The Walk

Notes From the EditorsSERVICE SNAPSHOTS

Service Scholars in ActionPages 2 & 4

FEATURED IMPACTPeaceJam Southeast 2010

Page 3

ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENTS & SENIOR PLANS

Page 3

CENTER STAFF HIGHLIGHTDr. Steve Mills

Page 4

PROGRAM CHANGESPage 7

REFLECTIONSPage 6 & 8

The Service Scholar Family Connection

INSIDE THE ISSUE

Danielle, Judith, Sean, and Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL

Danielle, Judith, Sean, and

Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL

Service Snapshots

Weekend Trip: Birmingham, AL By: Juditch Tankel, Class XIIThe Scholar trip to Birmingham in February was a great opportunity for scholar bonding and service. We took the cozy drive up to the Khawley house in Alabama on Fri-day, February 26th, and got right to work, setting up for our service project on Saturday. After a bright and early wake up, we set up a large garage sale in the driveway. We worked our scholar magic selling whatever we could, with all of the proceeds going to Haiti relief. We also took turns going door to door in nearby neighborhoods, spreading awareness about Haiti and collecting dona-tions. The weekend was a definite success, as we raised almost $600 to send to Haiti. We ended the fun with some sightseeing around Birmingham, and took the long drive back to Tallahassee on Sunday.

The Big Event: Tallahassee, FLBy: Sophia Khawley, Class XIThe Big Event is a large, one-day, student-run service event where students of Florida State University come together to say “thank you” to the residents of Tallahas-see, Florida. The Big Event is different from the other ser-vice projects Service Scholars are involved with because it is a campus-wide event. In its second year at FSU, the Big Event had 1,100 students participate. Service Schol-ars have been active in both the planning of the event, and participation in service projects. A group of service scholars met at Langford Green at 8 am on Saturday, March 27th 2010. We were assigned to Harbor Chase, a senior living center. Our task was to complete the garden in their courtyard where the residents often convene. Sev-eral hours of working in the sun and getting dirty, went by fast in the company of other scholars. I don’t think we grasped the importance the garden until the residents and administrators of Harbor Chase continued to thank us for our hard work. “We had a good time! We were digging away and planting flowers. We finished in no time thanks to service scholar collaboration”. –Ashley Joseph

Danielle, Judith, Sean, and Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL

Seminole Manor: Tallahassee, FLBy: Armando Mendez, Class XIIOver the past year the Service Scholar Program has been serving a neighborhood in Tallahassee called Seminole Manor. We have have taken about five to six trips and have one more before the end of the semester. We have helped with the community garden and community library proj-ects that the are sustained by the Seminole Manor com-munity for the benefit of the neighborhood’s children and older residents. For the garden we helped with everything from removing weeds to planting new vegetables. For the community library we mainly helped catalog books that had been donated and organize them on bookshelves. The vegetables that are grown in the garden are delivered to the homes of the older residents (since they are often not able to leave their homes) and the community library is open to the children of the community after they get out of school for the day. In February of this year we also helped pick up trash that had been thrown along the rode surrounding Seminole Manor. Service Scholars are very happy to have developed a good relationship with this community through our participation in this year-long service project. We hope to continue our relation-ship with Seminole Manor in the years to come and de-velop other sustainable projects within our Tallahassee community.

Weekend Trip: Mobile, ALBy: Kaitlin Delaney, Class XIVI had not planned on going to Mobile, Alabama during the second weekend of April. I had originally signed up for my first Service Scholar weekend trip to Atlanta, but due to a series of incidents, the trip had to be cancelled. I was completely bummed when Michelle called me to tell me that the Alternative Break Corps trip to L’Arche was in need of a few more volunteers and wondered if I wanted to go. I said yes and immediately repacked my bags. Our group had a late start leaving from the Cen-ter in Tallahassee, but the six other girls and I arrived in Mobile in the late afternoon. We were greeted by one of the women who runs L’Arche and she graciously showed us where we were going to be staying for the weekend. Sister Janet told us about an arts festival that was going on downtown and we walked around Mobile that night, pleasantly surprised by how pretty the city was. We woke up early the next day to get our work started at L’Arche. We broke into three different groups and worked on the four houses that L’Arche owns. We painted, cleaned up the yards, and planted some flowers. It was really neat to be able to have lunch and dinner with the houses on Saturday. By splitting up to the different houses we were able to truly enjoy the family atmosphere that each house has. Some of the members have lived together at L’Arche for over 35 years! The houses were more than hospitable and made us feel like part of the family. After saying a final goodbye to all the members, we toured the historic district and Spring Hill College. We debriefed at Krispy Kreme and a couple of us had time for some bonding by dying strands of our hair pink! We all woke up on Sunday morning and talked about our experience with Sister Ja-net and another head of the L’Arche, Marty. He provided us with some stories about the members and where they had originally come from. We then said our goodbyes and made our trek back to Tallahassee around noon. L’Arche is a truly amazing place that provides a safe and loving atmosphere. I cannot wait to go back again.

