Author: Owen Monteferrante

Partnerships have inherent positives and negatives associated with them. Partnerships allow for individuals with different backgrounds and ideas to come together and exchange viewpoints. This melting pot of thought can lead to a product that is better than one member could do on their own. However, there are some drawbacks. When someone engages in a partnership, they inherently give up control. One needs to be able to trust the partners within the partnership. This situation is described in Octavia Butler’s short story, “Bloodchild.” In her short story, she describes the relationship as well as the partnership between Gan., a Terran, and T’Gatoi, a Tlic. Towards the end of the short story, Gan realizes that he has been misled about what his side of the partnership truly is. Gan then confronts T’Gatoi and says “If we’re not your animals, if these are adult things, accept the risk. There is risk, Gatoi, in dealing with a partner.” By saying this, Gan acknowledges that partnerships do have inherent risks. But, he also acknowledges those risks and still chooses to be in the partnership. I believe that this sentiment has been echoed throughout the semester. The first graded assignment for this class was to look at that same quote and think critically about what our expectations and goals were. We now use the same quote to compare how we have achieved those goals. Our epigraph has been in the background of our work the entire semester, so it is fitting for it to bookend our graded work.

At the beginning of the semester, I was not sure what I was going to gain out of this class. I had already completed Humanities and did not require any other writing courses in order to complete my degree. I also had more college experience than the target audience for this course. With that, I figured I could go through the motions, take an easy class, and boost my GPA. My expectations were further muddled by my peers. Some of my classmates had very informative and positive experiences with their INTD 105 classes, while others thought it was a waste of time. Putting all this together, I hoped to gain some more knowledge on how to craft effective partnerships, but I was defensively pessimistic, to say the least.

As my time in INTD 105 comes to an end, I can say that I was pleasantly surprised. I tend to struggle with having a growth mindset, but I think I made some strides in the right direction. The group discussions and reading They Say I Say furthered my knowledge on how to properly engage in an academic setting. I even think that I have become a stronger writer or at the very least a more confident. When thinking about a defining moment in the class, I am drawn to a specific conversation. It was when we were talking about whether or not to describe the general function of the mitochondria when you are writing a paper for a scientific audience. Kevin and I were in a disagreement about the degree of detail. While the correct answer was not ever provided, what I took out of it was your comment. I believe you said “Now that is a great demonstration of how to talk in a group,” or at least something with that same sentiment. I was very relieved that I had understood the material and was able to draw on it at the appropriate time.

However, I still think that I have more to improve upon. I know that I still struggle with some of the finer details when I write. I have a tendency to work in short bursts, unpacking placing ideas on the page as soon as they come to mind. While that might work for a rough draft, I understand that I cannot submit this initial thought-dumps as the finished product. One of these common mistakes is misspelling a word to a different word. For example, I will intent to spell “through” and actually spell “thorough.” The mistake is not caught on editing software because the word is correct. This is directly from speeding through and not rereading my work.   

I believe that my idea of partnership has changed as well. Previously, I did not consider just how intricate the partnerships within the Geneseo community are. This was brought to life by talking with some of Geneseo’s professional staff. Joe Cope is a professor of history as well as the Associate Provost for Student Success here at Geneseo. Our conversation with Dr. Cope focused on the idea of the syllabus as a contract. Many professors view their syllabus as a contract, and that by staying in the class, the students have accepted the contract. We as a class then talked about the flaws in that ideology. We discussed how this approach to a syllabus does not grant the student a chance to have affirmative consent. In this scenario, the student-professor partnership has been shifted in favor of the professor. In turn, this makes it more unlikely for a student to be able to be successful in the class. Consent also plays into the work of robbie routenberg. robbie routenberg is Geneseo’s Chief Diversity Officer. Our conversation focused on how to balance consent and the need to educate incoming students on how to start being socially responsible citizens. There is an interesting dichotomy when you learn about the importance of explicit consent at an event you did not explicitly consent to attend. If someone is to be a member of the Geneseo community, is it acceptable to have barriers of entry the students are forced to go through? Is that not the same as having a minimum GPA requirement? What robbie is in charge of instructing our new students plays into the work of our Director of Multicultural Programs and Services, Dr. Sasha Eloi-Evans. Dr. Eloi-Evans works to prevent bias-related incidences and help facilitate restorative justice. An interesting point is that everyone in a restorative justice meeting needed to consent to attend. The hope is that if everyone has a desire to attend the meeting, everyone will come in with the intent to learn. This allows students to work together to think of an action plan. 

