Every week Jordan has kept us excited with his new adventures and experiences. The last update was no different when after an intense week of test taking; he was able to get away to the Arabian Gulf and Oman. Now that this See the World, BE the Future scholarship recipient is approaching the end of the semester as well as his study abroad program, things are slowing down a bit. To give an example, the latest highlights of Jordan’s week consist of seeing a musical on campus and giving a few class presentations.
The AUS theater group performed the classic “Little Shop of Horrors” and because Jordan dabbled a little in theatre back in high school, it was cool for him to see a school production. Last Wednesday was closing night so he and a few of the other exchange students went to support an American exchange student that had a pretty big role as a doo-wop girl in the production.
The musical put on by AUS last week
The musical is about a down and out flower shop on skid row in an American town and set in the ’50s. The story was narrated by the three doo-wop girls and featured a nerdy floral worker that bought a Venus Fly Trap that fed on blood. The other characters were an old Indian lady who owned the shop, a blonde ditsy girl and her abusive dentist boyfriend. The production crew had built the huge Venus Fly Trap with huge lips and teeth. There was a kid inside controlling its mouth so it could talk and sing. It was impressive. Jordan could tell they’d worked hard on the production and had some really talented singers and actors.
The following day Jordan was busy preparing for two class presentations. He was blessed with the gift of gab and because of his debating experience in high school to constantly giving presentations in Business School at Howard, he loved giving presentations.
In his International Marketing class, they were divided into groups and his group’s presentation topic was US investment in the gulf. It was during this presentation that Jordan was reminded of Howard University’s mission for their School of Business and why they made students do so many presentations. The first two years at Howard every business student is required to take two orientation classes that are dedicated to only giving oral presentations and collectively doing PowerPoint presentations; each time a student spoke or asked a question, he or she would have to do a certain introduction with his or her name, major, year, and hometown. This training helps a lot in the business world.
A grocery delivery company I presented for my E-Commerce class.
When it was Jordan’s group’s turn to present, he was confident and his intense business school training showed. He didn’t need to refer to his slides, which were perfectly sourced and while it seemed second nature to him, in his feedback he was praised for all those little things he’d taken for granted. The experience taught him that when he was thinking, “Howard’s doing too much,” “Why are we presenting every week?” “Why am I required to wear a suit for this?” All of it was to prepare he and his classmates for the real world, and sadly, he realized, business students at other universities don’t always get this. Jordan presented with confidence and had the attention of the class, as he was taught; something he thought was a given, but clearly isn’t offered at other business schools.
In appreciation, Jordan sends kudos to his lovely home school, Howard University; and shout out to them for getting President Barak Obama to be this year’s commencement speaker.
To keep up with Jordan’s final days and adventures, remember to check back next week!
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