Getting Started

The count down to summer 2012 is on! And 13 Things @ Coe is back!

In light of Coe's liberal arts mission, our theme this summer is "13 Things to Think About". Rather than exploring and applying a specific tool each week this summer (as we did in our last 13 Things @ Coe), we'll explore, think about and share our thoughts about a specific idea each week this summer.

Our mission statement includes words and phrases like discover, think, and develop an attitude of intellectual curiosity and creativity. That's just what we'll do this summer!

Here's how it will work:

• Each week, you'll find a blog post here with a short reading, video or interview. Many of the videos will come from TEDtalks (TED is a nonprofit organization supporting the mission of "Ideas Worth Spreading").
• Watch the video or read the interview/report and then use the comments feature in this blog to reply to some reflection questions included in the post, or share your own thoughts about the topic. Be sure to read each other's comments - let's make this conversational when possible!

Here's a sample to get you thinking:
This is a short TEDtalk by Matt Cutts. Matt is an engineer at Google, where he works on things like search optimization and the elimination of linkspam. Best quote in this video:

“The next 30 days are going to pass whether you like it or not, so why not think about something you have always wanted to try and give it a shot for the next 30 days?”

Instead of 30 days, our quest is to devote around 30 minutes a week for the next 13 weeks to give this a try!

What's in it for you? Aside from the benefits of new ideas, new thoughts, old ideas seen in a new light and the potential for learning something new with lots of people interested in learning with you....? Yes, there's more. To get you started, you'll get a gift card to our neighborhood coffee shop, Brewed Awakenings. Pick up a coffee and snack for your first week!

And wait, that's not all! Everyone that completes participation will get his or her name entered into a drawing for an iPad 3.  The iPad winner will be announced on Opening Conference Day, August 20.

How do you start?

1. Follow up to my email (search lstrosch in your gmail if you can't find it!). You'll find a sign-up form in the email. 
2. Put a comment under this post indicating your intent to participate!
3. Come back here each week starting on May 14 for your weekly dose of things to think about!
4. See the FAQ link on the right for fine details.