Before taking this class, I would see those people as mostly separate entities working on unique projects. However, this course has given me the tools to look deeper into the partnerships that we are all engaged in. All of those departments are looking at the role of consent in the Geneseo community and the fundamental challenges associated with it. Even though they are all in different departments, they all are serving the students here. Through their individual work on consent, the entire campus is gaining a better understanding of the importance of consent in their partnerships, whether it is the professor-student partnerships worked on with Joe, the faculty-student partnerships touched on with robbie, or the student-student partnerships addressed by Sasha.

Looking back, I did not think I would find as much meaning in this class as I have. The reflective process allows individuals to demonstrate to themselves just how far they have come. But it also allows individuals to see what more there is to do. I know that while I have improved my writing through reflections, I still need to work on slowing down and accurately articulating my thoughts in words on a page. When I inevitably read this over again to remind myself what I was like however many years ago, I want to leave this. Partnerships are fluid and things that need to be nurtured over time. But, as I know all too well, there is risk when dealing with a partner.

Integrative learning combines ideas from multiple disciplines in order to get a finished product. But how does this occur? The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU) calls for integrative learning by “[going] beyond academic boundaries” to connect education to real-world experiences. This allows for problem solving and application of learned material. This also requires a connection between people. The AACU describes that by making connections, people gain the skills to have lifelong learning, civil responsibility, and better social skills. But it goes deeper than connecting to others. It’s about connecting to your previous works. Through personal reflection, someone can truly see what they’ve learned and how they have grown. I think the importance of combining multiple disciplines is to get the most amount of viewpoints. But why does it matter? The disciplines themselves do not matter, but what matters are the differences in the viewpoints of the people in them. Someone who studies Mathematics is going to think differently than someone who studies English, who thinks differently than someone who studies Sociology etc. By combining different disciplines’ ideas we combine different people’s ideas. When different groups of people come together in partnership, they can do more than anyone group can do together. This is shown in the Geneseo community as well as in Olivia Butler’s work Bloodchild. 

The Facilities Crew contributes to the academic partnership by providing access to a safe, clean, comfortable learning environment. They accomplish that through their own partnership with SUNY Geneseo. One of the first things on the Facilities’ homepage says “In support of SUNY Geneseo’s Mission…” This already suggests a form of partnership. Facilities exist in order to allow students to grow and learn. But in any partnership, both parties gain something. Brandon Schmitt,  a cleaner, says that he likes the recognition from a job well done. That’s why he “honestly love[s] to do the things that people will notice the next day.” Mr. Schmitt clearly gains a sense of community and belonging in his work here on campus. That sense of community is what he gets from his side of the partnership. Rick Canarvis, the school’s locksmith, sums both ideas up nicely when he says “I like the satisfaction that when I come to work I know I have a part in the safety and security of the students…” Without people like Mr. Canarvis, it would be much harder for students to learn. It would be possible that students would be too scared to learn. So not only does his work allow students to have a place to work, it gives them the sense that they are able to do it. Without students, Mr. Canarvis would not be getting a sense of accomplishment from his work. In this way, both the students and the Facilities Crew get something tangible and intangible. Students get a clean place which makes them feel safe and supported, while the Facilities Crew gets monetary compensation and a feeling of satisfaction. This relationship between the Facilities Crew and the rest of the college not only allows for academic partnership, but it is also a great demonstration on how to have a successful partnership.

The Heating Plant is one of the most critical buildings on campus, but many students -including myself- do not understand quite what they do. All we know about it is that it uses a rather large smokestack located behind the union. Why do we even need the heating plant, the buildings are too warm anyway! As the name implies, the staff of the Heating Plant makes sure all of the buildings are appropriately furnaced. But they do a lot more than that. According to the Heating Plant section of the Facilities Services webpage, the Heating Plant staff s responsible for providing “high-pressure steam, heating hot water, domestic water, and natural gas.” But what does this mean in terms of labor? The webpage describes that the heating plant is staffed all day every day by highly trained engineers. They make sure that the entire campus’s energy needs are being met. But there’s more to this than just providing needs. As one can see, the Heating Plant staff are essential to the continued learning here on campus. But what do most students know them for? The building with the big smokestack. This in itself says a lot about partnership. Partners may not know the extent to which the partnership is critical. I sure didn’t understand. 

