One of the most significant events of my first semester of college actually happened off-campus.  On November 10-11, 2019, I attended Mount Retreat with my fellow first year Mount Scholars.  The weekend was filled with valuable activities that helped me develop my leadership style and deepen relationships.  It was at Mount Retreat that some of my greatest college friendships formed.  I learned a lot about myself as a person and a leader, and I returned to campus refreshed and rejuvenated.

Months later, I still reflect on Mount Retreat.  The details I learned about myself still apply to me now, and I continue to work on bettering myself and growing as a leader.  Most important to me, however, are the relationships.  Many of the friendships I now have within my scholars program began because of Mount Retreat.  I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to attend this turning point in my first semester.  Ever since the retreat, Mount feels like my second family, and I know that we are truly together for good.

My biggest passion is helping others.  Throughout everything I do in my life, I want to put others before myself and serve them.  This photo is from a service activity that I participated in with Mount Leadership Society in September 2019.  I, along with other members of Mount, filled boxes of food to be distributed to underprivileged students in the Columbus area so that they would have healthy food options over the weekends.  This program is called the Buddy Box Program through the Family Mentor Foundation.  As a group, we filled over 3,000 boxes of food, which will help children get the nutrition they need at home.

[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.]