Danielle, Judith, Sean, and

Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL Danielle, Judith, Sean, and

Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL

Alumni Achievements On a pristine fall evening, you may find Steve Mills paddling down the Suwannee River - intent on finding a perfect sand bar to camp upon. With many rivers, springs, and lakes near Talla-hassee, Steve has found his home here at Florida State University. Steve has been my service mentor since I arrived at Florida State two years ago. His vast knowledge and creativity in engaging the commu-nity on an intentional level has helped mold my passion to serve sustainably. With monthly check-ins and casual office visits, I have not only had the opportunity to share my dreams and desires, but I get the privilege of hearing Steve’s huge desire to impact the world through the students at Florida State. Growing up in the small town of Ellenton, Florida, Steve received his Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy at Purdue University. In the fall of 1999 Steve came to Florida State University. He accepted a faculty position in the Family and Child Sciences Department, which he quickly be-came directly involved with the Tallahassee com-munity through the practicum class that he taught. This course allows students to engage the commu-nity through hands on experience with agencies and schools across the county. His initiatives lead him to work closely with The Center for Leader-ship and Civic Education, home of the Service Scholar family. In 2008, when The Center was looking for an Assistant Director, Steve became an obvious choice. With a son off at college and a daughter finishing up high school, Steve enjoys exploring rivers and cycling with his family. Brenda, his wife, works as a publicist at Florida State’s presti-gious film school. With dedication to their work on campus, both Steve and his wife have made a tremendous impact on the lives of the students they work with everyday. Steve is primarily directing the community engagement initiative at The Center. He envi-sions building leaders through engaging them in

By: Lee Gordon

Staff SnapshotMeet Dr. Steve Mills

the community. Working directly with Service Scholars since his arrival at The Center, he is en-couraged by the commitment each Scholar shows towards their communities. He truly admires the tenacity Scholars have for seeking out their pas-sions and desires for justice. The ability for stu-dents to find their identity in service to others as “public servants” requires an unusual maturity that he sees Scholars developing. Delving into discovering the potential of different Scholars has been an invigorating en-deavor for Steve this past year. He has helped guide the Scholar evenings to empower them to, as he says, “be less shy about exploring their dif-ferences.” Steve really appreciated a few of the scholars this semester honestly putting forth their beliefs at the scholar evenings. Upon reflecting on a recent evening, Steve said, “as Scholars grow as a cohesive community, they will build enough faith and trust to speak clearly in the group re-garding who they are and what they believe.” As Steve directs community engagement on campus and teaches leadership courses through The Center, he is dedicated to bringing scholastic understanding of service intelligence. He utilizes opportunities to challenge and motivate students here at Florida State. Getting to work with Steve for the past two years has been a pleasure. Fundraising and planning a large international project as well as integrating into the Leon County public school system has been a huge success thanks to Steve’s guidance and direction. As many of our Scholar alumni remember, mentors play such crucial roles in our lives. They challenge us to new levels and invite us to pursue a lifetime of serving our com-munity.

