Something really exciting that happened was that the U.S national coordinator of SVDP for Youth and Young Vincentians heard about my Skype sessions with another conference and asked me to write an article about my experience! The piece was published in the national newsletter of the organization for the first quarter of 2010. Here is a link to the article:
http://www.svdpusa.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=p11Titiy7UE%3d&tabid=55&mid=381&language=en-US
Shower flip-flops?
Check.
Alarm clock?
Check.
Society of St. Vincent de
Paul?
Now that item posed a
slight problem. It didn’t fit
into my suitcase.
In preparation for college I
had made all of the
appropriate checklists about
what to bring. I had all the
items that would make my dorm feel like home, but
something was missing. This was also something I couldn’t
pack.
I joined SSVdP during my junior year of high school, and
I loved every minute of it. From meetings to volunteer
opportunities, I was always excited about helping my
community. I saw my actions changing the world. I saw
my actions positively impacting the people around me.
Just because I was leaving for college didn’t mean I had to
give all of that up…right? I began to stress out more as I
discovered there was no conference where I was going to
college. What was I supposed to do?!
After talking to my conference leader, it was apparent that
I had very few options. However, one caught my eye
immediately--Skype. Skype is an easy to use computer
program that you can download free from
www.skype.com. It allows you to video-chat with friends
amongst other great functions. As long as you have a
computer with a webcam and a microphone along with an
internet connection, you are good to go! The program is
extremely easy to use. After downloading the service, the
next step is to create an account and search for contacts
with whom to talk. When you find a friend,
communicating with them is as simple as hitting a button.
To solve my predicament, my leader suggested I Skype
with the University of Wisconsin-Madison conference of
SSVdP. The leader of that conference and I keep in
contact through email, so I know when they hold the
meetings. On these days both the Madison contact person
and I log into Skype on our laptops. One of us video
“calls” the other. To connect, the other person must
“answer” the request. From then on, we can hear and see
each other.
As strange and awkward as this meeting style sounds, it’s
completely legitimate. I feel completely included and do
everything--just as I would at a normal meeting. I get the
readings on the St. Vincent de Paul website to know what
is going on, and I also participate in discussions.
Not bad for a computer screen, huh?
I love that I can still attend SSVdP meetings even though I
am away at college. Skype is a great tool to keep me
connected. It’s good to see the Society utilizing technology
as an advantage in an age where it’s often seen as the
enemy.
As for me, I don’t mind being the floating head on the
computer screen. I think about how the Society was
created by another college kid. One can only imagine
that right now Frederic is stifling his laughter and agreeing
with the ingenuity of someone attending a meeting
through a computer. After all, it’s that same ingenuity and
determination that helped him form the Society.
-S
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Project Mentors
For my project to be approved, I needed a faculty advisor and a community partner. The faculty advisor had to be a staff member of UW - Eau Claire. I chose my Fundamentals of Advertising professor, William (Bill) Barre because he showed a passion for his field and true dedication towards his students. He has creative talent and an eye for innovative ideas. I know that he will give me honest opinions about my ideas and thoughts.
A community partner is a person that is a part of the chosen organization who will supervise my work. I chose Mary Meissner who is a close family friend and a regular volunteer at St.Vincent de Paul. Her hard-working yet gentle demeanor is perfect to help me implement my ideas. Always on her toes, she is great at planning ahead and really seeing things through.
I am very excited to work with both of these people! Each brings different applicable and helpful characteristics to my planning. I know that things won't always go according to plan, but with the help of Bill and Mary I'm ready to tackle anything.
-S
Sunday, May 2, 2010
The First Hurdle
The first thing I had to do for my Service Learning Project....was get it approved. I really wanted to create my own project so that it would be unique and tailored to my talents. To do so, I needed a structured plan, a faculty mentor, and a community partner. Once all of those were obtained, there was a form to fill out that asked me a variety of questions. Here are a few of them:
1. Briefly describethe project and the community need you intend to address.
My project can basically be called a media make-over. St. Vincent de Paul does a lot for my local community, and I want the organization to use technology to help it grow! Parts of my plan include furthering the Skype video conference meetings and using mixed media(Facebook events, posters, word-of mouth) to tell the community about food drives and other volunteer activities. I also have been working on building the Youth and Young Vincentians program in my area and to aid programs on the national level. This includes coming up with innovative ways for young adults to volunteer in their community. All in all, I think my service would help others learn about SSVDP, all that it does for the area, and how people can get involved, all while using modern technology and different media mixes.
2.How does this project apply and relate to the subject matter of a course, your major, or the goals of the cacalaureate degree?
I am Undeclared riht now, but I would like to go into a field in the CJ Department such as Advertising so my project goes right along with that. My first semester I took a class called Fundamentals of Advertising, ad it taught me a lot about the media and the different channels it encompasses. I ill use the information learned in that class to fuel my project. Also, it follows many of the Liberal Education Learning Goals. St. Vincent de Paul works with a variety of people, especially te poor and suffering. These people are often neglected by other members of the community and government so it is important that they can feel welcome somewhere. Creativity will be used in figuring out how best to reach certain parts of the city's population. Also, I will need great communication skills to work with leaders in the organization, the community, and with people who need assistance. Each group poses a new demand to communicate effectively.
