For a while now, I have wanted to start a blog, but I have never felt like I would have enough to write about. I always knew I would begin a blog in conjunction with my teaching career to document my experiences and share fun stories about my kiddos, but so much has happened in my life in the past year and will continue to happen in the coming year before I begin teaching that I decided to start publishing my thoughts now. To begin, I will write about a current life-changing experience I had that I will surely never forget.
Last week, I had the opportunity to participate in a program called Aggies Reaching Out. This program centers around helping underprivleged 8th-grade students learn about college and stimulate their interest in pursuing a higher education. I travelled to Edinburg, TX with fifteen other counselors, stayed with former Aggies and had the chance to mentor twenty-one 8th-graders for a week. That week was nothing short of amazing for me. Myself and the other counselors woke up early each day and travelled to the school we were working with where we would do leadership activities and service projects for the school. We would then "shadow" the 8th graders for the rest of the school day (meaning we would follow them around to all of their classes and help them with their assignments). After school, we would take the students on field trips to local businesses to show them careers they could only pursue with a college education or we would help them participate in leadership and teambuilding activities. Every day was a new adventure in which I got to mentor a new student and help numerous other kiddos. This experience simply reinforced my passion for helping students and made me that much more excited for my future career.
I can't wait to graduate from A&M in December, begin my Master's studies and start molding the minds of youngsters in the local area. My passion in life is to help students realize their potential and put that potential towards a fullfilling career that makes them happy on a daily basis. This past semester my mom wrote me something that I think is key to finding a rewarding career, "If you love what you are doing, you will never work a day in your life." Although I returned from Edinburg completely exhausted, I loved every minute of it and cannot wait to live my life doing that very same thing. My kiddos from that week are emailing and texting me saying they miss the counselors and want us to come back. In December, we will bring them to A&M for a weekend and I cannot wait to see their happy faces as we show them a real college campus. This experience was for the students to help them realize the importance of college, but I believe I returned home impacted just as much as the students were, if not more.
I love to write so I'm hoping this blog can serve as a form of entertainment and enjoyment for myself, my family, my friends and whoever else wants to read it. I welcome comments and suggestions! :)
-Tracey
Last week, I had the opportunity to participate in a program called Aggies Reaching Out. This program centers around helping underprivleged 8th-grade students learn about college and stimulate their interest in pursuing a higher education. I travelled to Edinburg, TX with fifteen other counselors, stayed with former Aggies and had the chance to mentor twenty-one 8th-graders for a week. That week was nothing short of amazing for me. Myself and the other counselors woke up early each day and travelled to the school we were working with where we would do leadership activities and service projects for the school. We would then "shadow" the 8th graders for the rest of the school day (meaning we would follow them around to all of their classes and help them with their assignments). After school, we would take the students on field trips to local businesses to show them careers they could only pursue with a college education or we would help them participate in leadership and teambuilding activities. Every day was a new adventure in which I got to mentor a new student and help numerous other kiddos. This experience simply reinforced my passion for helping students and made me that much more excited for my future career.
I can't wait to graduate from A&M in December, begin my Master's studies and start molding the minds of youngsters in the local area. My passion in life is to help students realize their potential and put that potential towards a fullfilling career that makes them happy on a daily basis. This past semester my mom wrote me something that I think is key to finding a rewarding career, "If you love what you are doing, you will never work a day in your life." Although I returned from Edinburg completely exhausted, I loved every minute of it and cannot wait to live my life doing that very same thing. My kiddos from that week are emailing and texting me saying they miss the counselors and want us to come back. In December, we will bring them to A&M for a weekend and I cannot wait to see their happy faces as we show them a real college campus. This experience was for the students to help them realize the importance of college, but I believe I returned home impacted just as much as the students were, if not more.
I love to write so I'm hoping this blog can serve as a form of entertainment and enjoyment for myself, my family, my friends and whoever else wants to read it. I welcome comments and suggestions! :)
-Tracey
