The New Kid on the Block

I feel like I should parade around in an American flag button-down shirt and a cowboy hat on occasion after seeing that picture on the right…anyway, as the newest resident of the Summit Shack, I’d like to thank you guys for choosing me to fill Ethan’s shoes.  Although I may choose alternative rock over country and am not nearly as good at stretching out a tight hammy on the second day of an ultimate tournament, I hope that I can be as charismatic as the two guys that have moved on (dang, it sounds like they died or something).  Jared and Ethan, I hope you’re doing well and you’re definitely missed.

It was quite a decision to switch residences and pick up the Think Green at Boyd Elementary project halfway through the year.  I moved in four weeks ago both excited to get started and unsure of what to expect.  Four weeks later, I still feel these emotions.  I haven’t gotten an opportunity to go over to Boyd yet both because of classes and the white death, so I don’t really have a sense yet of how this whole process works.  It was interesting reading the previous posts on this blog.

A sense that I get from the previous posts is that communication is lacking right now.  I’ve worked in groups this size (although not on a project of this type) and found both positive and negative results.  Generally, the sense that I get about large groups like this is that process is key: everyone needs to be on the same page, know their role exactly, and feel confident about what they are doing.  And so I ask: are these being fulfilled right now?  What do we need to do better as a group in order to achieve the best process and get the best results?  Organization is very important when seven people are working toward one goal, and maybe we need to take a step back and work out that part of this project.

This semester will be a period of growth for all of us as group members have shifted and roles in the project as a whole may change.  I hope that once I get the opportunity to go to Boyd and become more active in this project that I can be a strong contributor to the group’s success.

-Drew KB