Danielle, Judith, Sean, and Kaitlin in Birmingham, AL

Staff Snapshots

GraduatingSenior Plans

Marie LeblancNicole Roca

Krista MarkhamJaime Bayo

Denise Ogden‘Asa Molina

Erin EylvesterJenny Bartels

“As my first year in service scholars wraps up, I look back in reflection on the many successes, challenges, unforgettable moments, and everything in between. I can remember when I first learned that I was accepted into this elite service program. When I applied in my senior year of high school, I was not accepted but when I arrived at FSU over last summer, I received an e-mail requesting an interview for the Service Scholar Pro-gram. I had so much anxiety and nervousness because I was being given a second chance at this amazing op-portunity. After the interview, I was eager to know their decision. Then I received the e-mail that contained the answer. I nearly broke the chair I jumped out of it so fast when I found out I was accepted. My mother was so happy and excited for me that she started crying on the phone. It was truly one of the best days ever. I knew that the expectation of a Service Scholar was high and I was determined to rise to that expectation. I immediately began involving myself in different orga-nizations that centered around my passions like Light the Night, PeaceJam, Grace Mission after school care program, and many others. I enjoyed going to the scholar evenings because each one was different and I left with a mind full of new questions, ideas, and vi-sions of the world. At times I did feel very ignorant about certain issues we discussed during the evenings, but appreciative of all that I could learn from the cul-tured, intelligent scholars around me. The trip to At-lanta was one of those unforgettable moments because I was in awe of the work and difference that can be made by a group of dedicated youth. We spent a whole day working at a construction site of The Children’s Home dormitory. Moving lumber and materials to dif-ferent parts of the campsite was our job that day, and as boring as that sounds, the scholars and I made it fun and interesting by singing and finding efficient ways to do our tasks. I had the best time doing service with people who actually wanted to be there, not because they had to fill in hours on a time sheet. Although Service Scholars is a very inclusive, family-style organization, I struggled with finding my place in the scheme of everything. I had trouble determining what my role would be, how to become involved in different things, and how I could spearhead anything of my own. I am slowly but surely coming closer to finding my place, but in the meantime, I am learning so much about my own potential as well as the poten-tial of the organization. I am thrilled with the direc-tion Service Scholars is taking and how it is starting to evolve. I can only hope to make as much of an impact on Service Scholars as they have made on me.”- Ryan Chiarello

First-Year Reflection

By: Ryan Chiarello

I can only hope to make

as much of an impact on

Service Scholars as they

have made on me.

“

”

The Dalai Lama. Aung San Suu Kyi. Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Rigoberta Menchu Tum. Each of these individuals created lasting change for their communities and the world at large, and for their efforts, received a Noble Peace Prize. However, these four Nobel Laureates also share an affilia-tion with PeaceJam, an organization that aspires to “create young leaders committed to positive change in themselves, their communities and the world through the inspiration of Nobel Peace Laureates…” Most students read about figures like these in magazines and books, but thanks to the hard work of several dedicated individuals at The Center for Leadership and Civic Education, the Florida State commu-nity has hosted two Nobel Laureates in the past two years, and is still going strong. One driving force behind PeaceJam’s success at Florida State calls the Scholar family home. Jaime Bayo, Fourth Year Service Scholar, showed his commitment to creating sustainable change on campus by bringing Light the Night to FSU in 2007, and changed his focus to PeaceJam in the spring of 2008. Through his work with Rody Thompson, Program Coordinator and Regional Director with Peace-Jam, Jaime helped introduce a new student community to the Center, one committed to sharing the value of peace with not only FSU, but also area high schools. According to Thompson, Jaime’s work with PeaceJam is indispensible. “Jaime has given his passion, creativity, and heart to the PeaceJam program...[He] served as my right hand and my moral compass. I have tremendous respect for his sense of fairness and his strong andconsistent values.” Rody also appreciates Jaime’s strong leadership skills. “He leads by example and he sets the bar high. He has taught me to expect great things from every-one on the team. And he has built that team through hard work, sincerity, enthusiasm and caring.”

Many Scholars chose to become part of that community and create a new collaborative effort between Service Schol-ars and PeaceJam. This year, over 500 high school students attended the spring PeaceJam conference to interact with

Featured Impact

Laureate Rigoberta Menchu Tum, and almost 75 FSU stu-dent volunteers made that experience possible. Michelle Avaroma, Second Year Service Scholar, volunteered as a Mentor to a small group of students, and views PeaceJam as “one of my most cherished service experiences as a result of its ability to implement change and inspire youth in an array of social justice issues [and] present them with the unique opportunity of meeting a Nobel Peace Laureate.” Michelle’s two years working with Jaime through PeaceJam also left a profound impact. “He has been an instrumental component of the program’s growth and has inspired all of the mentors, as well as conference participants, to get involved with the PeaceJam Organization.”

Florida State owes Jaime and the rest of the PeaceJam staff a huge thanks for bringing such a laudable program to the campus. As Michelle says, “his passion to help bring the program to Florida State University and his continued work-ethic make the conference a memorable experience for all those who are involved with it.

