Author: a.tarrao

Group 2

I have never had much problem admitting that I need help, or seeking out assistance. However, I don’t always take full advantage of the resources around me. I tend to tell myself that I will utilize certain resources for things I should be doing, but I often fail to follow through because of time issues or laziness. I seem to be great at setting goals for myself and planning big things, but usually I allow time to pass without actually doing the things I planned in the timeline I initially set. Doing this community service project as a group forced me to learn the importance of following through. Working with other people makes me make sure I stay on track, and not procrastinate too much. So why do I only follow through when other people are involved? I owe it to myself to act on my plans, and get things done when I plan to get things done. Actions speak louder than words, so its time that I act and use the helpful resources around me and use the help I need to help me succeed.

While I have joined a club this semester, I have been planning to join another club next semester and maybe become a committee member. Now I have to actually do that. And I can use that sense of commitment and consistency in my classes to make sure I am doing as much as I can.

This project has also furthered my understanding of the different spheres of people and things who need help. It’s not only kids or animals, but it is multiple categories of people, animals and things that could use extra help from people who can provide it.

In the next three years I don’t see any drastic change in my life. I hope to learn and grow, but I also see consistency. I see myself still in school, still a Baruch scholar, and still on the right path for success. I also hope to be working and saving for my future. I also hope to be a more active member of my communities in general, participating and giving back what I can.

Being a Baruch Scholar I have a role of participating in the community. Although we are all only just starting out, and maybe unsure of what our exact role is, or what we should be doing, I acknowledge that we have to be active. Not only for the community itself, but for our own selves as well. Currently, I am am taking part in the Conversation Partners Program at Baruch. It’s a club that isn’t very rigid, it is more about personal efforts. It is my duty to actively make meeting plans with my partners. My partners are nonnative english speakers who I am trying to help become more comfortable in America and more comfortable speaking English. I’m not writing this to say how fulfilling or amazing the experience is, because again I am only just starting out and I haven’t began to analyze my growth for my little time here. Sure I have learned plenty in class and in this club, but I am still learning and growing everyday and trying to experience new things. I think that’s what serving the community is about, as a Baruch Scholar or not. It’s about learning and growing while helping others learn and grow. I don’t think it necessarily has to be life changing in any way, because little things can go as long a way as big things. Things that you might do everyday that you might not even realize is ‘serving the community’ like holding the elevator or holding the door for people, can make differences in other people’s lives. So it is my duty, and should be everyone’s duty to actively participate in the community in any way possible, big or small. The honors program promotes the idea of service and action and I think it is extremely important because some people might need that little push to give back. Because helping others helps us help ourselves.

Group #2

Hello World! I’m Aja (Asia). I have lived in the same place in Flushing Queens with my parents and my three siblings for the past 18 years. I decided at 14 to go to a small performing arts high school in the city called Talent Unlimited. I used to be pretty embarrassed by the name, so when people asked, I usually just called it TU :P. I decided to pursue the field of acting in high school because I love the arts, and I couldn’t really sing or dance well, and I thought acting might be easy. I then found out the opposite was true. It was difficult, it was stressful and it was sometimes scary. But, I am incredibly thankful for everything I learned in acting class, because it really shaped who I am today. I learned so much about myself, and about other people. Then about 6 months ago I decided to go to Baruch College. Luckily I am able to adjust pretty quickly to change. It’s no longer this warm and intimate group of touchy/feely performers, it is this huge campus where everybody is focused on their work and themselves. I like both environments, and I especially appreciate this environment in college, because it motivates me to stay focused on academics. When I graduated high school I was so excited to start in a place where I can take classes I actually cared about, and classes that would interest me. Sadly I still feel very uncertain about what does interest me, and what classes I want to take, and where I even want to go. But it is only the beginning and I am excited to start discovering what I really enjoy.