Ensworth High School Service Scholars: 2022 Research & Reflections

ENSWORTH

SERVICE SCHOLARS 2022 Research & Reflections Publication

SERVICE SCHOLARS RESEARCH AND REFLECTION PUBLICATION ENSWORTH SCHOOL NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE SPRING 2022

MARY CATHERINE BRADSHAW Service Scholar Director Publication Editor

BETSY THOMAS Service Learning Coordinator

Cover art: Sara Alea Benchekroun Clark ‘22 Columbia University Medical Center Rheumatology informational pamphlet illustrations “I drew this digital drawing as part of a poster explaining the benefits of exercise for patients with rheumatological conditions. Exercise is proven to alleviate some of the symptoms for patients with these conditions, and even doing a bit of light exercise each day is enough to vastly improve the quality of life for people struggling with these diseases.”

TABLE OF CONTENTS 2022 SERVICE SCHOLARS.....................................................................................................4 SERVICE SCHOLAR REQUIREMENTS........................................................................5 ACKNOWLEDGMENT & SPECIAL THANKS............................................................5 RESEARCH ESSAYS & REFLECTIONS: Edie Bass.................................................................................................................................................6 Anna Brock..........................................................................................................................................13 Alea Clark.............................................................................................................................................18 Oliver Crawford............................................................................................................................... 24 Katherine Dagley............................................................................................................................ 29 Harper Dale....................................................................................................................................... 33 Sofia DeAngelis................................................................................................................................. 39 Catherine Duvall............................................................................................................................. 45 Gray Fleetwood................................................................................................................................ 50 Maeve Glattes.................................................................................................................................... 56 Sam Horn............................................................................................................................................ 63 Anna Jackson.................................................................................................................................... 68 Nhi-Ha Le............................................................................................................................................ 73 Spencer Linn...................................................................................................................................... 80 Ellie Mahlendorf.............................................................................................................................. 85 Vivian Morrow..................................................................................................................................91 Gracie Pulliam................................................................................................................................. 97 Lara Rogers...................................................................................................................................... 102 Genevieve Schaefer...................................................................................................................... 107 Douglas Weinstein........................................................................................................................113 Nora Wheliss....................................................................................................................................119 Marshall Wilt.................................................................................................................................. 123 NON-PUBLISHED SERVICE SCHOLARS & RESEARCH TOPICS .....................128 EDITOR’S NOTE ............................................................................................................................129

2022 ENSWORTH SERVICE SCHOLARS EMMA ARMISTEAD Agency: Second Harvest Food Bank Advisor: Corey Donohoe

GRAY FLEETWOOD* Agency: Faithfully Restored Advisor: Cati Blitz

EDIE BASS* Agency: Halo Missions Advisor: Julie Riggar

IZZE GILL Agency: Spreading Sunshine Advisor: Corey Donohoe

ANNA BROCK* Agency: Ensworth Dance Marathon Advisor: Julie Riggar ALEA CLARK* Agency: NewYorkPresbyterian Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Rheumatology and Neurology departments Advisor: Matt Kaminski BELLA CHADWICK Agency: Thistle Farms Advisor: Jim Aveni OLIVER CRAWFORD* Agency: Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee Advisor: Kevin McGee KATHERINE DAGLEY* Agency: Smithsonian Research Institute Advisor: Ashley Glotta HARPER DALE* Agency: Spreading Sunshine Advisor: Jim Aveni SOFIA DeANGELIS* Agency: The Nashville Public Library Advisor: Matt Kaminski LILI DELLINGER Agency: My First Books (Books for Haiti) Advisor: Jeff Scott CATHERINE DUVALL* Agency: Time to Rise Advisor: Corey Donohoe LANIE DYKE Agency: Dance Marathon/ Children’s Miracle Network Advisor: Cati Blitz

MAEVE GLATTES* Agency: Global Volunteers Advisor: Julie Riggar BRADY GOGUEN Agency: The Store Advisor: Matt Kaminski SCOUT HALLIGAN Agency: Safe Haven Family Shelter Advisor: Julie Riggar

EMMA OEHLRICH Agency: Saint Matthews Advisor: Corey Yates GRACIE PULLIAM* Agency: Retrieving Independence Advisor: Corey Yates LARA ROGERS* Agency: National Multiple Sclerosis Society Advisor: Matt Kaminski GENEVIEVE SCHAEFER* Agency: Global Volunteers (Blackfeet Reservation) Advisor: Gary Pope

ANNA JACKSON* Agency: Nashville Dolphins Advisor: Jim Aveni

MH WALL Agency: Preston Taylor Ministries Elementary Daycare Relay For Life for the American Cancer Society Dance Marathon for Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital Advisor: Kevin McGee

AMELIA LAFFER Agency: Nashville Humane Association Advisor: Kevin McGee

DOUGLAS WEINSTEIN* Agency: Walk Bike Nashville Advisor: Corey Donohoe

NHI-HA LE* Agency: Turnip Green Creative Reuse Advisor: Ashley Glotta

NORA WHELISS* Agency: Preston Taylor Ministries, Nashville Dolphins, Westminister Presbyterian Church Advisor: Corey Yates

SAM HORN* Agency: Time to Rise Advisor: Corey Donohoe

SPENCER LINN* Agency: Appalachian Service Project Advisor: Kevin McGee ELLIE MAHLENDORF* Agency: Nations Ministry Center Advisor: Jim Aveni

MARSHALL WILT* Agency: First Presbyterian Church Advisor: Corey Yates

SOPHIA MCFERRIN Agency: Saint Matthews Advisor: Ashley Glotta VIVIAN MORROW* Agency: Eden House (New Orleans), Thistle Farms (Nashville) Advisor: Jeff Scott * Indicates Published Service Scholar

-4-

SERVICE SCHOLAR REQUIREMENTS Service Scholar: The Service Learning Program is a curricular component of Community Life that promotes participation in the life of the community beyond the school. Its full description can be found in the high school Curriculum Guide. A Service Scholar engages in an extension of his/her senior Service Learning project. The extension consists of an academic component as well as additional service hours. Service Scholars exercise and incorporate the Core Skills that they have learned in their classes and apply them to their senior service-learning experiences.

Service Scholars complete at least 35 hours of service on their Grade 12 projects, which is beyond the graduation requirement. They spend additional time collecting artifacts, researching and composing a paper that provides insight into the issues relevant to their project. The paper is a minimum of 2000 words and must reflect the quality and depth expected of Grade 12 level academic research in order to pass. In addition, Service Scholars write a 500-word reflection analyzing their personal experience with the project related to learning outcomes, although these pages are not counted toward the 2000 word total. As a graduation requirement, Service Scholars and all seniors present their service learning insights and experiences to an audience at school in April before graduation. The proposed academic component of the project must lie within the general purview of the high school academic program.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT Each candidate has had the option to revise either, neither, or both of their written pieces for this publication. All Ensworth students are to be commended for their service learning efforts, and the students who have chosen this publication opportunity should be recognized for using their talents to the fullest, being contributors to society, and exercising their intellectual vitality. These published Service Scholars have received no academic class credit, nor was publication required to become a Service Scholar. The academic research done by Service Scholars is an independent project designed and managed by the individual students in consultation with the Service Scholar Director.

These students should be celebrated for their initiative, their commitment, and their scholarship.

WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO: Lynn Vincent & Betsy Thomas Our Non-Profit Partners Advisors, Teachers, and Administrators

-5-

Essay: Edie Bass

ESSAY: EDIE BASS HALO MISSIONS RESEARCH

The agency I decided to work with is Halo Missions, “a non-profit, vocational rehabilitation service located here in Nashville, Tennessee, [where] women in different stages of addiction recovery are taught how to handcraft jewelry made from recycled and reused guitar strings as a form of art therapy” (HALO Missions).

Halo Missions addresses addiction as a whole, but more specifically in women. Halo Missions addresses addiction and sustainability in efforts to decrease the carbon footprint of themselves and others. Preceding my work with Halo Missions, I had several research questions I wanted to answer regarding addiction and sustainability, locally and nationally.

What are the primary causes of addiction?

Before working with those in addiction, I felt I had to understand the causes of addiction to become educated before discussing addiction. In addition, I wanted to be sensitive to what I was speaking about with the women as we discussed our stories, whether it be our own or something experienced with someone we know. There is no single cause of addiction. It is vital to acknowledge that several different factors cause addiction to understand addiction. Through my research, I have determined three primary causes of addiction; genetics, our environment, and the brain and body.

The Nature vs. Nurture debate is highly relevant to understanding addiction as well.

The atmosphere in which people are raised affects mental health and physical wellbeing. Therefore, the reasoning for someone’s addiction can be explained by what they have experienced and/or the environment they were raised in. For example, if drug and/or substance abuse is common in a home, it becomes normalized. The socalled “positive” effects can be observed from a child’s perspective, such as euphoria, partying, and having fun. In turn, the child’s brain creates a link between happiness and substance use, giving an incentive to mimic the behavior(The Dawn).

Next, the brain and body play a vital role in the disease of addiction, specifically regarding dopamine. This neurotransmitter signals happiness to your brain and tells it to be repeated. Eating, shopping, and being with loved ones all trigger dopamine release due to the pleasure it brings. Drugs and alcohol similarly release dopamine.

However, it is unnatural. When an individual continues to take a drug, the brain becomes overwhelmed with dopamine surges and, in turn, starts producing less of it on its own. At this point, physical dependence becomes present. This occurs when users have overridden their natural dopamine factory and now need to continue drinking alcohol to produce dopamine.

Regrding staying hooked on a drug, withdrawal is another bodily effect of drug use. It is the body’s way of communicating that drugs and alcohol are needed for survival which is entirely untrue. Withdrawal occurs differently in everybody, which I will discuss later. (The Dawn).

-6-

Essay: Edie Bass

The link between genetics and addiction remains a topic of robust debate. Reports have found that 40% to 60% of predisposition to addiction results from genetics. The children of individuals who suffer from addiction have a 25% greater likelihood of developing habits than children of non-addicted parents. (The Dawn). Having extreme addictions in my family makes it scary to know I am 25% more susceptible to becoming addicted to something myself. However, I have learned loads of information regarding addiction through Ensworth seminar courses, and I believe my Ensworth curriculum has set me up to avoid becoming addicted to something. Furthermore, beyond genetics, gender plays a role in determining the likeness of addiction.

How does addiction differ between men and women?

Of course, Halo Missions supports all people in their recoveries; however, they have generally focused more on women. While men usually have been found to have higher addiction rates than women, a recent study presented by the American Psychological Association suggests other vital differences worth investigating.

Women begin substance use at smaller dosages than men usually do. However, their drug use escalates into addiction much more rapidly than men’s. (The Dawn). For most age groups, men have higher use or dependence on illicit drugs and alcohol than women. However, women are just as likely as men to develop a substance use disorder. In addition, women may be more susceptible to craving and relapse, which are key phases of the addiction cycle. (NIDA) What are the challenges faced by those in recovery?

While speaking with the women involved in the Halo Missions program, I learned about the daily challenges faced as addicts. I’ve learned that completing a drug and alcohol rehab program and entering society as a new, sober individual is extremely difficult. Understanding the common challenges of those in recovery provided a clearer insight into a life in recovery and how rehabilitation programs are designed to address these issues.

When speaking with women about their recovery, the main challenges I heard were developing new coping strategies, building new relationships and repairing old ones, relapsing, and finding purpose. Becoming sober is much more than not using drugs and alcohol. It’s about creating a new lifestyle fit for your recovery. Before recovery, substance abuse acts as a central coping mechanism for stress and anxiety.

In rehab, addicts must learn to develop new coping strategies to deal with the anxiety and cravings. People in recovery are often challenged to deal with trauma and shame without addictive substances. The addicts establish a new sense of normalcy that is challenging and time-consuming (NOVA). Another challenge faced by the women I spoke with is having relationships that provide love, friendship, support, and hope for the future. Often addiction can be destructive of relationships. It was in my life.

While in rehab, those in recovery are asked to make amends with loved ones hurt while actively abusing drugs and alcohol (NOVA). The third challenge that was often brought up in discussion was relapse. When someone completes a recovery program,

-7-

Essay: Edie Bass

many people think that their journey is complete. However, the success of recovery is lifelong and the battle is never ending. Relapse is one of the biggest challenges many addicts in recovery face during and after rehab. Anxiety, cravings, stress, and old acquaintances are all a threat to recovery success (NOVA). Approximately 40% to 60% of addicts inevitably relapse so it’s fairly common. These numbers do not represent the group of individuals who have completed rehab, it also represents the group of people who are still in recovery. A final challenge commonly heard when speaking to women in recovery is the challenge of discovering a purpose in life. After drug and alcohol rehab, it is found that many people lack purpose. The harsh reality is that before rehab, drugs and alcohol are an addict’s life. One way that rehab addresses this is by introducing them to new hobbies such as meditation, yoga, music and art (NOVA). Halo Missions directly addresses this challenge by providing a form of art therapy to those in recovery.

Women create various types of jewelry to address this challenge.

How does art act as a form of therapy?

The area in the brain that is responsible for processing emotions is called the amygdala. In addition, the amygdala also processes imagery as well as sensory input. When humans become overwhelmed, sleep, appetite, relationships, learning, motivation and productivity can also be affected. Humans also tend to avoid their emotions when becoming overwhelmed. Attempts to avoid negative emotions can result in maladaptive behaviors and coping strategies, for example, substance abuse can impede personal success and quality of life. Since the emotions as well as sensory input occur in the amygdala, the latter two can be leveraged to help better understand their emotions as well as support their ability to regulate them. As individuals become more effective and confident in regulating emotions, overwhelmness decreases. The urge to avoid negative emotions also decreases. This, in turn, decreases reliance on maladaptive behaviors and coping strategies such as substance abuse, decreasing the likeliness of addiction (Ayotte).

Art therapy not only helps with addiction. It also helps with ADD, ADHD, Autism, Learning Disorders, Depression, Anxiety, Relationship Issues, Trauma/PTSD, Mental Illness, Alzheimers, Dementia, Transitions, Divorce, Grief, Spirituality, and LGBTQ support (Ayotte). By learning about art therapy, I have tried to implement hands-on type activities in my own life to ease stress. When I was stressed, I worked on making jewelry for Halo Missions. Everything about it just felt good. I was expressing myself through creating jewelry while also benefiting more than myself.

It was something I was passionate about. After my time with them, I have continued to embroider, which I haven’t done since seventh grade. Overall, it has benefited my mental health. Anyone who experiences stress, pain, etc. can use this practice. Since everyone does experience these things, art therapy can be beneficial to everyone.

What are other ways people can reduce their carbon footprint if they are not interested in making jewelry, or want to decrease their carbon footprint even more?

Like said before, Halo Missions addresses the issue of sustainability by hand making jewelry, ultimately decreasing their carbon footprint if the jewelry were to have been produced in a factory. In order to understand the ways to decrease a carbon footprint, it is important to address what is a carbon footprint.

-8-

Essay: Essay: Edie Bass

Greenhouse gasses are emitted through the production of consumption of goods and services. Carbon footprint is a concept used to quantify the impact of an activity, a person, or a country on climate change. So what, you may be asking yourself. The world’s seven billion people consume varying amounts of the planet’s resources.

According to the United Nations predictions, the global population could reach 9.7 billion people by 2050, and over 11 billion by 2100. Growing populations drive up emissions, depleting the planet’s resources. Increased greenhouse gas emissions have a direct impact on global warming. It accelerates climate change with disastrous effects on the planet. Everyone present on earth is able, and should contribute to fighting global warming by making climate-friendly choices in their daily lives (Hermant). Small changes can make an extreme difference in the long run.

When it comes to food, you can consume local and seasonal products, limit meat consumption, bring reusable shopping bags when shopping and make sure you only buy what you need in order to avoid waste. Regarding clothing, taking good care of your clothes, buying second hand, and buying responsibly made clothes e.g. made from recycled material or with an eco-label can also decrease one’s carbon footprint.

Transportation wise, your carbon footprint can be decreased by cycling, using public transportation, and being conscious of how often you drive. Finally, it is possible to decrease your carbon footprint regarding energy consumption and waste. Even just turning down the heat in your house by one degree will already make a difference.

Limiting water consumption by taking short showers, and turning off the water while brushing your teeth or cleaning dishes also helps. (Hermant). At the end of the day, there is something for everyone and everyone is capable of decreasing their carbon footprint and making an environmental impact.

How is the United States working to decrease global warming?

President Biden has announced that the United States is working towards decreasing net greenhouse gas pollution by approximately fifty percent from 2005 to 2030. On day one, Biden fulfilled his promise by rejoining the Paris Agreement and set a course for the United States to tackle the climate crisis, not only at home but also abroad, reaching net-zero emissions economy wide by no later than 2050.

As part of re-entering the Paris Agreement, Biden has also launched a whole-ofgovernment process, organized through his National Climate Task Force, to establish this new 2030 emissions target – known as the “nationally determined contribution” or “NDC,” a formal submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (White House). This just acts as one of the many ways the United States is addressing climate change.

How is the Halo Missions product specialized for those in Nashville, Tennessee?

Halo Missions not only supports women in their recovery process but does so in a sustainable and eco-responsible way (Halo Missions). Each of the guitar strings used to craft rings, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings are donated by artists, guitar shops, and other donors. If these guitar strings weren’t donated, they would go into

-9-

Essay: Edie Bass

the garbage and be taken to a landfill. Instead, Halo Missions can transform used guitar strings into beautiful pieces of jewelry. Since the jewelry created is handmade in the homes of women in the program, the carbon footprint of Halo Missions is significantly smaller than if they were to operate a factory where the jewelry was being made by machines using the materials.

With all this being said, Nashville is one of the best locations for Halo Missions to thrive. Over the last couple of years, Nashville’s music scene has elevated itself into international recognition due to the music business’s density and creative guitar pickers. The music industry lives in Nashville; it’s not called music city for a reason.

(The Record) Therefore, creating a guitar string jewelry business in Nashville is genius because there will be many more donors and many more sources of what makes the product—recycled guitar strings.

I have learned that although it may not be the same way, everyone can make a difference. I made a difference by creating the jewelry and spreading my knowledge to others. However, I was also able to make a difference remotely, which has reassured me that I am capable of much more than I thought I was and broadened the knowledge of my abilities. I also have been more conscious of being sustainable.

Hearing about the goals of Halo Missions has inspired me to pursue environmental science regarding sustainability. Finally, through speaking to those who have faced addiction in their lives, I have been able to further my understanding of those around me facing similar challenges. By gaining a greater understanding, I have strengthened my relationships with these individuals, learning to be sensitive to their challenges.

WORKS CITED Ayote, Melissa. “Art Therapy: How It Works.” Sams Fans, 20 Sept. 2018, samsfans.org/arttherapy-how-it-works/#:~:text=An%20art%20therapist%20uses%20art,narrative%20 around%20an%20overwhelming%20experience. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

“FACT SHEET: President Biden Sets 2030 Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Target Aimed at Creating Good-Paying Union Jobs and Securing U.S. Leadership on Clean Energy Technologies.” The White House, 22 Apr. 2021, www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/ statements-releases/2021/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-sets-2030-greenhouse-gaspollution-reduction-target-aimed-at-creating-good-paying-union-jobs-and-securing-u-sleadership-on-clean-energy-technologies/#:~:text=The%20United%20States%20can%20 reduce,forward%20very%20low%20carbon%20new%2D. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

“4 Major Causes of Addiction: Beyond the Three-Factor Model.” The Dawn, 9 Oct. 2017, thedawnrehab.com/blog/major-causes-of-addiction/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Hermant, Bernard. “How to reduce my carbon footprint?” European Union, 9 July 2021, europa. eu/youth/get-involved/sustainable-development/how-reduce-my-carbon-footprint_en.

Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

The Record. therecordshopnashville.com/artists-move-nashville-now/. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

Sex and Gender Differences in Substance Abuse. 13 Apr. 2021, nida.nih.gov/publications/ research-reports/substance-use-in-women/sex-gender-differences-in-substanceuse#:~:text=For%20most%20age%20groups%2C%20men,and%20alcohol%20than%20 do%20women.&text=However%2C%20women%20are%20just%20as,develop%20a%20 substance%20use%20disorder.&text=In%20addition%2C%20women%20may%20 be,phases%20of%20the%20addiction%20cycle. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

Sheets, Hannah. “7 Common Challenges People Face in Addiction Recovery.” NOVA Recovery Center, 2 Mar. 2018, novarecoverycenter.com/recovery/7-common-challenges-people-faceaddiction-recovery/. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

- 10 -

Reflection: Edie Essay: Bass

Thorbjorsen, Kristen, editor. HALO Missions. 2015, www.halomissions.com/#/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

TPOT. “How Common is Relapse After Rehab, and How Can It Be Avoided?” Turning Point of Tampa, 4 Nov. 2019, www.tpoftampa.com/how-common-is-relapse-after-rehab-and-howcan-it-be-avoided/. Accessed 24 Feb. 2022.

REFLECTION: EDIE BASS HALO MISSIONS REFLECTION When given the opportunity at Ensworth to be a service scholar, I knew exactly what agency I wanted to work with. My sister Polly, an alumni at Ensworth, had been working for an agency called Halo Missions when I was deciding where I wanted to volunteer. “Halo Missions is a non-profit, vocational rehabilitation service located here in Nashville, Tennessee [where] women in different stages of addiction recovery are taught how to handcraft jewelry made from recycled and reused guitar strings as a form of art therapy” (HALO Missions). The HALO, in the name, stands for Helping And Leading Others. While also considering many different agencies, at the end of the day, I chose Halo Missions because they address multiple issues I am passionate about. The first issue Halo Missions addresses is addiction which is extremely heavy in my family. I have always been interested in the causes, in addition to the effects of addiction, for this very reason. Halo Missions also addresses issues regarding sustainability. They “not only support women during their recovery process but do so in a sustainable and eco-responsible way” (HALO Missions). There were several other reasons I decided to work with Halo Missions that go beyond the issues they address. I have always believed in women supporting women.

I supported and empowered women and addressed problems like addiction and lack of sustainability while creating a beautiful product to wear and/or sell as a representation.

While working with Halo Missions, I created jewelry, taught ring-making classes, and photographed and filmed content for Halo Missions social media such as Tik-Tok, Instagram, and Facebook. I met with Kristen Thorbjerson, president of Halo Missions and my mentor in this process to start my journey. She taught me how to create rings, bracelets, and earrings from recycled guitar strings. Once I was comfortable, I taught others how to make the same items. The primary location for classes was Nashville Farmers Market.

Still, we also met in several other areas, thanks to Airbnb Experiences. After many months of creating and teaching how to make jewelry, COVID-19 put that to a halt and classes were stopped. After only having roughly twenty hours, I had to find a way to complete the rest of my service hours and follow through with my initial promise to Kristen. We brainstormed and decided that I could continue spreading awareness in other ways besides classes. We decided I could manage all HALO missions. With this being my position, I shot and edited photos of the jewelry and created meaningful captions to accompany them.

