Shotime 2015 was a wonderful experience for me! It was my first Shotime as a mentor since I am a sophomore, and I had decided to partake in Shotime this year because of the great time I had last year. My mentors were excellent and I wanted the opportunity to provide the same warm welcome to other students like my mentors had provided me. The first day started out with registration and move-in. I already was taken back to my time as a freshman last year and how excited I was to start at Schreyer. Thankfully it didn’t rain as is so feared on any move-in day. Caitlin, my co-mentor and I, were anxious to meet our mentees and we were not disappointed. After Tears and Cheers ended, we were able to do some icebreakers and allow the group to get comfortable with each other. It turned out that our group of students was very social and did not have an issue getting along with each other. I was thrilled because I remember how last year I became more relaxed after I realized the other kids in my Shotime group were so easy and nice to talk to. I could see the same thing happening for the students in my group. I also had the opportunity to participate in Chris’ training for Playfair. I had so much fun learning the process that Chris goes through to make sure every student feels included during Playfair. Playfair was phenomenal, I believe all the mentees in our group had a great time and were excited to see what the next day was going to be like.

The next day was a more informative day for the incoming scholars. However, it also helped me. As all the new students were learning about the many requirements of Schreyer, I was reminded of several tasks I had to complete as well. The Distinguished Honors Faculty Lecture that followed was compelling to listen to and had a great overall message. I agreed with many of the points that Dr.Rues made in her presentation. I agree with her ideas about changing the world and the fact that we each have the power to make an impact. I do believe that every one of us can have a positive impact on the world if we pursue an idea we are passionate about. Her message was very powerful because she proved that anyone from any background can do this type of work if that is their goal.  It did seem like it was hard for the students to stay focused for both events, since they were back to back.

One of my favorite parts of the day was the book discussion. My roommate and I decided to host one of the discussion on the book The Honor Code. I expected something similar to my discussion last year where we mainly discussed the themes of the book and the different parts of the book. However, I was blown away by the in-depth conversation we had about the main theme of The Honor Code and how it related to the many aspects of today’s life. Our group related Appiah’s ideas to how we view politics today in this country. We also discussed how honor is related to the image of universities and especially Penn State’s image. Other topics discussed were related to war, the image of women in many countries, and even global economies. It was an excellent conversation and I was happy to see that everyone in our room was able to contribute to the discussion in some way.

The Brain Show was probably the most exciting part of the day. Caitlin and I tried explaining to our mentees how the Brain Show worked but they were a lot more thrilled when they walked into the room and saw the setup. The event was a great way to bring the group together because every time a team member would go up on stage the rest of the group would cheer for them. Even if someone lost, they would get several high fives when they came back. After the event was over, they could not stop talking about the different dance moves and questions. All the mentees seemed to have a good time and at this point it seemed they were very comfortable with each other as well. It was good to see they were adjusting well since that was the main goal for Caitlin and I.

The third day started out with the Town and Gown event. I thought the event was more interactive than it was last year which was nice. The students really got to talk to the members of the community and ask them questions. Our group was able to talk to the member from the Mount Nittany Conservatory and the woman from the Red Cross Association. The students enjoyed asking questions about the hike up to Mount Nittany since many of them are eager to cross that off their Penn State bucket lists. They also found out the best way to get there and what were the best points to hike to on the mountain. The representative Red Cross gave them great information on how they could donate blood and also how they could volunteer with the association.

The tug of war group event was fun, the entire team was able to get involved. Part of the team would tug the rope while the other half cheered enthusiastically for them. The other event that I thought was a great addition to Shotime was the diversity workshop. It is really important to know that college is a place to grow and explore who you are and the workshop allowed the students to realize that. It’s true that we don’t really ask these hard questions from ourselves or from others. The workshop was able to get the students to discuss their beliefs in a safe space and become more comfortable with each as an entire class. I really liked that concept and thought it worked very well. The only criticism I would have is that I feel that the students would have felt more open throughout the discussion had they had prior knowledge of the event.

At dinner everyone wrote their letters. I was surprised to see that everyone wrote almost two pages for their letters. Some of them had the others sign their letters and they all made sure they had each others’ numbers. It was just great to see that they had all become friends, after all that was the goal of this orientation. Late night with the dean was hilarious, I had a great time and I could see all my mentees laughing around me. The different quiz shows and the lip dub were very funny!

