Blog 10/17

 

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 UCM activity calendar.

First-Year Students:

Director Notes:

FAFSA becomes available online at fafsa.gov for next year.  I know many of you will wait until current tax information comes out but wanted to let families know.  

Virtual Meetings:

Virtual meetings next week.  This is a good time to ask any questions, we’ll also be discussing what to expect for the Spring semester.  Also, for 2nd-and 3rd-year students, we’ll be looking at what you’ll need to do in the next couple of months.  Please watch for the email invite.

Spring Semester notes:  Will be enrolling soon…

First-Year Students:

Our first-year students have been asked to give 5 classes that they might like to take in the Spring Semester.  Then staff will look over their choices to help narrow it down to the class that fits in their schedule and gets back to the students on the final class options.

Second-Year Students:  Will be enrolling soon…

The second-year students have been asked to give 5 classes that they might like to take in the Spring Semester.  Then staff will look over their choices to help narrow it down to the class that fits in their schedule and gets back to the students on the final class options.  They will also be asked what internships they would like to have in the Spring.  We change their internships each semester so that they will have more experience and gain more skills.  In some instances, if students are in a paid position, we give the students a chance to stay at that internship as long as they can continue to learn new skills to help them in their future.

Spring Roommate Changes…. Maybe maybe not… First- & Second-Year students…

Also, in Late October the first-year students and second-year students are asked about spring roommates.  The students can stay with the same roommate or if they want to switch roommates they can let us know their top 5 roommates and a couple of other questions.  This helps staff look at what roommates want to move and which students don’t.  The staff look over their choices and make the best decision they can.  Any student moves are then done the week after Thanksgiving break.  This helps the students be ready for the Spring semester.  No families are asked to come back to help move.  THRIVE staff helps the students swap rooms and help get with Housing on any paperwork.

Third-Year Students:   Will be enrolling soon…

The third-year students have been asked to give 5 classes that they might like to take in the Spring Semester.  Then staff will look over their choices to help narrow it down to the class that fits in their schedule and gets back to the students on the final class options.  They will also be asked what internships they would like to have in the Spring.  We change their internships each semester so that they will have more experience and gain more skills.  In some instances, if students are in a paid position, we give the students a chance to stay at that internship as long as they can continue to learn new skills to help them in their future.

University Foundations: Debra Southard  

We started the week by saying we were going to “think about our thinking”  We worked on chapter 4 learning styles. Students were able to determine what learning style each student was. We also talked about the things we say to ourselves about our abilities and how that can affect our overall performance. Students are reminded in class every week to complete their weekly point sheet which is always due Thursday morning. A few have a hard time remembering to calculate their totals. Also like all weeks, There was a running to-do list on the board that students can take a picture of to help keep them on track. Friday we went virtual and students met with Mr. Brunkhorst to discuss Homecoming.

Individual Relationships and Health:  Joni Shelton

We have continued discussing Healthy Relationships and Sexuality while talking about Contraceptives, how they work and their effectiveness, and Sexually Transmitted Infections, what they are, and how to prevent them. We finished out the week with presentations from the Warrensburg Area Career Center’s LPN program students. These students presented a lesson on Hygiene, focusing on proper hand washing and overall cleanliness.

Visit from the WACC nursing department:

Technology Literacy:  Victoria O’Reilly

Tech students get to breathe a huge sigh of relief because they have officially covered the basics of school technology. Their Midterm Presentations showcased a mastery level for using and creating Google Slides. As we begin the second half of the semester, they get to deep dive into more advanced technology skills as well as really continue to perfect their already stellar basic technology skills. We are all looking forward to the last few weeks of this course! If you’re reading this, I challenge you to send your student/child/grandchild in the THRIVE program an email letting them know how PROUD you are of them and their success thus far this semester. Emails full of affirmation can really put a smile on someone’s face! 

Students from Mrs. O’Reilly’s class after their midterm presentations…

Career Exploration: Gary Manning

Last week the students will discuss some of what they learned from their last assessment of this semester from Missouri Connections.  The hope is the students have been able to find other job possibilities and interests.  They will also start to think about their resume.  Over the next few weeks, they will work on different parts of their resume, to add to their portfolio.

 Second-Year Students:

Transition Planning I: Gary Manning

We have been discussing a lot about relationships and how to communicate in a relationship.  A relationship can be with your family, friends, roommates, boyfriend/girlfriend, classmates and co-workers.  Each relationship will be different and how you may communicate within that relationship.  The students are working on being a self-advocate within a relationship but doing this self-advocacy in a respectful manner.  

Internship I: Gary Manning

We are working on resumes and cover letters.  The students are turning in their rough draft this week.  Further, the students continue to discuss internships for the spring semester.  By the time semester ends the students should know where their spring internship will be.   

Personal Finance I: Lisa Garnier

We’ve started our unit on budgeting and have been reviewing some basic budgeting concepts. Topics have included what a budget is, how budgets work, and why it’s important to have a budget. 

Third-Year Students:

Transition Planning III: Lisa Garnier

We are discussing how work can be a mix of positive and negative experiences and what can be done to have more positive experiences. Students are tracking their everyday activities (work, classes, homework, recreational activities) and rating how engaged they are when doing those things and how those things affect their energy levels (positively or negatively). The goal is for them to discover what really engages them and energizes them, so they can make changes to improve their day-to-day experiences.

Internship III: Lisa Garnier

We’re beginning to look at internship options and class options for the spring semester. Our meetings this week and next will focus on the classes and internship preferences they have provided me to help narrow down the schedules for the Spring. If your student hasn’t spoken with you about Spring classes & Internships, they should be doing so within the next week.

Foods and Nutrition: Debra Southard

This week we prepared to make homemade biscuits. We watched a video that showed some helpful hints and we read through a biscuit recipe. Students were asked to take notes and be more prepared for class than in the past. Great job getting your Food Handlers Licenses. They are good for 2 years.

Looks like more cooks in the kitchen…

Plato: Debra Southard:

First and second-year students had new plato diagnostics in reading, writing, and math. This will create learning paths for each student adapted to each student's abilities. Also this week each student was to select two topics of interest to work on weekly in plato. The topics are too many to list but they range from astronomy to restaurant management to veterinary science. I have talked to some students they tell me they are enjoying the topics they selected. That were their words!

THRIVE Activities: 

THRIVE Open House: Our fall open house went well.  We had over 100 individuals come to see what THRIVE was all about.  Here are some pictures of students that were able to attend.

Sorry, I forgot to post pictures last week of lasagna making…  Here are some pictures from it…  Looks good.

Mentor Activities: This last weekend we had UCM’s Homecoming.  Here are some of the pictures from our Facebook Page.

Spirit Window: The following students helped decorate the Spirit Window.  Hailey, Benny, Josie, David, Jake, Shayla, Jessica, and Connor S.  Great job everyone.  The mentors, Paige and Katelyn helped with the design and the others helped get it finished up.  Great Job!  Everyone!!

We also had five students participate in the Bowling Team Competition.  

We also had a few sign up to be blood donors… not a very popular one but it’s needed.  Sorry, no pictures…

There will be more on Facebook soon.

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

Important upcoming dates: 

Next Mentor Activity:  Next weekend Lucas will have a campfire with smores.  

UCM Athletics:

There are lots more pictures on our Facebook page.  

There are also three other activities that students said they’d be interested in that are on the back counter.  Badminton, 3 on 3 Basketball, and Pickleball Tournament.  I’ll update you as they get closer to the time.

"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."