Getting to Know Erin

Hi, my name is Erin McElroy and I am a first-year pre-education student and in the ACES (Advocates for Communities and Education Scholars) program. I grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio and went to Sycamore High School. Living in Cincinnati and going to a school that provided many opportunities, I was able to develop and find some of my passions. Throughout junior high and high school, I sung in a choir called the Cincinnati Children’s Choir. I was able to travel to really interesting places in the United States and around the world and develop my love for singing. I also became passionate about working with special needs students. I worked with these students both in clubs and throughout the school day in classes. In high school, I also really enjoyed volunteering and giving back which grew my interest in the scholars program at Ohio State. I have always loved school and been a hardworking and conscientious student. I have also always had a passion for math and science. Until sophomore year, I wanted to be a junior high math teacher. Now, I want to teacher 3rd or 4th grade, so I am majoring in Early Childhood Education. I plan to then get an endorsement in 4th and 5th grade while I also minor in disability studies. Throughout college so far, I have joined OSEA which is a teaching related club. Furthermore, I am a part of Pen Pals where I write to a fifth grader in Columbus City Schools every other week. I am joining a choir second semester and plan to join something to help continue my work with special needs students in the future. I am excited to continue to explore Ohio State and all that it has to offer.

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 information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

G.O.A.L.S.

Two of the G.O.A.L.S. that I found very applicable to my life right now are leadership developement and service engagement.

Leadership Development:

Leadership development is important to me because I think being able to be an effective leader is an important life skill. Since I want to be a teacher, it is important for me to be able to lead a classroom of students and have them listen to me. So far at OSU, I am not in any leadership positions in extracurricular activities, however in high school I was. I am currently in a few clubs and hope to gain leadership positions through them. In addition, I applied to be an EHE recruitment leader. Through this opportunity, I would be able to gain leadership in helping get high schoolers to look at OSU’s College of Education and Human Ecology. In the classroom, I oftentimes become the leader of group projects. For example, in English 1110, we have a presentation day where everyone in our group has to present their own work and then we have a combined portion. I have been leading to make sure we all know what we are doing in our group. I hope to continue these leadership skills from the classroom to activities and the community.

Service Engagement:

Service engagement is one of the most important aspects to me in my life. I enjoy giving back and think it is very important to help out in the community when you are able to whether through service or donations. I hope to get involved in many different service opportunities at OSU to assist in Columbus. It is important that we go outside of the “campus bubble” and experience other parts of Columbus so we are more aware of our surroundings. This semester, I have gone on four Pay it Forward service trips to a variety of locations. I went on the day of service to a Rivera to clean up trash, then to Methodist homeless resource center with clothing, next to a Habitat for Humanity free store, and finally to the Kroger Food Pantry. Each of these service trips allowed me to help those less fortune get resources they needed to live. I particularly enjoyed the Kroger Food Pantry because I was able to help the people figure out what food their families needed while walking and talking with them about their lives. I hope to volunteer in the future more at the Kroger Food pantry and on other Pay it Forward Service trips. I would also love to volunteer in one of the close by Columbus schools in tutoring kids or helping out with other needs. Wherever I am involved, I plan to continue to volunteer throughout college and into my life after college.

Career

[“Career” is where you can collect information about your experiences and skills that will apply to your future career.  Like your resume, this is information that will evolve over time and should be continually updated.   For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

European History Paper

Below is a paper I wrote for my Modern European History Class. It is about the appeals of Communism in Czechoslovakia and relates to the book Under a Cruel Star which we read as a part of the class. This is the second paper I wrote for this class and it allowed me to grow because before this class I had never written a history paper. I think I am continuously improving to become better at analyzing historical sources and making claims about them.

FINAL Appeals Of Communism Paper-1gine6z