The relationship described in Octavia E. Butler’s Bloodchild between T’Gatoi and Gan is similar in scope to the relationship between students and the heating plant. As previously mentioned, most students don’t quite understand the necessity of the heating plant and its services. Gan is not fully aware of the extent of his side of the partnership. Both Gan and students both know that it is necessary, but have not experienced life without it. Gan knows that “only [T’Gatoi] and her political faction stood between us and the hordes who did not understand why there was a Preserve.” But he does not know what life was actually like without T’Gatoi. Most students don’t know what Geneseo was like without a heating plant. Both Geneseo students and Gan are relying on agreements made before we had a say. Before the operation on Lomas, Gan recounts to himself, “T’Gatoi had shown me diagrams and drawings. She had made! sure I knew the truth as soon as I was old enough to understand it.” Gan clearly believes that he knows what this partnership entails. This is similar to how most students feel about the heating plant. Most students feel that they know what the heating plant does and why it’s a part of the campus community. However, knowledge is a potent tool. After Gan watches the operation on Lomas, he is struck with the realization that there is more to the partnership than he originally thought. He thinks to himself, “And it was far worse than any drawing or diagram.” While Gan learns that the partnership is a lot more negative on his end, most students share the general theme that there is more to the relationship between the heating plant and the rest of the campus.

The integrative partnerships described above allow for an evolution of ideas. While it’s clear that the SUNY Geneseo community relies on partnerships, what else does? I argue that everything we do relies upon some sort of integrative partnership. Take buying groceries. In order to get groceries from the store to your home, you need someone to stock the store, someone to purchase the goods in bulk, someone to grow the food, someone to ship the food, etc. When you buy food, you are providing your side of the partnership, financial resources. The partnership would collapse if you do not have the money, or if any of the steps needed to provide the food fails. And that’s just for grocery shopping, something relatively simple. Everything is built on partnerships that go deeper than people see at first glance. We as a society need partnerships. 

Why have a mission statement? Merriam-Webster defines a mission statement as “something that states the purpose or goal of a business or organization”. That seems like a great idea. A simple document to outline the values of an educational institution could assist prospective students by giving them a chance to understand what type of campus they are trying to cultivate. Geneseo’s mission statement highlights the importance of education and how the entire college is rooted in that goal. The mission statement states that “[the community] works together to advance knowledge and inspire students to be socially responsible and globally aware citizens who are prepared for an enriched life and success in the world.” In contrast, Biola University’s mission statement is much more pointed. Biola’s statement states its intention “to be identified among the world’s foremost Christ-centered universities — a community abiding in truth, abounding with grace and compelled by Christ’s love to be a relevant and redemptive voice in a changing world.” Biola’s mission statement is much more poignant in terms of a grander world goal. When reading Geneseo’s mission statement in context, it appears incredibly bland. Of course, an institution of higher education would be focused on learning. Be that as it may, the Biola university mission statement is incredibly rigid. This does not allow for growth and change within the partnership between university and student. A partnership needs to be able to be fluid to be used to its full potential, and Octavia Butler promotes this line of thinking in her short story “Bloodchild.” Gan’s reflection on his partnership with T’Gatoi shows the need for people to reflect on the partnerships they are engaged in. That way, partnerships can grow and be the most productive. 

Before it is possible to understand the role of reflection in Gan’s journey, one must understand the world Gan lives. Gan is a Terran, a group of human-like individuals that migrated to a different planet to escape persecution. The planet the Terrans escape to is already inhabited by the Tlic, a people that have been having problems reproducing. Eventually, an agreement was made that the Tlic government would handle keeping the general Terran population safe and the Terrans would allow some of their children to be given to the Tlic for reproduction. Gan is his family’s contribution to the partnership. He is the child that is given to a Tlic named T’Gatoi.

Originally, Gan is pretty happy to be with T’Gatoi. He discusses a working relationship and describes how he was treated to other Terrans. He would talk about his own upbringing “when they ask whether I was ever afraid of her.” This also goes both ways, as he would talk to other Tlic about making their choice. From these interactions, it can be deduced that Gan has some knowledge about what he will be doing. He must know that he is fulfilling some sort of contract. By discussing the partnership in terms of gaining mutual benefits through working together, you’ve just explained the goals of any partnership. That type of language only works without stress. However, things change when the partnership breaks down.

