Grace's December Post

Our group has accomplished far more than we planned to this semester by completing over half of the build for our Bailey Alternative High School Project. We have finished constructing two platforms both 8 feet by 4 feet. We still need to construct the stairs and finish off everything by painting and adding skirts to the platforms. I personally learned a lot about how to go about building platforms that are in check with the local code requirements, and about what it takes to actually put a project like this together. I also learned a lot from the students of the school on what they needed for their space. In the spring we plan to finish off the platforms as well as give the school stairs to access them. Overall we came in ahead of schedule giving us plenty of time to do the finishing details!

Sarah's December Post

As a group, our main accomplishment was completing the platforms and keeping our deadline regarding the truck. We have also set our goals for next semester as far as what we are going to do to finish up the stage and how we are going to better involve the students. As an individual, I provided easy access to a truck for transporting the platforms.

One of the major positive outcomes, besides completing the construction of the platforms, was that we have made progress on our cooperation skills as a group. We discovered that having task lists and chore rotations, for example, help a lot to prevent confusion and conflict.

Haley's December Post

The group accomplished a lot this semester. We built two stage platforms and successfully got them to the school. I was personally in charge of the budget, and I was able to keep track of all the receipts and we stayed under budget which is awesome. In the spring, we plan to paint the stage and add a skirt and whatnot and get the kids more involved with helping us.

Rachel's December Post

I think that our biggest accomplishment was staying ahead of schedule. We completed everything that we had to do this semester before Thanksgiving, and that was stressful at the time, but it is a lot less stressful now. I learned a lot about communication, and mediation. We all have our own ideas on how to do things, and I tried to be a neutral party to keep us all on task. In the spring, I think it will be easier if we set 3 days to get all of our hours done (the majority of our project is done in chunks anyway) at the beginning of the semester so that there isn’t as much stress trying to get everyone together. I really want to focus on meeting times in the spring, especially since it will be harder to get all 15 hours in one place next semester.

Moving Day Pictures

On the way to Bailey!

The Stages have ARRIVED!

They used to be in our living room.

 

Grace's Leadership Experience

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” Eleanor Roosevelt. This has been my favorite quote since 6^th grade. What I believe is that one must be passionate about what they do if they want to achieve their goals and shape their own future. The reason I think this has a lot to do with leadership is that I believe almost every good leader must be passionate about what they do. If they are not, then how would they inspire others to follow them, or help them in attaining what it is they set out to attain? If one believes in the beauty of their dreams, visions, or goals, then that person can inspire others to believe in it as well, and help them to achieve this.

 

Leadership aside, one task that I did individually for our Summit group this semester was design the “stage” (platforms) in Google Sketch-up. We met as a group with our advisor to figure out the requirements of the platforms; however we needed a more solid version of the plan so we could work out details that might go wrong. That is why I put the design into Sketch-up. This way we could avoid a few complications. Of course, we were not able to avoid all complications, but I believe this step helped us to solidify our design so we all knew what we were building. In a situation like this, individual work is just as important as team work and leadership.

Rachel's Leadership Experience

"Lead me, Follow me, or get out of my way" is my favorite quote. I love this because I am a natural leader, so if nobody is taking charge I will. I have no problem with following, but I don’t like it when nobody can make decisions.

 

For this project, we are working with high school students to develop a stage that will meet their needs the best. I made sure that the students were engaged and excited about this opportunity. We built stages with marshmallows and toothpicks, which they loved. I also tried to help them feel involved in the stage as much as the process. There are restrictions to what they can help with, but it was also my idea to have them help paint so that they can have more ownership of the project. Generally I was the connection between the high schoolers and my team.

Sarah's Leadership Experience

My favorite leadership quote is, “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” – John F. Kennedy

There are many important aspects of leadership, but one is never finished learning, and it is impossible to be a good leader if you do not know what you are doing. Leadership is a learning experience, and each time you take any sort of leadership position you should grow from the experience.

This semester, I led a meeting between myself, one of my group members, and our faculty advisor. Only half of our team was able to be present at this particular meeting, and the goal of the meeting was to determine whether our stage project was on track to be built to code. The International Building Code uses a lot of jargon that makes it somewhat difficult to understand without construction experience of some kind. Since the other group member present has had less experience than me in this area, I took charge of the meeting and ensured that all of the necessary topics outlined in our plan were addressed. After extensive consultation of the faculty advisor’s copy of the IBC regarding such topics as fire codes, we successfully concluded that our stage was on track to be up to the standards set for the project.

Haley's leadership experience

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” – John F. Kennedy

            This quote sums up my ideals about leadership. In order to be a good and effective leader, you have to constantly be learning. On the flip side, in order to be the best learner one can, one must be a leader and take charge.

            This semester I was in charge of budgeting. I personally kept track of the group’s expenses and made sure we stayed on budget while building the stage platforms.

Rachel's October Blog

I am a collaborator, which is great when the group is working together to solve problems. The weakness is that if other people don't want to collaborate, it frustrates me. With my style I can be a better leader, and communicate better if I start thinking of problems before they arise. That way I can help the group solve problems together, before everyone gets upset.

