Name: Abigail Rice

Email: rice.812@osu.edu

Major(s): English, Journalism

Minor(s): Human Rights

Description

In the summer of 2017, I plan to participate in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s internship program in Cleveland, Ohio. This project will greatly contribute to my education by supplementing the English and Journalism degree I am pursuing at The Ohio State University. With this project, I will further my goal of becoming a music journalist.

Process

My interest in Rock and Roll began at an early age, cultivated and critiqued by my father. On birthdays, he and my mother would take me to Cleveland. There, I would explore the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s newest exhibits, pouring over my favorite artifacts – the same artifacts I spent much of my life studying in concert footage and on my dad’s old album covers. I was overwhelmed by this music. As I grew older, I was overwhelmed by its ability to shape my life, as well as the lives of individuals I’d never met. It’s capacity to invoke change is incredible – and something I have never seen so clearly at work in any other medium. With Bob Dylan as a teacher, mentor, and friend, I felt I possessed the rebel spirit needed to dedicate my life to rock and roll, and perhaps more importantly, to communicate its message as a music journalist. As a sophomore attending The Ohio State University, I’ve developed a plan to do exactly this.

Results

While I have not yet completed my Second-Year Project, I plan to participate in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s internship program. Specifically, I plan to work with the communications or education department. Under the supervision of Mr. Todd Mesek, Vice President of marketing and communications at the Rock Hall, I hope to better my understanding of music journalism and its impact on the music industry. The primary objective of this experience is to facilitate the skills necessary to become a better writer, using an ever-growing knowledge of the history of rock and roll to aide my research. Studying English and Journalism at The Ohio State University has inspired me to use my writing skills to explore topics I’m passionate about. For as long as I can remember, my greatest passion has been music. An internship at the Rock Hall will combine several impactful experiences that will prepare me for a successful career as a music journalist.

Reflection

In order to report back to my university community in the most effective way possible, I would like to keep a daily blog. This would include daily activities and responsibilities while interning at the Rock Hall. More importantly, it would include how the experience has shaped my understanding of music journalism. This way, I will be able to reflect on the progress I’ve made toward my ultimate goal of becoming a journalist dedicated to the effect of music on an ever-changing sociopolitical landscape. Using the media writing and editing techniques I have learned in many of my journalism courses, I plan to write daily blog entries as well as more in-depth pieces concerning the work I am involved with at the Rock Hall. For example, the Rock Hall has seasonal exhibits, often depicting different bands or artists and their influence on music. As an intern, I will be able to work with these exhibits in a way inaccessible to the general public. By publishing a particular piece using privileged insight, I will be able to practice my ultimate goal of using writing to communicate the impact of Rock and Roll. Lastly, I will be able to build a portfolio of relevant writing samples to show future employers.

Coming into my first semester at OSU, I had a lot of doubts as to what the college experience was going to do for me, as well as how I was going to find my unique niche. My saving grace has been the ability to retreat into my studies. I spent a lot of time by myself studying in the Thompson library. During this time, I learned to find joy in my classes. Initially, each class was an opportunity to learn something I’d never have expected to, and more importantly, to become someone different than the person I’d been the day before.

The friendships I’ve made didn’t come so easy. My first few weeks here were planned for me. I played “ice-breakers” with people I didn’t know and whom I don’t know to this day. I was more anxious than I’d ever been about making friends because I felt they should come naturally. And with time, they did. I fell into a group of people (seemingly unconsciously) that I value more than I would have ever expected to. They’re the same group of people that encourage and support me as well as challenge and push me. Without realizing it, I befriended a group of thoughtful, intelligent, and kind individual whom I hope to know for the rest of my life. I genuinely hope my first semester here is an indicator as to the kind of people I’ll meet at OSU for the next 4 years.

I met my friends through the Humanities program. I think that speaks volumes of the program itself. The people I’ve met through the humanities have been extremely interesting and caring people. I’ve found that I have a lot of the same interests with many of them, which gives me hope in making connections for the future. I’ve enjoyed most all of the humanities scholars’ events I’ve partaken in and in turn, have developed a better sense of focus for what I want to within the humanities.

Going forward, I’d like to participate in more humanities events. This semester, I was overwhelmed by everything that was happening around me and failed to prioritize the way I’d like to. This being said, I would like to make my next semester one in which I become more involved in the group.

