First Blog of 2025/26

 

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.  To keep updated on what’s coming up, please refer to the THRIVE activity calendar or the UCM activity calendar.  Also, if you are interested in learning more about assistance with your son/daughter learning how to drive, please contact Mr. Brunkhorst.  

Director Notes:

Overall, all students have done a great job.   All students made it to their classes, some might have been a tad late...  I’ve been impressed with the work that students are doing and the number of students who are already trying to find places to study and asking for help.  It’s been a great start to the year.  We wanted to remind the families that if you hear something from your son/daughter that concerns you, please let your student’s teacher know.  Mrs. Shelton for First-Year students, Dr. Manning for Second-Year students, and Mrs. Garnier for 3rd and 4th Year students.  We have had several conversations with the students about where to go in the dorms and during the day.  It can take some time to get everyone to understand where to go for assistance. 

Rec Leagues are starting up soon. We’ve put up some sign-up sheets for the students earlier this week. One of them is softball. So please remind your students to bring their ball gloves back with them from the Labor Day holiday on Monday. Also, we won’t have Sunday study hall this coming weekend, but we will have Monday night study hall. Please talk to your son/daughter if you are planning on bringing them home this holiday weekend.

Lots of Early Move-in Shots.  More on Facebook…

First-Year Students:

University Foundations: Joni Shelton

Woo Hoo! We made it through the first week, and it flew by. The students even noticed that. Some were telling me this morning that the week went by fast. I always believe that we are keeping busy and doing good things when time passes by quickly. In class, we have spent our time together learning about college life, reviewing the syllabus for the class, discussing class and UCM policies, and discussing using our calendars and managing our time. This coming week, we will be discussing plagiarism, accountability, Points sheets, the THRIVE store, and more about being involved on campus.

Individual Relationships and Health:  Sandra Swainston

Students went through the syllabus and discussed basic relationships and friendships during the first week of class.

Technology Literacy:  Lisa Garnier

We had a busy week learning about Brightspace. We learned how to use discussion boards and submit assignments, and then we practiced these skills. We also learned about email etiquette and to always use the UCM email for campus communication. 

Career Exploration: Gary Manning

This week, the students found out what they will do over the course of the semester. They also filled out information on their lives so far, which will help them learn more about their skills and abilities as we go through this course. They also learned about a collaborative effort with a group of Special Education students in my Transition Class. Students will be paired with one of these students to do career assessments as part of the class.

Second-Year Students:

Transition Planning I: Gary Manning

Hello and Good Morning!  This week has been a lot about the introduction of the class and what to expect.  We will be using the book “7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens” by Sean Covey.  The students' first assignment in this book was assigned to them.  

We discussed having three goals for the semester.  The students have to develop three goals for themselves.  The goals can be related to school or something personal.  

Internship I: Gary Manning

The students are meeting with their supervisors and starting their internships this week and next week. This can be a slow process at times. Some of the locations where the students are interning are trying to finalize schedules and provide professional development for their employees. 

Foods & Nutrition II: Mrs.Shelton

We are off and running this week. We spent some time previewing the syllabus and class schedule. We also reviewed hand and dish washing and discussed kitchen safety and first aid for burns and fires. This coming week, we will discuss proper food handling, storage, and cooking temperatures, as well as reading and following recipes.

Third-Year Students:

Transition Planning III: Lisa Garnier

We reviewed the course's contents and study techniques. Time management was also covered, with the students creating their Google calendars to share with me and doing a time analysis.

Internship III: Lisa Garnier

Students are beginning their internships this week and next week. We look forward to a successful semester.

Foods and Nutrition III: Mrs. Garnier

We reviewed basic nutrients and discussed what the semester is going to look like.

Plato: Joni Shelton

Students have all been working hard in Plato. This year, students will be working on Math, Reading, and Writing in Plato. The first week was a slow start as the first-year students were learning about Plato and how to log in. Also, I am new to Plato, so there was a slow start due to the way I had the diagnostics set up. Last week, the students were starting diagnostic assessments. These reports will tell us at what grade level each student is in Math, Reading, and Writing. Moving forward, students will have to work for 1 hour in Math, 1 hour in Reading, and an hour in Language Arts each week. Lessons are generated by the system based on the student's grade level. 

THRIVE/Mentor Activities:

The mentor activity was a Movie Night on the lawn.

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

Important upcoming dates: 

We’ve sent out a Google Form to the students asking what intramural activities they are interested in. Then, I’ll have sign-up sheets in the new THRIVE lobby for students to sign up for the events.  

Next Mentor Activity:  

Breakfast Burritos with Jamee  

UCM Athletics:

Football, Soccer, and Volleyball are starting soon.  The games are on your son/daughter’s THRIVE Activities Calendar on Google.

Get the Red Out- Street Fair before the first game, Thursday, September 11th 

Family Weekend - THRIVE Meet n Greet is scheduled for 9:00-11 on September 27th…  This is a time to meet the teachers and then help with our THRIVE Float for Homecoming.  The mentors will have things set up so that the families and students can help paint the float.  Then there is a home football game, UCM will play Missouri Southern at 1 pm.  It’s a fun time to see how your son/daughter is doing and enjoy the game. 

"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."