Well, That's All She Wrote

My Summit expierence--although only for the past semester--has been eye-opening.  I think that what I found most interesting was how I relate to school-age children now that I am a young adult.  Even working with high school students as a college student was something I had never experienced before, and becoming accustomed to that atmosphere will be important down the road.  It's something that I know I will be using this summer because of where I will be working and it will definitely be beneficial for me as I continue to be involved at Drury.

The greatest thing I learned from living in Summit Park had to be the status achieved.  Living in a residence hall or apartment is something that every Drury student does; Summit Park has a certain vibe about it.  I remember seeing the surprised look on some of my peers' faces when I walked into the first Summit meeting of the semester.  It shows how significant it is, both for other Summit Park residents and for those doing other things here at Drury.  That idea of status is something that I think has had the most impact on the community.  We chose to do this community service project because we felt that it would have a strong impact on kids, teachers, parents, and other community members.  It definitely has; just look at the pictures we have of smiling faces and that direct effect on the community is very clear.

I don't really think I am fit to answer the question of what I would have done if I hadn't lived in Summit Park because I didn't for half the year.  I feel very fortunate to still have a strong relationship with my former roommate (and replacement), suitemates, and fellow residents that I left behind.

There are some things about Summit Park that I would like to see changed, both within my group and in the way the program is set up.  As for the group, I think we need to do a better job of performing tasks based on what we are good at.  I felt like some of us were doing this, but others were left without a task to do and looked somewhat uncomfortable in their roles.  This is something that we could have planned for and addressed early on, and I would advise future Summit Park groups to do the same.  As for the program itself, I think it needs to become more community-oriented rather than individual-oriented.  I certainly learned quite a bit from Drury's career planning office and the lady who talked about credit and managing money, but those don't really apply to the true meaning of Summit Park: community activism.  I think that Summit Park class meetings in the future need to be tied to the groups and their service projects and to other community programs that we could benefit from through observing the way they affect people's lives and emulating that in our own work.

Since this is my last post and my farewell to this blog, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to replace a great guy in the Think Green at Boyd Elementary group.  I hope my work has been appreciated by everyone, and I wish everyone a great summer and best of luck in the fall.

-Drew Kemp-Baird