Community involvement:
Below you will find 2 artifacts that serve as evidence to demonstrate my community involvement during my time at NC State.
- ASB Alternative Spring Break Trip: Hoonah, Alaska
- Ladies of Distinction: LOD
alternative spring break: hoonah, alaska
During my time here at NC State University I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to make a positive impact on not only the local community, but also a community across the country. During my sophomore year I made the decision to go on an Alternative Spring Break trip with the CSLEPS program at NC State. The Alternative Service Break (ASB) trip program is a unique service-learning experience in which students engage in direct service to a community, while being immersed in the culture and customs of that community. Teams are led by student team leaders and accompanied by faculty advisors. Throughout the trip, team members participate in a variety of cultural, educational, recreational and reflective activities to enhance their service experience.
Aside from volunteering in the Hoonah school system, we also took time for a little site seeing! To the right is a picture of me on one of our excursions to one of the local glaciers.
Hoonah is a Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's "panhandle" in the southeast region of the state. It is 30 miles west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inland Passage. Hoonah is the only first-class city on Chichagof Island, the 109th largest island in the world and the 5th largest island in the United States
Hoonah is a Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's "panhandle" in the southeast region of the state. It is 30 miles west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inland Passage. Hoonah is the only first-class city on Chichagof Island, the 109th largest island in the world and the 5th largest island in the United States
The Alaska Alternative Service Break to Alaska was introduced in 2008. The mission of the Alaska - Education trip is to tutor and provide educational assistance to Alaskan children. Alaska represents the largest demographic percentage of American Native Americans and Alaskan Native Americans, with 18% of the total population being represented. In a press release from the US Department of Education, in 2005, they found that "one-third of American Indian and Alaska Native children aged 9 months live in poverty, one-fourth live in households with no father present, and more than one in ten were born to teenaged mothers, the study found.
This experience was nothing short of life-changing! I do believe that every student should have the chance to participate in an Alternative Spring Break Trip. I was lucky that my trip aligned with my degree focus, but it certainly wasn't a requirement. Many of the students who attended majored in various other things. This trip forced me to step outside of my comfort zone and interact with not only students from NC State but with students and people in a foreign community. I am a big advocate for service learning and I hope to put together a similar program such as this in whatever school i work at in the future.
This experience was nothing short of life-changing! I do believe that every student should have the chance to participate in an Alternative Spring Break Trip. I was lucky that my trip aligned with my degree focus, but it certainly wasn't a requirement. Many of the students who attended majored in various other things. This trip forced me to step outside of my comfort zone and interact with not only students from NC State but with students and people in a foreign community. I am a big advocate for service learning and I hope to put together a similar program such as this in whatever school i work at in the future.
"Spring Break is a week I will never forget. I ventured to Hoonah, Alaska with a group of NC State students, who were not strangers but barely acquaintances. We went to Alaska to serve, but returned with so much more."
LIGON MIDDLE SCHOOL: LADIES OF DISTINCTION (LOD)
Ladies of Distinction is an an after school program that is hosted at Ligon Magnet Middle School. Majority of the members are girls who attend LMMS, but it is open to surrounding middle schools. I started volunteering with this group shortly after I begun my student teaching at Ligon Magnet Middle School, in January. Ladies of Distinction prides itself on fostering young leaders and women of character through knowledge, inner beauty, and optimism. They meet twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school. During those meetings there is a central topic of discussion which can range from beauty tips, homework help, politics, and more.
I was honored when asked by the program coordinator, Mrs. Barnes, to help out with the group after school. I even was a part of the staff who put together the HBCU college tour for the girls. I was saddened that I was not able to attend the trip, but one of my colleagues, Stephanie Snead, went on my behalf. This group is truly amazing and when I begin teaching I am going to try to get this group started in whichever school I am at.
I was honored when asked by the program coordinator, Mrs. Barnes, to help out with the group after school. I even was a part of the staff who put together the HBCU college tour for the girls. I was saddened that I was not able to attend the trip, but one of my colleagues, Stephanie Snead, went on my behalf. This group is truly amazing and when I begin teaching I am going to try to get this group started in whichever school I am at.
Working with Ladies of Distinction has really taught me the importance of having a close knit group of girls and how that can impact you for the better. Many of the girls who are in LOD were labeled "troubled" or "disruptive" by their classroom teachers, but while with the group and after school, I never saw any of those behaviors or characteristics. It has taught me to not look at people's past actions and behaviors to label them, but to see them for who they are and for what they can be.