Feel free to look around and contact me with any comments or questions. Happy reading!
Leadership Development
I began my experience at Ohio State as an OWL. Ohio State Welcome Leaders (OWLs) arrive to campus on the Wednesday prior to move-in to participate in events that will allow OWLs to build a sense of community, familiarize themselves with campus, and prepare for the excitement of Move-In Day. The goal of being apart of the welcome leaders is to make the move in experience as easy as possible for students and help reduce the stress students have as they move into their dorm. On Saturday, OWLs greet students and families and help to transport student belongings into residence halls.
Being an OWL allowed me to build not only leadership skills, but also communication skills among my peers. Communication is a key factor into making Move-In Day run smoothly. From 7am-5pm, students move into residents halls across campus and it is the OWLs job to make this process as easy as possible It was a very long day but I enjoyed being able to help people move in and relieve some of their stress. This experience allowed me to to meet new people and create friendships during the days before move-in, as well as creating a positive and exciting environment for my fellow classmates as they arrive at their new home.
Along with being an OWL, I am also an OA (office assistant) in my dorm. I am constantly helping residents with packages, loaner keys, room reservations and any other problems they may be having. People look to me for help, yes because it’s my job, but also because I know what I’m doing and like to help them. I also have applied be an RA for my second year. Being an RA is an extreme leadership role in the resident life sector. We strive to make everyone feel included, plan community events and be a resource for all residents. You have to be confident in your abilities to help, lead and be a good role model. I hope to get this position so I can continue to build my leadership skills and be an outlet for people even more than I am now.
Service
Being part of a scholars group which focuses on service within campus and the community, I have already had a lot of experiences which have exposed me to different service opportunities. My first service event as a college student was called Blankets for Project Linus. Here we hand cut and tied different and many blankets that would be given to shelters as the weather got colder. It aims on providing resources to those less fortunate. We also put hygiene bags together to send to the shelter along with the blankets. This was a great way to continue meeting my peers through our common interest of providing meaningful service. I also am part of a group called Face the Children. Here we raise money for children in the Philippines. We do fundraisers for them and write to the children. Then at the end of the year we will get to visit them and spend a week meeting the children we have been trying to help all year, which I think will be very rewarding. I hope to be able to continue providing service in the semesters and years to come. I am excited to see what the events will be for next year and how ACEs can continue to make a positive impact. I am enjoying how service is becoming a natural part of my lifestyle, and I can’t wait to see what other opportunities I have in the future.
All Things Band
My junior year, I got first chair in my high school’s top band- wind symphony. My school has one of the top music programs in the country. To be apart of this program was an extreme honor, not to mention being first chair. That year we were also invited to the Midwest Clinic in Chicago. Only 5 high schools have ever been invited to perform. This is a clinic where some of the world’s top bands perform. This experience was truly eye opening and one of a kind. We received instruction from some of the greatest music instructors there were. We perform on a grand stage in front of a full auditorium audience. It was amazing to be there.
I worked extremely hard to get into Wind Symphony. I had to audition 6 separate times in one year. My director didn’t think I was ready, but that only made me more determined to prove him wrong. Which I did. I worked so hard that I ended up surpassing 2 seniors and a junior, I was about to be a sophomore. Although the experience was frustrating, it taught me that if I want something enough I can achieve it, even if all odds seem unfavorable. I worked so hard that I ended up getting first chair. Which was even more rewarding when we went to the Midwest Clinic.
The clinic was long and hard, with what seemed like endless hours of playing the same 10 measures over and over until they were perfect. But eventually they were, and everyone who came to listen to us, loved us. Being in Chicago showed me how much music and band meant to me. How rewarding it felt to work hard for something you want and work hard to make someone proud, and have that pay off and to be successful.
On the other side of band, was marching band. Concert band was laid back and happened during class time. It didn’t cost money-other than the instrument and private lessons. Marching band was completely different story. It was after school, it was hard, and it was expensive. We practiced everyday after school 3-9. On Saturday we practiced 9am-10pm. Plus extra practicing on our own, in sections and whenever the directors felt like we needed it. Marching band caused me to be up until almost 2 every night trying to finish all the homework I got in my AP classes. It caused me to have atrocious tan lines and permanent sock feet. It caused me to be sore, tired and thirsty all day everyday. People always asked why I never just quit, if it was so awful why do it? But that’s just it. Why do it? Do it because it gives you a truly family. A group of people who share the same interest, who share the same exhaustion, and share the same pain. Do it because it advances my musical abilities, which are so important to me. Do it because it teaches me valuable lessons like time management, perseverance and commitment.
We competed in local competitions- we always won. But that’s not why we did it. We did it because it entertained people. Because it gave us a sense of pride in our band and in our school. It gave us a sense of accomplishment. We also competed nationally. Every year in November we traveled to Indianapolis and competed against hundreds of other bands. We practiced until 3 in the morning sometimes just to get up at 6 and practice all day again. We fought the exhaustion and the pain. It seemed as though everyone was sick around you, you were sick, your friends, everyone. But it was when they called our school’s name, that we made semi-finals, that we made finals; the pure, instant joy and relief and pride you feel in that moment, that makes it worth it. But the most important moment, is when we are at finals in retreat and they are announcing the finalist in order they finished. Each year we go closer and closer to first place (out of the 12 finalists, out of the hundreds of bands). My last year we were called third. Third place. Third marching band in the entire country. It was incredible. It was something, a feeling that I don’t know how to describe. We cheered, screamed, cried, hugged. I don’t know one person who wasn’t ecstatic with that placement. I know that my perseverance and commitment got us there. I know that me pushing my section (I was section leader) and always encouraging them to try harder is what got us there. I knew that everything I had done over the 4 years had made and impact, had been 100% worth all the bad things.
All aspects of both concert band and marching band were unavoidable. They weren’t always ideal, or even wanted. They weren’t always easy to deal with. But we did. And we did it knowing that it would be worth it. It gave me the ability to know I could do anything I put my mind to. It let me know that I could be successful in anything as long as I tried and I really put my mind to. It taught me many life lessons that I will and have carried into aspects of my everyday life. It will always be a positive, life altering experience that I wouldn’t change for anything in the world.
French National Honors Society
In high school I was part of the French National Honors Society. We met every week to discuss the culture and language. All the people who spoke French, in the many different countries. We researched their history and their present. It was this club, alongside my AP French teacher that really made me fall in love with the culture and the language. When we met we also talked about the countries who spoke French that were third world. We discussed their declining conditions, the trauma they had been through and their current state of education/health. Learning about these nations made me feel the urge to help them in any way that I could. Learning of their lives is what made me want to teach third world. I personally believe that many Americans take the education handed to them for granted. These other nations don’t have the same opportunities that we do. But, as Americans we have the resources, and I believe the obligation to help them in any way we can, Help them to get the education they deserve, to the highest level achievable. They deserve the same opportunities as anyone else. This club helped me to discover my true passion for helping people through education and realize that the world can only get better if we try.
French flag
Madagascar (one of 26 French speaking African countries)
About Mckenzy!
Mckenzy is a early childhood education major and a part of the ACES scholars program. She aspires to one day be teacher in a third world country for non-profits for a few years. She’d like to go to Africa so she can teach and practice her french. She loves working with children and those in need. She wants to take a year and travel all over the world. She has an intense love for the beach, where she would ideally like to live when she returns to the states. She plays 5 different instruments and was first chair in her high school’s top band, along with being section leader of her marching band- 3rd in the nation marching band. She is from Ohio but now calls Florida home. She is the youngest of 4 girls. She loves animals, and has many at her home. She loves Ohio State. Go Bucks!