Academic Learning:

During my time with the TOPS team I learned that the academic concept of safeguarding your program is imperative when working with teens. I learned that covering all aspects of safeguarding the program is important due to leaders never knowing what might happen during an event. Furthermore, since teens are curious and more likely to wander off since they believe they are adults, safeguarding each program thoroughly with supervision is important as well.

I learned that safeguarding was especially important when working with TOPS when one of the teens was standing on the railroad tracks at Pullen Park waiting for the rest of the group. Although the train was nowhere in sight, the teen did not realize his surroundings and we had to get him off the tracks for his safety. During the second program I saw the importance of safeguarding when the teens had to walk from the bell tower to the Pullen Park parking lot. Since they had to cross a major road, we had to ensure they knew the importance of not goofing around during this time and make sure we had plenty of staff and students watching over the participants.

This learning is important because it has taught me that I need to pay attention to safeguarding all programs that I do. Safeguarding does not only protect the participants of a program but also the leaders and any surrounding public or viewers as well. This learning is also important because one has to know how to safeguard in regards to different age groups when putting on a program. Therefore, thoroughly designing a safeguarding application for each program is imperative to creating a great program.

In light of this learning, in the future I will need to set a safeguarding plan in motion and also know how to execute that plan into my program. I will also need to constantly update the safeguarding to a program as new concerns arise. Lastly, in the future I will always safeguard a program after seeing the importance it has had on both of the TOPS programs.

- Sarah McGee

Working with the TOPS teens I learned the importance of considering age group characteristics when creating programs. I learned how to attract specific age groups to participate in programs based off their age group characteristics. Teens are an age group that have particular interests and these needs to be met in order to have a successful program. If our programs did not appeal to the teens, then they simply would not show up.

I learned that age group characteristics are important through the two programs we created for TOPS. For program one we only had four kids show up. I think this was because we did not physically go and talk to the teens about our program, thus being teens, they did not take it seriously. For our second program, we advertised to the teens, so we had a much better turnout. We also learned that teens love food, so we used the incentives of free ice cream and doughnuts to get them to come out and participate.

This learning is important because it can be applied to many different professional fields. Knowing how to appeal to my audience through their age group characteristics can be beneficial in many different aspects in my profession field. There are more age groups than just teens, so knowing who my audience is and what they like will ensure that my programs are successful to many different age groups.

In light of this learning I will be more considerate of age group characteristics in the future. Some things that are characteristics of particular age groups might not interest me, but appealing to the targeted age group is what is most important in designing programs. In the future, this means I will step outside of my comfort zone to target age group characteristics when planning programs. This worked for the TOPS teens, so it’s bound to work with other age groups as well.

-Jesse Stevens

Personal Learning:

I learned that working with a group of strangers is not as intimidating as it seems. I don’t like being put into any uncomfortable situations, but my TOPS group made it extremely easy to break out of my shell this semester. I had to learn how to interact with strangers, including my classmates as well as our site supervisors. I learned that when you are open to working with new people, you allow yourself to create new meaningful connections.

I learned this throughout the semester while planning and running our two programs. I was hesitant at first to open up to my group, but as soon as they became open with me it was so easy to get comfortable. Our first couple of labs as a group on site were awkward, but once we got into the real meat of planning our programs, it was exponentially better. I was fortunate enough to work with a group of people who were outgoing, which also made it easier for me.

This learning is important because in my professional career I will be working with other people that I do not know well and will have to be comfortable getting to know them and letting them get to know me. Not only in my professional career, but also in life. There will be many situations where I’ll have to be comfortable with speaking to strangers, and this was great practice for me.

In light of this learning, in the future, I will be more positive before going into any group work where I don’t know anyone. Now that I’ve had such a positive experience with my TOPS group, I don’t have to be intimidated when I enter into my career. I will not only be more positive, I will be more prepared and well equipped with being uncomfortable in a new environment. Working with TOPS has without a doubt prepared me for my future.