I have loved working with Halo Missions every second, but it had its challenges. The first challenge faced was the challenge of actually finding time to learn how to create the

- 11 -

Reflection: Edie Bass Essay:

jewelry. Kristen is an extremely busy woman having kids of her own and running a company. I am an extremely busy teenager just trying to make it through high school.

Before meeting for the first time, we had planned six times to meet, and each time the plans fell through whether it was something on my end or hers. I would recommend that those who want to do service scholar start as early as possible, probably in the summer months, because senior year is hectic. COVID-19 played a role in why we had trouble meeting. In addition, I had to switch my original plan from creating the jewelry to managing the social media. Although I post on Instagram, I rarely use Tik-Tok, and never Facebook, and now I had to learn while marketing a product. At first, I was doubtful of myself, but I found out a lot about myself while running the socials. While facing these challenges, I have learned several things about myself and the world around me.

First, I discovered I’m a lot more creative than I thought, and I enjoy being creative.

I was able to transform the socials of Halo Missions, putting meaning into the captions I wrote while making the Instagram, Facebook, and Tik-Tok feed aesthetically pleasing, driving in more followers. Keeping with the idea of creativity, I have always thought that drawing, embroidery, ceramics, etc., are therapeutic. However, I have never thought about using these things as therapy for myself. This has been a challenging year because I honestly believe I’ve put too much on my plate. By using what I have learned at Halo Missions, I have begun to use forms of expression in my own life to ease the stress. When I was stressed, I worked on making jewelry for Halo Missions.

Everything about it just felt good. I was expressing myself through creating jewelry while also benefiting more than myself. It was something I was passionate about.

After my time with them, I have continued to embroider, which I haven’t done since seventh grade. Overall, it has benefited my mental health. I wish to continue making jewelry for Halo Missions once classes open up again. I have also learned it’s essential to use the resources around you. When looking for an agency, I used my sister as a connection, using my resources. This ultimately made the search for an agency much more manageable. I felt more comfortable getting started since we shared common contact. Next, I learned that spreading awareness is extremely difficult.

Through my conversations with Kristen, I have been able to hear about her journey to spread awareness and spread followers on her socials. Kristen has worked extremely hard to get to where she is today with her business, and I will continue trying to be even half the woman she is. Finally, I have learned that although it may not be the same way, everyone can make a difference. I made a difference in person by creating the jewelry and spreading my knowledge to others. However, I was also able to make a difference remotely, which has reassured me that I am capable of much more than I thought I was and broadened the knowledge of my abilities. I also have been more conscious of being sustainable. Hearing about the goals of Halo Missions has inspired me to pursue environmental science regarding sustainability. Finally, through speaking to those who have faced addiction in their lives, I have been able to further my understanding of those around me facing similar challenges. By gaining a greater understanding, I have strengthened my relationships with these individuals, learning how to be sensitive to their challenges.

- 12 -

Essay: Anna Brock

ESSAY: ANNA BROCK ENSWORTH DANCE MARATHON Growing up in a household surrounded by doctors and nurses, I have always wanted to submerge myself into the hospital community and be as beneficial to my community as I think my family has. Even though I have not wanted to be a doctor, I knew there would be a way I could get involved. When I was a freshman in high school, one of my friends invited me to be on the first team of this fundraiser she was starting for the local hospital. I thought this was perfect! This was my way to get involved. Since then, my team and I have raised over $110,000 for the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, and we are just getting started.

Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt is a non-profit institution in Nashville, TN. It is a part of the Children’s Miracle Network which is a network of Children’s Hospitals that does not turn patients away based on their inability to pay.

That means they rely on donations and community support to cover the cost of care that is not covered by Medicaid and insurance programs. Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt began with a Vanderbilt University Medical School professor David F. Karzon, M.D. who wanted to create a hospital that would enhance all care and treatments for children in the community. He started little by little to make his dream a reality. He started creating little segments of pediatrics specialties within the hospital, whether it be urology or orthopedics, and eventually accumulated them all together into this one state-of-the-art hospital. He wanted to make sure that the children were receiving only the best care, they were in a safe environment, and the hospital was active and responsive to the community’s needs. The dream has only continued to grow since then. Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt created a mission statement to make sure that they are honoring their founder’s goals and dreams. It goes as follows: “Through the exceptional capabilities and caring spirit of its people, Vanderbilt will lead in improving the healthcare of individuals and communities regionally, nationally and internationally. We will combine our transformative learning programs and compelling discoveries to provide distinctive personalized care” (“Our Mission and History”). This mission statement inspires hospital staff and volunteers to extend their care outside of Nashville. People are adapting every day and the hospital is always researching and discovering ways they can extend these benefits. They need the help of these volunteers and external community projects to help them fund the next generation of medicine. Through my extensive research and prolonged experience with the Medical Center, I wanted to recall all the ways the Children’s Hospital benefits from the donations, and how overall, they not only keep Dr. Karzon’s dream alive, but they save children’s lives.

After all my research and involvement in the developing world for the past year, I truly think the way to get so many donations and support is from having a huge group of people who all believe in your cause. The reason I think this is because 31 years ago, in 1991, the first dance marathon was born at Indiana University. Students rallied to support and raise money in honor of a deceased friend, Ryan White, who died of AIDS

- 13 -

Essay: Anna Brock

the year before. They raised $10,900.00 the first year, and since then have boomed in donations. In 2019, they raised 4,257,143.23 (“IUDM History”). These astonishing numbers show me that even in a short amount of time, how fast a good-willed event can flourish. In a time like now, amidst a pandemic, this work has only become more essential. Last year, our motto for the year was “Kids Can’t Wait” because even in a tragic and deadly pandemic, these kids still needed our help. Every single day, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals like the Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital treat 16,200 kids with trauma, 935 kids with diabetes, 2,128 kids with cancer, 2,329 kids with surgeries, and 925 kids in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals). Those are some big numbers, making the jobs of doctors and nurses in the pandemic even more difficult to manage. Families were already so worried about expenses and then had to deal with strict visiting hours and covid precautions, and that was definitely not easy. Dance marathons are helping with these issues. While they cannot change the strict rules enforced by each unit of the hospital, they can set their goals straight and make the impossible possible. This work can be done through these fundraisers, to make sure there is enough funding to ensure quality care during the pandemic. The Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals know how much the pandemic has tattooed our community in a way that cannot be undone. Leaders of these events reach out to patrons and remind them of all of this, and how additional funding can help with another issue, the staffing shortage. 89% of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals have reported a staffing shortage, indicating that they need this money now more than ever to support our healthcare workers.

The pandemic has caused a whole new era of expenses. For example, during the pandemic, hospitals like Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt have had to come up with ways to be able to be in touch with these families even when miles apart. The answer to this and many other problems in this decade is technology. Even with the outstanding capabilities right at your fingertips, they come at a very high cost. With just translation technology, for those who are in need in the non-English speaking populations, a $40 million dollar investment is expected to be needed to meet this demand. That’s crazy, and that is why these hospitals need our help (Hsitz).

Non-profit hospitals like Monroe Carell Jr Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, require community outreach fundraisers like dance marathons to help fund all the essentials: including medical training, research, and facility upgrades to make the experience the best possible for the patients and families. The work they have done is inspiring, not only to those affected but also to the greater community around them (Gee). Dance marathons especially have raised over $300 million dollars for 170 different Children’s Hospitals as a part of the Children’s Miracle Network. The energy and support the dance marathon exudes are what makes it such a powerhouse in the community. People join the dance marathon and get so much inspiration from all the support and unity around them, that they have actually influenced other fundraisers around them. Not only do these dance marathons positively impact the greater community, they also create philanthropic leaders that go to do great things for the community. For example, Molly Coletta, a Syracuse alum, lost a friend to cancer at a young age, which inspired her to the dance marathon at Syracuse. She now says that the dance marathon is all about “changing lives and embrac[ing] the change needed to

- 14 -

Essay: Anna Brock

do so” (Pactor). The main word I would use to describe dance marathon participants is sympathetic. To be a part of a dance marathon, I have learned through my research that it is essential to be able to listen and help someone who is going through a hard time, even if you can’t relate to it yourself. Another word I would use to describe dance marathons is unity. Even though I am a little biased, since I have been a part of the Ensworth Dance Marathon for four years, I know throughout the whole process and working together, there comes a time when your whole community is unified and together. It’s an obligation. It’s a feeling of pride to fight for the next generation.

Raising awareness and resources for Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital brings out the best attitudes in not only participants but also constituents. The saying in the dance marathon world has always been “this generation, fighting for the next,” and the ethos and togetherness that statement holds promotes unity within the community. We fight together to support our friends in the hospital who need us. It’s not only the Dance Marathon way, though, as participants also need the patients and families. They will never stop fighting for their lives, encouraging everyone around them to support a cause and make change happen (Vogel).

The stories of these patients are absolutely remarkable. They are also heartbreaking. I have researched many stories, and many have stood out to me.

Many are triumphant and shatter the odds of recovery, many don’t. Just as an example, I want to explain the miracle story of Dashiell. He was known as that “angel miracle kid.” Dashiell was diagnosed with a rare form of liver cancer, known as Hepatoblastoma. After multiple treatments and doctor visits, Dashiell was put on ‘high risk’ and monitored at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. The doctor’s found new tumors, so Dashiell became eligible for a liver transplant. While being monitored, the doctors eventually found more and more nodules that kept requiring removal.

Finally, doctors were able to categorize his nodules as an extremely rare Transitional Liver Cell Tumor. It was ultimately confirmed that these nodules the doctors kept finding were cancer all along. Besides losing his hair, Dashiell never endured the harsh side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. At the age of 5 1/2 years old, Dashiell lost his fight against cancer. His tumors were donated to UI Children’s, Cincinnati Children’s, the COG, and SIOPEL for further research. To this day, there have only been two other cases of TLCT. Dashiell’s parents recall his “indomitable spirit” and “pure happiness.” They want to use Dashiell’s story to advocate to find a cure for childhood cancer. They strive for “better treatment options, advancements in higher cure rates, and increased medical research funding” (Our Miracle Kiddos’ Stories). This story is just one of many I have come across as the leader of this event.

There is always a story that drives motivation. One of the reasons I think dance marathons are so successful is because people genuinely never want things like what happened to Dashiell to happen again. They are truly fighting for the next generation.

Besides fundraising, there are many ways to help and support your local hospitals and community. Whether you create a whole fundraiser, simply donate a dollar to a campaign, or volunteer your time, all are meaningful in the grand scheme of things. At Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, this is especially true. Each dollar does have value. At the Children’s Hospital, each dollar is divided into six sections. 18% of each dollar goes to charitable care, 12% to research, 15%

- 15 -

Essay: Anna Brock

to equipment, 7% to education, 23% to advancement services, and 25% to patient services. These “patient services” donations go to kids with cancer, diabetes, and trauma. They also go to surgeries and the NICU. The NICU, as stated previously, stands for Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt had the very first NICU in the country, which is another reason why people come from all over the country for this specific hospital and its caregivers.

There are multiple specialists who cater to each baby’s needs. There are “pediatric surgeons, neonatology doctors and nurses, pediatric radiologists, respiratory therapists, pediatric pharmacists, nutritionists, lactation specialists, social workers, child life specialists, physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech therapists” all available for the children’s needs. These medical professionals are available 24 hours a day, and 1/3 of the hospitals’ beds are dedicated to the NICU (“Neonatal Intensive Care Unit”). They always put first their ability to treat every child, regardless of their ability to pay. Through my research, I have realized that this is why the hospital needs our help and why our fundraising efforts are crucial.

There are also many other fundraisers that work for the kids in the Children’s Hospitals besides dance marathons. For example, the Friends of Children’s Hospital fundraiser has been around since 1971, even before the Children’s Hospital faculty was formed. It started with a group of philanthropic women who came together to raise funds and awareness for the new hospital (“Our Mission and History”). This past summer, I interned with this group of women. They are hardworking and driven towards their goal. They taught me ways to collaborate, speculate, and take action.

These are core skills at Ensworth, and it was rewarding overall incredible to be able to learn about these skills we use every day in a completely different light. I learned that a community that is passionate about a cause and fights in unison will always succeed. I learned that time is just as valuable as money to these non-profit hospitals within the Children’s Miracle Network. Most importantly, I learned that even in a pandemic, these kids always need our help.

WORKS CITED Gee, Emily, and Nicole Rapfogel. “How Nonprofit Hospitals Can Support Communities and Advance Public Health.” Center for American Progress, www.americanprogress.org/article/ nonprofit-hospitals-can-support-communities-advance-public-health/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

Hsitz. “Covid-19 - How Dance Marathon Is Helping Children’s Hospitals.” Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, 7 July 2021, miraclenetworkdancemarathon. childrensmiraclenetworkhospitals.org/covid-19-how-dance-marathon-is-helpingchildrens-hospitals/. Accessed 5 Jan. 2022.

“IUDM History.” Indiana University Dance Marathon, 2021, www.iudm.org/history. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

“Miracle Network Dance Marathons.” Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, 2022, dancemarathon.childrensmiraclenetworkhospitals.org/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

“Our Miracle Kiddos’ Stories.” Dance Marathon at Iowa State University, dm.stuorg.iastate. edu/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

“Our Mission and History.” Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 2021, www.childrenshospitalvanderbilt.org/information/our-

- 16 -

Essay/Reflection: Anna Brock

mission-and-history. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

Pactor, Andrea. “Dance Marathons: A Fundraising Powerhouse and so Much More.”

Philanthropy Blog Indiana University, Trustees of Indiana University, 23 Dec. 2020, blog. philanthropy.iupui.edu/2020/12/23/dance-marathons-a-fundraising-powerhouse-and-somuch-more/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

Vogel, Jenna. “We Fight Together.” University of Iowa Dance Marathon, The University of Iowa, 2020, dancemarathon.uiowa.edu/contact/press/blog/we-fight-together/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

REFLECTION: ANNA BROCK SERVICE SCHOLAR REFLECTION I am a horrible dancer, but now I know that dancing saves lives. Over the past year, I have been researching the direct effects donations have on the non-profit Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. This year, I am the co-president of a fundraiser called Ensworth Dance Marathon, raising money for the hospital. In short, a group of students from my high school raised money for a year to help sick and injured children in Nashville.

We then have this huge event to commemorate all of the hard work and lives we touched. I wanted to know after my research was complete how much of an impact we have made on the lives of the children being treated.

Throughout my research the one principle that kept coming back to me was unity. I realized that all these fundraisers raising money for the same cause all had the same goal, which is to help those in the community. By sharing patient stories, we are able to connect our constituents with the kids being treated in the hospital currently. To get more knowledge about ways I could not only improve the Ensworth Dance Marathon but also learn more about the donation effects, I interned with the Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital development team. The main thing I learned from my time there was that the work they do behind the scenes is crucial to the success of the non-profit hospital, as the Children’s Hospital does not turn any child away due to their ability to pay. Through this summer internship, I helped compile patients’ stories in a manner that would appeal to consumers.

I also edited videos and monitored social media platforms. It was such a rewarding experience, and it made me realize that even the little things that they do, like boxing gifts, creating cardstock, and even organizing, are beneficial and are necessary to reach the overall goal. I plan on using the knowledge I gained in the future, as this project has made me crave a future in development. I want to work with non-profits and other organizations that give back. After seeing all the impact our fundraiser has made on the hospital, I now know that I want this same feeling of unity in the future. I want everyone around me to care as much as I do. Not only about fundraising and marketing, but also the next generation. I know I can make a further impact in the future because of the passion that has grown in my heart from my four years on this team. The main thing I learned and plan to carry forward in my future endeavors is that there is always something I can do for my community and always a way to influence my peers to do the same. With this being my last year on the Ensworth Dance Marathon team, I know that everything I learned is more than I could’ve dreamed. In the future, my goal is to not take anything for granted, because you never know when you will have to count on your community for their help.

- 17 -

Essay: Alea Clark

ESSAY: ALEA CLARK COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER “The function of protecting and developing health must rank even above that of restoring it when it is impaired.”

-Hippocrates Many in the United States have heard, “Prevention is the best medicine,” an expression that seems self-evident, yet may have been forgotten considering the drastic increase in rheumatological and immune-mediated illnesses in the United States in recent years. Stunningly, approximately 1 in 4 American adults has already been diagnosed with arthritis or other rheumatologic illness. The CDC has predicted that, by the year 2040, about 78 million US adults (26% of the population) are expected to be diagnosed with a rheumatic disease. This Service Scholar Project is dedicated to assisting pediatric rheumatology patients through Columbia Hospital’s Rheumatology branch and the Charla de Lupus organization. In order to target the issues of lack of peer support and insufficient focus on preventive care, this project involves the creation of informational pamphlets on preventive care and mentoring children and families with these rheumatological conditions via Zoom.

Rheumatologic diseases encompass a wide variety of diseases that involve dysregulation of the immune system. The most common kind of rheumatological diseases are autoimmune diseases, a spectrum that encompasses conditions such as Type 1 Diabetes (T1D), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Lupus, Celiac Disease, and Psoriasis. Although each disease has its own distinct symptoms, many rheumatological diseases present general inflammatory symptoms such as pain, swelling, recurrent fevers, brain fog, and fatigue.

According to the Arthritis Foundation, there are over 300,000 children living with juvenile arthritis in the U.S. Shockingly, there is a stunning shortage of doctors trained to diagnose and treat these patients, with only 420 total board certified Pediatric Rheumatologists in the United States attempting to treat a growing number of children with rheumatic diseases. An estimated 75% of children with arthritis are not able to see a rheumatologist, as there are so few specialists in this field; nine US states don’t have a single Pediatric Rheumatologist in practice. As a result, many rheumatology departments are overwhelmed, and many children often go undiagnosed or otherwise lack the care they need. Pediatricians who aren’t specialized in diagnosing rheumatological and immunological illnesses may not recognize the inflammatory symptoms that patients present, and may instead assume the child has an infection of sorts when complaining of “growing pains,” or possibly even exaggerating their pain and discomfort. The symptoms presented in these diseases often make it difficult for children with rheumatologic conditions to function in a normal school environment, and children who are unable to obtain the modifications they need often face prejudice from teachers and peers, and/ or academic difficulties as a result of repeated illness and many days of missed

- 18 -

Essay: AleaEssay: Clark

school. According to research published in Science Direct, the decline in academic performance at a global level is associated with the rise in chronic disease in children, adolescents, and young adults. For children, the social stigma associated with these diseases in pediatric patients can also lead to isolation and exacerbate anxiety and mental illness, since their peers often don’t understand what they’re going through.

The impact on their families is also often extreme, as parents may struggle to maintain their jobs, care for their sick children and pay what can become exorbitant medical bills.

One critical element that patients and families can control often has a tremendous impact on the quality of life and management of many of these rheumatological and immune-mediated diseases. Although this may be surprising given the recent global pandemic, chronic diseases have far outpaced infectious diseases as the leading cause of mortality, accounting for a shocking 72% of all global deaths in 2016. Like all chronic illnesses, rheumatological diseases are often at least partially dependent on environmental factors, and altering lifestyle habits such as diet, sleep, exercise, and hydration can have a significant beneficial impact on the morbidity, management and disease progression of these conditions. However, since the structure of the U.S. healthcare system heavily revolves around curative treatment rather than preventive approaches, these preventive measures are often underemphasized in favor of more expensive options such as heavy medications and surgical procedures which become inevitable once the cascade of inflammatory damage becomes entrenched. This is not to say that these curative methods aren’t important: in fact, they can provide life-changing and even life-saving support; however, combining these traditional curative approaches with preventive measures such as healthy diet and frequent exercise often reaps far more benefit for patients with these diseases. Furthermore, given the lack of accessible medical expertise in these illnesses, preventive approaches become a critical part of many rheumatological practices. Therefore, advocating the use of preventive measures is crucial in helping patients with rheumatological diseases overcome their symptoms and lead higher quality lives.

For my Senior Service Project, I was asked by the Chair of the Pediatric Rheumatology department at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City to assist with creating education materials and support services for pediatric rheumatology patients. The reason I was thrilled to be asked is that I have personal experience with this growing challenge, actually: when I was three years old, I was diagnosed with a rheumatological condition known as Systemic Idiopathic Juvenile Arthritis (SJIA). They gave my condition that label only recently; doctors are still unsure of the mechanisms behind the disease, as indicated by the “Idiopathic” label on the condition. The first few years of my life were marked with severe inflammatory symptoms; my joints would swell and turn dark purple, and I would get fevers that would reach up to 106ºF. The doctors ran all sorts of tests, but still didn’t understand what it was or how it worked. A series of medical professionals tested a plethora of hypothetical diagnoses, from infectious to oncological sources, and a profusion of treatments, which were often ineffective, and occasionally made the disease worse instead of better. Additionally, the treatments were not only ineffective and the tests

- 19 -

Essay: Alea Clark

inconclusive, but these procedures were often incredibly painful; they included all sorts of procedures such as blood tests, injections, bone marrow biopsies, skin biopsies, electrical shocks, and even a spinal tap without anesthesia. Eventually, the medications put such a massive strain on my liver that I developed fatty liver disease.

Combined with the fact that I simultaneously developed pre-diabetes as a part of my medical issues, I was at extremely high risk for liver failure. Luckily though, with strict discipline and taking secondary preventive measures, I was able to reduce the severity of my symptoms, and I am now able to live an entirely normal, active life.

Had I not adhered to the preventive measures offered to me, including alteration of my diet and addition of regular exercise, taking specific supplements designed to mitigate the negative effects of both my disease and the medications designed to treat it, the progression of my illness could have been devastating on my entire system.

Thankfully, my rheumatologist consistently encouraged me to pursue preventative approaches as we were also pursuing all of the traditional medical interventions.

She consistently repeated to me the benefits of regular exercise and suggested I try an elimination diet to remove further inflammatory triggers for my immune system.

With the help of several other specialists in endocrinology and gastroenterology, I was offered a variety of supplements in addition to my medicines that helped my system regulate its function and also undo some of the liver and other damage that was inevitable with the amount of harsh anti-inflammatory and immune modulating medications. None of it was easy, I was much younger then, and it was often very difficult to accept such restrictive measures when class snacks and special treats were served to everyone but me. At the time, I know it would have been such a meaningful support to be able to speak to someone older who had been through the same obstacles and had overcome them.

