Elevator Speech

The Youth Development major is unique in many ways. First off, it is the only undergrad YDEV major in our state. That is alone is pretty special. Every text, experience and discussion that involves Youth Development I always learn from. That being said my elevator speech looks a little something like this:

Youth Development is about helping, growing, bringing a positive approach to youth. With effort to bring all of these things to youth's lives is extremely important. Whether it be in a school setting, community, government agencies they all will serve the same approach to be an advocate for them. I think a major component to keep in mind when working with youth, is being aware of their environment because that can have a major influence in their life. In order for youth workers to work with youth, we must be willing to be open in every way possible to help build a relationship which is important. The YDEV program provides foundations in education, social work, and non-profit studies and a student chosen minor. You get a B.A in Youth Development and certificate in Non-Profit Studies. 

Event#2 YDEV Open House

On Saturday November 14, 2015 RIC hosted an Admissions Open House to students and families to learn more about the majors offered at the school. Myself and a few other classmates hosted the event along with Dr. Bogad. The event was held at the Murray Center. We talked to families about what the YDEV program is all about. I shared that I transferred from CCRI and how common it is for our school to have transferred students. 

I hope the YDEV major continues to grow because our society needs more people want to help youth in different ways than in a classroom setting. What I love most about Youth Development at the moment are the social work classes. I love that we get a good amount of social work classes because those classes are needed for us to understand how to identify and work with our community.  Overall, I really enjoyed the event and glad I got to share some time with Dr. B, her son, Kate and Ashley. 

Event #1- Open Books Open MInds

On Thursday, October 15, 2015 our YDEV course attended an Open Books-Open Minds event that was held at the Alex and Ani Hall from 4-6pm. The event was based around family stories inspired by Junot Diaz's The brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao.

“In Junot Díaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, we learn not only of Oscar’s childhood and turbulent young adulthood but also about his multigenerational family from the Dominican Republic and the rich and various ways their own stories intersect with larger historical, political, and cultural contexts. Each family has its own stories, jokes, legends, curses, and counter-spells” (Rhode Island College, 2015). During the event, students and President Nancy C. shared their family stories. I enjoyed hearing the creative short stories students shared based on their personal cultural roots and life experiences.

This event made me reflect on course themes we've talked about in class. One in specific which was Identity. I feel that family stories are connected with identity because it's all beliefs/experiences that are created by not just yourself but the people around you daily. After the event I was reminded of how much of an impact an experience can have on someone. A simple story can have such an impact in a persons life. I thought it was a great idea to have our class attend an event like Open Books Open Minds, where I know we all walked away with learning something.

Resilient Kids

It's always interesting to look at different rituals that go on in classrooms. These exercises practiced in the classrooms are important and proved to be affective.  By doing the different types of exercises improvements like higher test grades, better learners, and even youth start to manager their own behaviors which is great. I love that Resilient Kids got to design the program needed for the youth they work with. I would love to these types of exercises focused on in more classrooms today so that youth can benefit from these calming rituals.

Danger of a Single Story

I enjoyed this TED talk because it is something society struggles with daily. As a future youth worker and from my personal experience growing up in Central Falls, I know how important it is not to go by a single story. We risk critical and cultural misunderstanding when we forget that everyones lives and identities are composed of many overlapping stories. It is true, the single story does create stereotypes and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. Whether it's intentional or not, we create stereotypes which then create a single story. By not doing this and sharing our personal experiences with others we tear down the single wall we created and hear the important stories that matter. When working with youth it is critical to be able to build trust so that they are able to share stories and sharing your own stories is just as important as well.

Identity in Context

Context mapping is a type of format that represents your personal life. It helps identify yourself and the relationships you encounter on a daily basis. In this chapter, Mitch asked Julian to create a context map.

The four main identities are as follows:
Achieved Identity- This is when an individual has resolved their identity crisis.
Foreclosed Identity-This is when an individual chooses or commits to a certain way without considering different alternatives.
Moratorium- This is when an individual explores different identities but does not commit to one.
Diffused Identity- When the individual is not exploring identities, therefore there is no commitment. 

Here is my personal Context Map:

                                                   

The Construction of Adolescence

1. After reading the chapter, the only word that I was not familiar with was "pedagogies". I looked up the definition online and it defined it to be the method and practice of teaching, especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept. Some important key concepts from the text were Authoring Life Stories, construction of Adolescence, theoretical thinking and tested knowledge.

2.  10 people who helped co author my life:
     -Mom
     -Dad
     -Brother
     -Sister
     -Aunt
     -Aunt/godmother
     -Boyfriend
     -Son
     -Best Friend Michelle
     -Best Friend Laura

At 25 years old, it was hard to list just 10 people that have helped co author my life. I thought about those people who have been there at my lowest, highest and those who have witnessed my individual growth as a person. Of the people listed, the person that has helped me write my story is my sister, Alba. We are two years apart, opposites in some ways but share so much similarities including being family oriented. She is my right hand, the person I talk to twice a day on the phone. Once I became a mom we no longer lived together, and our bond got even stronger. My sister hears me out and gives me the right words of wisdom when I am upset or frustrated. She is my sons godmother and is always there for both of us. Her worries are my worries and her happiness is my happiness. She is my biggest cheerleader and I will always be the same for her. I feel blessed to have a best friend like my sister who is always there for my family and I. I consider my sister to be the coauthor of my life because as you can see, the relationship we have is special.