Without a doubt, 2020 was one of the strangest years in modern history.
Tomorrow, you could ask someone why it was so strange and they will list a series of events from the novel COVID-19 pandemic, to personal comedies and tragedies for the year. 2020 will leave a mark for many people, and for all people, it will change how we shape our future. Education is one sector in which we will be looking to the future, as all of us hope to return to some sort of perceived normality; students especially. While working with students remotely has been challenging overall, there are always a few bright spots to hold on to and reflect on.
As a high school junior coach, we spent the majority of the first semester recruiting, and getting to know students. Learning their individual goals, passions and backgrounds has been a bright spot for me, in a general sense. Due to the nature of the first semester curriculum with recruitment, most sessions were relatively transactional. I spoke to the given information, answered questions, and tried to build some of these relationships with the students.
However, one story speaks out in terms of how I feel inspired helping a student.
Franklin High School senior coaches (shoutout to Theresa and Gabbie) organized a “work party” for University of Washing applications. In these sessions students could stop in and get help on the applications themselves, or the attached entrance essays. I got to host a breakout room and help a student write his story in a way that showed the school why he would be such a great candidate to become a future student.
His personal narrative was very inspiring, and I could tell that he had a deep level of care for his family, friends and community.
Overall, I could sense that he wanted to help people the best way he could; by leveraging his experiences and unique skills.
I felt like I was really able to help him structure his thoughts in the writing process, and at the end, I could tell he was beaming with what he had eventually accomplished.
This was a great feeling for me as a coach, because I feel like I was really able to see the results of something that could be life changing for the student. At the very least, the essay will play a part in his college journey.
This story was written and drafted by Adam Plummer, an AmeriCorps high school summer transition coach at College Possible Washington.
Interested in doing a year of service like Adam? Become an AmeriCorps member with College Possible!
