Service Learning Experience

Today was the first day of EXPLORE! for Mount Pleasant High School. After doing the program once before at St. Patrick's Academy, my first impression of the school was that it was much larger than St. Pat's. I was also surprised to see the baseball field located right next to the school. Walking through the hallways to our classroom, I immediately noticed all of the artwork and inspirational quotes on the wall, just as mentioned in the book we are reading in class. Some of the quotes read, "Unity", "I have a dream", "Equality", and many more along the same lines. The school environment and characteristics definitely fit the description of the urban schools we have been talking about. I was quite surprised to see the number of students who were there to participate in EXPLORE! There were about 16 students and we were told 4 were missing today and that some forgot to bring their permission slips but were interested. We first met with the guidance counselor of the school who had advocated the program and she briefly told us about the students at Mt. Pleasant. The students in our program were 9th and 10th graders, however, many of the 9th graders are repeating 9th grade for the second time. Most of the students receive free or reduced lunch because they are from low-income families. The students are majority African American and Hispanic. We began today's lesson by breaking up into groups and having the students give us a tour of the building. They were excited to show us the science floor because it was just redone with brand new science rooms and labs, lockers, and smart boards. The floor was so much brighter and clean than the rest of the school. It almost felt as if we were not in Mt. Pleasant any more. They hope to renovate the rest of the school one floor at a time. Once we all returned back to the room the activity for the day was to draw a picture of our goals for the next few years. As we went around and shared our pictures with the group, it seemed the common goal of the students was to attend college or go to the NBA. Some of the students were quite outgoing and confident in their goals while some were shy and seemed unsure of their futures. We briefly discussed what the students knew about the college application process and then ran out of time for the day, but I feel the first day went successfully. I hope for the students to become more comfortable with all the EXPLORE! leaders and their school peers as we go on. I believe the program will be very beneficial for the students if they open up and we provide them with good leadership and example. I am excited to continue service learning and see the growth of these students. I am concerned about the behavior of some of the students in the group, but based on our reflection after today's lesson we feel that by breaking up into smaller groups they will receive the individual attention that they need.