Being a mentor was absolutely amazing and I feel so grateful to have had such a great group of mentees! I feel so humbled to be a part of these students’ first days of college. To be able to make their transition to college even the slightest bit easier gave me so much joy. As a freshman last year, I was so thankful to know that I had some sort of group even before school started and I hope the freshman I had feel that way as well.  I am still in touch with my Shotime group and mentors so I know these relationships can really create an impact on the freshman. This was a wonderful experience and I would love to do it again!

This day topped off a great three days! I thought that town and gown went very smoothly. Our group was able to speak to the director of the Mount Nittany conservatory. The students really enjoyed that because many of them are excited to hike up Mount Nittany. They were able to ask plenty of questions concerning the trail. They also got maps to help them navigate their way around the trail and learn more about the conservatory. They also talked to a representative from the Red Cross. They learned about different opportunities to volunteer with the Red Cross. They also learned about what the Red Cross does in the community and around the world. After the Town and Gown event we headed over to tug of war. The entire time our team was cheering and rooting for each other! Our team came in second!!

The other event my mentees really enjoyed was the diversity workshop. I walked around to see how their conversations were going and they all were very interested to discuss why they believed in what they did. I was so happy to see that they were comfortable speaking about their ideas with their peers. Therefore, I feel like the workshop was a successful event for our group at least. After the event, we walked over to the lion shrine to take one last group picture together!

Dinner was fun because everyone was writing their letters. I was surprised to see everyone wrote almost two pages for their letters. They all traded numbers and followed each other on snapchat. Some of them had everyone sign their letters. It was just great to see that they had all become friends, after all that is the goal of this orientation! Late night with the dean was absolutely amazing! I thought Mike and Natalie did a great job creating a high energy event. I loved all the different quiz shows and especially the lip dub!

This experience was amazing and I feel so grateful to have had such a great group of mentees! I would do it again in a heartbeat! Thank you for giving me this opportunity because these three days were some of my best days of the summer!!!

Day two went very well! All our mentees were present for the making the most and DHFL events. I personally really enjoyed Dr.Rues lecture. I agree with her ideas about changing the world and the fact that we each have the power to make an impact really hits home for me. I do believe that each one of us can have a positive impact on the world if we pursue an idea we are passionate about. Her message was very powerful because she proved that anyone from any background can do this type of work if that is their goal. Also, I was happy that as mentors we were allowed to sit in on Making the Most of the SHC, because there was so much information that triggered my memory and reminded me of different things I needed to do during the year. I actually took out a pencil at one point and jotted down some reminders for myself!

After lunch, my roommate and I headed a book discussion for The Honor Code. We went in just hoping to engage the scholars and have a good discussion and we were more than satisfied! Our group was absolutely amazing, they had such great ideas and we had an extremely stimulating discussion. The freshman connected the main idea of honor to several different event that have occurred in the past and are occurring today. They related the idea of power to politics, government, even Penn State. They were able to constructively bounce ideas off of each other and made every member of the group feel comfortable about contributing. I was thrilled with the discussion!

Dinner and the involvement fair went well. Our mentees said they signed up for a bunch of clubs, most of them were very excited to be a part of thon! However, the best part of the day had to be The Brain Show! We tried describing to our mentees what Brain Show was but I think they were a lot more thrilled when they walked into the room and saw the stage. Every time a team member went up the entire group cheered for them. After the event was over, they could not stop talking about the different dance moves and questions. They really seemed to enjoy and overall the day was a great success! Hoping for a great finish to SHOTIME tomorrow!!

The first day for SHOTIME was fantastic! The day started out with registration and sign-in. I helped out with move in for Simmons. The parents and kids were all so excited to get their rooms set up, it reminded me of the day I moved in last year. The good thing was it didn’t rain! We did have a slight issue with one of the parents who was unhappy with the parking situation. Thankfully, we were able to calm down the situation and there was no other problems. After helping with move in, I moved to the sign in table for my next shift. After cleaning up, we headed to tears and cheers. It was so sweet to see all the parents and students grabbing tissues. Once that was over, we did a few ice breakers, and all the mentees seemed very talkative and were getting along really well! I was so happy to see everyone become friends and for the awkwardness to slowly fade away. Unfortunately, I had to run off very soon after dinner to help set up with playfair. It was incredible to be a part of Chris’ training! Playfair was absolutely phenomenal! I think I had more fun as a mentor than a mentee. Overall, I had an amazing day and am looking forward to another great day tomorrow!

