OSU Homecoming Week

It’s Ohio State’s Homecoming Week! This school year, we are celebrating OSU’s 150th anniversary and the 107th homecoming celebration (https://homecoming.osu.edu/). We are looking forward to participating in the Homecoming Parade, which one of the biggest events of the week and a Buckeye tradition. To show off our Buckeye spirit, here are a few reasons we love Ohio State:

Volunteer Spotlight: Meredith

This week’s Volunteer Spotlight is Meredith, who has been volunteering with TOPS for two semesters now as both an Educational Coach and an In-Class Mentor. Meredith first learned about TOPS from an organization she is in called Students Supporting People with Down Syndrome (a club she’s now the president of)! She is also the Vice President of OSU’s chapter of Best Buddies. She is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Disability Studies, and plans to continue on to graduate school to study occupational therapy. In her spare time, she enjoys hanging out on the Oval and listening to music with her friends.

Meredith’s favorite part of the TOPS program is helping students “explore their individual passions in their classes, their internships, and their jobs! It is so cool to help students work toward something so meaningful to them.” Here is one way that Meredith says TOPS has impacted her:

TOPS has really developed my adaptability and problem-solving abilities. College classes are very stressful and when things go wrong or due dates seem to pop up out of nowhere, panic sets in. I especially had to develop these skills when I was an Ed Coach in a Visual Studies: Expanded Media course and I know nothing about the computer programs we had to use. I was learning right there alongside this TOPS student and had to quickly be able to apply these skills to help them start creating.

To Meredith, volunteering with TOPS means that she interacts with “amazingly unique, hard-working, and intelligent students.” Her favorite memory with the program so far has been Woody’s Tavern Karaoke night. “We ended up going back to karaoke night there almost every time they held it last semester and sang a different song each time. So so fun.”

Meredith, we appreciate you going above and beyond. Thanks for all you do!

Resource: Guardianship & Alternatives

Click the link below to access a resource from the Think College website about power of attorney, supported decision-making, and guardianship. The Think College Resource Library also has many other articles on a variety of topics related to postsecondary education and is updated frequently.

“Consider the Alternatives: Decision-Making Options for Young Adults with Intellectual Disabilities”

What Were Students Up to this Summer?

We are so excited that students are back on campus for the fall semester! Here is what Kristen did over the summer:

“This past June I went to serve at a younglife camp in Goshen Virginia called Rockbridge Alum Springs! It was four weeks filled with fun, friendship, and exhaustion. I was in the Rockbridge office helping with tasks and everyday I got to venture into Lexington Virginia (the closest town to camp) to run errands and get supplies, besides running errands and doing office work I also got to facilitate night activities for the camp. I got to strengthen my relationship with Christ as well, I met friends from all the way from Puerto Rico to Boston. My friend Anna (who graduated last Spring from OSU) helped me with tasks that I needed help with! Summer is a great time to build your resume.”

If you are interested in sharing what you did this summer on the blog, send an email to TOPS Staff.