PeaceJam Southeast

20

10By: Marie Leblanc

PICTURE

PROGRAM CHANGE

Buddy Family Tree

Senior Reflection

Alumni UpdatesMelanie Shoemaker Griffin and her husband, Mike Griffin, celebrated their one year wedding anniversary on February 28. The couple was married in 2009 in Tampa, Florida. Melanie is also finishing her first year on The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors, where she was named Florida’s Most Productive Young Lawyer at last summer’s Annual Bar Convention. Last August, Melanie planned a Community Outreach Fair at her firm, Dean Mead, which was attended by over 300 people and over 80 non-profits.

Christina Quintana will be walking down the aisle on June 11th in Kauai, HI. She is engaged to Dominic Bernard, a fellow Seminole whom she met in Phoenix at an alumni game watching party in September 2006. Dominic graduated FSU in December 2004 with an International Business degree and was brought to Phoenix by his job shortly thereafter.

Thelma Acquaah-Harrision graduates from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in May with a master’s degree in _____. She be working at Henry Ford Hospital in _____, Michigan doing pediatric and adult speech-language pathology. ENGAGEMENT!

Aimee Ludlow Durrance married her husband in August 2007. At the time he was an active Marine (once a Marine always a Marine) and stationed in Virginia. I moved up to Virginia in Dec. 2007 to live with him! Instead of continuing my educa-tion up in Virginia and getting my Master in Social Work, I decided to change my degree. I moved back to Gainesville, FL (where I am originally from) and am currently working on my Master in Elementary Education. I LOVE it! I am graduating May 1st! And yes...I am proud to be a Seminole AND a Gator...go figure! ;)

Victoria Solano is currently living in New York teaching kingergarten at Family Live Academy Charter School in the Bronx. She graduated from New York University in summer 2009 with a Masters in Early Childhood Education and Spe-cial Education for Early Childhood. In July, She will be moving to Boston where her boyfriend recently accepted a great job. Victoria is on the job hunt so if anyone has connections in Boston or Cambridge schools, let he know!

Since summer 2009, Joey Daoud, has been working on a documentary called Bots High. He has been following high school robotics teams who build robots to compete in the National BotsIQ Championship. The program promotes STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) disciplines in fun, hands-on way. His goal is for the film to be entertaining, educational, and get more students involved in STEM programs. You can follow along and view video podcasts on the website at http://www.botshigh.com or support the project at http://kck.st/bhzbBq.

In July 2009, Amanda Stone graduated from the University of Oxford with a Master of Science in African Studies, with a dissertation based on a month of fieldwork in Kabale, Uganda on HIV/AIDS education in secondary schools. Though her love of African countries continues, she decided to learn about a new world region and is living in Shanghai, China, where she is teaching English Literature to Chinese high school students who want to attend university in the West. She finds the experience incredibly fulfilling and meaningful, though she misses all her friends and family in Florida.

Ashley Ruiz-Margenot recently started a new job at the Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) department of Wyndham. She is also working on her masters in Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of Central Florida.

Patrick Sullivan is living in Canberra, Australia and serving as a Captain in the US Marine Corps. He is currently deployed to Afghanistan, assigned to an Australian Task Group. His mission is going well and the work is always exciting and chal-lenging. In August, Patrick has orders to attend a 10 month course in Quantico, VA. He is looking forward to attending a few home games this fall and hoping to catch up with Bill and the Scholar Family.

Vivianna Kabbabe-Thompson is currently working as the Director of Multicultural Affairs at North Central College, a small liberal arts college in Naperville, Illinois. She recently presented at the NASPA National conference on the Sankofa Service Experience, a service/multicultural spring break trip (http://blogs.northcentralcollege.edu/pride/?s=sankofa).

Keep us in the loop...

EDITOR IN CHIEF:Jillian White

DESIGN EDITOR:Amy Derringer

COPY EDITOR:Marisa Henderson

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:Lee Gordon

Armando MendezJudith TankelJaime Bayo

Marie LeBlancKaitlin DelaneyRyan Chiarello

SPECIAL THANKS FOR YOUR GRACIOUS

SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE:Heather Stitely

Dr. Laura OsteenDr. Steve Mills

Bill MoellerSamantha Nix

Jennifer Decomb

Picture Descriptions