First coming to Ohio State, I was especially nervous about meeting new people and finding people that would hopefully turn into life-long friends. The day of move in, all of STEM Scholars got an email about a first year welcome event the next day at eight o’clock in the morning. All it said was dress comfortably and meet in the lobby of Taylor Tower. We as a group had no clue what we would be doing or anything that was planned for us for that first full day. That Sunday, all of the first year STEM Scholars met in the lobby, not knowing each other, anxious about what the day ahead held. I was nervous about what we would be doing, wondering if it was something that involved getting to know all of my fellow STEM Scholars. This was especially worrisome to me since I am not too fond about meeting and talking to new people. When our Scholars coordinator finally showed up, she split us into groups of two, both groups participating in team-building activities, but each of them starting at a different destination. I got split up from all three of my roommates, some of the only people I really knew on that first full day, which made me even more nervous. We were told to split into the vans and we would find out what we were doing once we got there.
Once my van finally arrived at the destination, we were told that we would be participating in a ropes course at Summit Vision. After all of the scholars grouped together, we were sat down and introduced to the facility and all they offer. They told us about what we would specifically be participating in and we were then taken to our course, all of the students there being split into two groups. Doing this again, I was nervous about continuing on, knowing only one other scholar in my group. We were introduced to our course and all of the safety precautions we were to follow. We were then provided with our harnesses and helmets and were allowed to go on our way. Climbing up the initial ladder, it was very nerve-wracking, realizing how high up I was, not knowing what I was getting myself into. We had a variety of different paths we could take to get to the end of the course, higher levels being more difficult than the lower ones. I chose to stay with the lower ones at first, testing out the waters to see how well I could handle the course. The more I went through the easier levels, the more confident I became in the course itself and the more confident I became in myself. I was then able to move to the next level of paths, feeling more and more comfortable as time continued on. Once I started to get tired, I chose to make my way to the end of the course. Once I got to the end, I got to choose to slide down the slide or do a free fall at the end. Wanting to keep the streak going and try something new, I chose to go down the slide, knowing that it would be quite some time before I would get another opportunity to do something like this. Once the slide ended and I began the free fall, it was once of the scariest and most exhilarating things I ever experienced. I never felt so free, just gliding down that rope to the end of the course.
I feel that this was the best possible way to start off the semester and my years in STEM Scholars. It was such a fun and interesting way to meet new people, people that I did not realize at the time would become some of my best friends in the following months. When completing the course, we were required to have clearance from a fellow scholar before switching our carabiners from path to path. By doing this, I was able to brush up on my teamwork skills. This showed me how important working with others is to my own success. Without the other scholars on that course, I would not have been able to successfully complete my chosen path to get to the end of the course. I was also able to meet many new people and form many new relationships that later turned into friendships. Though nervous at first, I was able to put my communication skills to use, talking to others, learning things about those that I would be surrounding myself with for the next two years. That day, I not only grew as a person, becoming more confident in my abilities and what I could accomplish, but also became a part of a group that would later turn into a family.