Hey Everybody! So I finally figured out how to post on the Bonner Blog (which looks pretty cool, by the way). The following is copied and pasted out of the e-mail that I sent to Gretchen to substitute for a blog.
I still do not know how to comment- any suggestions?
Regarding accountability-
I saw the quote, "The team is only as strong as its weakest member," used in some of the responses, and I could not agree more. I this quote applies especially to Bonner, reflecting several responsibilities: our responsibility to upmost represent the Bonner program in community leadership, our responsibility to support one another and help each other learn and develop and finally the responsibilities shared between Gretchen (you) and us as Bonners.
In any organization, the members rely on the "do'ers," or the "movers and shakers," to drive progress. That is what accountability really means. The more movers and shakers, and the more those movers and shakers fulfill their responsibilities and communicate, the more the organization will achieve.
This element becomes more complex in a full group of such aspiring M's& S's. The group is swamped with responsibilities from inside and outside of the organization, feeling a duty to each one equally. It is the responsibility of the entire team to keep them on the right track, or "hold them accountable," within the responsibility of the organization at hand. That is where Gretchen and Amanda come in with helpful reminders in e-mails and notes throughout the week, and efficiency in their own positions such as in holding workshops. These are my feelings on accountability in a nutshell, as the backbone of any group. On a personal level, I am finally solidifying my schedule and time management, largely after bonding with my agenda (finally), and am looking forward to being a Bonner 100%.
Although I used Driving awareness in my question response, I am now most interested in the ideas for higher education that Tai has expressed and will elaborate on higher education.
A project that would develop the awareness and ability of youth in the Albany area could be considered service learning in a number of ways. First of all, Siena has a reputable education department in which classes could incorporate tutoring students, whether academically or in learning techniques to apply to college. From a social work or political science perspective, any number of classes that focus on social development and youth could incorporate such a program into a class. These classes would study why their is such a sociodemographic disparity in the pursuit of higher education while helping solve the problem. Even a communications class could teach the interpersonal skills necessary to gain acceptance into college.
2. To choose a specific example, I will refer to the social science service learning I discussed above. Students would learn how to increase the pursuit and acceptance into higher education, while studying its causes on a qualitative level, while working with youth. Reflection would occur in the study of why the students do not graduate high school or go to college at higher rates. Diversity, unfortunately, would probably be emphasized without trying, due to the racial and sociodemographic disparity in inner cities. The partnership would be with the school as well as possibly an outside tutoring service such as Kaplan, which would give the students a chance to pursue professional tutoring under the sponsorship of the grant. Progress could be monitored over a five year period or as soon as two years, as students in the program began would hopefully be found to pursue higher education at a greater rate. The duration and intensity would need to be looked at from a long-term perspective, as the Bonner goal, and that which is in the best interest in development, is to institutionalize any service programs that are created. Youth Voice would drive the project, and would provide aggregate level supervision and feedback on the progress of the students.
In any organization, the members rely on the "do'ers," or the "movers and shakers," to drive progress. That is what accountability really means. The more movers and shakers, and the more those movers and shakers fulfill their responsibilities and communicate, the more the organization will achieve.
This element becomes more complex in a full group of such aspiring M's& S's. The group is swamped with responsibilities from inside and outside of the organization, feeling a duty to each one equally. It is the responsibility of the entire team to keep them on the right track, or "hold them accountable," within the responsibility of the organization at hand. That is where Gretchen and Amanda come in with helpful reminders in e-mails and notes throughout the week, and efficiency in their own positions such as in holding workshops. These are my feelings on accountability in a nutshell, as the backbone of any group. On a personal level, I am finally solidifying my schedule and time management, largely after bonding with my agenda (finally), and am looking forward to being a Bonner 100%.
Although I used Driving awareness in my question response, I am now most interested in the ideas for higher education that Tai has expressed and will elaborate on higher education.
A project that would develop the awareness and ability of youth in the Albany area could be considered service learning in a number of ways. First of all, Siena has a reputable education department in which classes could incorporate tutoring students, whether academically or in learning techniques to apply to college. From a social work or political science perspective, any number of classes that focus on social development and youth could incorporate such a program into a class. These classes would study why their is such a sociodemographic disparity in the pursuit of higher education while helping solve the problem. Even a communications class could teach the interpersonal skills necessary to gain acceptance into college.
2. To choose a specific example, I will refer to the social science service learning I discussed above. Students would learn how to increase the pursuit and acceptance into higher education, while studying its causes on a qualitative level, while working with youth. Reflection would occur in the study of why the students do not graduate high school or go to college at higher rates. Diversity, unfortunately, would probably be emphasized without trying, due to the racial and sociodemographic disparity in inner cities. The partnership would be with the school as well as possibly an outside tutoring service such as Kaplan, which would give the students a chance to pursue professional tutoring under the sponsorship of the grant. Progress could be monitored over a five year period or as soon as two years, as students in the program began would hopefully be found to pursue higher education at a greater rate. The duration and intensity would need to be looked at from a long-term perspective, as the Bonner goal, and that which is in the best interest in development, is to institutionalize any service programs that are created. Youth Voice would drive the project, and would provide aggregate level supervision and feedback on the progress of the students.
Thanks! Ben
1 comments:
on the bottom of peoples post it says "0 comments."
click on that to leave a comment.
Post a Comment