Soaring Eagles is a volunteer
program at Mountain View Elementary a title 1 school located on the west side
of Salt Lake City. I am the program
director (PD) for this program. The Bennion center has a partnership with
Mountain View and also works with a few other programs at this school. The
purpose of this program is to help students stay on task, learn, and have a
mentor outside of the traditional methods (other than a teacher) it gives them
support through someone who is connected with the university on a more direct
level. The student-volunteer relationship establishes a network for the student
to feel more comfortable and be excited to learn and think about attending
college, using resources, and being a support system for the students.
Volunteers work with kids in k-5th grade and have the chance to be able to be able to do different kinds of volunteering which include In-Class Support, Supervision, Clerical, Homework Help, and Recess/Lunch Supervision. Volunteering at Mountain View provides many benefits to the community and personal growth. In my personal experience I have been able to connect with people I would not normally get to know if I was just going to school without my extra volunteer work. It is beneficial to the community by providing a service that is so important to the development of a child’s life. Being able to show a child that you want them to succeed in their schooling and afforded the educational opportunities that they should be able to take advantage of is an irreplaceable service. Current volunteers in my program have told me that they really enjoy working with these kids and they are going to continue their service for the second semester. It is also beneficial to be able to understand and work with a diverse group of people, and be able to relate to children and adults, as well as other college students who are interested in the same things as you are.
Sometimes it’s not easy feeling like
you have made an impact on a child’s life , some days are better than others
but it’s definitely worth it to be able to have one good impact instead of none
at all. To be able to create the sort of bond and support in a child’s life is
really important to their development and growth. Students volunteer at least 1
hour a week (sometimes more) for a least a semester (or from the time they
start to the end of the semester) any time between 8am-6pm Mon-Fri.
Mountain View Elementary is a very
diverse school that makes it unique, in addition to the soaring eagles program
there is also a school garden where families of the kids that attend the school
can learn how to grow their own food and prepare it, this is also a very
important skill for children (and anyone) to learn to enhance their lives.
Being able to work so closely with
children and community partners has really helped me to be able to understand
people that come from all walks of life. As the year has progressed I have been
able to learn so much from students at Mountain View, the bennion center, and
staff and community partners. University students are welcome to bring their
own creativity to the classroom or to provide feedback to teachers so that if
there is a problem changes can be made and volunteers, teachers, and students
can all feel like they are in a safe space.
I would highly recommend this
program if you like working with kids, are interested in education and
diversity, or are just looking for something different to try.
- Kylie Farris, Soaring Eagles Program Director
No comments:
Post a Comment