Gan is unfortunate enough to watch T’Gatoi perform emergency surgery to save an impregnated Terran named Lomas. At first, Gan is not concerned. He recalls that T’Gatoi “had shown me diagrams and drawings. She had made sure I knew the truth as soon as I was old enough to understand it.” However, Gan is about to see what the partnership looks like. The simple diagrams turned out to be incredibly incorrect. He says that “I have never heard such sounds come from a human.” Throughout the experience, Gan witnesses some appalling things, such as T’Gatoi licking blood vessels, Lomas getting torn open down the middle, and Tlic larva crawling out of Lomas. Gan was not prepared for this, as he immediately vomits afterward. This shows how the partnership has broken down. If Gan knew what being with a Tlic meant, then he should not have had such a visceral reaction to witnessing it. The defined terms of the agreement were broken and Gan demonstrates this later when he talks to his brother, Qui.

Qui does not respect the agreement between the Terran and the Tlic. Gan describes his brother as someone “who had grown up to fear and detest the Tlic.” It appears that Qui does not see the point of the agreement between the Tlic. Part of an agreement is mutual respect and understanding, which Qui lacks. Gan talks with Qui after T’Gatoi sends them both out. During the exchange, Gan repeatedly thinks to himself that he may have been lied to. During the exchange, Gan repeatedly thinks to himself that he may have been lied to. After every point Qui brings up, Gan is further convinced that he is being deceived.” This highlights another key feature of a successful partnership, trust. It is extremely challenging to work together with someone if you do not believe that they are doing the right thing.

Gan feels betrayed rather quickly. He proceeded to grab a gun, load it, and “brought the barrel up diagonally under [his] own chin.” He has to now make a choice, and the only way out of his partnership is death. However, he begins to truly think about his decision. Can he go back to the partnership knowing that the terms are different now? He ends up deciding to go back to the partnership on the condition that Terrans know the truth about the procedure, and Gan decides that the partnership is worth maintaining because of the new conditions.

Does that mean SUNY Geneseo should adopt a mission statement similar to Biola’s? Should all institutions make rigid statements to declare their purpose? I don’t believe so. The ending of “Bloodchild” makes it clear that partnerships are fluid and the dynamic is constantly changing to meet the goals of all parties. The rigid definition of a partnership would be detrimental to both parties involved, and I believe partnerships, including the partnership between Geneseo and its students, should focus on communication and honesty for the benefit of everyone involved.

In the past month, we have all seen changing partnerships, and the transition to remote learning has led to an unprecedented major change in the student-professor partnership. If the partnership between student and professor was rigid and inflexible, there would be chaos: students would not be able to learn what they consented to learn, and professors would not be able to teach what they agreed to teach. Without a fluid partnership, the learning dynamic would break down. Fortunately, most professors at Geneseo have appeared to embrace the lesson “Bloodchild” provides: for a successful partnership to be maintained, the partnership must be flexible and open to change.

Why have a mission statement? Mariam-Webster defines a mission statement as something that states the purpose or goal of a business or organization. That seems like a great idea, a simple document to outline the values of an institution. Geneseo’s mission statement highlights the importance of education and how the entire college is routed in that goal. The mission statement states that “[the communitty] works together to advance knowledge and inspire students to be socially responsible and globally aware citizens who are prepared for an enriched life and success in the world.” However, Biola University’s mission statement is much more pointed. Biola’s statement suggests it is “to be identified among the world’s foremost Christ-centered universities — a community abiding in truth, abounding with grace and compelled by Christ’s love to be a relevant and redemptive voice in a changing world.” Biola’s mission statement is much more poignant in terms of a grander world goal. When reading Geneseo’s mission statement in context, it appears incredibly bland. Of course, an institution of higher education would be focused on learning. This line of thinking is incredibly similar to how the character Gan thinks in Olivia Butler’s Bloodchild. Through Gan’s growth, readers can see just how important it is to reflect on the agreements we make between academic institutions.

