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The expansion of the Teen Volunteer Committee to the Teen Volunteer Council came with the need for a new logo. I decided to take on that job, keeping some core ideas in mind. I wanted the logo to symbolize both the volunteering aspect and the ACA logo, so that when you looked at it you knew exactly what it represented (volunteering in ACA!). However, I also wanted to breathe a new life into the logo, and make it clear that it was a committee run by youth. Combining these three aspects proved to be a challenge. While the volunteering part was easy to design, I struggled keeping the format similar to the ACA logo, yet still giving it a modern twist. As part of my assignment, I was told that these two logos would be featured next to each other a lot, and so they needed to look cohesive. As much as the original ACA logo is iconic, it is also very traditional, and so it was an uphill battle to find a way to make the TVC logo look more contemporary. However, I decided to think outside of the box (as youth these days do), literally! During the twentieth time that I stared at the design on my screen blankly, desperately trying to think of something, I noticed that my design was a circle in the middle of a blank square. If I looked outside of the circle… there was so much empty space to be filled up! That’s when I got it– let’s play with the empty space around the logo and add something to spice up the surroundings. What I settled on were these circle, bubble-esque designs that float around the standard logo. I think that the bubbles give the logo a more youthful look and makes it clear that this committee is for teenagers who want to make a change. When you look at the logo, I hope you feel that the Teen Volunteer Council is a group of intelligent and engaged students who are both passionate about volunteering and the ACA cause.

Whether is it through social media or a news app, it is extremely important to keep up with global, national, and local current events. In this day and age, with everything becoming more internet-based, news companies need to adapt to the changing environment. As a result, news has become compact and easy to read for 30-second glances on social media. However, within those 30 seconds of viewing, people do not hesitate to believe the information. People spend hours on social media every day, so it is highly unlikely that they fact-check everything they read. As a result, people will store the information read as true, and are more inclined to further believe more “news”. The issue with the availability and accessibility of news on social media platforms is its ability to spread fake news. Not only is the news personalized, but it is also manipulated. For example, a teenage girl who plays Minecraft will more likely receive news about Minecraft YouTubers and political issues with a left bias. Unless she has expressed discontent with the content received. Think about it this way: Social media, for most people, is a platform they use to relax. Thus, they do not want to see information they do not like. When they have demonstrated their interests, the media platform will then personalize the content given to the user that they like. Because they like the content, they will be more inclined to believe it. So not only are people inclined to believe news, but they are also unaware they are believing fake news. On the contrary, this also means it is easy for people to spread real, important news. Even though news on social media may not always be reliable, it is still important to keep up with the news. Being aware of current events and issues forces people to not live in ignorance. Often, global, national, and local news all impact you, whether minor, major, directly, or indirectly. As a global citizen, it is your moral responsibility to read and learn about the big picture of what is happening in the world and not just what is happening to you.

Communicating Effectively: In order to communicate with others, you must listen to each other, ask questions, think before you speak, and keep it simple.

Problem Solving: To solve a problem, you need to brainstorm solutions, try multiple solutions, and ask for help from others.

Staying Organized: Using online apps on your phone can help you keep things organized. You can also use objects in real life, such as sticky notes.

Managing Your Time: Use planners or online apps to schedule your time wisely. Managing your time will allow you to get more work done in a shorter amount of time and prevent you from rushing to do something last minute.

Budgeting: Making a budget allows you to spend money wisely and not spend too much money on things you don’t need.