When Dr. Lisa Imundo at Columbia asked me if I would help her with this project, I was thrilled to be asked and elated to be able to help other children that were going through the same challenges as I had. Helping them learn that they can also take control of their health and make a difference in how they can function and feel every day is incredibly invigorating and empowering. In many cases with patients at Columbia, parents also need to be educated on the benefits of these preventative measures, which seem so simple, yet require a significant investment in time and patience to iterate repeatedly, as well as tremendous discipline to stick with the diet and exercise. It is hard to explain to anyone without chronic illness how challenging it can be to will yourself to exercise even when you are so exhausted, you cannot imagine lifting your own weight and your joints are all but locked in place from stiffness and inflammation. Understanding that movement is such an essential part of how your body functions helped me appreciate that the pain in this case had a gain -- that it not only helps reduce inflammation throughout the body, but that it also improves your liver function, regulates your endocrine system and engages your lymphatic system productivity. Sustaining willpower is even harder with dietary considerations, which can have a dramatic impact as well. Removing foods and substances that can activate an auto-inflammatory response can actually reduce arthritis, as well as the likelihood of many downstream complications like

- 20 -

Essay: AleaEssay: Clark

cardiovascular inflammation and endocrine dysfunction.

Working with the department of rheumatology, I was tasked with first creating education materials and pamphlets to offer to pediatric patients and their families.

The first pamphlet we created was created to provide pediatric patients with information and tools to manage stress - at the start of this project over the summer of 2021, the experience of most New Yorkers living through the pandemic was very challenging given the physical restrictions and access for residents to exercise outside of their small apartments. Unlike most Ensworth students who live in homes with yards and access to open parks, New York City was closed for most things, making exercise even more difficult, and access to healthier food choices more difficult. New York City banned its traditional street vendors and markets that used to sell inexpensive, fresh, locally produced fruits and vegetables for fear of COVID-19.

The pamphlet explained the difference between stress and anxiety, and provided concrete methods of reducing stress with diet, exercise and consistent sleep hygiene.

The second pamphlet we created was dedicated to encouraging exercise for pediatric rheumatology patients, and explained the benefits of consistent, low intensity exercise not only for the specific benefits of reducing inflammation, but also for the tremendous benefit of exercise for reducing stress and anxiety, both of which are known to exacerbate rheumatological illnesses. Regular exercise can also reduce fatigue and improve joint flexibility and strength. According to the Mayo Clinic, “exercise is one of the key treatments to help reduce the disability often associated with rheumatoid arthritis, (and can also) reduce fatigue and ease depression.” [] Dr. Imundo asked me to leverage my own experience in creating these pamphlets, which included original artwork for both, so that they are colorful, with clear, easy to understand explanations that would appeal to a range of pre-teen and teenage patients. I drew on my own experience in writing the text, recognizing both that some days will be harder than others, and that it is truly a game of inches when one is trying to overcome a rheumatological illness.

Our current, third pamphlet in the series, is still under way, and is focused on dietary considerations and strategies for finding the optimal dietary plan for each patient. Given the vast differences in food allergies and sensitivities for each person, and the likelihood of certain vitamin imbalances with many rheumatology patients, it is important for families to work through a plan, ideally with a nutritional specialist if possible. When access is not possible, the pamphlet encourages patients to favor whole, natural foods rather than packaged foods, and especially to reduce the consumption of fast sugars.

I have also been asked to work with a joint venture between Columbia and the Hospital for Special Surgery to speak to patients and their families directly to serve as a resource to help educate them. I hope to continue working to support pediatric patients with illnesses like mine, both to help every child and family that I can reach, but also to give back to the many doctors and medical institutions that worked tirelessly to help me when I needed them most.

- 21 -

Essay/Reflection: Alea Clark

WORKS CITED “Addressing the Pediatric Rheumatology Shortage: Arthritis Foundation.” Addressing the Pediatric Rheumatology Shortage | Arthritis Foundation, Arthritis Foundation, 2021, https:// www.arthritis.org/advocate/federal/addressing-the-pediatric-rheumatology-shortage.

Anderson, Elizabeth, and J. Larry Durstine. “Physical Activity, Exercise, and Chronic Diseases: A Brief Review.” Sports Medicine and Health Science, Elsevier, 25 Sept. 2019, https://www. sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266633761930006X. “Autoimmune Diseases.” National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 9 Feb. 2022, https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/ conditions/autoimmune/index.cfm.

CDC Staff. “Arthritis Related Statistics.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12 Oct. 2021, https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/data_ statistics/arthritis-related-stats.htm.

CDC Staff. “Rheumatoid Arthritis.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 18 May 2021, https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/rheumatoidarthritis/symptoms-causes/syc-20353648.

Jayatilleke, Aruni. “Prevalence of Rheumatic Disease.” Simple Tasks Campaign, American College of Rheumatology, 18 Sept. 2017, https://simpletasks.org/prevalence-of-rheumaticdisease/.

Mayo Clinic Staff. “Rheumatoid Arthritis: Is Exercise Important?” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 31 July 2020, https://www.mayoclinic. org/diseases-conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/in-depth/rheumatoid-arthritis-exercise/ art-20096222.

TJ;, Barbour KE;Helmick CG;Boring M;Brady. “Vital Signs: Prevalence of Doctor-Diagnosed Arthritis and Arthritis-Attributable Activity Limitation - United States, 2013-2015.” MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 10 Mar. 2017, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28278145/.

Willett, Walter C. “Prevention of Chronic Disease by Means of Diet and Lifestyle Changes.”

Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries. 2nd Edition., U.S. National Library of Medicine, 1 Jan. 1970, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK11795/.

REFLECTION: ALEA CLARK COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER Working with the Pediatric Rheumatology department at the Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) in New York City on this service project for the past year has been an amazing experience that has given me the opportunity to appreciate how important our daily choices are to maintaining health and wellness. Although I have given speeches on arthritis and auto-inflammatory diseases to large audiences of children my age in New York City in years past before we moved to Nashville, none have paralleled the fulfillment and meaning that this opportunity has provided. Not only have I learned so much about what it takes to provide care for pediatric patients with chronic rheumatological diseases beyond lab tests and medications, but I am also deeply grateful for the opportunity to give back in my own way to help support the medical experts in the field of rheumatology who helped me through my medical challenges.

- 22 -

Reflection: AleaEssay: Clark

Helping the rheumatologists and social workers at CUMC and the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) build an education program has been more rewarding than I could have imagined -- it is so fulfilling to know that this work can empower patients and their families to make lifestyle changes that can drastically improve their outcomes, especially over the long term. Taking ownership of my own diet and exercise choices many years ago was incredibly challenging at the time, it seemed impossible, but with patience and encouragement from those caring for me, I was able to see small, consistent improvements over time. In conjunction with the series of educational pamphlets in process, the peer mentoring program established by the joint effort of CUMC and HSS is destined to make a difference for many pediatric patients and their families who often find heavy financial, physical and emotional demands in caring for their loved one. I am honored to be given the opportunity to help and mentor children who are working to overcome the same obstacles that I did. There is an ever-increasing number of medical studies providing concrete evidence that making healthy choices for diet and exercise is essential in managing and alleviating the damage from all chronic diseases. For children especially, managing a pediatric patient’s chronic condition early enough to reduce inflammation can halt the many deleterious effects of auto-inflammation in the body that become irreversible with time.

It was stunning for me to learn not only that the prevalence of rheumatological illness is growing globally at an accelerated rate each year, but also to appreciate the tremendous shortage of board-certified rheumatologists in the United States to care for these patients. It was a staggering realization to discover that there are only 420 pediatric rheumatologists in the US to treat 300,000 patients, and that almost 20% of our states do not have even one single practicing rheumatologist. This made me realize that creating realistic, sustainable preventive strategies and promoting awareness of these at a national and/or global scale, if possible, is an essential part of the toolkit for battling these diseases. Educating rheumatology patients and families fully to enable them to take control of their lifestyle choices can significantly reduce the severity and improve quality of life for both patients and families dealing with these chronic illnesses. I hope to continue to work with CUMC and HSS in this regard, both with crafting materials and by working with individual patients and their families wherever I might be helpful.

- 23 -

Essay: Carrie Cohen

Essay: Oliver Crawford

ESSAY: OLIVER CRAWFORD SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE For many Americans, their most significant worries are something as small as what to wear to work or what to pick up from the store. However, the reality is much scarier for 13.7% of the country. For these individuals, finding their next meal clouds over any other items in their daily routine. Not knowing where your next meal may come from can be a frightening proposition and one that many deals with daily. When a household does not have enough food to provide for every resident, this is known as food insecurity.

Thankfully, numerous foundations and organizations fighting hunger are poised to help as many people as possible. Through organizations and foundations, methods to reduce food waste, and the kindness of neighbors, the battle against hunger continues to gain pace and strength.

In 2019, the number of food-insecure people surpassed 35 million in the United States, including 11 million children (Feeding America). Tennessee is no exception to the staggering numbers regarding hunger. Within Tennessee, 1 in 8 people faces food insecurity, increasing to 1 in 6 for children (Hunger in Tennessee). When putting that number into context, the results are astonishing. Breaking the numbers down further, Tennessee’s percentage of food-insecure families is 15.1%, up from the national average of 13.7%. This number translates to over 400,000 households and 1,016,420 million people (Cabera). 19% of children in Tennessee live in food-insecure households. These numbers are daunting and represent a section of the community that needs aid as soon as possible.

While the numbers are large, there are still ways to help. Families are struggling all across the country and depend on government programs as well as food banks for meals every day.

In many households across Nashville and America, finding food for one person is hard enough, but providing for a family is an intimidating task. Food-insecure children consume most of their meals at school, where lunch and breakfast are provided. This dependence on school-provided meals can become dangerous during the weekends and other school-related breaks. During the COVID-19 pandemic, children with food insecurity had few places to turn to for their next meal. For some, online school meant no meals throughout the week. With the pandemic, many organizations that fight against hunger were left understaffed or closed, exhausting further opportunities for families to acquire meals. At the peak of the pandemic, in late 2020, only 15% of children from lowincome families who qualified for free or reduced-price school meals were receiving them (Rodriguez). More than 30 million children rely on school-provided food or government programs to stay fed (Rodriguez). The process for picking up food over summer breaks was introduced earlier, in March of 2020, to help children obtain school meals. However, due to staffing shortages and other COVID-related issues, the number of meals being picked up reduced dramatically. In some places, like Fulton County, GA, the number of meals bring collected by families went from 60,000 a day to 70,000 a week (Rodriguez). Once parents returned to work and children remained away from school, it was challenging for families to clear time to pick up food from their children’s schools. This severe reduction

- 24 -

Essay: Oliver Crawford Essay:

in access to food posed a threat to countless families across America, and new methods of distribution were created. Bus drivers began delivering meals directly to families from schools when children were still in virtual learning.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, racial disparities deepened regarding access to food.

21% of African American individuals live in a food-insecure environment compared to the 11% of white Americans (Feeding America). However, the largest group living in food-insecure environments is Native Americans; 23% of Native Americans are living in food-insecure environments. While anyone can be challenged by hunger, specific demographics tend to be unfairly treated when it comes to access to fresh, obtainable food.

These disparities have further increased throughout the pandemic, especially when taking factors like healthcare and job opportunities into account. Within Nashville, these racial disparities continue to exist and are driven by the presence of food deserts. According to Vanderbilt professor David Schlunt, there are four food deserts in Nashville (Hineman).

What constitutes a food desert are low-quality food stores, lack of transportation, and high poverty levels. These food deserts have staggering demographics; 85% of residents within these areas are African American (Hineman). These food deserts are playing a large role in affecting 17% of Nashville residents who are food-insecure (Hineman). Some residents, such as Nella Pearl Frierson, have taken this issue into their own hands and started community gardens. Frierson lives in Brooklyn Heights, and her community garden provides the residents with more food options since there is only one available grocery store for miles (Hineman). Organizations such as Feeding America promote change towards racial disparities in access to food. Recently, Feeding America started a fund to help communities disproportionately affected by hunger. By raising both money and awareness for these communities, Feeding America shows that everyone deserves access to the best food, no matter their background. By overcoming these racial disparities, the number of people facing hunger in the United States can decrease, and food deserts within cities like Nashville can disappear.

Within Nashville’s community, organizations such as Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee are also helping to address food deserts more directly. Food banks can sort through and save large quantities of food that would otherwise be discarded by collecting unused food from grocery stores and distributors. Food drives, donations, and volunteer work help provide the resources necessary for Second Harvest to continue its fight against hunger. Feeding America plays one of the most extensive roles in collecting resources for families and individuals in need on a larger scale. In 2021, Feeding America provided 6.6 million meals to people in need across the country, a new record. Most of Feeding America’s networks are volunteers or farmers, all playing a role in providing more food for more people. These groups devote their time and resources to helping strangers who need it. In their 2021 report, Feeding America estimates that 60 million people turned to food banks and other services amid the COVID-19 pandemic. To some, the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to the incredible progress these organizations were making. However, the pandemic also opened new methods of delivering food to those in need and further proved the persistence of humanity’s desire to help each other.

Furthermore, the 2021 report states that Feeding America received over 2 billion pounds of food donated from retail stores. These food rescue programs can also help food-insecure children in schools. At food banks such as Second Harvest, employees can

- 25 -

Essay: Oliver Crawford

train teachers to look for signs that a child might be facing hunger. Once a child is noted as potentially food insecure, teachers can place bags within their backpacks containing snacks and drinks for the children to bring home. These bags are made by volunteers and distributed across school systems. Methods like these are creative in providing food for children and families in need while preventing said children from feeling embarrassed to reach out for help.

What are some more methods the community can utilize to tackle the fight against hunger? One of the most prominent solutions is reducing food waste. In 2019, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report stating that humanity discards almost one-third of all food produced (Stone). Within the U.S. alone, the USDA’s Economic Research Service estimates the amount of wasted food to be nearly 133 billion pounds and an estimated value of $161.6 billion (EPA). By 2030, the EPA has set a goal of cutting these numbers in half. While a big task, it is not impossible, and some methods of reducing food waste have already been put into action.

While waste reduction has started with donations to food banks, the donations come mainly from retail stores, and not 100% of the saveable food is rescued. Training staff members to look for signs of saveable food can help retail stores cut back on food waste.

Bins, containers, and other storage units could also be established in stores for employees to place expired goods that are not perishable. Grocery stores end up removing most food on their shelves that does not look desirable to the consumer, including damaged packaging or whether or not it is out of sight. More times than not, these items are perfectly consumable and end up in America’s landfills.

Along with increased staff training, meals kits can also help to cut back on food waste. Most wasted food comes from grocery stores, specifically wasted ingredients for meals. For many, it may be hard to correctly determine the correct amount of ingredients to purchase for a meal. Companies like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh have introduced meal plans with perfectly proportioned ingredients, assuring that no food will be left out of the meal. These meal plans provide delicious alternatives to traditional recipes while cutting down on excess ingredients that are not necessary.

Outside of packaged goods, and wasteful habits, Americans lose much of their perishables in transportation. Keeping farm-grown plants, dairy, livestock, and poultry products viable, requires a network of refrigerated trucks and containers (Stone). However, this method is costly, harmful to the environment, and not practical for third-world nations. Alternative modes of perishable transportation include evaporative coolers, which are currently in development at MIT (Stone). Other options, such as solar-powered refrigerators, are helping to reduce pollution while increasing shelf life. With more methods to transport perishable food, more food will make it to more people’s tables, not just in the U.S. but across the world.

Reducing food waste to zero is unlikely, but forward-thinking concepts have begun to hypothesize what can be done with the remainder. By utilizing anaerobic digestion, food waste can be turned into an environmentally friendly fuel (Stone). Within the industry, the U.K. company Biogen is a leader in the process of anaerobic digestion and is making significant strides to repurpose food waste as fuel. This concept of repurposing waste helps climate change as well. Fossil fuels have been a continuous contaminant of the environment, and resorting to a much cleaner alternative would be a massive addition to reducing food waste.

- 26 -

Essay: Oliver Crawford Essay:

Starting food drives, donating to local food banks, and convincing others to reduce food waste are all great ways to help fight hunger. When COVID-19 interrupted the daily lives of everyone, the pandemic impacted some people more deeply than others.

Children dependent on school lunches could not eat, and parents had no way of providing food without work. Since the pandemic began, strides have been made to increase opportunities for families to collect food, even when schools are closed. The efforts of school districts, bus drivers, and parents have made all the difference in delivering meals to children in need. The more people who are informed about the struggles of their neighbors, the more likely they are to lend a hand and tackle food insecurity. Compassion and teamwork are the greatest weapons humanity has against hunger. Working together and paying attention to food habits at home can provide meals to countless families and individuals who are food insecure. Within the Nashville and Tennessee communities, the fight is far from over. Food deserts plague several areas of the city with poor access to fresh produce and consumables. These food deserts are an example of some of the racial disparities still prevalent in both Nashville and today’s society. Within homes, several simple yet effective changes in habits can make a huge impact. Food waste is one of the most significant contributors to hunger, and meal kits are a great way to address this issue.

Brands like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh are doing a great job at providing the same greattasting meals with little to no food waste. This is just one of many ways individuals can join the fight against hunger without significant time or financial contributions. No matter how fortunate you may be, simple changes in habit can make a massive difference in the fight to end hunger.

WORKS CITED 2021 Annual Report, Feeding America, https://www.feedingamerica.org/sites/default/ files/2022-01/FA_2021AnnReport_FULL_012522.pdf.

Cabera, Ashley. “Reducing Wasted Food in Tennessee.” BioCycle, 10 Aug. 2017, https://www. biocycle.net/reducing-wasted-food-tennessee/.

Hineman, Brinley. “Who Eats and Who Doesn’t? Advocates Address Food Deserts, Security in Nashville.” The Tennessean, Nashville Tennessean, 13 Nov. 2020, https://www.tennessean. com/story/news/2020/11/13/nashville-food-deserts/6273383002/.

“Hunger & Poverty in America.” Food Research & Action Center, 8 Dec. 2021, https://frac.org/ hunger-poverty-america.

“Hunger in Tennessee.” Feeding America, https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/ tennessee#:~:text=In%20Tennessee%2C%20905%2C090%20people%20are,of%20 them%20237%2C100%20are%20children.&text=1%20in%206%20children%20 face,to%20meet%20their%20food%20needs.

The Impact of the Coronavirus on Food Insecurity in 2020 & 2021, Feeding America, Mar. 2021, https://www.feedingamerica.org/sites/default/files/2021-03/National%20 Projections%20Brief_3.9.2021_0.pdf.

Rodriguez, Leah. “Children Who Rely on School Meals Are Going Hungry in the US.” Global Citizen, https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/school-meals-covid-19-hunger/.

Stone, Maddie. “Here’s How We Solve the Planet’s Food Waste Problem.” Grist, 21 Aug. 2019, https://grist.org/article/un-ipcc-says-we-need-to-waste-less-food-heres-how/.

“United States 2030 Food Loss and Waste Reduction Goal.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, https://www.epa.gov/sustainable-management-food/united-states-2030-foodloss-and-waste-reduction-goal.

“Who We Are - No Kid Hungry Tennessee.” TENNESSEE, 12 July 2021, https://state. nokidhungry.org/tennessee/about/.

- 27 -

Reflection:Oliver Essay: Crawford

REFLECTION: OLIVER CRAWFORD SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK During my time at Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, I established a closer relationship with members of my community in the battle against hunger. The fight against hunger expands to Middle Tennessee and, before my time volunteering, was a fight that I knew very little about. Some of the numbers regarding those affected by food instability baffled me, no matter how many times I heard them. Second Harvest’s primary goal is to tackle food insecurity in middle Tennessee. Second Harvest completes this by sorting through food donations from grocery stores and other retail stores, then distributing them to families and people in need. During my first visit to Second Harvest, I recognized the importance of what I was doing, but viewed some of the tasks, like making boxes, as mundane and repetitive. The more I visited Second Harvest, the less ordinary these tasks felt, and the true importance began to show. I shifted from job to job, from making boxes to inspecting and sorting food, and eventually was working in the warehouse moving pallets of turkeys, pizzas, and much more. The two main projects at Second Harvest are warm and cold food sorting.

During these projects, volunteers will inspect and sort through pallets of unused food sent directly from grocery stores. Reclaiming grocery food is incredibly important and helps cut back on food waste. While participating in both of these projects, I encountered all sorts of food. Pallets of ice cream, baking supplies, drinks, and even beans were all given a new purpose through these projects. The more time I spent at Second Harvest, the more I became acquainted with the full-time volunteers and began to form friendships. The employees at Second Harvest, like Christie and Mary, were some of the kindest people I have met and were incredibly passionate about what they do. These people pushed me further, and I felt driven to help as many members of the community as possible. I put this newfound energy into becoming more proficient at my assigned tasks. I began arriving earlier and would enter the warehouse before the other volunteers, assisting in setting up and getting ready for the shift. Before the shifts, I would also complete additional work with some of the other regular volunteers. This level of trust that the full-time employees instilled in me was welcoming, and it showed that they respected the amount of work I was doing to help my community. Some days were more exciting at Second Harvest, depending on what events were happening.

Family nights were easily the most chaotic and consisted of the most moving parts.

When volunteering at Second Harvest, my perspective was changed for the better.

During my time at Second Harvest, I formed an incredible sense of gratitude for the food I have every day, which drove me to help my community even more. The wonderful people who spend every day selflessly working for others inspired me beyond belief.

Second Harvest is primarily operated by volunteers and, without their support, could not assist the community. These factors all led me to pursue more opportunities at the food bank as well. At first, I would arrive for a shift once a week, and before I knew it, I was attending three shifts a week and going in on Saturdays. I am very grateful to have worked with such amazing people for a great cause and will continue to volunteer at Second Harvest after my service scholar project.

- 28 -

Essay: Katherine Dagley Essay:

ESSAY: KATHERINE DAGLEY TO INFINITY AND BEYOND : A HISTORY OF NOTABLE WOMEN IN ASTRONOMY Most people know the names associated with astrophysical and astronomical discoveries such as Hubble and Herschel, but few know that most of the work and calculations behind these men’s discoveries were done by women. In a time where women had few rights, opportunities, or abilities to hold important jobs, a group of hidden figures worked for under seven dollars an hour analyzing charts, logging calculations, and discovering new scientific methods every day. This all took place at Harvard College Observatory, where for years, women “calculators,” as they were called, were making groundbreaking observations every day. They logged their data of over 500,000 stellar observations in thousands of notebooks, which have been forgotten over the years. In an attempt to bring back both the observations and the legacies of these forgotten women astronomers, Harvard created Project PHaEDRA (Preserving Harvard’s Early Data and Research in Astronomy) to digitize this collection of data through volunteer transcription and analysis. Their goal is to recognize significant contributions to astronomy regardless of gender and to create a more diverse and fuller understanding of who contributed to astrophysics (Margolis). Through partnership with this organization and the Smithsonian Institute, volunteers serve by revitalizing forgotten legacies of important women and by ensuring that future generations have free access to this invaluable data.