Before it is possible to understand the role of reflection in Gan’s journey, one must understand the world Gan lives. Gan is a Terran, a group of human-like individuals that migrated to a different planet in order to escape prosecution. The planet is already inhabited by the Tlic, a people that have been having problems reproducing. Eventually, an agreement was made that the Tlic government would handle keeping then general Terran population safe and the Terrans would allow some of there children to be given to the Tlic for reproduction. Gan is his family’s side of the deal, he is the child that is given to the Tlic, specifically T’gatoi.

Originally, Gan is pretty happy to be with T’gatoi. He discusses a working relationship where he would describe how he was treated to other Terrans. He would talk about his own upbringing “when they ask whether I was ever afraid of her.” This also goes both ways, as he would talk to other Tlic about making their choice. From these interactions, it can be deduced that Gan has some knowledge about what he will be doing. He must know that he is will be fulfilling some sort of contract. This is similar to the SUNY Geneseo Mission statement. The vague language is important. It is to entice you into a basic understanding of what the university is about: learning. You can also see why the specifics seen in Biola’s mission statement can be offputting to some. If your goal is to better society through partnership -as the goal is between the Terran and the Tlic – you would not want to the separation that is inherent in a strong message. By discussing the partnership in terms of gaining mutual benefits through working together, you’ve just explained to goals of any partnership. However, things change when the partnership breaks down.

Gan is unfortunate enough to watch T’gatoi perform emergency surgery in order to save

an impregnated Terran named Lomas. At first, Gan is not concerned. He recalls that T’Gatoi “  had shown me diagrams and drawings. She had made! sure I knew the truth as soon as I was old enough to understand it.” Those diagrams and drawings are like the Geneseo Mission statement. They are pieces of premade propaganda that are made by the institution. They were designed to be looked at once, vaguely understood, and never questioned. However, Gan is about to see what the partnership really looks like.

The simple diagrams turn out to be incredibly incorrect. He says that “I have never heard such sounds come from a human.” Throughout the experience, Gan witnesses some appalling things, such as T’Gatoi licking blood vessels, Lomas getting torn open down the middle, and Tlic larva crawling out of Lomas. Gan was clearly not prepared for this, as he immediately vomits afterward. This shows how the partnership has broken down. The defined terms of the agreement were clearly broken. Gan demonstrates this later when he talks to his brother, Qui.

Qui does not respect the agreement between the Terran and the Tlic. Gan describes his brother as someone “who had grown up to fear and detest the Tlic.” From that description, Qui does not see the point of the agreement between the Tlic. Part of an agreement is mutual respect and understand, clearly not seen in Qui. Gan talks with Qui after T’Gatoi sent them both out. During the exchange, Gan repeatedly thinks to himself that he may have been lied to. After every exchange, Gan thinks to himself a variation of uncertainty, such as “was it?” This is similar to when a student begins to start classes at Geneseo. The Geneseo mission statement claims to value a liberal arts education, but there are barely any art, music, or performance classes. This seems to violate what Geneseo stands for. Similar to most Geneseo students, Gan was incredibly angry. 

Gan rather quickly feels the betrayal. He proceeds to grab a gun, load it, and “brought the barrel up diagonally under [his] own chin.” He has to now make a choice. The only way out of his partnership is death. However, he begins to truly think about his decision. Can he go back to the partnership knowing that the terms are different now? He ends up deciding to go back to the partnership on one condition that Terrans know the truth about the procedure. This goes back to the idea of accountability. This is seen often at Geneseo. Students request knowledge. They are requesting the whole truth. The partnership needs to be defined more than just a partnership, it needs to define how it will function.  Does that mean Geneseo should adopt a mission statement similar to Biola? Should all institutions make rigid statements about what they are about? I don’t believe so. Then ending of Bloodchild makes it clear that partnerships are fluid. The dynamic is forever changing in order to meet the goals of all parties. It would be neglectful to make strong definitions. But what does this mean to a college student? I believe it means to focus on communication and honesty. That way terms and conditions can be free to adapt and change, giving everyone the best benefits.

Why do we put ourselves in positions of risk? Let’s take driving for instance. The Association for Safe International Road Travel estimates that 1.25 million people die and 20-50 million people are injured/disabled by road crashes each year. That’s 0.5% of the entire population. 2.2% of all deaths are caused by road crashes. Yet almost every day, people drive to work, class, or wherever they need to go. In theory, we should all stay indoors eating nothing but vitamins and minerals. But no one does. We all take risks every day. The ability to take risks is the freedom that we enjoy. That freedom allows us to grow and develop as humans. In short, without risk-taking, we cannot become better at anything.  