- Rachel Eppley

I learned that things do not always go as planned. Even with a perfectly planned out program, it’s very easy for something to go wrong. It is essential to have a backup plan in place for any instance, including in everyday life. Things never go exactly as expected, so the ability to be flexible is very important.

One of the ways I learned this when our first program took place. We had planned to accommodate 30 kids, but when the teens arrived, there were only 4. We had to improvise what to do to ensure that those four kids were having fun, as well as having our volunteers be able to do something to help. The next program, the same number of kids we expected to come showed up, but we were a bit short on time. We had to be flexible and not spend so much time at each station. Both programs had wrenches we needed to avoid, and it helped me become more flexible.

This kind of learning is important because it’s easier to see from mistakes than to just hear about what to do. It’s also important to learn so that it’s applied to normal things in life. Life is never smooth and bad things can happen. It is important to know what to do when things don’t go according to plan, such as a traffic jam making you late to work, or power in your home going out. By having backup plans in life, you will be more successful and adaptable to anything unexpected that may be thrown your way.

Because of needing backup plans in my SL assignment, in the future I will remember to plan for more things and be ready to improvise things as needed. Learning from the examples in our programs, unexpected situations in life will be a breeze. The SL assignment has helped me by providing me experience in planning and backup planning, which will help me in my everyday life.

-Bo Marbrey

Civic Learning:

While working with the TOPs teens this semester, I learned the importance of having accessible enrichment programs like this available to teens within the community. I grew up in a small town, and we did not have anything like TOPs. As teens in my community, many of us grew up loathing the area we lived in and always complained that there was nothing to do, but programs such as TOPs work to combat that. Not only do Raleigh’s Teen Outreach Programs offer study guidance, but they also provide opportunities to hone life and professional skills, as well as get the teens interacting and building an appreciation for their community.

I learned this throughout the course of the semester, but it was solidified during our second program. We had a good turnout, but even though all of the teens live in the Raleigh area, only a select few had ever been on campus before. NC State is such a major part of the Raleigh community, so it was important for us to show that to the teens while also getting them excited about what the university could offer them in the future. Even though some of the students who were there were not too interested in details about the university, they still ended up having a good time when we got them involved with the traditions.

This learning is important because it taught me how much of a positive influence we can make on our teenage population. I think so many people see teenagers as rebellious, wild kids who will do what they want regardless of any advice they have been offered. With the TOPs teens, though, most of them participate in the program every single day that they have school — while some of their parents may require them to be there, others are there purely by choice. In their interactions with the TOPs staff, we could see that the kids looked up to them, and in our programs, they were definitely having fun. Not all teenagers are lost causes, and the more we realize this, the better impact we can have on them and our communities.

In light of this learning, in the future, I will be more willing to work with teenagers, because I now see how much we can impact them. Not only that, but as I mentioned above, I wish I had programs like this available to me growing up, so I would like to help today’s teens get accessibility to these types of programs.

- Cortney Sommers

I learned that positive role models are critical to the growth and development of teens. The adults that teens spend a bulk of their time with become their role models, and it is critical that these adults are aware of this fact and use it to be a positive influence on the teens.

I learned the importance of positive role models when I observed the interaction between the site leaders and their respective teens. The teens responded promptly when engaged with their site leaders and I observed them emulating their role models on more than one occasion. The site leaders did an exceptional job as role models for the teens, by encouraging positive respectful behavior, but not stifling the teens from interacting with their environment.

This learning is important because it proves just how critical it is to hire the right person for this job. It is essential that these site leaders realize their job will have an everlasting impact on these teens. Helping these site leaders understand this fact will reiterate the importance of their actions and help them to be aware of the teens tendencies to emulate their actions. Ensuring that site leaders are qualified and positive role models will have a dramatic positive impact on these teens.

In light of this learning, in the future, I will make sure to more closely monitor my own actions around teens that may consider me a role model. I will do my best to be a positive impact on my community by living out values I hope to instill in the teens I interact with. I will also make certain that my peers are aware of the importance of their actions and encourage them to make a positive impression on the teens we interact with.

- Tommy Healy