So we have gamma, we have ambassadors, we have health hut.
Sorry, I'm trying to remember all of them. We have healthy minds and then we have advocates. So each of them have their own purpose. So I'm the advisor for health ambassadors. So they table at every Wednesday from 09:00 a.m. to 04:00 p.m. at the student center plaza. And basically they have a different health topic of the week that they share information about and they interact with students with different game questions, provide promos for participating.
And yeah, all the branches are really great at what they do. I don't know if Brenda, let's talk about Gamma a little bit, yes.
[00:32:13] Speaker E: I am the advisor for Gamma, which all the members in Gamma are part of a different greek chapter, and they're awesome. They do a great job and they do tabling Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays about different health topics, like Vanessa said. And we're gonna try to get them to go back into their houses soon and give those presentations to their fellow greek, greek members, which I think will be super awesome.
[00:32:43] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. Well, I know, you know, with gamma, that's extremely helpful for our campus as we think about some of the different campus priorities for enhancing greek health and wellness. And so again, when we think about that peer education, you know, probably students within the greek community are going to be most receptive to learning things from other students in the greek community. So I think that that's helpful. And the programming that we do with ambassadors, with the way that they are integrated into providing presentations and tabling for a healthy hump day on Wednesdays, I love that. I know for our listeners, they're probably most familiar with health, hut just because of that iconic gazebo piece that we have and doing the programming there with healthy minds in particular, that's one of our newest branches that's a collaboration with the counseling center. And so regardless of whatever health topic the rest of project health is focusing on, healthy minds is always going to be focusing on a mental health related topic that kind of correlates with that, with that umbrella one. Now, advocates, I think if I were to go back in time and if project health existed in the way that it did, I would be an advocate. And Nika, you might be an advocate, too. So advocates are what I call, like the gorilla tactic, peer educators. So they have their tote bag of information and swag, and they're just going to straight up go up to somebody while they're waiting in line at Starbucks and be like, hey, so can we.
[00:34:13] Speaker C: Talk about that vape cartridge and what might be in it?
[00:34:16] Speaker B: Yeah, can we talk about some, like, safer sex practices right now? Let's talk about your nutrition.
[00:34:23] Speaker C: Like, nothing embarrasses us. There's no topic about the human body in human health that embarrasses us. We don't have any kind of shame in our health promotion game. I would totally be an advocate.
[00:34:34] Speaker B: Yeah, you would totally.
[00:34:35] Speaker C: I would totally be that for sure.
[00:34:38] Speaker B: So, you know, thinking about project health, if, you know, if our listeners are thinking, oh my gosh, like, I want to be in project health, you know, do you have to be a certain major to be a project health member? How can somebody get involved? Can y'all share some information on that?
[00:34:52] Speaker D: Yeah. So I'm pretty sure we take any major, so any major can be a part of it. If they just have a passion for health education, peer education, they're more than welcome to be a part of it. We also have an application process that opens up, I believe, semesterly. So there'll be one opening up for the spring that students can just fill out and show all their passions and what specifically they want to, to get involved in.
[00:35:18] Speaker B: Okay, nice. Very nice.
[00:35:20] Speaker C: So what website do they need to.
[00:35:21] Speaker B: Go to so they can actually, if you go on UA's website and search health promotion and wellness, you can find our website. That way. You can also visit hpw dot sl dot ua.edu. quite a mouthful, but that leads to our health promotion and wellness department. And in addition to project health, we also do a lot of other signature programming. One of our other staff members overseas, our hash adulting series, and our mental health brown bag. So those are virtual series that happen once a month. And those have been tremendous. I really love hash adulting that was first born out of an initiative with a collaboration with the career center, just kind of recognizing some different adulting skills that students did not yet feel well versed in, whether that was doing their taxes on their own for the first time, knowing what all of the different check engine lights mean in their instrument panel for their vehicle. I'm actually doing one this month on grocery shopping on a budget, and meal prep. So a lot of really relevant topics. And then with our mental health brown bag, we're constantly utilizing our expertise from the counseling center and other departments on campus. And so that's gone over really well. I think the one thing that has been positive out of COVID has been really the receptive nature to virtual programming. We're finding that students like being able to engage in that. You know, we certainly still want to do our in person programming, but having that virtual option can be helpful because the students can engage in those programs, but they're not having to stress about hiking from one side of campus to the other and, you know, or if.
