Service and Learning Together

During the four weeks that I was with my student was not only beneficial to her, but to me also. I never thought that as a high school student, I could help someone find their dream in such a short time, but I did and it was an experience that I will take with me for a long time. Helping her find her dream also helped me find mine and made the dream I created a reality.
Bryonna, an eighth grader from Beveridge Middle School was who I was paired with. Coming into this experience, I believed that she was going to be a lot younger. Finding out how old she was made me think that she was not going to enjoy the meetings with Nick and I, so at the beginning, I was reluctant to meet with her also. Yet when we started our first assignment, the collage, she was just as eager to do the project as we were.
She had no idea on what she wanted to be, but helping her look at her options was so fun for me. I never really helped anyone look at what they were good at and how they could make it into a career. Doing that college was the best assignment that we did because helping her find her career, helped me find mine. What she decided for that first week was that she wanted to work with kids or study fashion. I had a hard time finding a career that would work with both!
I did not meet with Bryonna the second week because she went on a field trip with her agency and she had a dentist appointment. During the third week, my mother had a car accident so I had to be with her. Although I did not meet with Bryonna, I could not stop thinking about what she would be good at as far as a career. She was a good speaker, presented herself well, and she had a reason for everything she said. In my opinion, she could pass herself off as a lawyer.
The last week we met she had told me something that surprised me. The class that she was taking in the agency was Criminal Justice, and this made her want to be a lawyer. I was so happy for her and I couldn't wait to do the essay and college plan. Being a lawyer is something that is a possible career option for me as well, so researching this profession was not only helpful for her, but for me too.
True the meetings that we had were short, but I believe that Bryonna appreciated it as much as I did. She informed me that she never really thought about what she wanted to do with her life, but by us helping her, she now has a plan of action. She also wanted to get all of my contact information so that I could not only help her with high school, but to be apart of UNO Summer Scholars as well.

Personal Statement

There are thousands of colleges that are in this country. There is only one me, and I have to decide where I want to go. I have had to find the college that have all of the features that will make me feel comfortable while away from home. One college that has caught my eye is Tennessee State University.
This school is located in Nashville, TN and is a HBCU (Historically Black College or University). This is one of the main reasons I want to go to this school. I've always been the minority, and I believe that if I was the majority, I would have more self confidence in myself. I have no family in Tennessee which makes me want to go there even more. I would love to feel like it's my responsibility to make a new life without any help from anyone.
Receiving a degree from this school would impact my life forever. I would not only feel proud of myself, but I would feel proud of being an African American even more than I am. A degree, in my opinion not only represents the classes that you take in college, but it represents how the four years of your college experience have shaped you. Being on that campus will make me have an eye opening experience that I won't have if I stayed on a campus where I would be the minority.

My Week @ Scott Residence Hall

When I checked in to my new home for a week last Sunday, I was so excited! I knew that I had a week all to myself, without my parents, which meant freedom. My mom let me drive my car, so I knew that I would be driving everywhere without telling them anything. My actual room was nothing like I expected it to be. It looked like my own apartment. Yet, I forgot that I was sharing the room with three other girls. My roommates were: Hoang-Yen, Jasmine, and Laura. It was so hard to do my homework every night because we just stayed up talking all night. On Sunday, after we checked in, we went to the Carol Joy Holling Camp so that we could have some "bonding time". I didn't expect to be bonding with everyone 50 ft in the air! I leaned on Hoang-Yen most of the time, which made us even closer in the week. Throughout the week, I had fun doing the different activities with everyone and I made a lot of new friends and got closer with a lot of people. I only wished that we stayed on campus the whole five weeks!

My First Week as a College Student

I never thought that this week would ever come, but now that it has, I want it to stay here! The class that I'm enrolled in, Autobiographical Reading and Writing, has made me appreciate myself more than I've ever had. Helen Fountain, my professor, has encouraged me and motivated me to open up about myself in ways I thought I would never do. The book we're reading, our own autobiographies, and our class discussions have made me speak about past memories that I thought were instinct.
The one thing that I've never been able to do, is show myself compassion. Ms. Helen has come in and knocked my way of thinking out of the ballpark. She constantly tells us that we have to show ourselves compassion in order to be good writers. The hardest thing I had to do this week was let myself tell the tales that were suppose to stay memories. Not something I was writing my paper about.
I guess in this week alone I've learned that I am capable to be free. I shouldn't be afraid to write or say what I feel. No matter what other people might say, I have to show myself compassion and be free to fall. Ms. Helen met me only 4 days ago, and yet she sees the writer I can become. I'm excited for what the next 4 weeks will bring out of the diamond in the making.