3. Describe how this project will challenge youto apply your academic knowledge and skills.
As I mentioned before, I will be applying the information learned in my class Fundamentals of Advertising because it taught me many of the different vehicles that agencies use to get different messages across. Also, I am taking the class Communication In The Information Age which has been helping me learn about modern media. I feel that these classes have given be a solid base to catalyze my ideas from. An example of applying my knowledge is that I learned how to set marketing or advertising objectives to classify progress in areas of communication that are often hard to measure. There are different techniques that one can use to see the types of results that certain actions are creating. It will definitely push my limits and make me work harder because it’s a bigger undertaking that I’ve done before. It will be exciting though. I have also had to use my writing and reporting skills to write an article abot my pioneer experiment of Skype-ing meetings with a different conference. Even though I'm away at college, I wanted to continue going to meetings. There is no SSVDP conference here so I decided to video conference with the Madison Chapter. I wrote an article that got published in the U.S national St. Vincent de Paul newsletter. The piece was about using modern technology in an adventageous way. The practice is now spreading to other chapters!
4. How will the proposed service activity help you develop or enhance your senseof civic or social resonsibility?St. Vincent de Paul is a great service organization that focuses their attention on individuals who are often forgotten or fall through the cracks of society. Some of the core values listed on the organization’s website include “we believe: in the dignity of the human person, in the preferential option for the poor, that our primary concern is charity and justice, and in the virtue of charity, inside and outside the Society” (http://www.svdpusa.org/AboutUs/MissionandValues/tabid/67/language/en-US/Default.aspx). There are so many pitfalls of today’s world and working with the people who have become victims really can open one’s eyes. I have been a member since my junior year in high school and can attest to people and their courageous stories that I will never forget. My service project will prove that one person’s actions can and WILL make a difference in the world whether it’s by spreading opportunities, informing people, or doing some hard work yourself.
-S
1. Briefly describethe project and the community need you intend to address.
My project can basically be called a media make-over. St. Vincent de Paul does a lot for my local community, and I want the organization to use technology to help it grow! Parts of my plan include furthering the Skype video conference meetings and using mixed media(Facebook events, posters, word-of mouth) to tell the community about food drives and other volunteer activities. I also have been working on building the Youth and Young Vincentians program in my area and to aid programs on the national level. This includes coming up with innovative ways for young adults to volunteer in their community. All in all, I think my service would help others learn about SSVDP, all that it does for the area, and how people can get involved, all while using modern technology and different media mixes.
2.How does this project apply and relate to the subject matter of a course, your major, or the goals of the cacalaureate degree?
I am Undeclared riht now, but I would like to go into a field in the CJ Department such as Advertising so my project goes right along with that. My first semester I took a class called Fundamentals of Advertising, ad it taught me a lot about the media and the different channels it encompasses. I ill use the information learned in that class to fuel my project. Also, it follows many of the Liberal Education Learning Goals. St. Vincent de Paul works with a variety of people, especially te poor and suffering. These people are often neglected by other members of the community and government so it is important that they can feel welcome somewhere. Creativity will be used in figuring out how best to reach certain parts of the city's population. Also, I will need great communication skills to work with leaders in the organization, the community, and with people who need assistance. Each group poses a new demand to communicate effectively.
3. Describe how this project will challenge youto apply your academic knowledge and skills.
As I mentioned before, I will be applying the information learned in my class Fundamentals of Advertising because it taught me many of the different vehicles that agencies use to get different messages across. Also, I am taking the class Communication In The Information Age which has been helping me learn about modern media. I feel that these classes have given be a solid base to catalyze my ideas from. An example of applying my knowledge is that I learned how to set marketing or advertising objectives to classify progress in areas of communication that are often hard to measure. There are different techniques that one can use to see the types of results that certain actions are creating. It will definitely push my limits and make me work harder because it’s a bigger undertaking that I’ve done before. It will be exciting though. I have also had to use my writing and reporting skills to write an article abot my pioneer experiment of Skype-ing meetings with a different conference. Even though I'm away at college, I wanted to continue going to meetings. There is no SSVDP conference here so I decided to video conference with the Madison Chapter. I wrote an article that got published in the U.S national St. Vincent de Paul newsletter. The piece was about using modern technology in an adventageous way. The practice is now spreading to other chapters!
4. How will the proposed service activity help you develop or enhance your senseof civic or social resonsibility?St. Vincent de Paul is a great service organization that focuses their attention on individuals who are often forgotten or fall through the cracks of society. Some of the core values listed on the organization’s website include “we believe: in the dignity of the human person, in the preferential option for the poor, that our primary concern is charity and justice, and in the virtue of charity, inside and outside the Society” (http://www.svdpusa.org/AboutUs/MissionandValues/tabid/67/language/en-US/Default.aspx). There are so many pitfalls of today’s world and working with the people who have become victims really can open one’s eyes. I have been a member since my junior year in high school and can attest to people and their courageous stories that I will never forget. My service project will prove that one person’s actions can and WILL make a difference in the world whether it’s by spreading opportunities, informing people, or doing some hard work yourself.
-S
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