[00:37:05] Speaker C: They'Re embarrassed about, you know, learning more about a topic.
[00:37:09] Speaker B: Yes, absolutely. And that's one big thing that we try to prioritize, is respecting, you know, what people's comfort levels are with a particular topic, providing an opportunity for them to engage with the speaker in an anonymous capacity. So I really like that about our programming, too. Yes.
[00:37:31] Speaker C: Y'all are killing it over there.
[00:37:32] Speaker B: Well, thank you.
[00:37:34] Speaker C: I am so proud.
[00:37:36] Speaker B: Well, we're only killing it, because now we have all of our wonderful new staff members that are going to be doing all of the amazing, amazing things. But, Nika, I do have a question for you. As an academic advisor, you know, we're still relatively early in the semester, but have you already had students kind of articulate some stresses? You know, are they stressed out about all the things?
[00:37:57] Speaker C: Yeah. Yeah. You've got the normal college stressors of, you know, my bill didn't get paid or I'm not being able to access my book online because there's a technical glitch. But I'm also starting to get the.
I don't like my roommate. We don't. We're not getting along. My learning style does not match my professor's teaching style.
I don't know if this is what I want to do as a major. So, yeah, I mean, it's coming at them fast. So it's here, you know, and then you've got all the other stuff of.
I didn't get into the greek organization I wanted. I don't know if this is my place here. I don't like my dormouse. I don't know anybody. I don't know if I wanna stay because I'm not making friends. So, I mean, it's everything. It's everything. Yeah.
[00:38:56] Speaker B: Well, I know they're lucky to have you as an advisor as well as our other faculty on campus, just because you guys do know the resources to connect them with. So that's the one thing I'm like.
[00:39:06] Speaker C: I'm real quick to be like, let me hook you up with some higher help than what I can give, you know, I love to. I love to connect the dots for them because, I mean, they have so much information thrown at them that it's impossible to remember everything. So that's where I think we come in. The old folks come in handy.
[00:39:25] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:26] Speaker C: It's cause they're like, we got somebody on our speed dial that can help you out.
[00:39:30] Speaker B: Do people know what speed dial is?
[00:39:32] Speaker C: Rolodex speed dial?
My address book? I don't think so.
[00:39:37] Speaker B: On that note, we will take a break and we'll have our ending segment. Hopefully our guests, we haven't scared them off where they are willing to stay with us for the last five minutes, but you guys are listening to fit to be tied with Sheena and Mika on 90.7 to capstone.
[00:39:55] Speaker A: WvuAFm Tuscaloosa.
[00:40:05] Speaker C: Hey, listeners, you're listening to fit to be tight. It's Sheena and Nika, a 90.7 the Capstone. And we have reached the end of our first show of the fall semester. We've had some great guests today. We've had Vanessa and Brendan, and, of course, we have the lovely Sheena, who is our fearless leader, who is going to go rogue for a second. But, you know, we welcome it because it keeps us on our toes and it keeps us spicy.
[00:40:29] Speaker B: It does.
[00:40:29] Speaker C: You know, not salty. Spicy.
[00:40:31] Speaker B: Spicy. Yes. I don't know if that was on the Wikipedia list or not, but it's spicy, I think. So usually during this. This last five minutes, I usually will ask our guests a random question. Nika has heard me ask this question before.
So my question to you, Brendan and Vanessa, what gets you hype? Is it a certain song? Is it, like, what gets you excited and going for the day? And I will share with you a nontraditional answer that we actually had from a campus partner one time. So they actually shared that when something is canceled on their calendar, that they did not take part in the cancellation. That's kind of like a happy surprise of, like, oh, my gosh, I get back an hour of my life. That pumps them up.