The Harvard Observatory has a long and rich history since its founding, with some of the most important discoveries there done by women. The institute began hiring women in 1875, although some women, like Eliza Quincy, began volunteering their time much earlier than that. The earliest women to officially work at the observatory were RT Rogers, RG Saunders, and Anna Winlock, who assisted William Rogers in his study of time zones (Wolbach Library). The main task for these scientists was to analyze glass plate photographs of star alignments, discovering, cataloging, and researching hundreds of thousands of celestial beings. The women tended to work in pairs of observers and recorders, using their studies in astronomy and astrophysics to help them classify and observe these stars. Despite their extensive studies and knowledge in astronomy, they weren’t recognized as “astronomers,” instead assigned the title of human “computers.”

Also, even though they had completed all of the necessary coursework to earn degrees in astronomy, the Harvard College Observatory still denied them a degree or title. Despite these challenges, however, many of the women went on to earn PhDs in Astronomy. Their jobs were tiring, highly skilled, and required long hours, yet these women earned only 40% of what men doing similar jobs made, making only 25 cents (approximately 6.38 in modern dollars) for every grueling hour (Margolis). They justified this unequal pay by deskilling women’s jobs, despite the fact that most of the intricate calculations were made by women. Thanks to the work, persistence, and organization of a few extremely smart women, many of astronomy’s most famous calculations, laws, and discoveries happened within the walls of the Harvard College Observatory.

The Harvard College Observatory is credited with hiring some of the most notable names in astronomy, such as Willamina Fleming. From working as a chambermaid to

- 29 -

Essay: Katherine Dagley

making her own scientific law, Fleming is an inspiration to women and her work alone is motivation enough to keep the records of the Harvard College Observatory alive.

In 1879, Willamina Fleming was hired not as a scientist, but a housemaid. When she was first hired, she was pregnant and had just been abandoned by her husband, so she sought menial work as a housekeeper to stay afloat. A few months after working under Pickering, the supervisor, he began to notice that she was highly intelligent and hired her as a part time computer. Being the fast learner and hard worker she was, Fleming was soon appointed to supervise and lead all of the women computers.

She even developed the Henry Draper Catalogue (Draper was one of the founding male astronomers of the Harvard College Observatory), and was appointed as the first curator of astronomical photographs in 1899 (Harvard Library). Among many other groundbreaking accomplishments, Fleming developed a common and universal system for classifying stars, assigning each star a letter based on the hydrogen content that could be observed in their spectra, A having the most hydrogen, B having the next highest amount, and so on. She also discovered the Horsehead Nebula in 1888 and published A Photographic Study of Nebula Stars and Spectra and Photographic Magnitudes of Stars in Standard Regions. In 1906, she became the first American woman to be named an honorary member of the Royal Astronomical Society of London.

She was appointed honorary fellow in astronomy at Wellesley College, since Harvard would not grant her the astronomy degree during her time working as a computer (Scientific Women). Fleming was an inspiration and proved that women can do anything they put their mind to regardless of sex and socioeconomic status, two hurdles that Fleming overcame with the simply using the immense power of her brain.

Another notable name in astronomy was Henrietta Leavitt, who was hired as a leading computer on the solar sequence project at the observatory. She was partially deaf, extremely shy, and an incredible thinker. Her task was to search for variable stars using the glass plate photographs taken at different times, one on top of the other, in a method called superposition. On these glass plates, she studied nebulae, and eventually made the discovery that they were individual galaxies as opposed to one cohesive mass (Harvard Library). She also discovered that some stars have a consistent brightness regardless of their location, which allowed her to precisely calculate their distance from Earth instead of merely guessing, as people had in the past (Howell). She was even credited as “the woman who discovered how to measure the universe” by George Johnson, author of Miss Leavitt’s Stars (Mariani). A few years after she completed her work on measurement, Edwin Hubble, who created the Hubble Space Telescope, used all of Leavitt’s information and calculations to help him understand the distance to the Andromeda Galaxy. These measurements, all based on Leavitt’s work, led him to his famous discovery: that the universe is constantly expanding. Another male astronomer, Harlow Shapley, also used Leavitt’s research to calculate distances around the Milky Way, without crediting Leavitt for her contribution. Yet another famous astronomer, Pickering, who worked at the observatory, published Leavitt’s work under his own name. Sadly, brilliant women like Leavitt were often overshadowed and taken advantage of by their male counterparts, who saw no wrong in passing their work off as their own (Howell). The American Association of Variable Star Observers writes on Leavitt’s shy nature, saying “Hers was a shy and somewhat unassuming personality, and women at that time, even highly educated and brilliantly talented women who in a

- 30 -

Essay: Katherine Dagley Essay:

fairer world would have been respected as equals by their male peers, were all too often resigned to taking a lesser role, and were often just quietly grateful to be given any sort of role at all” (Mariani). Despite her shyness and inability to stand up to the plagiarizers, she was eventually given credit for her own work and even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize (Howell). Her discoveries were later named Leavitt’s Law, which states “‘a straight line can readily be drawn among each of the two series of points corresponding to maxima and minima, thus showing that there is a simple relation between the brightness of the variables and their periods.’ In other words, there is a linear relationship between a star’s true brightness or intrinsic luminosity and the logarithm of its period” (Maxwell). Leavitt is yet another example of a brilliantly powerful woman living in a time when they were required to work in the shadows and behind the scenes while their male counterparts received the accolades. She fueled the discoveries of many keystone scientific principles and should have been more widely recognized as an ingenious astronomer.

There are countless other women who contributed to groundbreaking research in the Harvard College Observatory, such as Anna Draper who funded, finished, and published her late husband’s research; Annie Jump Cannon who created the star classification system and published nine volumes of The Draper Catalogue; and Cecelia Payne-Gaposchin, who earned the first official Harvard PhD in Astronomy granted to a woman.

But it is important to reflect on the importance of Project PHaEDRA and the Harvard College Observatory in the modern day. Many of the calculations, discoveries, and star maps are still available in the documents created by women like Fleming, Cannon, and Leavitt, but these astronomers are not well known and their data is not yet available to the public. The Smithsonian, in partnership with the Harvard College Observatory, is providing a service to both these remarkable women of the past and all astronomers of the future by digitizing their life’s work. Project PHaEDRA is keeping the memory of these brilliant scientists alive by finally giving them the credit they deserve. Most calculations done by men have been widely available and celebrated for years, while the women behind their discoveries have been long forgotten. By digitizing and publicizing the work done by these women, project PHaEDRA is beginning to remedy some of the injustices faced by these women while working as underpaid, underrecognized, and underappreciated “calculators,” not astronomers.

Project PHaEDRA also provides a service to future generations by providing them a free digitized database of information that includes all of these calculations. Although they were made long ago, these calculations remain relevant and important to modern astrophysics. Also, by familiarizing everybody with names like Leavitt, Fleming, and Cannon, the organization hopes to break down the gender-related stereotypes of scientific discovery to a more modern and inclusive approach.

Diversifying STEM is an important issue, and one of Project PHaEDRA’s main goals is to encourage minorities to participate in science. According to the American Association of University Women, only 28 of those in a STEM career are women.

This nonprofit studies women’s involvement in scholarly areas, identifies “fewer role models” as a key factor in the perpetuation of the STEM gender gap (AAUW). This absence of role models isn’t solely due to the lack of notable scientific women. Instead,

- 31 -

Essay: Katherine Dagley

it can be partially attributed to the fact that women’s contributions in science have been overlooked by history: an issue directly addressed by Project PHaEDRA. Historically, the gender proportions were much more drastically uneven, as women made up only 8% of the STEM field in 1970 (Carlton). Annie Jump Cannon, a scientist at the Harvard College Observatory, commented on society’s view of women scientists: “A life spent in the routine of science need not destroy the attractive human element of a woman’s nature” (Today in Science). She is essentially saying that, just because a woman is in science, she shouldn’t be looked upon as unladylike, unattractive, or undesirable. Her attempt to normalize the idea of women in STEM is a movement that has extended into the modern day and continues to be an important issue. Women deserve to be fully recognized for their contributions to science, and the best place to begin revitalizing the women in STEM movement is not only by looking forward to the future, but back to the original women contributors to modern science: the calculators at the Harvard College Observatory.

Work cited

”Astronomical Photographic Plate Collection.” Harvard University, platestacks.cfa.harvard.edu/aboutcollection. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

Carlton, Genevieve. “Women in STEM.” Best Colleges, 3 Sept. 2021, www.bestcolleges.com/resources/ women-in-stem/. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

“HCO and the Harvard Computers.” Center for Astrophysics, library.cfa.harvard.edu/phaedra/harvardcomputers. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

Howell, Elizabeth. “Henrietta Swan Leavitt: Discovered How to Measure Stellar Distances.” Space.com, www.space.com/34708-henrietta-swan-leavitt-biography.html. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

Margolis, Emily A. “The People behind Astronomical Plates and Notebooks: Project PHaEDRA and the Harvard College Observatory Computers.” Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, 16 May 2021, airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/project-phaedra-and-harvard. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

Mariani, Gael. “Henrietta Leavitt – Celebrating the Forgotten Astronomer.” AAVSO, www.aavso.org/henrietta-leavitt-%E2%80%93-celebrating-forgotten-astronomer. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

Maxwell, Amanda. “Henrietta Leavitt and the Starlight Distance Key.” Now., Northrop Grumman, 20 Feb. 2018, now.northropgrumman.com/henrietta-leavitt-starlight-distance-key/. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

“Project PHaEDRA.” Center for Astrophysics, library.cfa.harvard.edu/project-phaedra. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

“Science Quotes by Annie Jump Cannon.” Today in Science, todayinsci.com/C/Cannon_Annie/ CannonAnnie-Quotations.htm. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

“The STEM Gap: Women and Girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.” AAUW, www.aauw. org/resources/research/the-stem-gap/. Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

“Willamina Fleming.” History of Scientific Women, scientificwomen.net/women/fleming-williamina-37.

Accessed 17 Nov. 2021.

- 32 -

Essay: Harper Essay: Dale

ESSAY: HARPER DALE SPREADING SUNSHINE

Over 10% of children worldwide are diagnosed with a terminal illness, which is around seven million children. These children live very different childhoods than the majority of children. After diagnosis, these children will go through countless hospital visits, doctor’s appointments, and excruciating pain, which does not allow many to attend school with other children their age. In addition, the hospital is “home” for thousands of children living with terminal illnesses. Therefore, these children spend most of their lives around adults (doctors and family) and do not get to be around children their age, often causing them to feel isolated and alone. When children have an illness so severe to warrant their confinement to a hospital for long periods at a time, “many children report feeling lonely and scared,” as they are taken from the safe, familiar environment of their home and forced to live in an unfamiliar, uncomfortable place which serves as their “new home” (“Coping with Stress Reactions after Injury or Illness”). Additionally, many children can be traumatized by hospital stays. Studies show that 20-25% of children admitted to the hospital after sustaining an illness that causes them to be admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Furthermore, “the impact of hospitalization can linger with children long after their discharge,” which causes even greater anxiety for children with terminal illnesses who are constantly in and out of hospitals (Maps). But, children are not the only ones coping with stress reactions; parents are also struggling.

Parents feel helpless watching their child in excruciating pain, unable to help them, with recurring hospital stays, parents and children fear what will happen next, ultimately fearing death. Thankfully, many programs help children feel less isolated from their community. InvisiYouth allows teens and young adults worldwide struggling with chronic illnesses with lifestyle programs, empowering and supporting them through fun activities. Virtually, Band-Aides and Blackboards help children interact with others in a similar situation. Additionally, there are many programs to help parents cope with stress reactions. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) and After The Injury helps parents understand their child’s responses to an illness and advise how to react and help their child. CopingSpace provides information to help parents cope and understand their child’s condition (“Coping with Stress Reactions after Injury or Illness”).

Over the summer, I started volunteering at Spreading Sunshine, a non-profit which focuses on bringing joy to terminally ill kids and their families. The organization has an outsized positive impact with a micro-sized budget: it provides impaired, isolated, suffering kids with attention, concern, and a little fun. Spreading Sunshine also significantly impacts parents of children with chronic illnesses. For example, Spreading Sunshine created a Facebook group for all mothers of children with terminal illnesses, which allows these mothers to ask questions and make friends with women in similar situations. This platform will enable families of children with terminal

- 33 -

Essay: Harper Dale

diseases, isolated from their community at home, to become part of a new community, which is everything for these families (“Family Care”). Families of children with chronic illnesses ultimately need love and support, as they are facing their biggest fear: uncertainty about their child’s future.

The world’s pediatric population, twenty years or younger, accounts for 35% of the overall population. Twenty-one million of these children are in desperate need of palliative care. Palliative care is specialized medical care for people living with life-limiting conditions or chronic illnesses. This intensive treatment is used to ease pain, manage the condition, or even cure the disease completely (“Scale of the Need”).

There are 2.5 million children who die worldwide, and 98% of them live in low-tomiddle-income countries. Moreover, there is an uneven distribution of the burden of palliative care, especially in Europe. Around 170,000 children with health-related suffering will die every year in Europe alone without access to palliative care (AriasCasais). Children with terminal illnesses are isolated, deprived of having a “normal” childhood, and constantly in excruciating pain; some organizations strive to make that pain a little easier.

While researching isolation for terminally ill children and their families, the ICPCN mission particularly stood out. The International Children’s Palliative Care Network (ICPCN) has a mission to achieve the best quality of life and care for children and young people with life-limiting conditions. While raising awareness for children with terminal illnesses, ICPCN stated that “[e]ach year in the United States, approximately 500,000 children cope with life-threatening conditions, and 53,000 children die from trauma, lethal congenital conditions, extreme prematurity, heritable disorders, or acquired illness (“Scale of the Need”).” These strong individuals live their day-to-day lives in an immense amount of pain, isolated from the outside world. Over twenty million terminally ill children worldwide are not provided with the proper care due to their countries’ negligence. But, ICPCN believes that palliative care services could be a life-changer for these terminally ill children and their families. Unfortunately, there are considerable barriers to developing children’s palliative care services as “[i]n some countries healthcare professionals never acknowledge death in children. The cultural denial of the fact that children die prohibits the development of children’s palliative care services.” These isolated, suffering children are dying because of their countries limited resources and lack of trained personnel to produce the palliative care. Many nations worldwide have limited access to pain-relieving medications, therefore, causing terminally ill children to constantly be in excruciating pain (“Scale of the Need”). Children living in low to middle-income countries are less likely to access palliative care. According to Science Direct, “[a]approximately 170,000 children in need of palliative care die every year in Europe without access to it.” In Europe, a study was conducted to see how many countries had the accessibility to have palliative care. Even though palliative care provision is flourishing worldwide, some low to middle-income countries cannot afford palliative care at all. A ScienceDirect study suggests that an estimated “65.5% of countries globally have no palliative care provision, with only 5.7% reaching mainstream providers (Arias-Casais)”. The lack of palliative care causes children extreme pain, a gruesome devastating phenomenon for parents and

- 34 -

Essay: Harper Essay: Dale

families to face. No child should ever be deprived of proper medication and live in constant pain.

Parents and families have been forced to make difficult decisions regarding their children’s health due to the lack of new medication and technology in some countries.

“The taboo around child death, without an open and honest approach in dealing with death and without adequate children’s palliative care options, means that families are often forced to make inappropriate and ill-informed decisions to attempt aggressive curative treatments.” Nevertheless, ICPCN informs families that there is another way. Life-prolonging care and palliative care can go hand-in-hand. Palliative care was given the reputation that it should only be considered when all other options are exhausted, but that is entirely not true. For many terminally ill children, palliative care significantly improves their lives (“Scale of the Need”).

Ryan, a five-year-old boy born with a rare genetic disorder, can live sufficiently due to his pediatric palliative care. In the first six months of his life, Ryan’s continued seizures, surgeries, and sleepless nights due to respiratory issues required him to be a frequent patient in the hospital. Mother Meghan explains to Get Palliative Care that “I spent so much time on the phone dealing with insurance companies and coordinating doctor’s appointments that I wasn’t able to spend quality time with my newborn.” With mother, Meagan, and father, Dan, distraught and needing a solution to help their son, social media research led them to a specialty that allows children and their families to deal with all aspects of serious illnesses. Not only did the palliative care specialists help relieve some of Ryan’s pain, but the team also supported the family every step of the way. With both parents working full time, they could not be at the hospital frequently; therefore, the palliative care specialists installed medical equipment in their home and came to visit Ryan at home often to check on his progress. Mother Meghan explains that “[t]he training and care coordination made an enormous difference. Being able to care for Ryan at home has given us more time and energy to enjoy quality time with him.” As a result, Ryan is now able to spend more time with his family, in less pain, and his family believes “with full confidence that palliative care has made all of the difference in Ryan’s life and in our lives (“Living Well with Serious Illness…”).”

Spreading Sunshine serves a significant void by being a community for families of children with chronic illnesses, some of whom have children undergoing palliative care, allowing families to feel supported and loved. During my research, I found a similar non-profit organization that has a considerable impact on the lives of terminally ill children and their families. Miracles For Kids is one of the only organizations on the West Coast that help chronically ill children be less isolated from their community. Their mission is to “provide monthly financial aid, subsidizing housing, and counseling to families fighting for their child’s life.” Miracles For Kids has helped over one thousand five hundred families from thirteen different countries worldwide. Children have been diagnosed with over one hundred and thirty unique, terminal illnesses among these families. In addition, Miracles For Kids raises money to help families with food, clothing, shelter, etc., to allow families to focus on caring for their terminally ill children (“Families We’ve Helped”).

Organizations like Miracles For Kids and Spreading Sunshine allow families

- 35 -

Essay: Harper Dale

to focus on their children and have a community that supports them, which ultimately is one of the essential features that every family needs. These organizations believe that “families fighting for their children’s lives shouldn’t have to worry about becoming homeless or going hungry,” and therefore provide these amenities to the families while also building a friendship. Unfortunately, parents of children with terminal illnesses are so busy taking care of their children that they get isolated from their community (“Families We’ve Helped”).

Spreading Sunshine and Miracles For Kids strive to provide support and love for these parents. The community Spreading Sunshine builds through their personal letters, Facebook groups, one-on-one in-person interactions, and personalized “sunshine boxes” causes families to be less isolated, therefore, significantly improving their mental health. Additionally, the National Library of Medicine draws on how parents are affected by having children with chronic illnesses. Dr. Cohn found that “[p]arents of chronically ill children experience poorer mental health (more anxiety and depression), and mothers of those with congenital anomalies may have a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality than parents of unaffected children (Cohn).” Thankfully, non-profit organizations like Spreading Sunshine and Miracles For Kids acknowledge parents’ poor mental health and support them every step of the way through one-on-one interactions.

Support, love, attention, and care are what families of children with terminal illnesses need the most. Miracles For Kids saved Ja’Nae and her single mother. This family of two soon became homeless after Ja’Nae was diagnosed with a critical heart defect, as Ja’Nae’s mother stopped working to focus all of her attention on Ja’Nae and her care. As a result, Ja’Nae and her mother felt alone, hopping from place to place, unable to have a stable home, until they found Miracles For Kids. Miracles For Kids took Ja’Nae and her mother in and provided them with stable housing, care, and friendship. This sense of community and stability allowed Ja’Nae’s mother to focus on getting back to work (“Families We’ve Helped”). Additionally, Spreading Sunshine made a considerable difference in Michah’s family. Micah was diagnosed with cancer and had to move to Memphis to get the best care possible. Micah and his family were struggling. Heather, Micah’s mother, explained that “Things are HARD. No money, no community, no school, no church, no friends, but Spreading Sunshine makes me feel loved.” Spreading Sunshine, with donations and the hard work of volunteers, provided meals, Sunshine Boxes, and special projects to encourage each family member. Spreading Sunshine gave Micah and his family a sense of community, a “[v]ery loved in a lonely place.…My deepest thank you for loving us so deeply,” explains Micah’s mother (“Family Care”). Miracles For Kids and Spreading Sunshine both allow families like Ja’Nae and Micah’s to find a sense of community and stability through love, care, support, and friendship.

As a result of the ongoing global pandemic, families’ needs have never been more robust. With volunteer numbers and resources greatly diminished and, due to health reasons, the halt of many programs in-person one-on-one interactions causes many families to be isolated. Never has it been more

- 36 -

Essay/Reflection: Harper Dale Essay:

essential to encourage society to step forward and care for the most vulnerable and isolated people in our society. These families just need a little love and support, as they have so much to worry about in their day-to-day lives that they lack much human interaction. The world, America especially, must come together to help create a community for the vulnerable, isolated populations.

WORKS CITED Arias-Casais, Natalia. “Mapping Pediatric Palliative Care Development in the WHO-European Region: Children Living in Low-to-Middle-Income Countries Are Less Likely to Access It.” ScienceDirect, Elsevier, 24 Apr. 2020, www.sciencedirect.com/ science/article/pii/S0885392420302499. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

Cohn, Liel N. “Health Outcomes of Parents of Children with Chronic Illness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” National Library of Medicine, 6 Jan. 2020, pubmed. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31916997/#:~:text=Conclusions%3A%20Parents%20 of%20chronically%20ill,than%20parents%20of%20unaffected%20 children. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

“Coping with Stress Reactions after Injury or Illness.” Health Care Toolbox, www. healthcaretoolbox.org/coping-stress-reactions-after-injury-illness. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

“Families We’ve Helped.” Miracles for Kids, 2022, miraclesforkids.org/. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

“Family Care.” Spreading Sunshine, 2022, spreading-sunshine.org/family-care/. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

“Living Well with Serious Illness: Ryan’s Pediatric Palliative Care Story.” Get Palliative Care, 13 Jan. 2020, getpalliativecare.org/living-well-with-serious-illness-ryans-pediatric- palliative-care-story/. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

Maps, Justin Kenardy. “Kids Can Be Traumatised by Hospital Stays, Research Shows.”

Psychlopaedia, 6 June 2016, psychlopaedia.org/health/kids-can-be-traumatised-by- hospital-stays-research-shows/. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

“Scale of the Need.” International Children’s Palliative Care Network, 4 Mar. 2006, www.icpcn. org/information/the-need-for-childrens-palliative-care/. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022.

REFLECTION: HARPER DALE SPREADING SUNSHINE Over the past year, I have partnered with Spreading Sunshine, a non-profit organization based in Memphis that focuses on bringing joy to terminally ill kids and their families. The organization has an outsized positive impact with a micro-sized budget: it provides impaired, isolated, suffering kids with attention, concern, and a little fun. Spreading Sunshine partners with local hospitals and other non-profit organizations to make more personal connections with the terminally ill children in their community. In this model, Spreading Sunshine delivers care packages called “sunshine boxes” to kids and pursues one-on-one interactions with them in the hospital.

COVID interfered with this model, and the effectiveness of our program was threatened.

Volunteers could not have one-on-one interactions with patients in the hospital, which was heartbreaking for the patients and volunteers themselves. Gina Bartlett, Spreading Sunshines Volunteer Coordinator, and I were determined to come up with a solution to this pressing issue.

