FRO13 LC10

Overall the community service that we had to complete for Freshman Orientation was simple enough, and to be honest, not strenuous work at all. All that was required was to plant flowers bulbs for the upcoming spring and to rake the leaves within the flower garden. The two hours went by incredibility fast and it was not a burden at all to complete. The only difficult portion regarding the community service was the commuting to upper Manhattan early in the morning and finding the actual location. Since the garden is hidden in-between project buildings and the local elementary school, it initially took a couple minutes to figure out where we had to meet up. But overall the community service went well, we worked in groups to complete the tasks we were given faster.
Maurice

Doing the community service work was a very pleasant experience. It felt good to give back to the community that has help develop myself as a person. Although cleaning the leaves was a bit tiring and seemingly counterproductive, playing the flower bulbs was rather enjoyable. I did not expect to have as good a time as I did, because usually I am lazy and it seemed like a chore to go all the way over there just to clean up some leaves, but at the end of the day, I felt like a better person and I was proud of myself for giving back to the community. In the future, if I get the opportunity to give back to the community, I would definitely do it. The fact that I enjoyed myself while doing something good for the community was a pleasant surprise and I hope to have the feeling I had many more times.

The enrichment workshop was both inspiring and informative. Listening to the various leaders of different clubs has inspired me to do and make my time in Baruch worthwhile. One thing that i found surprising while listening to the leaders was how they had, and were in the same situation that i am in. For instance, most of them, after enrolling in Baruch were kind of “lost” in the school. By lost, i mean that they had no clue what and where to spent their free time after classes in. So most of them went home, just like what i do now. However, like me they found this routine to be wasteful. They told us how by joining clubs, they realized was a better way to spend their free time and actually do something productive. Therefore now, i am inspired to join a club, get into or try to participate in leadership positions because the main lesson that i learned from the workshop was that if i want to have a great time in Baruch, then i have to put myself forward. Otherwise, i will always look back at  my time in Baruch as a waste and regret.

Sanjay Gurung

The New York Cares Volunteer work, I thought, wasn’t all that bad. I’m used to doing work around my house, so raking leaves was relatively easy. Not to mention, you had people to talk to and hangout with, so it was easy to pass the time. I really have no complaints about this community service session. In fact, this is something I would prefer to do. Your outside, with friends, doing nothing but putting leaves in a bag. I liked how we decided to do this as a group, because I could see it being pretty boring without anyone to talk to for 2 hours. For some reason I wasn’t a big fan of the people that ran it, though. I just wasn’t feeling their vibe. I felt like they were constantly watching over you, making sure you weren’t slacking. Also it kinda sucked coming from LI to do this, then go right back for work. Otherwise, it wasn’t bad at all. Some of us even went to enjoy some quality Chinese food afterward.

Jimmy Marshall

This photo just about describes my first semester at Baruch. Before I came to Baruch, I imagined a far less stressful situation. Obviously I knew the work would be difficult, but a bunch of other problems added on top of it made everything a little overwhelming. The workload itself is a lot, but nothing I can’t handle. Another problem is the money situation. I can’t cook, so I pretty much buy all my meals here, and I eat a lot. On top of that, going out on the weekends can get pretty pricey. In October alone, I spent 1200 dollars. My parents were not happy. Since I spend so much money, I have to work for more. I have a couple jobs on Long Island, so I’m constantly traveling back and forth on weekends to make a few extra bucks for the weeks ahead. This can get pretty old real fast. Also, I’m not exactly thrilled with my living situation. I’ll leave the details out for that one. I actually decided to commute next semester, which, believe it or not, will be a lot easier for me. However, the classes themselves aren’t impossible, but I wouldn’t consider myself an extremely intelligent kid, so I definitely have to work really hard to keep my head above water. I’ll be alright, though. I always like a good challenge.

Jimmy Marshall

Image source: http://downloadwallpapershd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Memes-Challenge-Accepted-Hd-Wallpapers.jpg

Mark Komar

Over the past couple of months at Baruch, I’ve had the opportunity to be more independent. I like the idea of having more responsibility over my schoolwork because it teaches me that not everything will be given to me on a silver platter. I’ve learned that if I really want something, I have to work towards that goal. I have come to like the library a lot because it’s the only place where I can actually get more work done. There are fewer distractions than at home and it’s very useful when I have long breaks. Back in high school you could review your notes the period before the test and still pass with a really high grade. In college that’s much different because now exams cover a lot more work. I have to review the work from at least a few days before if I want high grades. The work itself is a lot more, but I’m able to handle it by prioritizing and managing my time. I didn’t have a hard time making the transition and I’m starting to like college more and more each day. I have 7 more semesters here where I plan on finishing my degree. I didn’t take part in much of the school activities this semester, but I look forward to in my years to come. I’ll probably join a club to meet more people and get out of my comfort zone. The picture I chose shows that college will be a challenge, but that I can handle it.

Mark Komar

The leadership enrichment workshop was a great opportunity for me to listen to the experiences of other students. I liked how it started off with the background information on how someone’s vision on paper and leadership helped a lot of people. They encouraged us to take part in the many clubs and organizations that Baruch has to offer in order to become not only better leaders, but also better students and people. At first, I wasn’t sold on the idea of joining a club because I wasn’t sure how I would balance that with classwork. However, after hearing the student panel speak about their personal experiences and how it helped them to grow as individuals, I’m more interested in joining a club. Not only did it allow them to meet more people, but also it taught them how to interact with students and how to become a leader. One student mentioned how she had to study for an exam and then take part in her club activity. I think this helps us with time management and prepares us for all the things that a job consists of. The line that stuck the most was “College is what you make it to be.” We always hear these stories of what college is going to be like. It’s similar to High School in the way that people say it’s the best years of your life. It’s all about putting you out there and having a great time. It’s a time for new experiences where we can learn from other students and take part in activities that may interest you. They did inspire me to get out there and join some club where I can meet new people who share the same interests. There’s always something new to learn or someone new to meet.

This image is from the show Polar Bear Cafe and it represents my experience at Baruch so far. This semester has so far been challenging, especially when it comes to managing time and balancing good grades, a social life, and a decent amount of sleep. I’ve also had a hard time focusing and tend to procrastinate and put things off. Basically I always feel like I’m too busy relaxing so I’ll always want to do my homework later. Speech has definitely been my most challenging class because I’ve always had terrible stage fright, but the class is definitely helping. I’m also struggling a bit with math, but I’m definitely doing better now than I did back in high school. Despite all this work, I’ve met a lot of cool people here at Baruch. I’ve also become closer with people I knew from before college, who ending up going to Baruch as well. Baruch’s community is nice, and everyone is pretty open and easy to talk to. I’m also glad that Baruch also offers a lot of opportunities. I definitely need to take advantage of all that Baruch offers in the coming years.

Frannie Torres