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THRIVE Director Notes

Posts on this Blog will be directed to help families see what is going on in our THRIVE Program.  Items discussed on the Blog have already occurred.  Please refer to the THRIVE activity calendar or UCM activity calendar to keep updated on what's coming up.  Also, if you want to learn more about assistance with your son/daughter learning how to drive please contact Mr. Brunkhorst.  

Director Notes: 

The softball season starts tonight.  We have a double-header tonight one is at 6 pm and the other is at 7 pm.  Then next Monday we play at 6 pm and then the last game is Monday the 7th at 6 pm.

Students will also be looking at what classes they would like to take.  They will be asked to choose their top 5 classes.  Then staff will look at what fits into their schedule and have some discussions with the students over the next few weeks.

Families we also need your help with next year.  If you haven’t sent me a letter of intent, please have your student do so.  This will help us get ready for next year.  Also, the students will need to fill out the Housing Agreement for next Fall.  It’s in their MyCentral.  If you want us to help them please email us and we can work with them.  

Graduation: We will be sharing some time with our 2nd-year families in the coming weeks pertaining to graduation.  Watch for emails.

First-Year Students:

Foods & Nutrition I: Debra Southard  

This week we discussed the differences between quick breads and yeast breads. Listed some quick breads and why they are called quick! Watched two videos of making blueberry muffins. We covered what “folding” means in a recipe. Friday the first groups make the muffins. Students met on their own to plan the steps needed in a lab. Homework this week was a paper about the function and purpose of each ingredient. 

Who is the muffin man…  A few muffins were made last week…

Debra Southard- In our weekly meetings I have encouraged each student to get a summer job. We have discussed the importance of building their resume and working on job skills. We have also discussed volunteering close to home. 

Workplace & Community Skills: Gary Manning & Mrs. Southard

 Students turned in their resumes and thank-you letters to Dr. Manning. He had tutorials with each student and discussed ways to update and improve them. Students are completing their job shadowing in the next couple of weeks and will have a couple of paragraphs due about the experience.

Further, the student will continue to meet with Dr. Manning to discuss Fall 2025 classes and Fall 2025 internships.  Please have a conversation with your student about these two items. 

Daily & Independent Living Skills (DILS):  Joni Shelton

This past week we had two NearPod lessons. One titled Workplace and Volunteering Behaviors and the 2nd one was Communication with Supervisors and Peers in the Workplace. These interactive lessons provide students with real-life work scenarios in which they can respond with how they would react. We have some great discussions in regard to each scenario.

A little time to study…

Second-Year Students:

Transition Planning II: Gary Manning

 During class, we have been discussing what the next seven weeks will look like until the end of the semester and graduation.  Usually this time of the year the students get stressed. overwhelmed, as,d and excited. We discuss these emotions during class and with the THRIVE counselor in training.  

Further, during class and weekly meetings, the discussions involve what the student is going to be doing after graduation.  If the student is coming back for a third year we are discussing classes in the fall and internships in the fall semester.  If the student is choosing to not come back for the 3rd year program we are discussing applying for jobs and having discussions with families about what may be next.

Internship I: Gary Manning

We had our second Career & Life Design Workshop this week.  The students were working on their resumes.

We have been discussing different types of motivation within a career.  That motivation can be doing something that you love doing, making money, and being independent and responsible.  

We also have been discussing as we get older and have jobs, how we should be able to handle stress and being overwhelmed with your job.  

Personal Finance I:  Lisa Garnier

We are learning about checking accounts and savings accounts. Students learned to read a bank statement, write a check, and reconcile a bank statement. They are all showing a good understanding of this area of personal finance.

Third-Year Students:

Transition Planning IV: Lisa Garnier

We have started our unit on employment! Students are looking at job search sites for employment in their home area. They are also learning to analyze a job description to see if they are qualified for the position and understand the pay, skills, and education requirements.

Internship IV: Lisa Garnier

Students are working on their midterm internship summary papers. They are explaining what they do at their internship, what they are learning, and discussing all aspects of the internship in general.

THRIVE Activities:

Mentor Activities: 

This past weekend Jamee had some students making monkey bread.  It looks like they enjoyed eating them…

Great Job Everyone!!  For more pictures please join our THRIVE Facebook and/or Instagram pages.

Important upcoming dates:   

Next Mentor Activity:  

Lucian and the students have a Game Night set up for this Friday night at 7 pm…

UCM Athletics:

Baseball season is well on its way.  I hope that the weather becomes more spring-like soon.

"This blog is a programming blog written by the director and staff of the THRIVE Program on the University of Central Missouri campus.  This blog doesn't accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. 

The views and ideas expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners.  This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.  We are simply telling you what we plan to do in our program and using the blog to help spread what we are doing on a weekly basis."