So what happens without risk? Octavia Butler describes this situation in their novel, Bloodchild and Other Stories. In that work, Gatoi is a creature that uses humans to reproduce. Gatoi finds Gan, the main character, holding a gun. Gatoi then attempts to take the gun from Gan. Gan replies “If we’re not your animals, if these are adult things, accept the risk. There is risk, Gatoi, in dealing with a partner.” I think this fully encapsulates what gives us our humanity. By removing individual liberties, people can no longer grow. Gatoi does just that. By then reducing Gan to an animal, they can feel much less remorse when they use him for reproduction.

Earlier in the novel, Gatoi presents Gan and his family with an egg that causes a type of intoxication. When Gan’s mother, Lien, refuses to have some, Gatoi tries to coax her. Gatoi starts by saying “Lien, I would like you to have what’s left of Gan’s egg… You should take more.” The drunken stupor caused by the egg prevents Gan’s family from taking risks. Ergo, it takes away the ability for Gan’s family to resist. This lack of resistance has led to the current situation, where Terrans (humans) are used by Tlic (the kind of creature Gatoi is).   

Gan recounts a story about his late father. He tells us that his father often drank the eggs and lived to be very old. Gan recalls that his father “had lived more than twice as long as he should have. And toward the end of his life, when he should have been slowing down, he had married my mother and fathered four children.” Gan’s father was the perfect animal for the Tlic. He lived longer than he should because of the eggs, and then made more people to use. Farmers use antibiotics to get the most out of their animals. The Tlic uses the eggs to get the most out of the Terrans. Both the antibiotics and the eggs lower risk, which lowers freedom, which lowers the opportunity to grow. 

But why is taking risks important? Most of us want to live long lives. Most of us want to be healthy. Most of us want to wake up every time we go to sleep. Logically, we should strive to minimize our risk. Let’s go back to driving again. As previously mentioned roadway accidents cause 2.2% of all deaths in a given year. People look at that number and try to minimize the inherent risk of driving. People now wear seatbelts, cars are required to have airbags, there are certain height restrictions associated with sitting in the front, etc. No one says stop driving. 

Every great thing that has ever happened involved a lot of risks. From the brave patriots who defended this land in 1777 to Robert Smalls who stole a Confederate ship to Marie Curie who won the Nobel Prize in physics. These three examples also demonstrate a very important idea, that the growth achieved through risk is not only personal but societal as well. Freedom creates the opportunity to take risks. Risks create the opportunity to grow. 

This naturally begs a few questions: does this risk need to occur, do I feel comfortable with this risk, and is there a way to lower this risk. Everyone, conscious or not, askes themselves this question each day from crossing the street to an academic partnership. The freedom to answer these questions is what allows growth. In this class, my goal is to answer all these questions. Firstly, an academic partnership is crucial to the advancement of every field, so the risk needs to be taken. This is seen in the Human Genome Project. Researchers from different agencies, colleges, and even countries worked together. Even with 20 unique universities working on it, the whole project took around 10 years. There is no way one person could have completed this. In this class, I hope to become more comfortable with the idea of an academic partnership. The most important goal of this class is to learn ways of lowering this risk. This is shown throughout the syllabus. The syllabus states “Additionally, students will reflect upon the risks and rewards of academic partnership, including (but not limited to) various forms of consent and sustainability.” Even in our short time, we have taken a pretty deep dive into the academic partnership we have with SUNY Geneseo

But how will the class teach the skills required? One of the best ways to learn is by listening to multiple ideas. We have also have begun to discuss the risks of both academic and non-academic partnerships in class. Not only will the class discussion center around risk-taking and academic partnership, but the class will also be meeting with multiple professionals such as Robbie Routenburg, Dr. Joe Cope, and Dr. Sasha Eloi-Evans. Multiple perspectives can increase the chance that the ideas will resonate. 

As a research student and graduate school hopeful, I know that I will be in many positions that rely on academic partnerships. I hope that through the multiple lenses that will be demonstrated in this class I will increase my knowledge base on how to communicate effectively in an academic setting. I hope to become more comfortable with sharing my ideas and suggestions with others. I am looking forward to learning more about taking smarter risks regarding academic partnerships.

