GOALS Spring Semester Project Plan

I plan to complete my GOALS Spring Semester Project with Kami and Ginny. We will be knitting hats and scarves for homeless people on High Street during the month of January. Although I don’t know how to knit right now, I plan to learn from Kami when we return from winter break. This project aligns with service and leadership because we are serving those in need by making hats and scarves and also showing that we want to lead others into making a positive impact in the community. I plan to begin working on knitting when I get back from winter break with my two group members. We are going to take a bus down High Street to see how many homeless people we will need to knit for and assess how many clothing items that we can make before the weather gets warm. Our first step would be to finish knitting our hats and scarves, which we hope to complete by January 14th. The second step would be to go down High Street and hand out everything we made to any homeless people that we come across, which we hope to complete by January 21st.

Columbus To-Do List Part Two

In order to complete the remainder of my Columbus To-Do list of coffee and tea shops, I visited Mission Coffee, One Line Coffee, Roaming Goat, and ZenCha Tea Salon.

  1. The first of these four coffee shops that I visited was Mission Coffee. It was very difficult to find once I got into the general area where it was located. There was no sign above the shop and all that was there to identify it was a small, standing sign that was sitting on the sidewalk. I really enjoyed the interior design of the shop, as the brick walls went well with the wooden shelves and wooden tables. It was late at night, so there were plenty of places to sit.

2. The next coffee shop I visited was One Line Coffee. This shop had very tall ceilings and had much brighter lighting than any of the other shops that I visited. The room was very open and there were several cultural and sports-related flags hung up on the walls that showed that they care about Columbus culture. There were not that many places to sit, though, as there was only seating against the walls. The workers were especially nice and the overall vibe of the shop was very enjoyable.

3. The next coffee shop I visited was ZenCha Tea Salon, which sells mostly tea but also a few coffee drinks. The first thing I noticed when I walked in to ZenCha was how ridiculously hot it was. I would have to guess that it was at least 80 degrees, and the front glass windows were fogged up because of it. Due to the heat, I didn’t really want to spend much time in there, so I ordered my drink and left. The interior design was very ugly; the walls were painted green and yellow and clashed with the grey wood floors. I ordered a hazelnut tea, but it was too hot to sip for about 20 minutes. Once it cooled down, though, it was really good.

4. The last coffee shop I visited was Roaming Goat Coffee. It was a pretty small shop with very few tables to sit at. The design was really cool; the ceilings were made up of shiny silver tiles and the front counter was made of only wood. I ordered a small mocha, and it was very expensive at $4.50. The barista made a leaf design from the froth and the mocha was delicious and not too hot to sip right away. I really enjoyed the overall look and feel of this shop, and I would certainly visit it again.

My favorite experience from this project was definitely Roaming Goat Coffee. Although my drink was expensive, it was very good and that shop had the best overall look and feel. From this to-do list experience, I learned that Columbus has an almost unlimited amount of options for everyone’s separate preferences for food and drinks. This experience has definitely encouraged me to explore all of the different restaurants in Columbus. Just from walking to and from each coffee shop, I passed many restaurants that I had never heard of and really want to visit in the future. For someone who is completing this list, I would recommend to visit Roaming Goat and Kafe Kerouac, as those two shops had the best drinks and the most interesting interior design and decorating.

Columbus To Do List Part One

For my Columbus To Do list, I chose the theme of coffee and tea. Recently, I’ve been starting to drink coffee a lot, though I never really did before starting college. I attribute this to lack of sleep, and coffee has helped me stay awake during my morning classes whenever I don’t get enough sleep. I am most looking forward to exploring different types of drinks like mochas, lattes, and custom/specialty drinks. The only drink I’ve gotten from the several campus coffee locations is a Buckeye Mocha, so hopefully by going to different Columbus coffee shops I can broaden my taste and knowledge of coffee. For my first coffee and tea experience, I went to Kafe Kerouac before class on a Tuesday morning at about 8:45. It is located on High Street near Insomnia cookies, so it was a very short walk from Torres House. The cool thing about Kafe Kerouac is that it is actually a coffee shop in the morning and a bar at night. Walking up to the shop, the door was propped open, which was an inviting sign. The entire shop is filled with shelves of books, vinyls, and pictures. Everywhere I looked there was something interesting to view. Also, there is a small stage in the corner that they use for live performances at night. The place where you order the coffee is actually a bar, and there was only one barista working as it was pretty empty at the time. The menu was very extensive with tons of specialty drinks that didn’t really seem enticing to me. I ordered a small mocha, and it was very cheap ($3.00) compared to campus coffee. It pretty much tasted the same as a mocha from a campus location, but next time I go I’ll get something different. Overall, Kafe Kerouac is a very unique coffee shop that is unlike any shop I’ve been before. I would recommend it, as it’s close to campus and has low prices.

Mentor Interview

I interviewed both of my scholars mentors, Julia Workum and Anthony Iovino. I was originally supposed to interview only Anthony, but Julia also came in order to give more insight. We met in the Torres House lobby and talked for about twenty minutes. Both Anthony (4th year) and Julia (2nd year) are Architecture majors. Most of the questions I asked them related to academic success at Ohio State and how to navigate my first year. One great studying tip I learned from them is that you should never study in your bed. I’ve experienced the trouble with this firsthand, as every time I’ve attempted to study in bed I’ve ended up falling asleep. Another great tip they gave me was to use the free tutors on campus. The Younkin Success Center provides free tutoring for Math and Physics on weekday nights, and I will certainly utilize that resource in the future. One of the things I was most interested in prior to my interview was studying abroad. I want study abroad at least once during my time at OSU and both of my mentors strongly recommended doing it. Anthony has been to Chile, Japan, and London, while Julia went on the scholars spring break trip to the Czech Republic last year. Hopefully I can talk to my academic advisers in order to look further into studying abroad. Overall, I am really looking forward to my next four years here and I’m very glad that I have Anthony and Julia to help me along the way.

