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Curriculum Vitae
John Girdwood
- Home Office: 6419 Beecher Rd., Flint MI 48532
- Ph# 1-77-Girdwood or email john@johngirdwood.com
- Skype “johngirdwood.com” or Twitter @JohnGirdwood
Educational History
- Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
- PhD in Sociology, expected graduation 2014
- Concentration: Health & Well Being, Aging and the Life Course
- Areas of Interest: Sociology of Sport; Family; Influence; Mass Media; End-of-Life Decisions
- Performance: 3.65 GPA (Updated Nov 2011)
- Advisers/Committee:
- Toby Ten Eyck, Steve Gold, Julia Miller
- Courses:
- Methods of Social Inquiry – Dr. Thomas Conner (Stanford)
- Special Topics in Sociological Methodology and Qualitative Field Research – Dr. S. Gold(Univ of California at Berkeley)
- Prepared and conducted a qualitative study
- Collaborated with principle investigator (PI)
- Project involved human subjects (approved by IRB)
- Global Transformations and Structural Inequality – Dr. X. Ren (Univ of Chicago)
- Contemporary Sociological Research on Family – Dr. Z. Zhang (Penn State Univ)
- Analysis of Social Data I and II – Dr. H. Liu (Univ of Texas at Austin)
- Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory – Dr. S. Chaudhuri (Vanderbilt) and Dr. A. Montgomery (Univ of California at Berkeley)
- Psychosocial Aspects of Physical Activity – Dr. D. Gould (Univ of Illinois)
- Online Research Design – Dr. H. Li (Michigan St Univ)
- Communication, Media, and Society – Dr. T. Hove (Univ of Wisconsin at Madison)
- African American Families – Dr. Julia R. Miller Dean of the College of Human Ecology (Post-Doctoral Study, Harvard University; Ph.D., University of Maryland; M.Ed., University of Illinois; B.S., Hampton University)
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
- Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI
- Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI
Teaching Experience
- Michigan State University
- ISS 210 Society and the Individual – Technology and Society (Interim Teaching Assistant; Spring 2010)
- SOC 315 Family and Society (Summer 2011)
- Saginaw Valley State University
- SOC 111 Intro to Sociology (Fall 2011, Winter 2012)
- SOC 280 Global Cultures (Winter 2012)
- Other Courses Planned and Prepared, Not Yet Taught
- Sociology of Work
- Sociology of Sports
- Youth and Society
- Political Sociology
- Contemporary Communities
- Sociology of Mass Communication
- Social Problems
- Sociology of Health Care Systems
Ancillary Contributions to Academia
Papers
- Girdwood, J. (2010). Racism in sports: How athletes’ descriptions of self might align with those of mass media
- Girdwood, J. (2009). The Influence of Paternal Relationships on the Development of Athletic Male Offspring. Michigan State University
- Girdwood, J. (2009). Discovering Inconspicuous Exploitation: Applying the Theories of W. E. B. DuBois to American Sports Sociology. Michigan State University
- Girdwood, J. (2009). Challenging Traditional Gate-Keeping Power & Control: How New Media Transcended Conventional Mass Media Roles
- Girdwood, J. (2008). Some Eligible People Actually Are Too Proud To Beg: Recommendations for Increasing Food Stamp Participation of Eligible Households,Central Michigan University
- Girdwood, J. (2007). Bringing Outside Music Inside Michigan’s K-12 Classrooms: A Foundation to Increase Diversity. Central Michigan University
- Girdwood, J. (2007). Taking A Non-Profit From Incorporation To Sustainability: How Leadership Applied to the Formation, Planning and Initial Operating Stage of The OMIA Foundation. Central Michigan University
- Girdwood, J. (2007). A Strategice Plan to Diversify Public Education Through the Michigan Department of Education. Central Michigan University
Public Speaking/Presentations
- 2011 May 19 Michigan Hospice Volunteer Coordinators Association, Roscommon, MI
- 2011 April 14 Visiting Nurse Association of America, Baltimore, MD
- Presentation Title – “Top Down of Bottoms Up? Creating an Environment for Better Care”
- 2010 October 24: MHPCO Volunteer Symposium, Bay City, MI
- 2010 June: National Bereavement Camp Conference, Cleveland, OH
Associations
Professional Experience
- (2011, August) until Present
- Saginaw Valley State University, Saginaw, MI
- Adjunct Professor, Department of Sociology
- Teach courses on sociology
- (2011, March) until Present
- Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
- Instructor, Department of Sociology
- Teach courses on sociology, including online
- (2008, April) until Present
- McLaren Visiting Nurse and Hospice, Davison, MI
- Coordinator of Volunteer Services
- Hospice Fund Raising Committee; Board of Directors search effort
- Coordinate yearly “Camp Forget-Me-Not” grief camp for children ages 6 – 14 years
- Plan, develop, and implement every facet of volunteer program
- Recruit, select, train, and assign volunteers; operate social media
- Top levels June/July 2011 produced over 50% labor hours unpaid volunteerism in unit
- Annual unpaid labor averages $250,000 in revenue to hospice
- (2008, April) until Present as a Volunteer
- (2006, June) until (2008, April) Employed
- Michigan’s Coordinated Access to Food for the Elderly, Lansing, MI
- Call Center Operations | Volunteer Application Assistant
- Public speaking: hosted trainings; gave presentations to community; completed FAP applications for seniors in poverty; managed scheduling and set up for program events
- Intra-office collaboration: developed web site and maintained technical support for MiCAFE and Elder Law of Michigan, Inc.; worked with outside consulting firm to compile data and reports; collaborated with LHMS attorneys to manage and lead a team of student interns
- Communication: problem solved over the phone; drafted letters for program director; coordinated volunteer training; shipped marketing supplies; placed materials orders; developed outreach publications
- (2005, July) until (2008 April)
- (2005, August) until (2006, June)
- (2005, August) until (2005, November)
- (1997, August) until (1999, January)
Professional Conferences Attended
- 2010 Volunteer Match Non-Profit Webinars
- (2010, May 18) Single Days of Service: Make It Work
- (2010, May 25) Managing Difficult Volunteer Transitions
- (2010, May 27) Best Practices for Recruiting Online
- (2010, June 15) Making Volunteer Engagement Everyone’s Job
- (2010, June 22) Social Media and Volunteer Engagement
- (2010, July 15) Engaging Pro Bono and Skilled Volunteers
- (2010, July 22) Successful Volunteer Interview Strategies
- 2009 Michigan Hospice Volunteer Coordinators AssociationAnnual Retreat
- 2008 Volunteer Management Training Series
- 2008 Volunteer Management Seminar
- Presented by the Volunteer Center of Greater Kalamazoo
- (2008, March 6) Supervision, Evaluation, and Recognition
- (2008, February 21) Marketing, Recruitment, Orientation, & Training
- (2008, February 12) Volunteer Program Planning: Writing Effective Job Descriptions
- 2008 Michigan Hospice Volunteer Coordinators AssociationAnnual Retreat
- Focus: The New Conditions of Participation
- Guest Speaker: Penny Murphy, RN, CEO of Avalon Hospice
- 2006 New Vitality: Strategies to Grow Your Volunteer Program
Extracurricular
Skills
- Web development (HTML, CSS, Adobe CS, Graphic Design)
- Attention to detail (grammar and spelling; APA format)
- Provide support to any office setting regarding Microsoft and/or Google applications (forever the office “computer guy”)