Why do we put ourselves in positions of risk? Let’s take driving for instance. The Association for Safe International Road Travel estimates that 1.25 million people die and 20-50 million people are injured/disabled by road crashes each year. That’s 0.5% of the entire population. 2.2% of all deaths are caused by road crashes. Yet almost every day, people drive to work, class, or wherever they need to go. In theory, we should all stay indoors eating nothing but vitamins and minerals. But no one does. We all take risks every day. The ability to take risks is the freedom that we enjoy. That freedom allows us to grow and develop as humans. In short, without risk-taking, we cannot become better at anything.

So what happens without risk? Octavia Butler describes this situation in their novel, “Bloodchild and Other Stories.” In that work, Gatoi is a creature that uses humans the reproduce. Gatoi finds Gan, the main character, holding a gun. Gatoi then attempts to take the gun from Gan. Gan replies “If we’re not your animals, if these are adult things, accept the risk. There is risk, Gatoi, in dealing with a partner.” I think this fully encapsulates what gives us our humanity. By removing individual liberties, people can no longer grow. Gatoi does just that. By then reducing Gan to an animal, they can feel much less remorse when they use him for reproduction.

Earlier in the novel, Gatoi presents Gan and his family with an egg that causes a type of intoxication. When Gan’s mother, Lien, refuses the have some, Gatoi tries to coax her. Gatoi starts by saying “Lien, I would like you to have what’s left of Gan’s egg… You should take more.” The drunken stupor caused by the egg prevents Gan’s family from taking risks. Ergo, it takes away the ability for Gan’s family to resist. This lack of resistance has led to the current situation, where Terrans (humans) are used by Tlic (the kind of creature Gatoi is).   

Gan recounts a story about his late father. He tells us that his father often drank the eggs and lived to be very old. Gan recalls that his father “had lived more than twice as long as he should have. And toward the end of his life, when he should have been slowing down, he had married my mother and fathered four children.” Gan’s father was the perfect animal for the Tlic. He lived longer than he should because of the eggs, and then made more people to use. Farmers use antibiotics in order to get the most out of their animals. The Tlic uses the eggs in order to get the most out of the Terrans. Both the antibiotics and the eggs lower risk, which lowers freedom, which lowers the opportunity to grow. 

Gan himself demonstrates how effective this is. His brother, Qui, dispises the Tlic for what they have done to his kind. When pondering this, Gan says “Even my brother who had somehow grown up to fear and distrust the Tlic could probably have gone smoothly into one of their families if he had been adopted early enough.” Whether Gan is aware or not, his thoughts have been effectively controlled by the risk removal that he has been exposed to from Gatoi. 

But why is taking risks important? Most of us want to live long lives. Most of us want to be healthy. Most of us want to wake up every time we go to sleep. Logically, we should strive to minimize our risk. Let’s go back to driving again. As previously mentioned roadway accidents cause 2.2% of all deaths in a given year. People look at that number and try to minimize the inherent risk of driving. People now wear seatbelts, cars are required to have airbags, there are certain height restrictions associated with sitting in the front, etc. No one says stop driving. 

Every great thing that has ever happened involved a lot of risks. From the brave patriots who defending this land in 1777 to Robert Smalls who stole a Confederate ship to Marie Curie who won the Nobel Prize in physics. These three examples also demonstrate a very important idea, that the growth achieved through risk is not only personal but societal as well. Freedom creates the opportunity to take risks. Risks create the opportunity to grow. 

However, being forced to take risks can also lead to its own set of problems. Returning to Octavia E. Butlers “Bloodchlid and Other Stories,” Gan is, for all intense and purposes, forced to be used by reproduction by Gatoi, even though he had just witnessed what happened to Bram Lomas, a Terran who gave birth. This force of risk-taking is clearly not in Gan’s interest, as Lomas was “opened” directly in front of him. 

This naturally begs a few questions: does this risk need to occur, do I feel comfortable with this risk, and is there a way to lower this risk. Everyone, conscious or not, askes themselves this question each day from crossing the street to an academic partnership. The freedom to answer these questions is what allows growth. 

In this class, my goal is to answer all these questions. Firstly, an academic partnership is crucial to the advancement of every field, so the risk needs to be taken. In this class, I hope to become more comfortable with the idea of an academic partnership. In my opinion, the most important goal of this class is to learn ways of lowering this risk. In this way, we can reshape the phrase of no risk, no reward into low risk, high reward.