Artifacts

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation includes both a description of the artifact and a reflection on why it is important to you, what you learned, and what it means for your next steps.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

About Me

Hi! My name is Owen Corrigan and I am a first year scholars student at Ohio State. I am majoring in Computer Science Engineering and I have a strong interest in software development. I chose to be a part of the Architecture, City, and Landscape scholars program because I’ve always enjoyed architecture but never really considered it as a career. Living in Torres House with the rest of the Architecture scholars has been a great experience so far.

I am from Rocky River, Ohio, which is a small suburb of Cleveland bordering Lake Erie. I am the youngest of eight children, I have a 7 year old Goldendoodle named Ruby, and I have a brother who goes to Ohio State. Also, I am an uncle to two nieces and three nephews. Transitioning from my huge family to OSU has been difficult but I am already loving everything that OSU has to offer. In high school, I played basketball, soccer, and tennis, and I will continue to play these sports through casual pickup games with my friends and intramural leagues. In my free time, I like to play Xbox, eat, sleep, watch sports and movies, and hang out with my friends.

At Ohio State, my main goal is to earn a degree in Computer Science Engineering so that I can hopefully get a job very soon after college. I’ve always been interested in computer science, so in high school I took a couple coding classes to gain some experience. One formative experience that helped to shape my academic interests was when I wrote my first computer program during my Junior year of high school. A simple program really showed me the very broad and diverse potential of the field of computer science. One particular field of research that I am passionate about is software development. I started to pursue this interest by doing a two week long software development project during my senior year of high school at Hyland Software in Cleveland. I will continue to pursue this interest at Ohio State by taking classes that help me develop my development skills. This semester, I am taking CSE 1223, which is an intro to Java class. My main academic goal is to maintain at least a 3.5 GPA during my time here and to eventually graduate.

I see myself thriving in a community of people where people work together in a relaxed but focused environment. I got a taste of this at Hyland Software, where there is no dress code, no cubicles, and employees are encouraged to take breaks. I feel that people work better when they are relaxed and comfortable, and I would like to work in an environment like that in the future. In terms of contributing to the OSU community, I hope to continue to do frequent community service like I did in high school. I am very excited to be at such a fantastic college that provides limitless opportunities for its students.

Ohio State Scholars Impressions

Welcome week was very fun but also very overwhelming. I’m glad that there were so many different things to do, but I also had very little free time because of it. I thought that the organization of the move-in process was very impressive, and the Ohio Welcome Leaders were very positive and helped to make the first day of college move more smoothly. My favorite event during welcome week was the Wipeout Challenge at the RPAC. I’ve always wanted to do something similar to the Wipeout show and it was really thrilling to run through the course.

In terms of classes, I am kind of surprised by the amount of work required. I knew it would be a lot different than high school, where I studied for zero hours a week, but I did not think it would be this big of a change. I don’t have much free time due to the amount of homework and studying required, but I don’t really mind because I am getting a great education. In order to adjust to my new schedule, I am making sure that I get enough sleep every night. Since I don’t have any 8 or 9 A.M. classes, I am able to sleep enough so that I’m not tired and dozing off during classes. Before arriving on campus, I expected to have a lot of free time in college, because that is what I was told by many of my older friends and family members. This has not been the case as I stated earlier. I didn’t really have many expectations for the scholars program because I was never entirely sure what the purpose of it was. The scholars program has allowed me to make some new friends and explore the very interesting field of architecture through our tour of Columbus. I now know that the scholars program will continue to offer great experiences and develop strong friendships that will help me grow throughout my college experience.

Year in Review

[ “Year in Review”  is where you should reflect on the past year and show how you have evolved as a person and as a student.  You may want to focus on your growth in a particular area (as a leader, scholar, researcher, etc.) or you may want to talk about your overall experience over the past year.  For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

G.O.A.L.S.

[ “G.O.A.L.S.” is a place where students write about how their planned, current, and future activities may fit into the Honors & Scholars G.O.A.L.S.: Global Awareness, Original Inquiry, Academic Enrichment, Leadership Development, and Service Engagement. For more guidance on using your ePortfolio, including questions and prompts that will help you get started, please visit the Honors & Scholars ePortfolio course in Carmen. To get answers to specific questions, please email eportfolio@osu.edu. Delete these instructions and add your own post.

  • Global Awareness: Students cultivate and develop their appreciation for diversity and each individual’s unique differences. For example, consider course work, study abroad, involvement in cultural organizations or activities, etc.
  • Original Inquiry: Honors & Scholars students understand the research process by engaging in experiences ranging from in-class scholarly endeavors to creative inquiry projects to independent experiences with top researchers across campus and in the global community. For example, consider research, creative productions or performances, advanced course work, etc.
  • Academic Enrichment: Honors & Scholars students pursue academic excellence through rigorous curricular experiences beyond the university norm both in and out of the classroom.
  • Leadership Development: Honors & Scholars students develop leadership skills that can be demonstrated in the classroom, in the community, in their co-curricular activities, and in their future roles in society.
  • Service Engagement: Honors & Scholars students commit to service to the community.]