- 37 -

Reflection: Harper Dale Essay:

Over the summer, after countless Zoom calls, I suggested a solution. I created and successfully pitched a cost-free solution to help our organization continue to fulfill its mission: I would create individualized birthday videos for our kids, incorporating personal messages from other children. In constructing the video, over forty of my fellow Ensworth classmates sent me individualized videos for each child, enabling me to build a video containing personalized messages for each child. While I live a busy life full of sports and extracurricular activities, the time I spent putting together these videos has been the most rewarding as they have significantly impacted the children.

For example, one mom explained to me that because her terminally ill daughter has been in and out of hospitals all of her life, she has not had the chance to play or spend time with other kids; therefore, she did not have many friends her age. So, when she saw the personalized video containing people who spoke directly to her, it meant the world.

The lesson: the more a person is isolated, the more impactful genuine attention and care.

I am forever thankful for my time with Spreading Sunshine, as I was able to impact the lives of numerous children. These children are suffering more than I probably ever will, but I was able to see their perspectives through my service. The powerful children with chronic illnesses do not want to hear sympathy; they want to be treated just like everyone else. They do not get to see and interact with people their age often; therefore, the small interactions with other children make the most significant impact. These children are just like everyone else, and they deserve the same loving attention and care that children who can go to school every day receive. When signing up to be a Service Scholar, I never thought virtually volunteering with Spreading Sunshine would leave such an impact on me. Throughout my entire experience of making birthday videos and hearing children’s stories, I learned that a bit of love and genuine care can go a long way.

I will continue to volunteer at non-profit organizations like Spreading Sunshine, as I hope to continue to spread joy to people who are isolated from their community.

- 38 -

Essay: Sofia DeAngelis Essay:

ESSAY: SOFIA DEANGELIS NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY Every child is born into our world with the right and the need to read. We all can recall a favorite book of our childhood, not necessarily for the plot itself, but for the influence that it had on us. Maybe it was the emotions you felt while reading it, the way it captivated your mind afterward, or how it opened up a whole separate world for you to explore on your own. Whether it was as silly as Eric Carle’s Very Hungry Caterpillar or as whimsical as JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series, reading will always be an essential pillar in one’s adolescent life. The sad reality, though, is that in an era where any book fathomable is seemingly a click away, reading has increasingly become a part of the past.

More importantly, the necessary attributes acquired through the process of reading have remained and will continue to remain the same. The Nashville Public Library recognizes both of these pressing problems and works to combat the two.

One of Tennessee’s most urgent issues plaguing the state today is the literacy rate in our youth. Tennesseans for Student Success President and CEO, Adam Lister, demands for improvement in legislation since “Tennessee’s literacy rates are at crisis-level lows with only 34.9 percent of students reading on grade level” (‘Tennessee’s Literacy Rates at Crisis-level Lows, Student Org, Says’). Even before the pandemic, only one-third of Tennessee third graders across the state were proficient in their Language Arts class.

Combining these two statistics is scary when taking account of the increased difficulty to succeed in overall education when a child is still behind in the third grade milestone (‘Literacy in Tennessee’). This mass falling-behind carries on through the entirety of their schooling careers and beyond. Upon reaching fourth grade in Tennessee, only one-third of students receive a proficient reading score. In 2015, more than half of Tennessee students from the third grade to eighth grade failed to pass the state’s proficiency bar. Previously, in 2013, that number was 2 percentage points lower, meaning that Tennessee is moving in the wrong direction (Aldrich). While lack of interest in the internet era is partly to blame for the degradation of literacy rates, it is not the full story. These frightening data points worsen when focusing on disadvantaged students.

According to various studies, disadvantaged students throughout the country on average tend to struggle more in their academic careers. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, as many as 22% of children in the United States are struck by poverty (Hart). Households in financial hardship typically are unable to afford proper education for their children, let alone the basic needs. These kids already suffer with a scarcity of food, poor health, unsafe environments as daily challenges, Based on the reports of Reading is Fundamental, 80% of children living in economically disadvantaged communities lose reading skills over breaks as a result of not having access to certain academic resources like books (Hart). Add to these struggles larger class sizes, increased classroom behavior problems, and limited access to technology while at school and literacy becomes even more of a challenge. Once a student fails to envision success for his/her future, there is apparently no reason to continue academically. In 2012, 29,000 Tennessee students ended their educational path and dropped out of school, a majority

- 39 -

Essay: Sofia DeAngelis

of whom were from minorities (Keesler). High school graduation rates for African American, Latino, and Native American students are 60% to 70% lower than their respective Caucasian peers (Keesler). The cycle of hereditary illiteracy continues when these children grow into adults, as 72% of children whose parents have low literacy skill will match their parents’ low reading level in school. These children will grow into our leaders, so it is important that they don’t lose the many skills that accompany reading.

Reading comprehension early in life is critical in order to achieve academically because language is the central column of overall human development. The simple act of reading aloud to a child has remarkable benefits. According to the National Education Association, children on average are more likely to recognize letters of the alphabet, count to higher numbers, write their own names, and facilitate being read to when they themselves are read to frequently. The ability to understand the sounds of a language, termed ‘phonological awareness’, is an important skill to account for in developing success. Research led by Silvén of 56 children evaluated from infancy into first grade found a direct connection between early decoding and the age of exposure books (Dickinson). This act of hearing the language aids in the interpretation of the meaning of words. The more that the child hears while being read to, the more efficiently and correctly the child can process the words on the pages. One cannot ignore the importance of personal reading, too. For example, a child exercises comprehension skills while reading a paragraph containing various vocab words yet unknown to the reader. This scenario directly relates to the Convergent Skills Model of Reading, which hypothesizes that there is a primary dependence on code-based capabilities. The claims made by CSMR were assessed by examining language and literacy abilities in an assortment of readers from second grade through seventh grade. As a result of this study, language proficiency in younger years was revealed as an anticipator for both reading and language comprehension later in life (Dickinson).

Younger children who perform better than their peers at using deductive reasoning avoid redundant and explicit explanations later in their academic careers, therefore providing them with higher-level education. Meanwhile, a student unequipped with necessary tools will struggle to digest a sentence at the same time that their peer had already finished reading it aloud. Most importantly, children are eager to grasp language when the words peak their interests. Bloom compiled research to support that enthusiasm for learning spikes when the subject of the book is about well-loved objects or actions that the children enjoy (Dickinson). These findings on semantic learning and interests are nothing new for the Nashville Public Library. In the children’s section, the library provides a large collection of Playaways books, including Playaway Bookpacks.

All one has to do is press start for an audio version of the book to read along with the child. The easy access to a speaking voice assists in language development. As for a way to appeal towards the younger audience, there are respective cubbies dedicated to books written about ‘Things that go,’ ‘Princesses,’ ‘Dinos and Dragons,’ and more!

Readers who frequent the Nashville Public Library leave with increased reading and language skills to navigate their academic worlds.

Books foster consciousness at a young age, founded in their immediate life and the broader sense of the world. Under this wide umbrella of the buzzword ‘consciousness’

- 40 -

Essay: Sofia DeAngelis Essay:

is development of the personal self and development of a worldview. Through simple stories on a shelf, a child can discover both. Exposure to multicultural literature opens the doors to deeper conversations as “a child can see their own characteristics, idiosyncrasies, interactions, and feelings reflected or affirmed in a character” (SimsBishop). There is nothing more comforting, especially for kids, than seeing yourself in another form accomplishing great feats you never thought was possible or battling and overcoming a similar hardship. Adolescence is no easy road towards finding your true self identity- and, that is why there are books to help! Once children are able to understand their own character, they then can better empathize with the others around them. A worldview blends beliefs, assumptions, attitudes, values, and ideas to sculpt a comprehensive portrait of the past, present, and future of reality (Schlitz, Marilyn & Vieten, Cassandra & Miller, Elizabeth). Even if the culture is not one which they adopted or were born into, literature from other experiences illuminates geography, ethnic tradition, and builds respect for different origins. In this polarizing era of the earth, it is critical to expand our perspective beyond our given privilege. As the mother of multicultural literature, Rudine Sims Bishop, explains, “literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us and in that reflection, we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience.” The Nashville Public Library provides numerous opportunities for enriching the conscious mind through works of literature. Their extensive collection houses knowledge from any subject imaginable to match hobbies, situations, and backgrounds. Future anthropologists dig deep into archaeological finds and the biographies of Susan B. Anthony motivates our next female CEOs. Additionally, the library dedicates an entire section to books of all languages written on all topics, including heritage and tradition. Some of these books even incorporate two languages to advance learning bilingual abilities. Each person on this earth has a common and unique story that they can explore in one of the Nashville Public Library.

Now more than ever, the next leading generations will need to master creativity through many facets, like reading. The art of literature is subjective due to the factor of imagination. Even though the words on the page stay the same no matter what, the interpretations range wildly. This spectrum happens because it would be a mistake to pin reading as only repeating the consecutive letters shown in your head. Instead, the core of reading is about absorbing the story presented and designing a larger picture in our minds. The mind is a muscle just like any other, so exercising it frequently will strengthen the results. Impressively, the same traits that boost reading and writing abilities equally work towards improving creativity. These traits include freedom, an emphasis on self-discovery, attention to the individual, and the ability to communicate ideas (Wang). Amber Yayin Wang of the National Taichung University of Education sought to concretely support the link between personal reading practices and creative performance. Through her study, students participated by filling out a questionnaire based on their academic background and completing a shortened version of the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking. In the test, students went through one verbal and two figural examinations that required identifying problems, making guesses, and creative ways to communicate concepts. According to the collected results, there is a

- 41 -

Essay:Sofia DeAngelis Essay:

direct correlation between imagination and attitude towards reading (see table insert). Those who marked a positive attitude towards books scored highly.

Conversely, those who were not readers-at-heart received a negative score.

The entirety of the Nashville Public Library is dedicated to promoting reading alongside creativity through their expansive rows of literature, from picture books to series. One incredible feature that the Main Nashville Public Library showcases is the Wishing Chair Productions every Saturday at 10:30 am. The Wishing Chair Productions is the library’s resident puppet troupe, creating world-class shows to delight visitors of all ages. Their form of storytelling engages audience members to see their favorite stories, like Cinderella and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’ spur into life. This animated form of storytelling stimulates the right brain, which is responsible for imagination. A visual exposure to new worlds, characters, and perspectives improves their capabilities to form their own. Visitors of the Main Nashville Public Library aren’t exclusively inspired to be creative by the stories they read, but additionally by the tales they see.

Illiteracy is an ongoing epidemic that pains the entire world. In our privileged society, it is our responsibility to uplift these helpless children who are powerless to their situation. The Nashville Public Library is making a big difference in the local community to maintain the academic success, consciousness, and creativity that comes with reading. While the act may seem small, volunteering at the library is a tremendous avenue to initiate positive change. With proper aid the children of Tennessee can reach their full potential, and beyond. These institutions require local hands to reach their goal of widespread progress. Even if volunteering is not an option for you, encourage yourself to pick up a book. As everyone’s favorite Dr. Seuss said, “the more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”

Work cited

Aldrich, Marta W. “Why Can’t Tennessee Students Read? State Officials Have a Hunch, and a Plan.” Chalkbeat Tennessee, Chalkbeat Tennessee, 17 Feb. 2016, https://tn.chalkbeat. org/2016/2/17/21103272/why-can-t-tennessee-students-read-state-officials-have-a-hunchand-a-plan.

David K. Dickinson, Julie A. Griffith, Roberta Michnick Golinkoff, Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, “How Reading Books Fosters Language Development around the World”, Child Development Research, vol.

2012, Article ID 602807, 15 pages, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/602807 Hart, Lucy. “Poverty & Illiteracy in Schools.” Education, 29 Sept. 2016, https://education.seattlepi.com/ poverty-illiteracy-schools-2334.html.

Keesler, Amy R., “Adult Literacy in Tennessee: An Analysis by Gender, Age, and Race” (2014).

- 42 -

Essay/Reflection: Sofia DeAngelis Essay:

Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 2327. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2327 Literacy in Tennessee - Tennessee State Government - Tn.gov. https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/ education/2020-21-leg-session/Overall%20Tennessee%20Literacy%20Success%20Act.pdf.

Schlitz, Marilyn & Vieten, Cassandra & Miller, Elizabeth. (2010). Worldview Transformation and the Development of Social Consciousness. . 17. 18-36. submitted, Article. “Tennessee’s Literacy Rates at Crisis-Level Lows, Student Org. Says.” The Tennessee Tribune, 30 Dec. 2020, https://tntribune.com/tennessees-literacy-rates-at-crisis-level-lowsstudent-org-says/.

Wang, Amber. (2012). Exploring the relationship of creative thinking to reading and writing. Thinking Skills and Creativity. 7. 10.1016/j.tsc.2011.09.001.

REFLECTION: SOFIA DEANGELIS NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY As a child, I certainly struggled with all modes of communication. Speaking presented itself as a challenge when I struggled to pronounce basic sounds, like ‘L’s and ‘R’s. Reading never came easily as my family has a history of dyslexia, so I would typically fall behind, being stuck on part of a sentence while my peers continued onto more complex books. Writing was just as difficult. Between not being able to phonologically sound out the word and the letters on the page switching in my head, my spelling skills scrambled my homework into anagrams for my teacher. Additional tutors provided the extra time and patience that I needed to be taught more in-depth. Thanks to the endless support from friends, family, and school, I was able to combat these problems early on before they grew into an inescapable burden.

Unfortunately, many kids do not have access to the same resources that saved my seemingly doomed educational path. Too frequently, outsiders evaluate test scores for exclusively the final letter grade. The problem isn’t that these children are underdeveloped. These children can’t communicate their ideas. I know this because I was one of those kids. This is one of the reason’s I felt inclined for outreach involving reading.

When I moved to Nashville for my freshman year of high school, I wanted to immerse myself in the new community. After doing my research, I decided upon volunteering at the Main Nashville Library in the children’s section, located in downtown Nashville. I was certainly nervous at the beginning. I was a fourteen-year-old girl from a retirement hometown in Florida, now throwing myself into the diverse society of downtown Nashville. Let alone, the massive size of the library was intimidating. How could I make any significant impact?

The Nashville Public Library is an incredible institution that strives to empower the community, ignite children’s imaginations, and foster lifelong learning throughout Nashville. It is important to note that the library can’t thrive without numerous helpers.

I witnessed first-hand just how much it takes to run the library. That is why the library’s volunteer foundation is so essential.

Before I knew it, I was spending most of my Saturday mornings surrounded by the

- 43 -

Reflection: Sofia DeAngelis Essay:

Boxcar Children series, lego blocks, and heavy rolling carts. The integration was faster than I anticipated because of all the lovely staff who were more than willing to help along the way. I evolved in my position, moving from basic alphabetizing to shelving all genres (even the graphic novels), pulling materials from the shelves to be delivered to other branches, and giving patrons suggestions on what their child would like to read.

By the end of my Service Scholar project, I had been volunteering at both the main library and the Bellevue library over the course of four fulfilling years. I would look forward to seeing my coworkers, mentoring new volunteers, and putting smiles on children’s faces when I was able to help them find their favorite book. Although my Nashville days are coming to a close as I embark on my college journey, I hope to continue encouraging others on the significance of reading.

- 44 -

Essay: Essay: Catherine Duvall

ESSAY: CATHERINE DUVALL TIME TO RISE What exactly does it mean to be an at-risk youth? These are children who experience obstacles on their path to adulthood and may not be successful because of particular challenges in their lives (Smith). The success discussed here is not purely academic. It is the child’s ability to be victorious in the labor force as well as becoming financially independent, and most importantly, staying out of illegal activities. There are a multitude of factors that cause a child to be placed in the “at-risk” category. These factors can include: lack of parental guidance, academic disorders, drug availability, poverty, hunger, and child abuse. The most significant and most common determinant is poverty. According to the Children’s Defense Fund, more than 10 million kids were living in poverty in 2019, and that number has only continued to rise. The pressing statistic is that 71% of children in poverty are children of color. I am not one of 10 million, and I am not in the 71%. Growing up, I have rarely had to go without anything that I needed. At age three, I was placed in preschool and began kindergarten at six years old. For the past 13 years, I have attended a predominantly white private school. The privilege that I am exposed to each day is incredible. My school offers both breakfast and lunch to its students, and some kids even stay on campus past dinnertime. I could not be more grateful for the education that I have received, and I have recently realized how insanely lucky I am to be able to attend Ensworth. Bill Weaver and David Whitfield founded Time to Rise with the goal of giving at-risk children around Nashville access to the education that I receive year-round. During the critical years of ages nine through twelve, childhood education is vital to the development of at-risk youth because it can either set them on a path for success or lead them astray.

In 1992, Time to Rise was founded by a passionate man, Mr. Weaver, who dreamed of creating an educational nonprofit organization to assist at-risk youth. With a reputation of having civic excellence, Time to Rise gives students an opportunity to increase their chances of success. By stressing the importance of both character development and educational excellence, Time to Rise has helped thousands of underprivileged children avoid the risk factors that they’re exposed to at home. Each summer, Time to Rise hosts three consecutive summer camps that offer enrichment opportunities for the kids, including learning about school and character development.

Every student who attends the camp comes highly recommended by their teachers.

These kids are yearning to learn, motivated to better themselves, and are all around passionate about life itself. They come with an abundant amount of potential and the ultimate goal of Time to Rise is to help them reach it. As both a counselor and a teacher for Time to Rise, the one-on-one support given to the students is vital. With an approximate 1:4 staff-student ratio, the students have continuous exposure with teachers and counselors who are experts in their fields (Time to Rise). While academic excellence is a top priority of Time to Rise, it is also essential to teach the children

- 45 -

Essay: Catherine Duvall

the value of being a good citizen. Placing value on being a good citizen surrounds their behavior with one another, their treatment of adults, and the their understanding of the importance of both respect and discipline. Sports, games, and activities are incorporated into the curriculum each day to reward the kids for doing well. By having high school students serve as counselors, the kids are able to connect with positive role models that they aren’t forced to view as adults. Each morning, students take four classes in the main academic categories: math, science, reading, and writing. They learn to master multiplication, independent thought, and reasoning as they are faced with projects lasting the duration of the camp. They engage in activities such as sports and field trips following each morning. Part of their character development must be learned outside of the classroom and with their peers. Their good behavior and strong effort are rewarded with a graduation ceremony at the conclusion of camp, where each child receives a token of appreciation for their hard work.

While Time to Rise is a local nonprofit organization, they address a global issue.

Childhood education is a struggle all around the world. Children who are in poverty, especially, lack the education opportunities that I am blessed with for a surplus of reasons. Lots of kids aren’t even able to get to school. Many students often arrive without having eaten breakfast and wearing dirty clothes. While these seem like small obstacles, they significantly affect a child’s ability to focus and learn in a healthy environment. The benefits to early childhood development are critical to their later years. Unfortunately, unlike America, no country in the developing world can brag of comprehensive programs that are able to reach all children. “A recent study found that the World Bank made only $2.1 billion of investments in early childhood development in the last ten years, [which is] equivalent to just a little over 3 percent of the overall portfolio of the human development network…” (Atinc, Gustafsson-Wright). Even though this may seem like a large sum of money to the naked eye, it does not reach far with the surplus of children needing education. Thankfully, the amount of investments given to the World Bank has vastly increased since the study was conducted. Even so, America’s assets and other countries’ investments are still insufficient. Another issue regarding childhood education is making sure that the education they’re receiving is of good quality. Over the last few decades, there has been an expansion around the world of schooling at both the primary and secondary levels. The World Bank states that “As that happened, the quality [of education] deteriorated. A typical quantity-quality tradeoff…Expansion must be accompanied with quality.” To fix this problem, the World Bank is working to possibly implement early childhood education into women’s employment, empowerment, and skills development in order to build a more qualified workforce while still expanding access to both education and childcare (Devercelli, Saaverda). A major downfall to this program is that the children cannot be educated if they aren’t supported. With millions of children living in poverty and fragile settings, schools must include more than just learning. When school can be a haven for children, they are much more likely to attend regularly. For example, Whirlpool washers and dryers has launched a program that gives laundry services to public schools worldwide. “More than 1,000 school representatives - from all 50 states and as far away as Saudi Arabia, Ireland, and South Africa - have reached out [to join the program]” (Tate). Showing up to school with dirty clothes is mortifying for these at-risk students. These school

- 46 -

Essay: Catherine Duvall Essay:

administrations discreetly clean the children’s clothes while they’re in class. This is just one factor that allows for many at-risk students without stable homes, or even those who are homeless, to continue their education path in a positive setting.

While the world is working hard to better childhood education and implement more resources into it, an unforeseen obstacle came to light in 2019 - Covid. The virus completely shut down public schools. Even though every student was affected by this, some schools were able to continue their curriculum through the pandemic.

Ensworth, for example, provides their students with personal laptops, allowing us to Zoom together, view assignments, and still take assessments. We could still interact with our teachers, and, while learning hit a few bumps in the road, we were able to continue the year. August through May of 2020-2021 was online for public schools all over the nation. I was incredibly fortunate to be able to attend school with a regular schedule for the duration of the year, but millions of students did not have the same opportunities.

When starting Time to Rise in the summer of 2021, I was stunned to see how behind the students were in their learning. Many of the rising fourth graders I was counseling did not even know basic multiplication. They struggled with reading, writing, and most importantly, peer communication. These kids had great hearts, but they lacked discipline and respect. They fought, argued, and yelled at each other incessantly. This camp was one of the first times they were out of the house in an authentic learning environment in over a year. They had forgotten how to communicate with each other positively, and it was clear that they had been at home for much too long. This summer proved to me that childhood education for at-risk youth is absolutely critical for these kids’ development as a person, both academically and in their character. To be able to focus, they needed one-on-one attention. They were so used to not having to do work that it took the counselors standing over their shoulders for them to write numbers down on the page. However, after the first two weeks, we started to see improvement. It took me counting on my fingers while Fatima practiced multiplication for it to click with her finally. When I pushed Danielle to tell me about her day, she was finally able to write down more thoughts in her personal journal. When I sat next to Brandon, he felt more confident and was able to read out loud with little to no problems. When I stood on the field with D’Marcus, Marcus, and Jaxon, they played football with better sportsmanship, and no tears were shed. With a little bit of tough love, the kids were able to dig deeper into their thoughts. Their personal writing improved, and they became more confident in reading aloud and raising their hands to ask questions. This proves how vital quality attention and love are to the kids and how well they can improve with a bit of push.

My experience with Time to Rise was one I will never forget. At-risk youth deserve the best education, and they need people in their lives who are willing to help them set out on the right path. I believe that the world sees this issue as a priority and is working hard to not only build schools in developing countries, but to place quality and loving teachers in them. Poverty is tremendous in America, and it’s hard to see and imagine how much these kids struggle when they go home each day. It is impossible to know whether or not their school lunch will be their only meal of the day or if their teacher is the person who cares most about them. I can’t fathom the fact

- 47 -

Essay: Catherine Duvall

that some of the kids I counseled could be leaving camp to go back to broken homes.

