Today, I met up with my mentee, Kaitlyn, over a cup of coffee, and we talked about fall semester and how the current semester has been going.

I asked her about her current study habits, and if what she uses now is what she used last semester. She told me that in order to study for tests, she goes over lecture notes, and also does practice problems either given by her professor, or found in the back of her textbooks. She also goes over the questions posed in class on Tophat, an app some professors now use to engage students better during lecture. In order to maximize her study time, she usually leaves her dorm room where it is distracting, and finds a quiet spot either somewhere else within the dorm, or in the library. If neither of those are accessible, she will use earplugs and study in her room. She said the difference between last semester and this semester is that last semester she did not use all of the resources available to her, and she studied “too much” material, meaning she studied things that were never on exams, which ended up wasting a lot of valuable time.

Next, I asked Kaitlyn about her involvement. She told me that she joined a sorority a few weeks ago, she is still in optometry club from last semester, and she’s in ACES. For next semester, she will be living in her sorority, so she would like to get more involved either working with the sisterhood committee or the volunteer events committee. She would also like to join the pre-health club on campus, because they do a bunch of volunteer outings, and she has been looking for other ways to volunteer while also pursuing her interests. Speaking of volunteering, she would also love to volunteer at the Wexner Medical Center, however it is a very competitive position, so she will need to find other opportunities as backup.

As for improving the ACES program, she recommended spreading the days and times of events out throughout the week. She said a lot of the events are on the same day and at the same time, and it is hard not only for her, but other people on her floor, because they all have other commitments as well. She also said that she wishes there would be more opportunities to sit down and get to know other people in ACES. I agreed, because I really only know the girls in my ACES class, and not the freshman other than my mentee.

I asked her if her career plans had changed since last semester, and she said that she still would love to go to optometry school, but she has realized that there are a lot of other options, and she needs to explore other career opportunities. A couple she mentioned were becoming either physician’s assistant or a nurse. Whatever she does, she would love to work in the health/medical field, because that is, and always has been one of her passions.

Finally, I asked Kaitlyn about her favorite memory from last year, and she said just the nights when she stayed in with her roommate and watched a movie and bought candy, or when they went to Gateway to see movies. She also mentioned traveling to Easton in an uber with a few of her friends a couple times, which she said was another one of her favorite memories from the fall.

With these thoughts in mind, I would love to get together with Kaitlyn a few more times this semester to either help her with schoolwork or talk to her about her career plans. Since I am a nursing major, I have some experience with her classes, and I am also a few steps ahead of her, so I can guide her down whichever path would follow her dreams and her passions.

My mentee and I decided to take a short bus ride to the North Market right off of High Street. Both Kaitlyn and I had previously visited here multiple times, but we thought it would be fun to see what new things they had to offer this autumn. We rode the COTA, because the parking lot a the market is always full, and because it is not more than a ten-minute ride to get there. When we arrived, we noticed a farm stand outside the market, and I admired the fresh organic fruits and vegetables they displayed, which made me miss living at home and being able to buy and cook my own produce without the addition of chemicals and preservatives to my food. I bought a bag of Honeycrisp apples (my favorite), not only because they were organic, but because I love to support local farmers whenever I can.

Kaitlyn and I spent about an hour exploring the market, and we were both in awe and in love with the variety of vendors giving of their time and talents to provide quality products to Columbus locals. I find it extremely important to support local businesses, and this market is a place where a bunch of them come together under one roof. I believe the quality of the local business products are better than big business products, the people selling local products are hardworking, and the creativity put into the idea of some of the items is brilliant. Some of our favorites were the donut shop, where they make their donuts behind a glass barrier so customers can ooh and ahh at the process, the Italian kiosk, where they sold freshly made pastas and pastries which made me drool from only looking at them, the cake pop stand, which had about fifty different flavors varying from pumpkin spice to triple chocolate and everything in between, and of course, the fresh produce area, which included not only organic fruits and vegetables, but also fresh juices, nut butters, and jams. Kaitlyn ended up buying a huge cinnamon roll from a baked goods stand, and I bought some yummy lavender and lemon ice cream from Jeni’s Ice Cream, and a berry tea from the Bubble Tea company.

