A
year ago, in December, I became an advocate for the Connect2Complete program at
Miami Hamilton. I selected C2C for employment, involvement with other students
and faculty, and community engagement/volunteerism. This past semester (Fall 2014), the
class I worked with took on a Pay-It-Forward project, focusing on philanthropy.
The
goal of the Pay-It-Forward project was to raise awareness of the issues of
at-risk youth, addiction, hunger, and homelessness, especially in the local
community. The end goal was for each group to present on their topic. They had
to research a certain issue throughout the semester, gain insight and
first-hand experience from the civic engagement project, and compile all the
information into a ten to fifteen minute presentation for a panel of judges.
Rachael Lange, the Ohio Campus Compact Connect2Complete AmeriCorps VISTA, and Lois Brown, the instructor and Reading Specialist, received a $2,700 grant for three semesters, to award to
the organization of the winning presentation ($900 each semester). The class that I worked with, ENG
151, had about 20 students. Each of the students were assigned a group. In
total, there were four groups. They worked on the project as a team and as
individuals. They composed research questions that related to their group topic
(issue). One part of the project entailed volunteering at local sites. The
at-risk youth group went to Booker T. Washington Community Center, the addiction group went to
Sojourner Recovery Services, the hunger group went to Open Door Food Pantry, and the
homelessness group went to Serve City. The civic engagement took place during
regular class time. The goal of the trip was to gain first-hand experience of
the issue researched and develop philanthropy. Several community partners were involved in the project.
My role as the
class advocate was to attend all class sessions, inform the students of
upcoming deadlines, facilitate in-class group activities and discussions, hold
weekly office hours, coordinate the civic engagement trip with the instructor and VISTA, and give presentations to the class on various topics. To pursue
this project, I organized times to meet with each team outside of class in
order to help them research their topics and compose PowerPoints. In class, I
facilitated team building activities and demonstrated how to give a speech and
good vs. bad presentations/PowerPoints. I also went with the hunger group to
Open Door Food Pantry on the volunteer day. In addition, when students asked for
help, I arranged meetings with them. I connected students from the addiction
group to the volunteer coordinator of Sojourner in order to get more information for their
presentation. I assisted the students from the hunger group by filming their
tour of Open Door Food Pantry and interview with the director.
Through my
engagement in the Pay-It-Forward program, I was able to gain knowledge of the
issues of at-risk youth, addiction, hunger, and homelessness. I volunteered at
each location associated with relieving these problems. I became more
comfortable as a leader through my experience in facilitating group discussions
and activities. I spent hours of my own time researching ways to improve public
speaking and give professional presentations, and relayed that information to
the students. I saw these issues first-hand. I talked with the residents of the
homeless shelter. I worked beside two men struggling with addiction. I saw
at-risk youth playing at the community center. I witnessed the hungry go through
the process to get food. I saw a different lifestyle that exists next door to
me. Since then, I have returned to each site to volunteer and plan to continue
volunteering and donate as much as I can.
The final
presentations took place on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Each team
delivered their presentations to the judges and others present. The hunger
group won and the grant was given to Open Door Food Pantry. I was pleased with the
hard work these students put into the project. They were mostly freshman. Never
before has a freshman class performed a project like this. Their presentations
clearly indicated a deep level of research and understanding. They were
phenomenal and many faculty members told me that they were extremely impressed
with them. I realized that together, we can accomplish amazing things. Several
students told me they learned so much from the project and had already looked
into volunteering again at the organization. One student said he was going to
apply to become a lifeguard at Booker T. Washington. I was surprised that they
were eager, willing, and excited. I thought they would have seen the project as
burdensome and something mandatory in order to pass the class. I was impressed
with their zeal. This project definitely impacted my personal life. I had never
taken part in civic engagement before becoming an advocate and I had certainly
never voluntarily entered a community in such poverty. In the past year, I have
placed on the bronze and gold level of the service honor roll and am in the
process of being placed in a committed volunteer position for the spring 2015
semester. As I stated above, this experience helped me gain skills that I will
be able to transfer to my professional career in the future and will help me
understand my fellow humans on a non-judgmental level.
As a middle
class person, I never experienced extreme suffering from lack of proper
clothing, food, or employment. Seeing people suffer from these basic, daily
necessities disturbed me. Many researchers, scientists, and other professionals
have studied causes of these issues and possible solutions. However, after
seeing people in these predicaments (such as homelessness) I cannot say, “it’s
their own fault,” or “they need to just get a job” anymore. I have seen that ‘life’
and misfortune happen to good people. Sometimes the answers in the books don’t apply
to every situation. I have learned that my good fortune shouldn’t become
commonplace, but appreciated and valued.
This blog was written by Emily Cole, Connect2Complete Advocate. To learn more about Pay it Forward at Miami University Hamilton, contact Lori Bledsoe at Bledsonl@miamioh.edu.
To learn more about Pay it Forward in Ohio contact, Brenna Limbrick, Ohio Campus Compact Program Director, at blimbrick@ohiocampuscompact.org or 740-587-6366.