During the critical development years, children who are motivated and present strong potential need to be treated like they are the next generation of leaders. Time to Rise is just one of many national nonprofit organizations that see the extreme need to assist these young children in staying on the right path and reaching their full potential, even when they feel lost. I look forward to continuing on my own path to help with this global issue and hope that by helping a few kids during the summer, I can change their lives for the better.

Work cited

Atinc, Tamar Manuelyan, and Emily Gustafsson-Wright. “Early Childhood Development: The Promise, the Problem, and the Path Forward.” Brookings, Brookings Institution, 23 Nov. 2013, www. brookings.edu/articles/early-childhood-development-the-promise-the-problem-and-the-pathforward/.

Devercelli, Amanda, and Jaime Saaverda. “The World Bank’s Unwavering Commitment to Early Childhood Education.” World Bank Blogs, World Bank Group, 10 Apr. 2019, blogs.worldbank.org/ education/world-bank-s-unwavering-commitment-early-childhood-education.

Tate, Allison Slater. Schools Find One Simple Answer to Attendance Problem: Washing Machines. Today, 31 Aug. 2018. Today, www.today.com/parents/schools-find-one-simple-answer-attendanceproblem-washing-machines-t101318. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Time to Rise. time2rise.org/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

“What Is At-Risk Youth? - Definition & Statistics.” Study.com, 15 July 2016, study.com/academy/lesson/ what-is-at-risk-youth-definition-statistics.html

- 48 -

Reflection: Catherine Duvall Essay:

REFLECTION: CATHERINE DUVALL TIME TO RISE This past summer, I was selected to serve as a counselor for an organization called Time to Rise, founded by David Whitfield and Bill Weaver in 1992. The program is a Nashville-based nonprofit and allows at-risk youth to spend time during the summer achieving their potential and bettering themselves. The camp is for rising fourth through sixth graders from low-income families around Nashville. During the school year, teachers find children in their classroom who would benefit from extra attention and who would fit well in the camp’s environment. These children are kind-hearted and extremely motivated to learn. I was shocked that many of these eight and nine-year-olds did not know basic multiplication and had trouble reading. COVID-19 was at fault for many of these problems because their schools did not have the resources to provide students with online accessibility during the year. Not only were these children struggling academically, but socially as well. Being away from school for an entire year severely damaged their discipline and respect for others. These children have huge hearts, and it was hard to see them having so much trouble.

I want to continue contributing to this program and possibly see it occur more than once a year. Over the course of June, I got to know each kid in my group extremely well.

They ran to me each morning after departing from the bus and would tell me how excited they were to see me. I felt loved and appreciated. One of the most important things about service to me is the feeling that I get when I help others. Knowing that these children looked forward to seeing my face, playing, and learning with me every day made me feel like I was really impacting their lives.

Towards the end of camp, in writing class with the beloved Jim Miller, the kids were asked to write a thank-you note to someone in their lives that deserved gratitude. It could be to their mom, grandmother, friend, or dog. Four children in my designated group, Fatima, Ayanna, Zarahia, and Dorian, all wrote their letters to me. They thanked me for helping them learn six times eight, showing them the rules of four square, and for being their friend. It was at that point that I knew that I was a positive role model in their lives and that they would never forget their time with me at Time to Rise. Even though it was a hard and frustrating few weeks, I wouldn’t have traded my experiences for the world.

Kids need kindness, patience, and love. They didn’t need someone to hold their hand, but just to tell them that they were doing a good job.

Growing up with such privilege, I never understood how serious of an issue childhood education truly was. After seeing how the kids struggled after their year off of school, I knew that their lack of education was detrimental to both their character and their path in life. Time to Rise is an incredibly special organization, and I hope to, one day, start a similar organization of my own.

- 49 -

Essay: Gray Fleetwood

ESSAY: GRAY FLEETWOOD FAITHFULLY RESTORED For my service learning project, I chose to volunteer at Faithfully Restored.

Faithfully Restored is a non profit organization whose goal is lifting women up who are in need of care, encouragement, community and even a powerful feeling of being loved.

Faithfully Restored started out with four female members. Each of the four founding members have deep desires to give back and to provide hope to the community and other women in need. Each member has experienced trials that have rocked them and challenged them. The founders have experienced the loss of small children, infertility and adoption issues and cancer, so they are familiar with pain and loss and suffering.

Their trials are real, yet somehow they manage to come together and put others first in a way that helps them heal themselves at the same time. These women want to provide help to other women in their darkest hours even though their own days could be troubling to them. They put their pain into the love of someone else. They encourage others to choose joy, love and healing while they themselves do the same exact thing in their own daily lives. They want to connect to other women in similar situations so these women can feel understood. Through their hard work and dedication to their desire to help others in need, they are able to make everyone around them stronger. They influence the other women they interact with directly and influence their families and others around them. These women listen to their community and take action to be a positive influence and give their time to directly see the impact of their work. Their work does not discriminate. The fact that these individuals have experienced or are experiencing loss or tragic events reiterates the reality everyone can experience the same feelings. Having a positive force in your life can make a huge difference in the lives of others as well as your own life.

Faithfully Restored started as an idea amongst friends and with strong determination they were able to figure out a way to translate this idea to an effective non profit charity. Each of the four founding members are from different backgrounds and experiences. Starting off, they realized the power of prayer and positive reinforcement from other women who have endured similar difficult situations, and they were able to grow from four founders to many people who are now involved in their amazing organization. What started out in their homes and cars has grown significantly, and they now have brand new offices in Cool Springs. They used to have to do all of the work themselves and now they have many volunteers who are more than willing to help them. They now have prayer groups, special events with speakers, workshops, singersongwriter events and many more fundraisers on a regular basis. The work these women have done has been seen in many ways, but the impact they have made on others can be seen especially in their yearly growth in donations. In 2019 they raised $28,000 and then in 2021 they raised over $315,000 (Jamie Heard from Faithfully Restored). To date, Faithfully Restored has responded to more than 600 individual prayer requests. They

- 50 -

Essay: Essay: Gray Fleetwood

have provided over 350 small projects under $500 which include the first holiday after a loss, single mom Christmas packages, and even headstones for women who have lost children. They have provided more than 30 large projects which include rent for families in need, trips for grieving moms, counseling for those who need it, help with college tuition payments, counseling retreats and even $15,000.00 adoption grants.

They have given out over 2,200 community care packages which include packages to police officers, teachers, Vanderbilt Mother’s Day gifts, military wives, foster moms, adoptive moms, oncology patients and nurses. Faithfully Restored has tried to reach as many women as possible, and it does not matter if the project or need is large or small.

They want to reach all those who need anything from a smile or hug to a care package to even money for rent or burial fees. Faithfully Restored, with the help of donors and volunteers, is able to reach so many women. The amount of growth they have experienced in such a short amount of time shows the success of their work.

I chose Faithfully Restored for many reasons for my service learning project. I wanted to be of help to Faithfully Restored because one of the founders is Jamie Heard, my Ensworth second grade teacher and family friend. As many of you know, she lost her precious son William tragically when he was only two and a half. He choked on chicken from chicken noodle soup while being watched by his nanny. He was such a special boy and went to heaven way too early. I was very close to William, so Faithfully Restored interested me before I even knew much about it. It was a way for me to stay connected to William and to promote this non profit to others who may not have heard about it. I was so excited to be a part of this program. Through the years, Jamie has been a presence in my life as well as her family. As I have gotten older and reflected on their loss, I saw how gracefully they all handled their situation. Their daughter Madeline and I have had a friendship through the years, and I realized she looks up to me. Whether it was my age or my activities, she always noticed the things I did. I want to be a positive influence for Madeline and set good examples. While realizing this influence I had with Madeline, I began to see what Jamie had started with Faithfully Restored and came to realize how being involved could also be something for me to look up to and learn how to be a strong person as well as a strong woman. I have been able to learn how to handle adversity and turn a negative into positive, pain into love. This can be applied in all areas of life not just with Faithfully Restored. I am honored and have grown as a person and blessed that these powerful women allowed me to help and experience their abilities to influence others in a positive manner.

December 11th is a day I will never forget. Usually I would be on my way to gymnastics, but today when both my parents picked me up at school I knew something was wrong. They had tears in their eyes. I immediately asked what was wrong and they explained something terrible had happened to our family friend, William Heard. At the young age of 2 and a half, he had choked on a piece of chicken, and my mom and dad told me he was in bad shape. It turns out that my sweet friend William was not going to make it. We had prayed and cried for him to be okay, but sadly he passed away. This was my first experience with losing someone whom I cared deeply about. William was my little buddy, and I loved him so much. I just could not grasp the fact that something so terrible had happened to him and that I would never get to see him again. I was

- 51 -

Essay: Gray Fleetwood

devastated and my heart was broken, but I could only imagine the pain his parents and older sister were experiencing. My mom took me to the hospital late that night so I could say goodbye to him. Everyone who knew William loved him. He was so precious and loved tractors. Our close friends, the Heards, were broken. They had so much love and support, but they were broken. They were surrounded by so many family members and friends, but they could not bring William back. The Heard’s turned to God to help them get through this most difficult time. Their faith that God had a bigger and better plan for William led Jamie to become a founding member of Faithfully Restored.

I decided to research and explore small children and death by choking since that is how William passed away. From my research, I gathered that choking is a leading cause of injury and death among children, especially those younger than 4 years of age. The majority of choking related incidents among children are associated with food, coins, and toys (Nationwide Children’s Hospital). According to the policy statement, the AAP recommends warning labels on foods that pose a high choking risk, a recall of food products that pose a significant choking hazard, the establishment of a nationwide food related choking incident surveillance and reporting system, and a commitment from food manufacturers to design new food and redesign existing food to minimize choking risk. (Nationwide Children’s Hospital). The risk of choking depends on the shape, size, and consistency of the item, along with the developmental and behavioral capabilities of the child. In the United States, an average 140 children choke to death each year, and thousands of others end up requiring emergency care after a choking episode (Perry). Reported a few years back by the American Academy of Pediatrics, choking on food causes the death of approximately one child every five days in the United States.

Although William Heard choked on chicken, a food most likely to be choked on are grapes. A grape is actually larger than a child’s airways and has a smooth surface, which allows the fruit to form a tight seal when it gets wedged in the airways, so tight that it is very difficult to dislodge without special equipment (Perry). A 5-year old boy choked on a whole grape at an after school club. Even with the first aid medics trying to dislodge the grape and aggressive emergency actions at the hospital the boy suffered from a heart attack and died. Another case involved a 17 month old boy who choked on a grape while eating lunch at home with his family. The child’s parents and paramedics were unsuccessful at dislodging the fruit in time to save his life. He was sadly declared dead after he arrived at the hospital. This is exactly what happened to William. The medics and doctors were unsuccessful in removing the piece of chicken. There are some things that can be done to prevent children from choking on food. One is to keep foods such as grapes, hot dogs, raw carrots or peanuts away from small children. Cut food for young children into smaller pieces no larger than one half inch. Supervise meal times and insist that the children sit down while eating, they should never run, play or lie down with food in their mouths (Perry).

Another source from the New York Department of Health states that choking is the fourth leading cause of unintentional death in children under the age of 5. At least one child dies from choking on food every 5 days and more than 12000 children are taken to a hospital emergency room each year for food choking injuries. It is important to remember that the size of a young child’s trachea is about the size of a drinking straw in diameter.

- 52 -

Essay: Essay: Gray Fleetwood

March 28th is National Choking Awareness Day, making it a perfect time to spotlight this prevention. One father created a non-invasive upper airway clearing device intended to save as many lives as possible. (LifeVac). This device can be used on children and adults. It makes a high powered suction cup that vacuums out the obstruction. LifeVac could be the cause of thousands of lives saved.

Even though these children tragically die, there can be something positive that can be achieved. Willaim Heard passed away, but his heart beats on with the help of organ donations. Many think that organ donations involve older people, but it doesn’t matter the age. Right now, over 1900 children under the age of 18 are on the national transplant waiting list. Over 1700 children received transplants in 2020. In 2020 there were over 860 child organ donors, ranging from newborns to age 17. Over 121 child organ donors were babies under the age of 12 months. Most children under age one are waiting for liver or heart transplants. Most children from 1 to 10 are waiting for a kidney or liver or heart. Organ donations allows people to help others in a greater way. The Heard family is able to stay connected with the little girl who received William’s heart, and are able to hear his heartbeat on knowing that their child helped this other child live on. The terrible loss of a child and the fact that Willaim was able to help someone else with organ donation, in all the helped they received inspired them to help others and their belief turned to God and the want to help others in need.

- 53 -

Essay: Gray Fleetwood

Work cited

Heard, Jamie, et al. “Faithfully Restored Women.” Faithfully Restored, www.faithfullyrestoredwomen.com/.

“LifeVac Supports National Choking Awareness Day March 28, 2022.” Cision, 15 Mar. 2022, www.yahoo.com/now/lifevac-supports-national-choking-awareness-194000778. html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADalZw2HwFVUlGpkKYGCgu_Bn8zj6inZ8sF7NIFJk0xnG9vk1qJiR2PqD2VSYdp6UZb1w7OzrsN91PL8zFupbFTuw2qWm1wQAasPDXY1KFWWNfOHJyqFFUZlUmFD9Rzh9nI9BXtZaUcqOfiyFrRtqN1E8OVOP9HwfQiV30APBUTS. “Organ Donation and Children.” Health Resources and Services Administration, 2020, www. organdonor.gov/learn/who-can-donate/children.

Perry, Susan. “Physicians Warn about Choking Danger to Children from Grapes and Other Foods.” MinnPost, 12 Jan. 2017, www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2017/01/physicianswarn-about-choking-danger-children-grapes-and-other-foods/#:~:text=3%20or%20 younger.-,In%20the%20United%20States%2C%20an%20average%20of%20140%20children%20choke,children%20experience%20permanent%20brain%20damage.

- 54 -

Essay: Reflection: Gray Fleetwood

REFLECTION: GRAY FLEETWOOD FAITHFULLY RESTORED Throughout the summer internship I was able to help with, I feel like my journey at Faithfully Restored has taught me so much. Along with the work I did, which I enjoyed greatly, I would have to say for me personally, it’s the lessons I learned from these strong women, the organization itself, and the people we cared for that will stick with me forever.

First, I realized how truly blessed I am. Sometimes we all get too carried away to actually appreciate all the amazing little and big gifts we have in this world. It is so difficult to see what some people have to go through and how often people have to experience tragedy, but with that, my service experience allowed me to see the strength some of these individuals gain from their tragic experiences. I did my work knowing that this job was going to be hard, but that in the end, I was going to help individuals and their families. I hoped to make an impact in their lives and know that they are not alone and that there is always a shoulder to lean on if needed. The interaction with the individuals themselves and seeing their responses was genuine and are moments I will never forget. I was able to see that just something as small as a care package can actually make a difference in someone’s life. A smile or a hug can make someone feel better. Knowing someone understands and accepts you for who you are and is willing to help you means so much and can go so far in someone’s life. Nothing feels better than walking up to someone’s door to hand them a small gift and leave, knowing you just made someone’s day a little better.

I loved the feeling this internship gave me, of allowing people to feel loved and know that they are not alone. I learned that just saying I care makes a huge mark and difference in others lives. Putting others first is extremely rewarding and is something I strive to do more and more each day. Seeing someone in pain smile for the first time in a long time made this internship all worth it. My time at Faithfully Restored has helped me to become a better person. I see the sadness people experience and know that something small can encourage them to keep going and to not give up. I learned that women can be great leaders and accomplish great things for themselves and others. We can all come together and support one another to make this world a little better and a little more loving. I also learned the amazing power that prayer contains. These four women only started out with a prayer for others, but as time has gone on, they have added pieces of their hearts to help make a very successful organization that I know will continue to grow and will be able to help more and more women each and every year.

- 55 -

Essay: Maeve Glattes

ESSAY: MAEVE GLATTES ANALYSIS OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE ON NATIVE AMERICAN RESERVATIONS When I first arrived on the reservation, my mouth dropped. I was overcome with beauty as I saw mountains all around me. I traveled to Browning, Montana, with my mom and two friends with a service group. With our mission to help anyone in need in the community that we were serving, the work allowed me to truly immerse myself in their culture. We worked on a farm owned by one of the pastors on the reservation.

As he picked up countless phone calls, I heard and saw many hardships invading their community. One phone call, in particular, sparked an interest in me to comprehend where their battles were originating entirely. While the pastor was on the phone with a child, I heard a quiet and frightened voice of a child explaining to him that his mom was high on meth again and tried to kill their family dog. After the phone call ended, the pastor explained that phone calls related to substance abuse happen more often than we ever thought. While heartbroken, I immediately became intrigued about how and why many Native Americans fell captive to alcohol and drugs. What I saw and heard provoked a more profound question for my research, “How has substance abuse affected the nature of community throughout the Native American Reservations, and what is society doing to address the issue?”

A Brief History of the Origin of Substance Abuse on Native American Reservations When reflecting on the effects of substance abuse on the Native American Reservations, it is essential to understand the origin of these issues thoroughly.

Sources show that these chemical dependencies stem from historical trauma, unemployment and poverty, and low levels of education.

In the 17th century, the race to conquer the “New World’’ began, and many European countries filled ships with colonists and sent them on a quest to conquer this new land. Some countries allied themselves with the Natives already living there, while others sought to steal their land. The Natives faced countless challenges as their land was taken over no matter their efforts. Disease challenged the very survival of the Indians from the beginning. As the Europeans flooded their land, they exposed the Natives to diseases their immune systems had never seen, causing horrific death.

These illnesses decimated the Native Americans, wiping out nearly 90% of their population. While foreign disease posed a threat to the Native Americans, they also became vulnerable to the slave trade. Due to the wars between the European nations, Natives who sided with the losing army were commonly enslaved or indentured.

Some Native Americans were shipped away from their homes in the United States to other places such as Canada. For decades, these separation tactics that weakened the Native American communities carried on (“Native Americans in Colonial America”).

- 56 -

Essay: Essay: Maeve Glattes

In 1832, the United States attempted to enforce a treaty that would remove the Sac from their important village Saukenuk located on the Illinois side of the river. The United States Government was faced with resistance by Chief Black Hawk, resulting in the “Black Hawk War.” The US troops eventually routed Indian resistance through a bloody battle and pushed the Sac families from their land. Eventually, the government made a treaty with the tribe that relocated the tribes to the west and removed Indian land claims (“American Indians and Western Expansion”).

While 1832 seems long ago, this removal of Native Americans continued until 1978. On March 3, 1819, the US government issued the Civilization Fund Act that enforced decades of assimilationist policies, leading to Indian Boarding schools from 1860-1978. There were 357 known Indian Boarding schools, and over 1/3 of these schools were managed by Christian denominations. Used as treatment facilities to show Native American people how they should act based on the white civil actions, these boarding schools encouraged the children to abandon their traditional cultures, languages, and practices. While at these facilities, the children were denied access to any contact with family or community members, essentially cutting all access to their heritage. Survivors of these schools have shared countless stories of physical and sexual abuse as well as stories about the lack of food and medical attention that they received. Many students fell ill and died at these schools, and the parents would rarely discover their children’s death until they had been buried in the school cemeteries, unmarked. Of the 150,000 kids taken from their homes and forced to attend these assimilation boarding schools, one study showed that 40,000 perished in the United States alone (Thousands of Indigenous children perished in ‘genocide boarding schools’”). Other countries, such as Canada, used these tactics to help assimilate the Indians into the typical white man culture. Canada later implemented the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement in 2007, and the government apologized and paid reparations to the survivors of these culture-destroying schools (“Death by Civilization”). This break connected with their land, community, and cultural practices developed into problematic coping strategies, such as substance abuse.

The Effects of Drug Use in Native American Communities Substance abuse of Native Americans has caused many problems through their communities, but the significant increase in child neglect and violence poses the greatest threat to their societies. In a survey of federal providers, the effects of drug abuse on family structures are evident. Of 1,155 children surveyed, 750 expressed signs of emotional and physical abuse and neglect due to the substance abuse of one or both of the parents. This abuse and neglect leads to more psychiatric problems creating a higher rate of children running away from home, getting expelled from school, and using drugs (“Abuse and neglect of American Indian children; findings from a survey of federal providers”). Therefore, substance abuse often causes a continuous cycle as the parents expose their kids to the effects of alcohol and drugs, initiating an addiction of their own.

- 57 -

Essay: Maeve Glattes

Additionally, drug abuse on Native American Reservations has caused a significant increase in violence amongst their people. A dramatic increase in violent crimes is evident, and methamphetamine use caused 40% of these crimes. There was also a 64% increase in domestic violence and assault/battery cases as the meth use rates increased (“Methamphetamine in Indian Country: An American Problem Uniquely Affecting Indian Country”). This immense increase in crime contributes to the 5,590 Native American women reported missing in 2019. Considering the large number of women who go missing each year from these communities, the lack of police enforcement has contributed to many unsolved cases. For example, in 2016, 5,712 American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls were reported missing, but the US Department of Justice logged only 116 cases according to the federal missing person database. With both increased drug use and limited law intervention on reservations, the communities are faced with an immense amount of crime, primarily targeting young women and girls.

One missing person case severely affected the Blackfeet Tribe in Browning, Montana. Her name is Ashley Loring Heavyrunner. On June 5, 2017, her life changed forever. Her sister, Kimberly, grew worried when she had not heard from Ashley in a couple of days. She soon found out that Ashely had reached out to a Facebook friend to get a ride into town from her ranch on the reservation. Kimberly and her family grew very concerned after receiving a video of Ashley drinking and talking with people at a party without contact with her. Thus, the search for their beloved family member began. It took two months for the Bureau of Indian Affairs to get involved in the case. Within two weeks of her last sighting, her family began their search throughout the reservation. When someone announced they had seen a young woman running from a vehicle on a highway the same night that Ashley disappeared, Kimberly gathered a large group of people to search the northern edge of the reservation. Kimberly and a family friend found a torn sweater and bloody boots. After this discovery, the same eyewitness revealed the same accessories of Ashley’s outfit the night that she disappeared. These pieces of evidence were handed over to law enforcement for a DNA test, but the family shared that they still have not received test results (“Annual Walk held for Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, who vanished on Montana reservation in 2017”).

Deeply affected by the disappearance of Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, the Blackfeet Tribe in Browning, Montana, holds an annual community gathering known as “Ashely’s Walk” on June 12. This event not only honors Ashley and the joy she brought her community, but it also brings awareness to other missing indigenous people and provides a time for healing. On June 12, 2021, the annual walk also consisted of searches for Leo Wager, a 26-year-old, and Arden Pepion, a 3-year-old, both of whom disappeared in April that same year (“Annual Walk held for Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, who vanished on Montana reservation in 2017”). Ashley Loring inspired actual change in Native American society. Her disappearance motivated young women to join the Blackfeet Nation Boxing Club located in Browning, Montana.

