Steven Teng

The Community Service Project would have been much more difficult to complete if we had not had the help of Stephen Francoeur. Also, Maria helped us out a lot with our presentations and any problems that we had. Aside from the help I received from Professor Francoeur and Maria, there have been several instances where I needed the help of Mr. Medina and he responded to my questions very quickly. I feel that everyone helped make our projects more fun and easier.

Outside of freshman seminar, I have used the writing center to help me with my writing. Although I’ve only been there once, I plan on going there more often so I can improve my writing skills. I have also found that most of my professors are very approachable and are ready to help with any problems that I might be having. Just talking with a professor makes the class easier and a connection is formed.

Although I haven’t joined any clubs, I am in the process of joining VITA, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance. I have to pass a pre-test, go through training, and pass the final test to join. Although it is a long process, it is a good experience to have. I also plan on joining Beta Alpha Psi, which is a business fraternity. My cousins recommended it to me and have told me that it can help me out in the long run. I have also been encouraged to join Ascend which provides networking with professionals.

I feel that the support that we receive in Baruch is very apparent and that there will always be someone there to help us along. My experience with our team project has proved this to me. Also, everyone did an informational speech related to the organization that we will be volunteering at. The connection between the two classes made it very easy to get things done. Learning how to do group work is also very important and this group project has given me an example of what to do and what not to do.

Before this group project, I never had a drive to volunteer; It always seemed like a hassle. However, after doing this project and realizing how privileged we are to be in the honors program and to receive education, I feel a need to give back to the community. I am much more willing to do community service. I’m looking for to volunteering at Housing Works with Ken and Johanna next term.

I am glad that we had our freshman seminar class because it helped us transition from high school to college. It also showed us the amount of support that is available to us in the college and I feel much more confident about college. Although my intended major is accounting, I plan to find out what I truly love to do. In three years time, I hope to be pursuing a major that I am passionate about. I also hope to be as successful as my cousin, a senior in the Baruch Honors program, who recently received an internship at Ernst & Young.

As Baruch Scholars, we are given many privileges that other students do not have. We have an awesome peer mentor, Maria; a caring advisor, Mr. Medina; along with various other things. However, I feel that we should give back to the community. We are given so many and it is only right that we do something in return. In philosophy class, we discussed consequentialism, where we should do we everything we can to improve the lives of others. Although the theory is a little extreme, I think that if we follow it, we would be on the right track to doing our part as Scholars. We should also become active members in the Baruch community, such as joining the various clubs and teams that we have.

The honors program requires us to do a certain amount of volunteer hours per year. Giving back to the community is something that the program has been promoting for a long time. However, I feel that we can do more than just the bare minimum of 15 hours, in our case, 8 hours per year. We should always give a helping hand to those in need. We must keep in mind that not everyone has the same privileges we do, and we should feel blessed to have this opportunity. Therefore, giving back to the community by volunteering and being active in the college, such as joining clubs and teams, should be what our role as Baruch Scholars is.