1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
My Step project was volunteering with Esperanza which is an organization that works within underserviced areas in Cleveland to help increase post-secondary education access. I held various roles including collaborating with a team on the curriculum for our Lidreares Avanzado program. The program included workshops such as Fasfa Help, Study tips, How to get an internship, and volunteering near seminars over zoom. I would also volunteer at events as needed whenever Esperanza would host events.
2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.
I truly understand the community I grew up in and was raised in more than ever. Working within the community to improve the community allowed me to realize how much each individual can learn and grow with positive surroundings. Although the situation was often dire during events such as Backpack where we donated over 250 bookbags filled with school supplies. Seeing everyone come together to help those less fortunate changed my view of the world and made me realize the impact we can have on those around us. Also helped me realize the value of strength in numbers we had numerous people show up to volunteer their time and effort. As the size of the group increased our group became faster and more efficient while we also enjoyed each other’s company and everyone’s effort.
3. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.
It’s hard to put into words what I felt during my time at Esperanza but it felt enlightening. I hypothesis that the group made me feel this way because whenever I would look around during our events I would feel a sense of belonging and accomplishment. There’s a saying I’ve heard for as long as I can remember ” You are who you surround yourself with “. This was the first time I could sense and feel as if my surroundings were indeed making me who I am. It was through my time at Esperanza where I could feel the maturity and sense my transformation into a better more aware version of myself.
When I state I felt like a more aware version of myself I mean I understood my surroundings better than ever. For example, during our pack back event, we had given school supplies to any car that would drive through our parking lot. To my surprise, there was a surreal need for school supplies as after a couple of hours we were near out of supplies and had given a near 250 backpacks out. I became more aware of the need and struggle around me since not very far from where I live there many students who can’t access the school supplies they need. As I become more aware I find that now I can find answers to issues since I better understand them. Another example includes me contacting our first-generation college students and as a first-generation student, I understand the struggle of having parents who are clueless about financial aid and everything that comes with the admission process. But as I worked closely there was something many of our first-gen students and I had in common. We all came from low-income families whose parents never got to go to college and have had to work low entry and often low-income work by default.
This summer made me see the world in more detail than I’ve ever seen it before it in a sense woke me up. Problems I always thought were so straightforward such as why don’t more people eat healthier. I always thought people eat unhealthy food options by choice but I learned it’s not always so straightforward as some people don’t have access to healthy food options due to virus of factors such as location and affordability.
4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and plans.
This change is significant for me because it’s personal. Now I understand what my parents went through and why it’s almost as if this summer made me understand my background more than I ever did. The development I made over the summer has altered my academic, personal and professional goals greatly for the better. I no longer want to turn a blind eye or ignore the issues around me. Esperanza has taught me that each person is capable of making a difference and when we come together we can do more than we think. With that said I have already started to shift my academic, personal, and professional goals to be more centered around lesser served areas. Evidence of this transformation can be seen even as this semester I joined doctors without Borders which is an organization that seeks to get doctors in areas with desperate medical needs such as war-torn areas. Another example of this transformation can be seen as I start teaching English as a second language on September 27th.
To conclude and summarize Esperanza showed me there is more to our communities than we often see. I believe that it’s because it’s often so much easier to ignore than to take action. I decided I no longer want to ignore the issues around me going forward I want to focus my medical career in underserved areas. Until I graduate and can start practicing medicine I continue to reach my hand in help. I want to finish my reflection by saying I do plan to return to Esperanza next summer and lastly by saying thank you to the Step program for making this possible and quite literally changing my life.