Context: Of all the strengths I discovered, the strength of “context” made the most sense to me based on what I currently know about myself. Academically, this strength has the ability to motivate any research I plan to do. To quote an age-old cliché, “Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it.” This does not extend only to the idea of learning what not to do. By studying what has happened, The Civil Rights Movement, for example, one can also learn what they can do to spark change. During my time at OSU, I’ve already experienced some exciting social opportunities by interacting with this strength. I’ve recently joined several clubs (one of my favorites being “OSU Vinyl Club”) that embrace some unique niches associated with learning about and from the past. This strength in particular is very in tune with my interests – making something useful or functional out of what I considered to be a hobby. Whether it be through music or literature, I tend to idealize what has happened in generations past. This strength is one I take a lot of pride in. In the future, I plan to take my interests and my passions and apply them to my present circumstance.

Strategic: Strengthquest describes strategic thinking as “creating alternative ways to proceed.” This strength is one I hope I can utilize on an every-day basis. This strength is one which is applicable to any and all parts of our lives. More often than not, it seems that our reality does not always meet expectation. I hope to use this strength to approach setbacks in a more positive and persevering light. Academically, I feel this strength will be of great importance when I become overwhelmed by a problem that I’ve been attempting to solve the same way over and over again. By approaching the issue (whether it be a complicated Math problem or daunting English Paper) from a new perspective, it’s much easier to see what it is you’re doing wrong – and how you can solve the problem from there. Socially, I think that this strength can be applied to most relationships. Approaching conflict from different angles can always help to give you the insight into how another person is feeling. Once you’ve achieved that sort of empathetic perspective, reaching compromise becomes much easier now that you’ve made an effort to understand another person. In terms of my future, I hope to always employ this strength whenever I’ve encountered a problem that I can’t solve by traditional and tried means.

Ideation: This strength was one I was initially very unfamiliar with. Upon looking into it, I found that those with the strength of “ideation” are fascinated by ideas, and use them to make connections between seemingly unrelated things. Academically, I feel that this strength can be useful in a number of ways. Specifically, I think this strength is helpful in connecting concepts, especially when employed with the strength of context. As an English major, I hope to seek to understand concepts in writing and literature with past works in order to better understand the material. Socially, I think that interacting with ideas is one of the most rewarding ways to create new relationships. By developing relationships based on the discussion of ideas, I feel it easier to create a network of people with similar passions and motives – all which can lead to enacting these ideas together. In the future, I plan to use this strength to emphasize creativity as a focal point in my studies, in my work, and in my life.

Input: This strength is also one which I felt aligned with many of my interests and passions. Input is described as being “a craving to know more – even going as far to archive specific kinds of information.” When it comes to studying things I love, like music or literature, I am very active in seeking out additional information. I love to write down information I find particularly interesting in hopes of using it later on. I think that this strength will come into play academically a bit later on – when I begin to study my particular field of interest more in depth. I hope to archive as much information as possible and use what I know to aide me in my research and in my writing. Socially, I feel this strength is one all people can use to express what interests them. By seeking out knowledge in the areas that interest you the most, you may be able to identify and build relationships with other people who are interested in the same areas. I plan to use this skill to constantly build on what I know. Although I’m aware I’ll never be even remotely complete in my quest for knowledge, I hope to use my life as an opportunity to collect pieces of information that will better my future.

Intellection: I tend to consider myself an introvert. I’ve never considered this a strength. I hope to begin to view it as being so after exploring what exactly the strength of “intellection” is. Academically, I think it can be very useful to rely on yourself. Although it poses and equal amount of problems as it does solutions, relying on yourself does promote independence, which is something I value greatly – especially when help is hard to come by. Socially, I think that the greatest benefit of this strength is coming to know yourself without definition by anyone else. Often, people view themselves as they imagine others do. I hope to come to know myself independently (as much as possible) of any outside influences. In turn, I think that the relationships you choose to develop will be more honest and central to who you are as an individual. In the future, I plan to use this strength to develop my own values. I want to understand the world and myself in terms that I come to on my own. I think that this strength will help in doing exactly that.

Coming into such a large student body is terrifying. Regardless of helpful staff and students, it’s always difficult to integrate into something as massive as The Ohio State University. In a school where tight-knit communities are essential, it’s daunting to be given a choice; the choice to decide where you belong and where you don’t. Over the past few days, I’ve been fortunate enough to discover a group of friends whom I feel I’ve known for much longer. In this short amount of time, I’ve been able to experience classes which have not only sparked my interest, but inspired me to create a strategy in becoming who I want to be. These things and many more have given me the perspective to understand what it is to be a freshman at the university. To me, that means being able to explore the endless opportunities I have here without being pressured to decide what exactly I want to do with them. My first week at OSU has been filled with both terrifying and exciting moments; each more terrific than the last. My expectations for my OSU experience and the Humanities Scholar program are similar in that I’m not sure what to expect. My experiences thus far have far exceeded any expectations I may have had and I can only imagine that they will continue to do so.

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