Residence Life With Summer Scholars

"Trusting. Trust me." These were some of the first words we learned , other than people's names, on our first day. After we arrived and settled into our dorms we headed out to Camp Carol Joy Holling. That day we learned what it meant to trust people, even if you have just met them. These were the students we were basically going to be spending our summer with so our resident tutor advisors (RTA's) wanted us to develop that bond early. Going into the program and only knowing a few people, one could say we were a little skeptical at putting our trust in new people. At the end of the first day bonds were made, friends formed, and trust was built.

From all the letters and orientation we as students knew that the summer scholars program was to help us prepare for college. Going into this program, many of us did not know what to expect and it could be said we were a bit overwhelmed. However, all of our jitters and butterflies were quickly put to the side one we got started with all of the residence life activities. I learned the actual meaning of time management. I had to plan my schedule around the week stay at Scott Hall, which for me meant missing work and drill team practice because I wanted to fully dedicate myself to the program the first week. After going through all the activities and the first three days of class, I now know what I have time for. There really is no time for playing around, not saying that I'm going to be a hundred percent serious all of the time. I know I can squeeze in work every other day, drill team practice once a week, basketball workouts after my classes, and games one day a week. I also know that by taking on all these outside commitments I need to make sure I have time to get my homework done. Just by reading it, it seems like I have my hands full, but I know my capabilities.

"All work and no play make John a dull boy." This is a common quote that is used when students focus too much on work. We need to be able to let loose and live a little here and there. We need to be able to relax our minds from all the knowledge we gain each day. By staying at Scott Hall for a week, we got a taste of what it feels like to balance each of these aspects out. We were given time to study after classes, but also have free time to visit the HYPER building or simply play ping pong in the lounge. We used our time wisely so we could get our work done, but also bond with out fellow scholars. We made mini study groups and respected each other when he/she was studying and another was not. No matter what we did, we gave it our all and had fun doing it.