We then went to sit down upstairs in their seating area, and I began to ask Kaitlyn how college was going thus far. I asked her how her exams have been going, if she has found a good study area and/or a good study habit, if her career plans have started to change at all, and about her social situation. She told me that Chemistry was by far her most difficult course (big surprise…not), that she likes to study in her dorm at her desk, or at the library, and that she has made several friends through the ACES program. She commented that living on the same floor with people she does service with, attends events with, and has her seminar class with, has given her the opportunity to form quick friendships with people who have her same interests. She told me that her RA is very supportive and interactive with all of the residents on her floor (something I sadly did not experience my freshman year), and that her and her roommate’s room seems to be the “host room”, meaning that all of her floor friends seem to end up in their room when they hang out. To me, this sounds like Kaitlyn is off to a great start with her first semester of college. I reminded her that I am available to her as a resource for advice, not only because I am her mentor, but because I experienced many of the same things that she is going through during my freshman year, only one year ago.

I would highly recommend any Ohio State student, as well as any member of the Columbus community to visit the North Market. Not only does food unite people, but there is so much to learn about the diversity within this city, and it is easily visible through the variety of products displayed and sold at each little kiosk. Baked goods, fresh produce, fresh seafood, homemade ethnic foods, and even handmade crafts and products are sold inside this bustling little market. This is a perfect place where all cultures found within the many streets of Columbus come together between four walls, and experience and enjoy each other. So much can be taught and learned about diversity, and whether you are a kid growing up in Columbus, a student at Ohio State, or an adult living here, the North Market has something for everyone.

As a part of the 2nd year mentorship program for ACES, I interviewed my freshman mentee to get to know her a bit better. My mentee’s name is Kaitlyn Smith, and she is a biology major on the pre-optometry track. From what I learned through the interview, she and I are much alike, and I had many of the same perspectives and questions as she did when I was a freshman.

To start off, I asked her how she likes to study and if she had found a good place to study yet, only having been at OSU for about a month. She said she likes to review her lecture notes and read the textbook only if it is needed for clarification, and then also do practice problems and look over the problems worked out in class for subjects such as calculus and chemistry. Since this is how I approach studying, I will be able to give her study tips, and let her know how I got over some of my study struggles last year.

I then asked her what her most challenging class was so far, and she said, without hesitation, chemistry. Everyone struggles with chemistry during their first semester of college. As did I. She told me it was difficult for her because of the large amount of content, and the small amount of time that is expected for the student to learn it in. She said that it takes a lot of practice, but she is willing to put in the extra work to earn a good grade. Since I had the same professor last year, I can help her study for her first exam, because I know how the tests are formatted, and what the professor deemed important.

Changing topics, I asked Kaitlyn what type of volunteering she did in high school, to which she responded that she volunteered in her church nursery, and also tutored an 11-year old girl and a 12-year old boy. Coincidentally, I have done both of those things throughout my past year here at OSU. We both love kids, so we had a lot to share with each other about our experiences with these organizations.

To go along with volunteering, I asked her why she chose ACES over the other scholars programs, and she said she likes the emphasis on improving our surrounding community, and the leadership opportunities presented to her. Although I originally had another scholars program as my first preference, once I got involved with ACES, I was immediately grateful for my choice. ACES led me to many volunteer opportunities involving me in the Columbus community. Since Kaitlyn is new to OSU, I can share my experiences with her, give her advice on how to get involved, and even refer her to some of the organizations I have found enjoyable to work with.

