Miranda Belcher's Story

Hey, speaking of current AmeriCorps members, check out Miranda Belcher's extremely moving story!  She's awesome!



What did your friends and family think about AmeriCorps?

...It wasn't until I actually got here that I felt like people were positive about AmeriCorps.  Because people in Federal Way kind of know about AmeriCorps, and I am of course working with all of you guys who are choosing to do it.  Definitely a more positive experience, definitely really negative when I first decided to do it.

How did you deal with that?

Well, it was hard because I didn't really know what I was doing either!  I had minimal understanding of what I was getting myself into.  so I just tried to make it sound as awesome as possible, about how I was going to be helping people and it was really meaningful work.  I always related it to the Peace Corps because everyone knows what it is and I feel like it's really well-known and respected.  So I'd say, "It's like Peace Corps but I'm helping within the United States, people who need our help here!"

It's almost like people were wondering, "What are you getting out of this?"

more after the jump!

Becca Rosenberg's Story!

Hello again, blog readers.  Here is another write-in, by the incomparable Becca Rosenberg (who is, incidentally, serving her second year at FWPS AmeriCorps).  Enjoy!

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

- Mahatma Gandhi -

My AmeriCorps story began in April of 2011, at the end of my student teaching semester.  After experiencing an extremely emotional transition from classroom aide to lead teacher, I had no confidence in my abilities and was scared that I had made a terribly expensive mistake by enrolling in a Masters in Teaching program.  Instead of feeling prepared to develop my own classroom, I wanted to run home and apply to the nearest coffee shop.  But that did not happen.  Instead, during a moment of restlessness brought on by a mere two days of hiding out at my parents’ house, I discovered the AmeriCorps homepage.  Here I am, exactly one year later, with a completely different attitude about my work, newfound confidence in my abilities, and a fresh outlook on my values and goals.  Now, it is not about feeling ready to teach, it is about choosing to serve and about viewing the past as a learning experience instead of as a point of regret.  I did not initially expect to do AmeriCorps for a second year, but I have found the perfect confluence between my passion for education and my desire to make a difference in my community.  Because of this, I am pursuing another year serving in schools as an academic tutor, mentor, and volunteer recruiter/coordinator.

There are so many moments – both seemingly small and undeniably huge – that have shaped my AmeriCorps story.  I will try to express some of them as compactly, but impact-fully, as possible.  Here are some snapshots:

It was 8:30 in the morning on a Saturday.  It was freezing.  I was working at an elementary school track meet and was in charge of wrangling thirty 3rd-5th grade boys while they waited to do the long jump.  To keep them preoccupied, I started to ask them if they knew my team members.  Every time I mentioned someone’s name, eyes lit up and smiles appeared.  One boy shouted at the top of his lungs from the back of the bleachers, “I get to work with Miss Christina during my recess!”  I am pretty sure only my coworkers could make staying inside for recess that wonderful.

more inspirational words after the jump!

Will Crowley's Story

Now for something a bit different, ya'll.  As you might remember, we did interview our teammates, but we also asked for written submissions.  Will Crowley chose the latter option, to our immense delight.  If this essay was for a grade, I would give it an A+!

Name: William Crowley

Age: 25

Location before AmeriCorps: Brewster, WA

Service Site: Todd Beamer High School. I work with 9th-12th grade students in the AVID program, in science and math classes, and during Titan Quest, the after-school tutoring program.

Friends and Family: My friends and family have been nothing but supportive of me during my two years of AmeriCorps service. Many of them initially asked me what AmeriCorps was and what my role would be during my service. After doing my best to explain to them what my service entailed they were very enthusiastic for me.


Describe a moment when you were overwhelmed. What happened? How did you react?
The beauty of working with people lies in the uniqueness of each individual. There can never be a foolproof method for any one situation that will always work 100% of the time. I found this to be true when working with one of the AVID classes. This particular class tends to be more energetic than the others. They feel the need to talk more, move more, laugh more, etc. When first working with this class I held the belief that these attributes could only lead to disruption. There’s a funny thing about having a strong belief: when you “know” something is true you will make it true. This was my initial problem. I saw this group’s energy as acting out, and what I needed to see it as was potential energy for learning.
 

One day when the group was particularly energetic I felt like leaving the classroom. There was no way I could work with them on so little sleep. Then it struck me. I had been doing a lot of reading on Taoism lately and had yet to implement my new-found knowledge into practice at work. Many of the teachings of Taoism can be related to certain martial arts’ practices regarding the flow of energy and how that energy can be used. I made the realization that I had been fighting against the class’ energy up to this point. This could only lead to more friction, more struggling, and more opposition to their facilitator - me. What I needed to do was gradually redirect their energy into learning. This did not mean I would let them argue incessantly about the best rappers of our time or who was dating whom at school. I learned the best approach was to get involved with their conversation (unless it was altogether inappropriate for the setting), be a part of it, and then bring their attention back to the academic question at hand. When I got good at this technique it would take no less than one, maybe two, minutes. Even when the students realized what I was doing they were shockingly compliant to get back to business. I learned many things from this group of students, the most prominent being: No one can force any other into doing something. The only way a student can truly learn is by having the desire to and be given the opportunity to do so. My role is to make it possible for them to acquire both.

 More after the jump!