[00:41:25] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:41:25] Speaker B: Cause they're like, I just got an hour of my life back. This is amazing. Somebody else said, creating a to do list gets them hype. But then somebody else said, like, a song, like bombs over Baghdad or something else from, like, some early two thousands pop. Like, a very particular song gets them hype. So what gets you hype?
[00:41:48] Speaker C: Please don't say monster energy drink. I'm just kidding. Ha ha. That's a funny little.
[00:41:54] Speaker B: It's actually Celsius. Yeah.
[00:41:59] Speaker D: I think for me, something that gets me really hyped is connecting with people. Like, that sounds really lame, but I think just, like, laughing with people and having a good time. Last week, I connected with some old friends, and I came out of that, hanging out with them, and I was like, I feel alive again.
Feels your cup.
[00:42:19] Speaker C: Yes.
[00:42:20] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. Brendan, anything come to mind for you?
[00:42:24] Speaker E: I think there are a lot of things that hype me up. I have music for different moods. I love a lot of different artists.
I think, like, when I wake up and maybe I don't want to wake up. Cause it's early, things like that. What gets me very hype is thinking about my future.
[00:42:43] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:42:43] Speaker E: And just, like, kind of not sure what's gonna happen in it.
[00:42:48] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:42:48] Speaker E: I think about my life, how it hasn't been linear, but just think about what's gonna happen and when. I was probably, like, five to seven years now, I wrote a letter to myself, and it was like, what's your why?
And it was basically like, writing to. It's gonna sound crazy, but, like, to my future wife and kids, like, you're my why, and I just have it with me. And, like, hopefully someday I can give.
[00:43:15] Speaker B: It to somebody that's precious. I like that.
I like both of those answers.
[00:43:21] Speaker C: Yes, they are good.
[00:43:22] Speaker B: Nico, what? What gets you hyped? I feel like I've asked you this so many times over the years, but also being old, I've forgotten some.
[00:43:29] Speaker C: Well, you were so good. You remember my hype song, which is outcast bombs over Baghdad.
[00:43:33] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:43:33] Speaker C: But in this season of my life, what gets me hype is waking up in the morning and knowing that I have candy corn and candy pumpkins in the kitchen and I can just pop one in my mouth and feel that sugary goodness before I get in the shower and brush my teeth.
[00:43:48] Speaker B: Yes, it gives me life to start the day. And you eat that in tandem with peanuts to create the, like, payday candy bar effect.
[00:43:57] Speaker C: Yeah, but I'm just. I'm very. I'm very just. I need just the sugar. The protein's getting in my water. Yeah, yeah, the protein. Just move on out. I need just the full sugar. But it's not just any sugar. It's the candy corn and candy pumpkin combination. Okay, but I'll be over it. You know, after this season, I have to find a new hype. But for right now, that is my. My why?
[00:44:19] Speaker B: Okay, I like that.
[00:44:20] Speaker C: What about you, Sheena?
[00:44:22] Speaker B: What is my. What gets me hype right now? I think certain music like that always gets me hype. And then feeling like I have control of the day, I'm like, okay, I feel really good about today. Cause I'm pretty sure I know how to navigate everything. So that gets me super hyped. So if I feel like I have a good handle on the day, plus some paula abdul, like forever your girl or bobbi brown.
[00:44:51] Speaker C: My prerogative.
[00:44:52] Speaker B: Yes, yes, yes. So, a lot. Yeah, so some good music. You know, I gotta make sure it's like, you know, safe for the kids to listen to as I drop, but, yeah, like, me, like, driving to, like, school drop off and it's like a good. I think on that list, the word was banger. Yeah, if it's a good banger. Yeah, yeah.
[00:45:14] Speaker C: I'm gonna say it again. Bussin.
[00:45:15] Speaker B: Yeah, I'm feeling really good. But I can't wait to tell you about a bussin salad that I have.
[00:45:21] Speaker C: I'm so waiting to hear about this.
[00:45:23] Speaker B: Okay. With that said, we're just gonna stop. Y'all have been listening to fit to be tied. Thank you, Vanessa and Brendan, for being on the show today. Until next time. And roll tide. Well tied.
[00:45:38] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa.