Sarah's October Blog

The presentation on communication and conflict resolution was very insightful. Pointing out that conflict itself is not necessarily a bad thing is extremely important. Conflicts are going to arise in many situations. The important thing to think about is how you handle them. One of my greatest strengths when it comes to communication is that I am always ready and willing to discuss any problems that arise. My weakness, however, is that I tend to give in to the other person’s side of the discussion in order to alleviate the conflict.  This forces me to sacrifice my opinion in order to reach an agreement. By voicing my opinions more often, and taking a more active role in discussions, I can improve my communication with the members of my Summit team. In order to improve the way I handle conflicts, I need to focus more on compromises that incorporate everyone’s ideas rather than simply giving in and letting everyone else make the decisions. Putting forth my voice and opinions will help me to become a better leader and communicator.

Haley's October Experience

One of my best communication strengths is that I am really straightforward and honest. My greatest weakness is that I like to avoid conflict at all costs. To better communicate, I could work on changing the way I deal with conflict and face conflicts more head on. To be a better leader, I’m definitely going to have to work on the way that I handle conflict because leaders can’t avoid conflict. A good leader needs to know how to face it and work to compromise in order to resolve it.

Grace's October Experience

I liked how our class presentation last week was framing conflict as a necessary and good part of life. I don’t think anyone particularly likes conflict, but our presenter Ed Derr is right in stating that we grow from conflict and that is what inspires us to change and move forward. At least I do not think that anyone would give up a system if it was working just fine; it is conflict that points out there is something that could be improved and conflict that makes the system accommodate and change.

For our team, we each have a different conflict style. Mine was tied three ways: I am the accommodating teddy bear, the compromising fox, or the collaborating owl. In each case it seems I range from “I lose, you win” to “I bend, you bend” or “I win, you win” depending on the situation. Two of my suite mates are accommodating teddy bears as well. Our third suite mate is a shark, which is “I win, you lose” attitude. For the most part this has not been a problem at all to us.

I think our greatest strength is that we try to accommodate for one another, but this is also our greatest weakness because no one is tempted to step up and say “hey, this is really bothering me”.  We could improve our Summit group if we all actually communicated with each other more and ask if we can change something or divvy out chores if it is bothering everyone. We have been doing this for the most part, (with the actual project we have divided when we are getting materials and building each section of the stage and so on) but it usually takes us a while because we are more likely to let the situation get bad before we do anything about it. As far as the actual conflict itself goes we could improve by discussing it more with everyone face to face and work on assigning specific tasks with deadlines to make sure things get done.

Grace's September Experience

I was attracted to Summit Park Leadership Community because of the emphasis it puts on serving others, both in the community and in our group. Currently we are working with Bailey Alternative High School in building them a portable stage that they might hold graduations on as well as plays. We have had at least 4 meetings with the students there so far where we have been able to figure out what they are looking for, look at the space, and figure out what the needs are for the stage. Some issues we have run into so far is simply coming up with a design that is aligned with the code of Missouri, but we have been able to overcome that with the help of our Faculty Advisor, Gerard Nadeau. In working with Bailey I hope to better my skills in working in a group and benefit the community at the same time.

Sarah's September Experience

I chose to participate in the Summit Park Leadership Community because I appreciate the opportunity to serve and live with others that have the same goal. Through this project I hope to experience the sense of fulfillment that one gains by volunteering in his or her community, and getting to know the members of my team as individuals. I believe that this experience is quite valuable and will help me to become more aware of the needs of the community I live in. Looking back on this project several years from now, I hope to retain the feeling of commitment and service towards others.

My leadership/personality style falls under the blue group. So far, I feel that this has been a strength as I am able to get along well with the other members of my group. So far, we have done well staying organized and on schedule, which helps to make this experience positive for everyone involved. I hope that we continue to find cooperation between one another easy to achieve, and that our project turns out as well as we are envisioning.

Haley's September Experience

I chose to participate in Summit Park Leadership Community because I thought it would help me to become more involved and make a difference in the community. I hope that it will help me to develop my communication skills (through working with my group) and, obviously, I think it will probably help me with my leadership skills. During our last Summit class, we took a test to help determine our leadership styles in terms of colors. I’m a green which means that I am very logical and that I like to plan. This is really good for this stage in our project since we are currently trying to figure out the best way to build a performing space. Personally, I am the one in charge of dealing with budget type stuff and so that means I get to currently do more behind the scenes work, which works well for my leadership skills since I am really detail oriented.

Rachel's September Experience

We are building a portable stage for Bailey Alternative High School! We have had several fun meetings with the students at Bailey so far. We have:built stages with marshmallows and toothpicks, played get-to-know-you games, and really had great one-on-one interaction with the kids and staff at Bailey. Bailey is a high school in the Springfield district that serves Sophomore-Senior students. There is a waiting list for students that apply to be a part of this specialized learning experience. The school targets mainly students that are at-risk in "the educational system" that we all think about being standard. There is a graduation for senior students every quarter, and new students on the waiting list are brought in. The school goes beyond curriculum; it teaches life skills and community service/involvement.

http://springfieldpublicschoolsmo.org/relocating/bailey.htm

 

I joined Summit to be a part of a community of people that really care about serving others. All of my neighbors and suitemates have similar goals, and we all can really relate to one another. Summit is not just an apartment, it's a support system. My blue personality is in overdrive keeping everyone sane in our apartment. We are doing a great job working together, but having different personalities does mean that we don't process information the same way. We are all different mixes of different colors, and we usually translate for each other when one idea doesn't make sense to any given team member. We work really well as a team, and even have time to go on some adventures that aren't school related.