This summer all you incoming freshman were asked to read either I am Malala or The Honor Code. As mentors we read both! Both books spoke about the issues that our society is facing today particularly using examples from the middle east. These books demonstrate the power of people in creating social change.

I was very excited to read I am Malala because the story of Malala Yousafzi has been one of great courage and bravery. The idea that someone just a year younger than myself has been able to bring such a great amount of change is absolutely incredible. It demonstrates the idea that we are all capable of creating change in the world. After reading the book, I learned a great deal more about Malala’s involvement in the fight for women’s education. Her father is the force that pushed her to learn and explore the world. He insisted she not make it her goal to become an uneducated house wife. Although Malala showed independence and maturity at such a young age, she had the support of her father throughout the process. This being said, Malala put this cause above all else in her life. She vocally activated for the cause, she went onto BBC to speak for the cause, and she demonstrated the cause by attending school herself. Malala’s sense of motivation and determination is brought through the book and her words. This book is awe inspiring and gave me the feeling that the word impossible does not exist. As Malala quotes in the beginning of the book it’s better dying honorably than living a coward.

Speaking about honor, The Honor Code, examines the traditional definition of honor thorough the different cultures and times. Appiah discusses the dueling among the British gentlemen, foot binding among the Chinese elite, and slavery in the British Empire. In each of these cultures honor is defined as the journey from entitlement to respect. These traditional practices describe how to achieve the respect and also how you can lose the respect. However, in all three of these practices the path to honor is seen as ridiculous by other in society. Foot binding was seen as such an honorable practice, but when outsiders started coming into China they ridiculed the chinese people for this tradition. When the Chinese people saw that this practice was more ridiculous than honorable they realized it wasn’t really honorable and in a generation the practice dissipated. Appiah emphasized these “moral revolutions” to discuss the issue of honor killings in the middle east. As seen in these other revolutions the objective was to align morality with honor. If we want to see change in the middle east we need to show that honor killings are not honorable and are not moral. As a society, we can cause revolutionary change as long as we argue against the cause with a sensible, respectable case. We see this way of change with Malala and I agree that with this intelligent way of battling dishonorable traditions eliminates the inapplicable arguments thrown at advocates.

Freshman year is a time to explore your options and learn more about what you want to pursue for the rest of your time at college. One great way to do this is to take honors courses in subjects you are really interested in or want to learn more about. They give you the opportunity to go deeper in that subject. I took advantage of this in the fall and signed up for Engineering Design 100 honors. The class is an introduction to engineering design. It entails of several mini projects and a final mini-capstone project.

I had a pretty good feeling I wanted to be an engineer, but its hard to know if you’ve never taken an engineering class. Taking this class was possibly the best decision I made. The class was very demanding, but it showed me the principles of working in an engineering team. I started to build my toolbox because of this class.  I don’t think I have ever worked so intensely for any other group projects before I took EDSGN.

I ended up making some of the greatest friends because of the group work in the class. I also learned many valuable engineering concepts like solidworks, writing a technical report, proper presentation skills, and steps of the design process. Before this class, I came in like any other honors student, mostly concerned with grades and with a checklist of priorities I believed to be essential for a good college resume. Since then, both my checklist and my concerns have changed. I have realized the true reason for why I am here. I am here to become an engineer, and that is essentially the most important thing to remember. I had heard about the idea of pursuing your personal passion, but I had never quite understood what that meant. I liked doing so many things, I didn’t think it was possible to figure out how to pursue just one passion. After taking this class, there is now no doubt in my mind, that I am passionate about engineering and the principles it is built upon. I have started to put everything into perspective after coming here, and I have learned every experience is meant to be a learning experience. If I fail, I need to learn from it, and move on. It doesn’t help to get stuck on any one failure.

If I’ve always known one thing, it is that I want to be able to help others in any capacity that is possible. I’m not sure yet on how I will make the world a better place, but I know that my avenue for change will be through engineering. I want to be able to create something that will make the lives of people safer and healthier.  I want to be able to combine my passion for helping people with engineering to make a difference in the world, and this class cemented that for me engineering was the right way to go about achieving that goal.