- 58 -

Essay: Maeve Glattes Essay:

Blackfeet Boxing Club was opened in 2003 by Frank Kipp, a beloved Blackfeet Tribe member. The initial intent of the boxing club was to provide a haven for troubled kids as an attempt to keep them away from drugs and alcohol. Over time, the club became a refuge for young girls and women on the reservation. Here, Kipp taught them how to stand up for themselves and provided necessary lessons on self-defense. Living in a world of danger and violence as drug abuse increased, young girls and women became seemingly easy targets. In 2017, Ashley Loring Heavyrunner inspired the young girls around the reservation to avoid any of the same trauma that she may have endured (“How the Blackfeet Nation Boxing Club is fighting to save the lives of Native American women”).

In 2015, the daughter of Frank Kipp, Donna Kipp, went professional with her new passion in boxing. She was a bronze medalist in the 2015 Junior Olympic Nationals. Her success outside of the community brought awareness to the violence that flooded the reservations as substance abuse created a dangerous community with a lack of safety for the tribal members. (“How the Blackfeet Nation Boxing Club is fighting to save the lives of Native American women”).

Ways to Help Promote Beneficial Change to Limit the Effects of Substance Abuse on these Reservations.

While substance abuse seems like a societal issue, the problem lies in systemic problems. Therefore, two significant ways of decreasing the rate at which Native Americans are using include reducing poverty and increasing education. Though women make up about 50% of the population, the pay gap between Native American Women and other workers has caused destructive poverty, further enhancing the grip of substances on the community. One study found that Native American women make 40% less than white, non-Hispanic men working comparable hours. Therefore, for each dollar a white man makes, a Native American only makes 60 cents. This pay gap forces Native American women and many families into poverty. Showing this systemic issue also highlights that poverty is not a personal choice; it is a political outcome. To ensure that women are treated equally in the workplace, the government is attempting to pass the Build Back Better bill. Also, under the Biden administration, Representative Rosa DeLauro introduced the Paycheck Fairness Act to help reduce paycheck discrimination and strengthen equal pay protections under federal law.

After being filibustered by the Republicans in the US Senate in 2021, Congress continues to prioritize this bill to help bring the Native American population out of poverty (“How the Government Can End Poverty for Native American Women”).

Along with poverty, the education system provided to Native American children has caused immense poverty throughout their communities. Studies have shown that Native American children are estimated to be around 2-3 grade levels below white children in reading and mathematics. Also, another study showed that Native American kids are 237% more likely to drop out of school and 207% more likely to be expelled from school than white children. Lastly, a study showed that

- 59 -

Essay: Maeve Glattes

for every 100 Native American children, only seven would receive their bachelor’s degree, whereas, for every 100 white children, 34 would receive their bachelor’s degree. These statistics expose the apparent faults in education provided to Native American children living on the reservation. Both low income and lack of concern for public school facilities on reservations have contributed to these low levels of education. Due to the faulty education system, the cycle of poverty continues because of their inability to get high-paying jobs due to their lack of education and experience. Today, the National Caucus of Native American State Legislators (NCNASL) has determined specific policies to help improve these issues faced by the Native American communities. For example, The NCNASL has created policies to ensure preparation in school for the Native American children for the rigors of the new economy and college. This societal alteration will also help put more children into the workforce to bring in more income. Secondly, the NCNASL also believes in increasing the role of Native peoples in the education system for Native American students to make schools a more culturally accepting place for Native beliefs. The NCNASL also believes the inadequate distribution of resources to the Native students allows for the same success rate as other students (“Striving to Achieve Helping Native American Students Succeed”).

Much work needs to occur to allow Native Americans to thrive in this country while not endangering their enriched culture. While our work on the reservation was relatively small, it provided insight for me to understand the systemic problems within our country fully and that the US is not always a prosperous country for all of its citizens.

WORKS CITED

“American Indians and Westward Expansion.” Iowa Culture, iowaculture.gov/history/education/ educator-resources/primary-source-sets/westward-expansion-and-native-americans. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Bender, Albert. “Thousands of Indigenous Children Perished in ‘Genocide Boarding Schools.’” People’s World, 12 Aug. 2021, www.peoplesworld.org/article/thousands-of-indigenous-children-perishedin-genocide-boarding-schools/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Cavallier, Andrea. “Annual Walk Held for Ashley Loring HeavyRunner, Who Vanished on Montana Reservation in 2017.” NBC News, 12 June 2021, www.nbcnews.com/dateline/family-friendshold-annual-walk-ashley-loring-heavyrunner-raising-awareness-n1270579. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Culturally-Informed Programs to Reduce Substance Misuse and Promote Mental Health in American Indians and Alaska Native Populations. Education Development Center, preventionsolutions. edc.org/sites/default/files/attachments/Culturally-Informed-Programs-to-Reduce-SubstanceMisuse-and-Promote-Mental-Health-in-American-Indian-and-Alaska-Native-Populations_0. pdf. Accessed Mar. 2018.

- 60 -

Essay: Maeve Glattes Essay:

Gibson, Charlotte. “How the Blackfeet Nation Boxing Club Is Fighting to Save the Lives of Native American Women.” ESPN, June 2020, www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/29383248/blackfeetnation-boxing-club-fighting-save-lives-native-american-women. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“How the Government Can End Poverty for Native American Women.” CAP, 22 Oct. 2021, www. americanprogress.org/article/government-can-end-poverty-native-american-women/.

Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Kaliszewski, Michael. “Alcohol and Drug Abuse Among Native Americans.”

AmericanAddictionCenters, 7 Jan. 2022, americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/addictionstatistics/native-americans. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Kettler, Sara. “How Ashley Loring HeavyRunner’s Disappearance Illustrates Issues with Investigating Crimes against Indigenous Women.” True Crime Blog: Stories and News, A&E, 11 Jan. 2022, www. aetv.com/real-crime/ashley-loring. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Lautier, Amanda. “Addiction Among Native Americans.” Edited by Scott Thomas. Sunrise House Treatment Center, 30 July 2020, sunrisehouse.com/addiction-demographics/native-americans/.

Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“Methamphetamine in Indian Country: An American Problem Uniquely Affecting Indian Country.” The National Congress of American Indians, Nov. 2006, www.justice.gov/archive/tribal/docs/fv_tjs/ session_1/session1_presentations/Meth_Overview.pdf. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“Native Americans in Colonia America.” National Geographic, www.nationalgeographic.org/ encyclopedia/native-americans-colonial-america/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Pember, Mary Annette. “Death by Civilization.” The Atlantic, 8 Mar. 2019, www.theatlantic.com/ education/archive/2019/03/traumatic-legacy-indian-boarding-schools/584293/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Piasecki, J M et al. “Abuse and neglect of American Indian children: findings from a survey of federal providers.” American Indian and Alaska native mental health research : journal of the National Center vol. 3,2 (1989): 43-62. doi:10.5820/aian.0302.1989.43 Simons, Jane. “As Native American Women Go Missing and are Murdered, Who is Keeping Track?”

SecondWaveMedia, 18 Aug. 2021, www.secondwavemedia.com/southwest-michigan/features/ As-Native-American-women-go-missing-and-are-murdered-who-is-keeping-track-081821.aspx.

Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“Striving to Achieve: Helping Native American Students Succeed.” NCSL, 2008, www.ncsl.org/ legislators-staff/legislators/quad-caucus/striving-to-achieve-helping-native-american-stude. aspx. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“Substance Abuse and Child Welfare in American Indian and Alaska Native Families.” NICWA, www. cffutur

- 61 -

Essay: Carrie Cohen Reflection: Maeve Glattes

REFLECTION: MAEVE GLATTES GLOBAL VOLUNTEERS During my Junior year, my friends and I became interested in the Service Scholar program with little knowledge of what it entailed. However, we knew we needed to find an organization to work alongside during our Summer, so I began searching. I took to google for service opportunities in Nashville but found none that I genuinely connected with. Then, Genevieve came to me with this opportunity in Montana to provide service and learn about Native American culture. And so, we decided to take this opportunity and traveled to the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, Montana, for one week. I worked with thirteen others in four different locations throughout the reservation. I helped out on a farm, at a children’s camp, a local food bank, and an elderly home, along with getting to experience some Native culture. While completing the service tasks and spending time with community members, I slowly realized how much I was learning about their incredible sense of community, culture, and selflessness.

During my time, I noticed how interconnected and supportive of each other the people were on the reservations. It seemed as though everyone knew each other, and they loved to spend time together and bond with each other in group settings. I hope to bring back this sense of community to my school and beyond, to make genuine, long-lasting relationships with those around me, just as I witnessed on the Blackfeet Reservation.

- 62 -

Essay: Sam Horn

ESSAY: SAM HORN

THE CORRELATION BETWEEN YOUTH EDUCATION AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: HOW TIME TO RISE IS WORKING TO MITIGATE THESE PROBLEMS

Education is a vital aspect of children’s early development. A child’s ability to learn and think will offer future success while providing these children with the opportunity to be a contributor to society. Education is a gift that one can use to affect humanity. As Nelson Mandela states, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Yet, in many schools across the world, young children are compounded with issues that affect their path to finding a vision of the future. The detrimental aspects within a child’s upbringing are poorly affecting their educational and youth development.

Furthermore, harmful elements of a child’s upbringing can drain inspiration for learning, hinder ability to have independent thought, and inhibit a vision of the future. During a child’s development, their family’s socioeconomic situation, relationship with their parent(s), and lack of their school’s educational resources lead to their detriment.

A family’s socioeconomic environment plays a major role in the child’s ability to develop. The American Psychological Association researched the effect of socioeconomic status on early childhood development. The group defined socioeconomic status as “quality of life attributes as well as opportunities and privileges afforded to people within society.” Within their findings, the association found that socioeconomic status, also known as SES, “affects overall human functioning,” explaining how a family’s SES can contribute to the benefit or detriment of their “physical or mental health.” SES can drastically alter a child’s stress and anxiety levels while changing their behavior based on their socioeconomic status. The American Psychological Association determined that SES affects their educational abilities, not just their psychological and physical health. The group discovered that socioeconomic status has a series of effects on a child’s educational outcome. For example, “Low SES and [high] exposure to adversity are [directly] linked to decreased educational… [achievements]” (“Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status”). Also, influences and experiences at a young age can have a “lasting impact on learning” their “linguistic, cognitive, and socio-emotional skills.”

Furthermore, children who were a part of a poor socioeconomic family status were more likely to have “significantly less linguistic knowledge,” and have average literary skills “five years behind those of high-income students.” Likewise, their abilities in mathematics are negatively impacted. The American Psychological Association determined that children from impoverished families “score at least ten percent lower than the national average” in mathematics. Children with low SES are oftentimes, “more likely to be absent from school through their educational experiences.” This not only hurts their intellectual abilities but also “increases the learning gap between them and their wealthier” classmates (“Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status”). Furthermore, the dropout rates of high school students in impoverished environments have increased, while the national rates of high school dropouts have continually decreased. Students who fall in the low socioeconomic status category are “five times” more likely to “fail to graduate”

- 63 -

Essay: Sam Horn

than middle SES families. Moreover, these low SES students are “six times” more likely to “fail to graduate” from high school than the higher socioeconomic percentile (“Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status”). The Rand Corporation determined that a significant percentage “of children are disadvantaged in terms of resources available for healthy physical and mental development.” They discovered that “One-fifth of children under… [the age of six] live in poverty,” while “nearly [one-]half of all children face one or more risk factors associated with gaps in school readiness.” Similar to the American Psychological Association, the Rand Corporation found that the detriments of a poor socioeconomic status directly “translate into shortfalls in academic achievement, prosocial behavior, educational attainment, and eventually, greater rates of unemployment and criminality.” The communities and neighborhoods of low socioeconomic status limit childrens’ ability to have positive “social interaction… role models” and other aids, “such as quality child care, health facilities, parks, and playgrounds” which are vital in an early child’s learning and development (Karoly, Kilburn, and Cannon). A family’s socioeconomic status is inevitable to the child. Yet, their SES doesn’t have to control their development.

Organizations like Time to Rise offer essential opportunities for children to learn how to improve themselves without the concern of their family’s socioeconomic environment and their family’s financial abilities.

Another detrimental force on a child’s educational development is the lack of a positive parental relationship. Furthermore, a child with a single-parent household faces severe educational and character development risks. The Rand Corporation discovered that kindergarteners in a single-parent household enter school “lagging behind their more advantaged peers in terms of” their social and academic knowledge. Specifically, many children in single-parent households lack “reading and mathematics proficiency,” as well as having issues with their social behaviors. Moreover, children in single-parent families have a lower willingness to learn than those of double-parent families. English writing proficiency is also another lacking factor of a child in a single-parent household. In the general population of school children, only “18 percent of children overall are not familiar with basic…[English] print or writing.” Yet, in single-parent households, that percentage grows to 32 percent if the children’s “mothers have less than a high school education.”

(Karoly, Kilburn, and Cannon). A study out of the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health also determined that parental issues cause young children to lack school readiness. The organization claims that “frequent changes of primary caregivers, lack of supervision and poor role modeling” are significant factors negatively impacting a child’s educational readiness and development (Ferguson, Bovaird, and Mueller). Also, children in single-parent families face the developmental risks of lower grades, lack of attending school, and issues relating to their “peers and teachers.” Children with one parent are more likely to “exhibit problems…[of] increased aggression and anxiety” (Kelly). Nevertheless, even in a two-parent household, there are still risk factors involved with a negative relationship between a child and their parents on educational and character development. Scientists based in Guangdong, China, worked on a research project where they learned about the effect of parental-child relationships and the child’s motivation to read. The study, with a testing population of 2,294 eighth grade students, determined that even in households of two parents, the quality of the relationship had a direct correlation with their ability to read and their academic performance. The scientists

- 64 -

Essay: Sam Horn

hypothesized that the parent’s relationship with their children was the “bridge” between their socioeconomic status and their child’s reading abilities. As discussed in the previous paragraph, low SES creates extreme stress toward parents; this stress is drastically higher if there is only a single parent. The stress of parents due to their socioeconomic status reflects onto their children. The study concluded that parent(s) of low socioeconomic status had increased use of “negative… [and] unkind strategies to get along with their children,” resulting in an unhealthy and “undesirable” parent-to-child relationship. It was proven in the Guangdong study that families of high socioeconomic status had “much more time, energy and knowledge about education, and they are [more] inclined to express more warmth and affection” to promote a better and more well-rounded parentchild relationship. The study found that the higher quality relationship with a parent or classmates, the “higher academic performance;” this includes a higher class rank, final exam grades, and “higher scores in Chinese, English, mathematics, physical education, and music.” A parent’s emotional enthusiasm offers a child more encouragement and motivation to “enhance their academic performance and reading ability” (Chen, Kong, Gao, and Mo). Time to Rise helps fight this problem by offering academic support and encouragement to these children that might be lacking in their current family situation.

There are factors that risk a child’s poor educational and character development that are not directly related to socioeconomic status or the quality of a parent-to-child relationship. The American education system can be a complex disarray of public and private schools that differ in quality from state to state. As a right restricted purely to the states, the United States Constitution allows a state to determine numerous facets of a school’s funding and operations. With the exception of government-ordered elements of the education system (the general school coursework), different states use their funding to improve their public education system, while in other states, public schools often struggle to fund their programs. Also, in recent years, the “percentage of new teachers ([with] less than four years of teaching experience) is higher in private schools at 16 percent;” whereas, public schools are lower in percentage due to higher salaries and better benefits.

Furthermore, families in a low socioeconomic situation struggle to send their children to private schools due to their high tuition costs. Likewise, according to a study, private schools have a lower student-to-teacher ratio “of 12.2 students compared to 16.1 students” in the average public school class. This leads to higher quality education in certain private schools because children are allotted more time with the teacher because of the smaller class sizes. If a child finds themselves lost or confused on a subject, the teacher will have more time and ability to work with that student with a smaller class size. Therefore, a child in a family with a low socioeconomic status has a lower chance of getting academic help from their teachers. Another factor that can affect a child in a public or private school is a positive environment. Private schools have the capability and restrictions to “screen who they [choose to] allow in[to their school];” unlike a public school system that has little to no choice whether a student can attend that specific school. A private school’s conditions offer students a statistically “more positive peer environment,” sometimes leaving a child in public school to fight to find a positive environment. Due to lack of funding and resources, public schools are “more focused on the core classes, often at the expense of more peripheral subjects.” All private schools have a general “focus on preparing” their students for the collegiate setting. Due to these academic opportunities, students in

- 65 -

Essay: Sam Horn

private schools score an average of “4 points higher on the ACT test” (Lindenberger).

Therefore, students whose families are of low socioeconomic status don’t have the opportunities to attend expensive private schools. They are left with the public school system in their local neighborhoods, placing a ticket in an uncontrollable lottery that determines the quality of their public school. If their public school does not offer highquality education, their educational opportunities will suffer. Moreover, without the ability to have a high-quality education, a compounding effect, in turn, leaves them with few opportunities to develop a strong character. This compounding effect leaves children to have little to no vision of their future.

The non-profit organization, Time to Rise, is offering children who suffer from the detrimental effects of a low socioeconomic position, struggling family situations, and lack of educational resources the opportunity to improve. Year by year, Time to Rise fulfills their motto of providing “at-risk youth the opportunity to learn and grow–one summer at a time” (Time to Rise: “About Us”). Their use of academic enrichment opportunities, while they contribute to the evolution of the student’s character development, offers these children the opportunity to discover a vision of their future. Time to Rise illustrates how education is the key to unlocking a child’s vision of their future. Without quality educational opportunities, students struggle to see their potential. Also, a child’s low socioeconomic status and issues with their parental relationships contribute negatively to their growth and prosperity. Thankfully, organizations like Time to Rise are working to fight against these issues by developing a method to provide numerous at-risk children with a better future. Time to Rise is offering these students the ability to become positive contributors to society while uncovering the meaning of their education. Education gives children the ability to make intelligent choices, think critically, and question different aspects of the world around them. A person’s education can allow them to succeed in complex career fields or in their goal in life. People, not just children, who have the ability to independently think, can change the world, and make positive contributions to the world around them.

WORKS CITED

“About Us.” Time to Rise, time2rise.org/. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

Chen, Qishan, et al. “Effects of Socioeconomic Status, Parent–Child Relationship, and Learning Motivation on Reading Ability.” Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers Media, 25 July 2018, www. frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01297/full. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

“Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status.” American Psychological Association, 2010, www. apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/children-families. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

Ferguson, HB, et al. “The Impact of Poverty on Educational Outcomes for Children.” US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Oct. 2007, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/ articles/PMC2528798/. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

Karoly, Lynn A., et al. “Children at Risk: Consequences for School Readiness and beyond.” Rand Corporation, 2005, www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9144.html. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

Kelly, John. “Does Single Parenting Affect Children?” How Stuff Works, InfoSpace Holdings, 23 Feb. 2021, lifestyle.howstuffworks.com/family/parenting/parenting-tips/single-parenting-affectchildren.htm#:~:text=Developmental%20Effects%20of%20Having%20a,relating%20to%20 peers%20and%20teachers. Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

Lindenberger, Hudson. “Private School vs. Public School: Facts, Benefits & Statistics.” Fatherly, 12 Oct. 2021, www.fatherly.com/love-money/private-school-vs-public-school-facts-benefits-statistics/.

Accessed 6 Feb. 2022.

- 66 -

Reflection: Sam Horn

REFLECTION: SAM HORN REFLECTING ON TIME TO RISE An organization whose mission is to support at-risk and underprivileged youth is a cause worthy to support. As a student at a college preparatory school, I understand the gift and importance of quality education and what it has the possibility to do for a person. In a recent English paper on the novel Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, I wrote about the importance of reading and its effect on one’s ability to think critically, speculate, and question different aspects of the world. During my time reading this novel, I discovered how organizations like Time to Rise are working to prevent a society like that of Fahrenheit 451 by promoting a generation built by their education. I wrote about the importance of a child’s ability to read and the impact reading has on early development. Especially at a young age, the value of learning, reading, and absorbing information is vital to growth and development into adulthood; restricting children from learning causes them to hold no value as a citizen or make a difference in the world. I wrote, “Children should be allowed to have their minds wander, speculating about a passage from a book, lecture, or entity that offers new information. A child should grow up with a capacity to think, the most vital skill that is oftentimes overlooked in certain aspects of the general education system. Rather than participating in complex mathematical equations, scientific methods, or memorization of certain topics, having the power to think allows one to understand those elaborate topics. A person who can think will become a mathematician, a scientist, and a contributor to society.”

Throughout my seventy hours spent volunteering with Time to Rise, I realized that this organization was providing students the ability to do just that; think for themselves. As children, their willingness to read, do math equations, and write sentences was reluctant in the beginning; As a current student, and once a child the same age as the children I was volunteering for, I felt empathetic to their indisposition.

Yet within several days, many of the kids seemed inspired, wanted to read, complete math problems, and absorbed as much information as possible. I discovered that the starting point of this inspiration was in science class; the students stopped thinking about how they were in school and were focused on their mission of problem-solving the current task at hand. Their minds creatively wandered, thinking of ways to perfect their lab experiments, creating the most air-resistant parachute, or making ice cream from cream and ice cream salts to learn about melting points and reactions. Sure, any student would enjoy inhaling ice cream rather than solving math problems, but their impulse to learn grew over the course of the weeks. Their focus and willingness to comprehend how to solve a math problem or their patience to sound out a complex word while reading grew.

Time to Rise affected these kids’ desire to learn; the teachers, counselors, and their classmates impacted the students’ willingness to learn, problem-solve, and think. Time to Rise’s environment provides a stable pathway in which they offer their students academic and enrichment opportunities along with a character education initiative while offering them a vision of their future potential.

