Emily and Grace Bugnacki had a lot of fun this semester although it was hard work. We enjoyed coloring together and Emily showed off her Go Fish skills. We worked together with Willa Vish as Emily wrote and presented four speeches in front of her peers throughout the semester. So thankful for our friends, new and old!
My internship is going amazing. On the first day I had a mentor helping me with the reading. On the third day I began doing it independently. I cleaned the small animals. I need to see what they eat and if they drink water or other stuff we will have to put it on the paper. We moved to the cats, and we looked at the sheet to see what their diets are and when they last ate and drank. The kittens are so cute, and I got to see one get adopted which made me happy! My mentor Megan adopted this kitten on the third day we were at the humane society. The FV cats are last, because they are sick with some kinds of diseases. We don’t want to spread them to other cats. It is fun!
This semester is going really well at UVM. I catch the bus the 11:03 bus to Burlington from uvm to downtown, I walk to my internship at the Hilton at 11:30 am and I’m there until 3:30. I have been helping out with the HR person Johanne but this week I’m going to try housekeeping. When I’m with Johanne I usually help her organize and help her file things. Then after my shift at 3:30, I clock out and I get my stuff in the locker. After work, I go downtown and hang out with my friends
On Mondays and Wednesdays, I’m on campus. On Wednesdays, I have a shift at Feel Good. On Mondays, I walk to the Davis Center with Sophia at 11:30 so I can meet with my mentor Willa at 12 to 3. When I get there I usually have lunch then we go to the friendship class from 1 until 2. Then after I do homework and then I color. I go to band class from 3:30 to 5.
On Fridays, I usually do feel good in the morning or I work at Shaw’s.
The clubs that I’m a part of on-campus are Feel Good and we make grilled cheese and people donate what makes them feel good and I do that on Wednesdays from 10:40 to 11:50 and also on Fridays from 11:50 to 1:00. Another club I’m a part of is the pep band and I play the clarinet. I have been playing the clarinet since 5th grade and the pep band is on Wednesdays from 8:00 to 9:45 pm then on the weekends for the sporting events.
I live on the Redstone campus in the Redstone Lofts a four-bedroom apartment with 2 baths and my roommates are Celeste, Sophia, and Gracie. I love living there and I usually cook my own meals but sometimes we have meals on campus. On the weekends I usually go home to see my parents and my crazy dog Mookie. The mentors who I work with this semester are Willa and Stella. I love being on campus it’s so fun
David is taking Perspectives on Art Making because he has had a long time interest in art. He is learning different methods in art illustrations and different perspectives. This was my class project for Perspectives on Art Making.
Can you tell me what interested you about this class you are taking?
I chose to take elementary school math because it was important for me to know how to teach math at the elementary level. I chose to take children with disabilities class because I am interested in studying the human development behind those who may have disabilities. I chose to take language and policies to understand how some non-english learners learn english depending on culture.
What are you learning in class?
In my elementary school math class, I am learning base-ten in terms of decimals and toothpicks but I am also learning rounding. This is the type of math I would be teaching K-3 with. In my children with disabilities class, I am learning how society can include those with disabilities leading to acceptance. It’s important to accept those with disabilities because they are born with something that they can’t change. In my language and policies class, I am learning terms such as intersectionality, the diversity wheel and racism. These are all terms that come into play when it comes to learning a new language.
Welcome to the University of Vermont, as we start the Fall semester on August 30, 2021. We are excited to have new students and new mentors joining Think College. Welcome to Think College Vermont. Let’s have a great fall semester! 😀
This semester at Think College Vermont some students were taking their courses remotely from the UVM campus. All the students and their mentors still had to be six feet apart from each other. It was still mandatory to wear face masks. The students and mentors were still required to take a COVID-19 test on the UVM campus.
Think College Vermont provided two remote classes for our students this spring semester. Here are the two fun remote classes that were offered to students this semester, The Basics of Cooking and Baking. The second class was on Friendship and Dating.
During this COVID-19 time. Think College Vermont was not able to hold in-person graduation this year. However, the program recently held a virtual celebration for Thomas Caswell and Bennett Townley on graduating from the program. Madeline Honigman completed the program in 2017, and she stayed to pursue her education with Think College Vermont. During the celebration, we had Katharine Shepherd the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs from (CESS) to wish the students good luck.
Thanks for your patience. We are hoping to be back on campus in person this fall semester. Have a great summer!!
This semester, I took an art class. I really liked the project where we made sports logos. Mine was on hockey because it is a sport I enjoy watching. I also worked in the Patrick gym this semester where I cleaned the bikes and treadmills. Next year, I am looking forward to my hip hop class.
According to Bennett, these are his thoughts about self-advocacy and advocating for himself at Think College.
What does self-advocacy mean to you?
Self-Advocacy means to respectfully ask someone to change something for you to make you more successful.
What self-advocacy skills do you want to learn at Think College?
Being realistic on what kind of help I can get on the internet. I don’t need to ask if the mentor can come to my house for example.
What self-advocacy skills did you learn in the self-advocacy classes. How can you use them at Think College Vermont?
I can use the skills by talking to a professor about problems I am having in the class or on the Blackboard page.
This semester, which is also my last, I have an internship once again with the Peace and Justice Center. This was also where I had my internship in Spring 2020 but covid shutdowns postponed half of the internship to this year. Unlike last year, I am doing it all remote on campus with mentors. Things I have done this time around include making phone calls to members for the annual phonathon, doing zoom meeting tech including unpacking whiteness, a social media campaign, and reading a novel which involves reflecting what I have learned from the reading for the enews. The Social Media Campaign involves the School-to-prison pipeline and how it disproportionately affects the BIPOC community and people with disabilities. If you go onto Peace & Justice Center’s Facebook Page, there are a few infographics already posted from a software named Canva. It definitely isn’t the same as being at the PJ&C center itself but at least it’s still a great way to be a part of being with them during this time of a global pandemic.