Next, I asked Kaitlyn about her dream job. She said she would ideally love to be a pediatric optometrist, because in high school she shadowed her optometrist, and she loved how the doctor could immediately fix the patient’s complaint. She also liked the fact that optometry school is not as long as medical school, and since she has interest in the medical field, she thought this was a good fit. However, if this path somehow does not work out, Kaitlyn said she would like to go into the nursing field, and maybe become a nurse practitioner. This area is where I found the most similarities between us. I came into college thinking that I for sure wanted to be a doctor. However, about halfway through my first semester, I realized I did not want to go to school for another four years after my undergraduate time at OSU, and I was not thoroughly enjoying my classes. So, since I still loved the medical field, I fell back on nursing, and I have not looked back since. I absolutely love the nursing program here at OSU, and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a career in the medical field. Since I was unsure like Kaitlyn during my first semester here, I can guide her and give her advice in order to find her true passion and figure out how she wants to spend her future career.

Lastly, I asked her about something she has found to be super important here at OSU, and she said definitely the importance of building relationships with people in classes. This can be useful for many reasons. Not only will you find some of your best friends in your classes, but you will be able to network and communicate with people which will be helpful if you get stuck in a class, if you need advice, if you are looking for a different perspective, and many other things. I have found friends in many different areas of study, including engineering, education, English, and nursing, and because of this, I have different people to go to for different issues. This has helped me adjust, and find the person I am today. Hopefully I will be able to share my experiences with Kaitlyn, and they will help guide her through her first year here at Ohio State.

Though my first artifact may not be a paper, presentation, or project, this “item” holds more significance than any material item could ever hold throughout my entire life. This “item” has been the single most influential part of my learning and growth throughout not only my academic career, but throughout my entire life, and nothing could ever replace the hole it fills. This “item” is my dad. My dad passed away this past July, right before I was about to entire arguably the most crucial point in my life thus far. The entire twelve years of schooling I went through up until this point were with him by my side, so when I realized I would have to continue into college without him, I was crushed, lost, and purely heartbroken, because I was not sure that I could go on without his constant love and support. Most significantly, my dad helped me choose the college he felt would fit me best, and that would help me succeed in my future endeavors. My entire college search consisted of small, private, Catholic universities, up until a month before the deadline for application. My dad insisted that I apply to at least one public university, because of tuition, and in order to broaden my horizons. I chose to apply to The Ohio State University, because my dad had attended one semester here, and it seemed like, to me, the best public school in the state. Without him, I would not be here today. Additionally, my dad was the person who I made proud. After every good test score, good play in softball, or good day I had, I would run to him, because I knew I could make him proud and see a smile on his face. He was my motivation to do well in school, and to achieve to the highest of my abilities. Without him now, I have to find something else either within me or from another person to motivate me daily to keep up with my schoolwork and to stay as healthy as I possibly can.

This artifact does not reflect my learning in school, but rather my learning in music. I have been playing the piano for twelve years now, and over those twelve years, I have grown tremendously as a person, musician, and learner. Because of piano, I became a high achiever in math, and it became extremely easy to memorize facts for history and science. I truly believe that because of my piano background I have become a better student and learner in school. Up until this past May, I have taken lessons from the same teacher. Over the years, I performed in over 50 recitals, competed in two national competitions, played on the radio a handful of times, and most significantly, I have become a teacher myself. This piece of music that I have used as my artifact is one of the hundreds of pieces of music I have learned and memorized. As I looked through the handful of classical music books I own, I realized that I could play most all of the songs in them. So, I chose one of my favorites that I learned a while back, and can still play today. Through the years of taking lessons, I learned many valuable things from my amazing teacher, Miss Vera. I observed how she taught, how she pushed me, and her kind persona, looking up to her in every which way. It was from her that I learned how to teach others myself. To this day, I have thirteen students myself, and I notice how similar of a teacher I am to that of Miss Vera. She has given me the skill and support I need to succeed in performance and teaching, and I am forever grateful for all she has done for me.