Alumni Diaries # 5: Meg Walker
Every semester at College for Social Innovation, we receive invaluable support from our SITC alumni we hire as ambassadors of our program. In addition to their coursework, these amazing individuals help us with recruitment efforts on their campuses, share their SITC experiences with classmates, and help us find the next generation of problem-solvers for future semesters.
This past semester, we reached out to our ambassadors asking them to help us share their Semester in the City stories; the following blog post was written by Meg Walker who was a part of our Fall 2019 Cohort and was a Student Fellow at Play Works New England. Meg is a senior at Wheaton College. This is her Semester in the City experience, in her own words.
My experience with Semester in the City feels like a lifetime ago, but the skills I gained remain present in my academic and professional life. I was initially drawn to the program because of the equitable opportunities for students in college to benefit from experiential learning while living in Boston. I was anxious to leave Wheaton in the fall of my sophomore year because I hadn’t gotten involved with many extracurriculars on campus. But I knew I would thrive in a city and decided that this was the best way to further my education.
I was placed with Playworks by the CFSI staff, who do their best to match students with an internship that suits their interests. I am studying psychology and education, so my placement with Playworks was fitting because of their goal to focus on the social and emotional well-being of students during recess.
Outside of my internship and classes, Boston was my playground. I loved my time living in the city. I joined without knowing anyone else in the program, but I quickly became friends with so many supportive people! It was refreshing to be a part of a cohort who was doing the same thing as me every day. It made leaving the apartment each day not feel as scary because I knew that we were all facing similar challenges. Commuting daily humanized my view of the world. Working in an elementary school helped me narrow down the educational issues I want to advocate for after college. I was also able to affirm my passion for working with children.
My mentors also had an impact on my experience. One of my mentors gave me a lot of advice when I was working through the roadblocks of my special project. He suggested taking the initiative while working with faculty and staff at my internship. His honest advice helped me overcome the anxiety I felt navigating a new school environment. My other mentor gave me sincere advice about how to handle student conflicts and encouraged me to assert my confidence around students when making decisions.
After Semester in the City, I felt self-assured about my unique approach to cultivating a student’s respect and was able to land another internship the following summer teaching students. Returning to Wheaton after the program, I participated more in my classes and I found myself in numerous leadership positions on campus. I even continued my work with Semester in the City as a Student Ambassador. This opportunity will always have a positive impact on not only my college years, but my life after graduation. I am now more equipped than ever to enter the working world when I graduate this spring.