- 67 -

Essay: Anna Jackson

ESSAY: ANNA JACKSON BUILDING CONFIDENCE AND PROVIDING SAFETY IN THE WATER - NASHVILLE DOLPHINS Growing up as a typical kid, there are challenges at each phase of life-physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially. Growing up as a special needs kid, there are even more challenges than usual. Many adults and children with special needs face additional challenges throughout their lives including health issues, learning exceptions, and social isolation. According to worldbank.org “one billion people, or 15% of the world’s population, experience some form of disability.” People with disabilities are more likely to experience adverse socioeconomic outcomes such as less education, poorer health outcomes, lower levels of employment, and higher poverty rates (World Bank). In addition to the multitude of socioeconomic and emotional issues accompanied by being a person with special needs, water can also be a danger. Water is everywhere, making up seventy-one percent of the earth (USGS). Drowning is the number one cause of death for children with special needs. Often, special needs children do not understand or appreciate the danger associated with water. Luckily, in Nashville, there is a 501c(3) organization dedicated to addressing this alarming statistic. For my service scholar project, I worked with a local non-profit, Nashville Dolphins. The mission of the Nashville Dolphins is “to combat the alarmingly high statistic of drowning deaths in children and adults with special needs by providing FREE, lifelong, comprehensive adaptive aquatic lessons and training ranging from water safety and survival through competitive swim team programming.” (Nashville Dolphins). Coming into this experience, I had a lot of time in and around water under my belt. I had already been swimming competitively for eight years. I was also a trained lifeguard and had worked for several summers in that capacity as a swim coach for my summer swim team. I already knew that learning to swim had many physical benefits. However, I did not know just how much swimming could also help improve mental and emotional wellness. I was also unaware that water was such a danger to children with special needs. Throughout my time volunteering with the Nashville Dolphins, I observed many of the benefits of swimming for people with special needs.

Physical Benefits of Swimming: One of the obvious benefits of swimming is physical. Swimming has been described as the best exercise in the world for the entire body (Healthline). Swimming helps build muscles, improve strength, refine balance and motor skills and improve range of motion all while working your lungs and heart. Swimming uses all the muscles in your body.

Gliding through the water while swimming different strokes helps build core strength as well as improve your equilibrium and coordination. Children with special needs often have low muscle tone and trouble balancing. Swimming helps children with special needs make improvements in all areas of physical health and can also make them healthier in the long run. “Just two and a half hours per week of aerobic physical activity, such as swimming, bicycling, or running, can decrease the risk of chronic illnesses. This can also lead to improved health for people with diabetes and heart disease.” (CDC) According to

- 68 -

Essay: Anna Jackson Essay:

Sea Otter Swim, another organization that offers adaptive swim lessons, just being in the water can be soothing for individuals with special needs. Human bodies become very buoyant in water which allows people to have a greater range of motion and helps improve their flexibility (Sea Otter Swim).

Mental Benefits of Learning to Swim: In addition to physical benefits, swimming also provides mental benefits. There is a mental health crisis in our world. Approximately 1 in 4 people experience a mental health problem at some point in their lives. Adults with special needs in particular face increased mental health problems. According to the CDC, a recent study found that adults with disabilities report experiencing more mental distress than those without disabilities (CDC). Some mental health problems that are really common are anxiety and depression. Anxiety and depression are known to cause physical symptoms like rapid shallow breathing and a high heart rate. Swimming can help to combat mental health disorders and disruptions by helping to regulate breathing which releases tension and lowers blood pressure. Endorphins are released by the brain during swimming. Endorphins are a group of hormones secreted within the brain and nervous system and have a number of physiological functions like reducing pain and giving sensations equal to pleasure (Healthline). Swimming allows brains to feel good and release endorphins. The human nervous system produces endorphins to help us deal with pain or stress. Endorphins can alleviate pain, promote positivity, and boost one’s sense of wellbeing. Additionally, the color blue, found in many pools, is known to help relax our psyche. I have personally noticed and benefitted from some of the mental benefits of swimming. I do not worry or think about what is going on around me when I swim because I have to focus on what I am doing at the moment. People with special needs experience the same mental benefits from swimming.

Emotional Benefits of Learning to Swim: At a young age, it is very important to make and learn social skills. Expressing emotion is part of being social and is an area in which children with special needs often struggle (The M Center for Pediatric Wellness). Swimming provides a great opportunity to learn these skills. When learning to swim on a team or in a class with other peers, people like those served by the Nashville Dolphins learn to collaborate and learn with others. Communicating with others is an important life skill. Children with special needs often find it hard to express their feelings or tell you what they want so swimming on a team is a great way for them to learn communication skills. Children who start swimming at an early age tend to have more confidence. Building confidence with swimming allows for the children to open up more and learn to communicate with their peers better. Swimming also helps build social skills. As a swimmer, I see swim meets as a time to compete but also a time to interact with my peers. Swimming has taught me to open up and be myself. I have seen some of the same benefits in the Nashville Dolphins swimmers. Several of the parents of swimmers have commented on how swimming has helped their children become better communicators.

- 69 -

Essay: Anna Jackson

How do the Nashville Dolphins Accomplish Their Mission: Nashville Dolphins accomplish their mission by providing free swim lessons for children with special needs. A typical week for a Dolphin consists of two practices for an hour each. The organization is mostly run by volunteers who come and help coach the swimmers. At each practice, there are two groups: the advanced swimmers and the swimmers still working to learn all of the swimming strokes. The 4 strokes are butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. I tend to work with the more advanced swimmers on perfecting their strokes and helping them learn drills to make their strokes better. We focus on one stroke each practice to get the most out of the practice.

We teach the kids to have goals. In addition to building confidence, this helps swimmers to step out of their comfort zone. This is difficult for some of the Dolphins. To help a swimmer accomplish their goal, I might have to get in the water and show them that it is something that they can do. I let my swimmers know that if I can do something, they can do it too. At Dolphins’s practice, the parents are not allowed on deck. Parents can often be distracting. Removing the parents from the pool area allows the special needs swimmers to reach their full potential in the hour of practice. A Dolphins’s practice may not look like a typical swim practice because we sometimes have to demonstrate or explain things differently for the swimmers to understand. The goal is always safety and fun. At the end of practice, we always do a cheer and everyone forms a circle because we leave no Dolphin behind. One of the swimmers, Mac told me this important phrase at one of the first practices that I attended. I will never forget his wisdom. Inside or outside the pool, we need to learn to leave no one behind.

How the Dolphins Affected My Life: Working with the Nashville Dolphins, I have realized that children and adults with special needs are an important part of our society. I have learned as much about life from working with the Dolphins as I have taught them about swimming. I was also inspired to work on becoming certified as an AngelFish Swim Whisperer Instructor to learn advanced training in the expertise of adaptive swim.

Work cited “Davidson, Katey. “Endorphins: Functions, Levels, and Natural Boosts.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 30 Nov. 2021, https://www.healthline.com/health/endorphins.

“Disability Inclusion Overview.” World Bank, https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/ disability#1.

“Drowning Facts.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 17 June 2021, https://www.cdc.gov/drowning/facts/index.html.

“Emotional Regulation & Special Needs: Causes, Strategies & Skills.” The M Center for Integrative Wellness, 30 Sept. 2020, https://themwellnesscenter.com/emotionalregulation-special-needs-causes-strategies-skills/.

“5 Mental Health Benefits of Swimming Outside.” Swim Guide, 21 July 2021, https://www. theswimguide.org/2020/03/20/5-mental-health-benefits-of-swimming-outside/.

- 70 -

Essay: Essay/Reflection: Anna Jackson

“Get Certified as a Swim Whisperer.” Swim Angelfish, 13 Jan. 2022, https://swimangelfish. com/get-certified-as-a-swim-whisperer/.

“Health Benefits of Water-Based Exercise.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4 May 2016, https://www.cdc.gov/ healthywater/swimming/swimmers/health_benefits_water_exercise.html.“How Much Water Is There on Earth? Completed.” How Much Water Is There on Earth? | U.S. Geological Survey, https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/ science/how-much-water-there-earth#:~:text=About%2071%20percent%20of%20 the,percent%20of%20all%20Earth’s%20water.

Lauretta, Ashley. “Swimming Is the Best Full-Body Workout for Your Health.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 17 Aug. 2017, https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/ swimming-is-the-best-workout-you-need-to-do.

Person. “Swimming Improves Mental Health: How Swimming Eases the Mind.” Just Swim, 24 Sept. 2019, https://www.swimming.org/justswim/swimming-improves-mentalhealth/.

“Six Ways Swimming Benefits Your Mental Wellbeing.” Private Healthcare, https://www. bupa.co.uk/newsroom/ourviews/benefits-of-swimming.

“Swim Lessons for All Ages.” Sea Otter Swim Lessons, 14 Jan. 2022, https://www. seaotterswim.com/.

“Swimming - Health Benefits.” Swimming - Health Benefits - Better Health Channel, https:// www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/swimming-health-benefits.

REFLECTION: ANNA JACKSON NASHVILLE DOLPHINS This summer I partnered with the Nashville Dolphins, an organization focused on providing swim lessons to lower the risk of accidental drowning for people with special needs. I chose to serve this organization because of the connection I felt with the Dolphins as a swimmer and my experience of learning to live with dyslexia. While I work hard in the water, swimming comes rather naturally to me. Reading, on the other hand, requires me to concentrate and sometimes means that I need to get help. The combination of my natural talent in the water with my ability to understand what it is like to face a challenge made volunteering with the Dolphins a wonderful fit.

I volunteered by helping coach practices, getting in the water with swimmers, participating in special events, and maintaining a positive attitude. Through my experience with the Dolphins this summer, I learned what it feels like to serve.

The best feeling in the world is what I got when I saw the smiles on the children’s faces and heard their laughter as they learned to swim. Yes, I was teaching them a valuable skill, but seeing how the swimmers reacted when they accomplished their goals was priceless. I remember seeing Ethan put on goggles for the first time after refusing

- 71 -

Reflection: Anna Jackson

to wear them for several years. He was so proud of himself. I could feel his joy and amazement as he swam through the water without struggling to keep his head down because the water was no longer hurting his eyes.

I was amazed at the sense of community I felt when I gave back to others. I felt like I belonged to a group that supported its members. The Dolphins certainly made an emotional connection to my life. Working with the Dolphins taught me patience and taught me how to love with an open heart and mind. Mac, one of the oldest Dolphins, always says that no Dolphin should ever be left behind. He taught me to wait on everyone so that all Dolphins are included in the team cheer at the end of practice. His enthusiasm for making sure everyone is a part of the team is contagious. I carried this enthusiasm into my own life by trying to ask each person in my advisory about their day. Making people feel wanted and included is important to me and was certainly made more important because of the strong sense of community that is part of the culture built around the Dolphins.

To me, serving others means giving back and giving people a true place where they belong exactly how they are. One story in particular that I will always remember happened while I was teaching this boy named Elighi how to swim backstroke. He could not move his arms the right way and had been struggling for the longest time. I started helping him over the summer and one day he finally got it. I remember the smile on his face. Somehow, I actually got the moment on video. When he watched it, he said, “I actually did it. I am so proud of myself!” Seeing his reaction and pride after his accomplishment is one of the many joys I have gotten from working with the Dolphins.

I have learned to never take anything for granted and to not be afraid of being my true self! I used to hide the fact that I struggled with reading and did not always understand words. After working with the Dolphins, I realized that I should not hide who I am because there is probably someone else out there going through the same thing. When people feel accepted and loved for who they are, the world is a better place.

I learned through all this that serving others actually helped me become a better person. Serving others means more than just getting it done-it means making new friends, learning about people’s stories, and doing something for someone other than myself. It is difficult to really know what someone is going through in their life. It takes a special person to listen to a person speak without judging them based on what they look like or how they act. Service means a lot to me because I want to be a part of a community that focuses on bigger causes than an individual’s-a community that serves others and gives back to the world. I have learned that serving others makes my day because I get to see what an impact giving back to the community with my own talents has on the people that I serve.

- 72 -

Essay: Nhi-Ha Essay: Le

ESSAY: NHI-HA LE UNDER THE SAME SKY: AN ANALYSIS OF THE CONNECTION BETWEEN ENVIRONMENTAL INEQUALITY AND INCOME AND RACIAL INEQUALITY How important is it to live a sustainable lifestyle? The answer to this question may seem obvious to some but obscure to others; ultimately, the differences in each individual’s experiences cause such differences in opinions. Based on one’s access to housing in society, he/she may face environmental stressors more intensely or less intensely than others. In this case, those who experience environmental stressors such as air pollution or water contamination may feel compelled to live more sustainably because of their on-hand exposure to the influence of these issues. Conversely, those who are privileged enough not to experience the effects of these stressors may feel less compelled to live sustainability and see sustainable habits as less of a necessity. In order to analyze this issue, one must first understand what environmental inequality is and how it affects communities. Environmental inequality is systemic; environmental inequality proliferates by leaning on more significant issues such as red-lining and low intergenerational mobility. After understanding the concept of environmental inequality, one would go on to question the necessary degree to which each individual must practice sustainability so that the greater community can practice sustainability within their wealth constraints while also making an impact on the environment. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the individual to be conscious of their choices regarding the environment (within their capacity), and it is the responsibility of larger, more powerful bodies (ex. government or large companies) to use their purchasing power to encourage sustainability and limit their environmental impact.

What is environmental inequality? Environmental inequality is a phenomenon in which certain marginalized groups experience and are more negatively affected by environmental stressors; because each individual interacts with his/her community in different ways, each experiences a different degree of environmental stressors.

These groups face disparate exposure, meaning they disproportionately experience higher exposure to environmental pollutants, and disparate health impacts, which are unequally distributed negative health consequences due to proximity to pollutants (Downey). For example, based on a recent report from the European Environment Agency (EEA), more impoverished regions of Europe experience higher risks of health problems, such as vector borne diseases or adverse reactions to ​​ heatwaves and floods, resulting from environmental stressors because they are more exposed to air pollution, noise, and high temperatures in urban areas than those with higher standards of living (Canzleben and Kazmierczak). This example illustrates the increased environmental stressors faced by the lower class. However, environmental inequality is not limited to the marginalization of lower-income classes; it can also affect minority groups negatively. In America, another example of compromised health resulting from environmental inequality exists; due to racial red-lining, Black and Hispanic citizens are typically constrained to specific neighborhoods

- 73 -

Essay: Nhi-Ha Le

that experience concerning proximity to landfills, factories, and other similar locations (Rochaun Meadows-Fernandez). These locations increase exposure to particulate matter such as fine inhalable particles (dust and soot) released by burning fossil fuels (Rochaun Meadows-Fernandez). According to the 2015 edition of the U.S.A. Environmental Research Letters, Black and Hispanic individuals are exposed to particulate matter at a 50% higher rate than White individuals (Mohai and Saha). Furthermore, according to a 2016 Reuters report, the blood lead levels of approximately 3,000 poor and Black individuals were two times higher than those of individuals from Flint, Michigan, a city facing a water contamination crisis (Pell and Schneyer). In this way, environmental inequality is an issue that not only stems from differences in wealth classes and, consequently, opportunities but also racial discrimination in housing. The issue itself encompasses sustainability, social justice, and healthcare.

As previously established, environmental inequality is closely linked to income inequality due to the proximity of low-income housing to polluted areas and cyclical poverty. According to an article by EarthJustice, most holding sites for hazardous waste in the United States are located near federally funded housing. The article stated that approximately 77,000 people risk contamination by toxic chemicals solely because of their residence in federally assisted housing and that upwards of 70% of hazardous waste sites sit no more than a mile away from federally assisted housing (Holford and Pickett). Furthermore, there was even an account in East Chicago, Indiana, that stated that the soil under homes in the West Calumet Housing Complex was contaminated with lead, causing 680 children living in the housing complex to experience higher blood lead levels, which could be a serious health concern (Holford and Pickett). These statistics show that those of lower socioeconomic status, who may require housing assistance from the federal government, experience higher health risks caused by environmental stressors such as air pollution by toxic chemicals and lead poisoning. Therefore, these data illustrate environmental inequality. According to a study by the National Library of Medicine, such exposure to pollutants can cause low-income children residing in toxic environments to experience health issues such as asthma, cancer, lead poisoning, obesity, and hyperactivity (Cureton). This scenario exemplifies how lower-income classes may be disproportionately affected by environmental stressors solely because of their financial situation and experience adverse health crises. The negative health consequences of environmental inequality proliferate through generations of low-income families due to low intergenerational mobility and the vicious cycle of poverty. Intergenerational mobility refers to an individual’s mobility to move from one income class to another based on the resources available in their communities and national economic growth (Song et al). According to a study done by the Urban Institute of Elevate the Debate, although intergenerational mobility is high in the United States, other countries experience better mobility (McMurrer, Condon, and Sawhill)—having comparatively lower rates of intergenerational mobility lead to greater inability to move from one’s socioeconomic status. In cases where the individual is of low socioeconomic status, this fact implies that depending on the person’s location and the resources available, he/she may not be able to accumulate a

- 74 -

Essay: Nhi-Ha Essay: Le

higher income, resulting in a cycle of poverty that sustains environmental inequality for these people.

Environmental inequality does not only target those of lower-income classes; it also marginalizes minorities. Like income inequality, communities of color face disproportionate risks of environmental hazards and have a higher chance of living in an area ridden with pollution (Patnaik et al.). According to a study done by the Princeton Student Climate Initiative, people of color are disproportionately affected by environmental issues stemming from air quality, ocean acidification, and natural disasters (Patnaik, Son, Feng, Ade). An example of how people of color are more negatively affected by air pollution than white Americans is the difference between Porter Ranch and Jefferson Park, two neighborhoods located in Los Angeles, California. In Porter Ranch, a predominantly White neighborhood, citizens experienced a methane leak and were shortly evacuated and provided temporary housing by the city of Los Angeles (Patnaik, Son, Feng, Ade). Conversely, Jefferson Park, a neighborhood containing a population that consists of 90% Black Americans or Americans of Latin American descent, is located close to an oil drilling site that has undergone controversy after controversy but is ultimately remaining open (Patnaik, Son, Feng, Ade). This difference in treatment of these two neighborhoods, as well as the continued exposure to air pollutants generated by greenhouse gas emissions from the oil drilling site, illustrates an example of environmental inequality as it shows how marginalized groups are disproportionately affected by environmental stressors. An example of how ocean acidification negatively affects marginalized groups is the Quinault tribe of Washington’s food supply. This Native American tribe relies heavily on seafood to fuel their diet and economy due to their coastal location. However, due to rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere and commercial fishing strategies, the pH of the ocean water is lowering, resulting in an increased number of dead fish (Patnaik, Son, Feng, Ade). This ocean acidification negatively impacts the Quinault tribe, a racial minority, as it devastates their lifestyle for the benefit of large companies. Lastly, according to a study by Rice University and the University of Pittsburgh, predominantly white counties experienced increased wealth following natural disasters due to reinvestment initiatives yet minorities families experienced decreasing wealth (Rice University and the University of Pittsburgh). This study shows that in light of environmental events, such as natural disasters, different racial groups experience the effects of the event differently because of environmental inequality coupled with racial discrimination.

After understanding environmental inequality’s definition and role in society as it pertains to income and racial inequality, one may wonder what the force sustaining environmental inequality is. At its root, the issue itself is systemic; upon analyzing each scenario, it is evident that government treatment towards the effects of these environmental stressors varies depending on the population in question. Therefore, those with higher socioeconomic statuses and power in the government control the policy and programs that have the potential to solve the issue of environmental inequality but have ultimately failed to do so. According to a BioMed Central Medicine Journal study, the wealthiest 10% of the world’s population produces approximately 45% of global emissions, which dramatically increases Earth’s

- 75 -

Essay: Nhi-Ha Le

carbon footprint (Downey). However, the group most affected by the actions of the wealthiest 10% of individuals are those at the bottom of the income distribution; poorer countries are more impacted by the environmental consequences of climate change resulting from CO2 emissions as they are more vulnerable to an extreme change in temperature and air pollutants (Downey and Hawkins). This information proves that the population least affected by environmental stressors is responsible for a large portion of said stressors. Meanwhile, those who play a minuscule role in those environmental stressors carry the burden of the stressors’ negative health consequences.

One organization that indirectly aids the issue of environmental inequality is Turnip Green Creative Reuse in Nashville, Tennessee. Turnip Green’s missions consist of appreciating teachers and artists, promoting environmental education, and encouraging community unity and creativity. Turnip Green prides itself on not discriminating based on “race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status” (Turnip Green Creative Reuse). Turnip Green collects a variety of different donations and encourages customers to purchase these donations at a price of the customer’s choice; in this way, Turnip Green is allowing the community to have the opportunity to practice reusing and recycling old materials, which lessens the burden of such items in the local landfill. The landfill in Nashville serves as a device for environmental inequality. Bordeaux, a historically Black-dominated neighborhood located in the northwest part of downtown Nashville, sits next to the landfill, where the city’s waste goes to rot. Living near the landfill exposes citizens to a myriad of health crises, including the increased possibility of developing asthma due to the inhalable air pollutants caused by the accumulation of toxic waste (Wadhwani).

Turnip Green’s mission to provide resources at the customer’s preferred price as well as their mission to lessen the burden of the landfill indirectly reduces the influence of environmental inequality in Nashville by working to reduce the landfill, a significant source of pollution, and provide resources. In this way, Turnip Green truly embodies its mission to denounce discrimination while promoting sustainability.

All in all, environmental inequality refers to the inequality faced by individuals of marginalized income groups or racial backgrounds pertaining to the influence of environmental stressors on their lives. Those of wealthier income groups expend more energy and generate higher amounts of carbon emissions than those of poorer income groups. However, due to their higher disposable income, those in the upper percentile of income are able to escape the consequences of environmental stressors, such as air pollution, ocean acidification, and natural disaster. Conversely, those of lower income create less CO2 emissions yet are more vulnerable to the effects of environmental stressors because they have less access to disposable income that would ease the influence of such stressors. Furthermore, similar phenomenons occur when comparing more privileged racial groups to less privileged racial grounds.

Such feats are examples of environmental inequality, an issue that extends beyond sustainability and is linked to healthcare concerns and social justice issues. To return to the question initially stated, “How important is it to live a sustainable lifestyle,” one would realize that different people would answer this question differently;

- 76 -

Essay: Nhi-Ha Essay: Le

those who are less affected by the environment may feel as though small efforts are sufficient to reduce environmental collapse yet those who are more affected by environmental stressors may value sustainability movements more. Although everyone may acknowledge the importance and necessity of making sustainable choices, they may not feel compelled to take action immediately. On a larger scale, however, the answer to this question may ultimately be irrelevant. As stated before, oftentimes, some individuals would experience a disproportionately harmful amount of the adverse effects of environmental stressors as a result of a lack of government intervention. In other words, they may not have the resources to help improve the environment yet simultaneously feel the effects of such environmental issues because the government has not made sufficient initiative to help them. Therefore, perhaps advocating for increased government intervention in sustainability movements or subsidies for non-profits that would increase the scope of their initiatives may be a necessary step in healing the Earth and easing environmental inequality. Despite living under the same sky, each individual has differing burdens to carry regarding environmental stressors, many of which are caused by factors the individual cannot control.

WORKS CITED Anita Wadhwani, Tennessee Lookout January 12. “Fight over Landfill in Historically Black Nashville Neighborhood Heads to Court.” Tennessee Lookout, 12 Jan. 2022, https://tennesseelookout.com/2022/01/12/fight-over-landfill-in-historically-blacknashville-neighborhood-heads-to-court/.

Cureton, Shava. “Environmental Victims: Environmental Injustice Issues That Threaten the Health of Children Living in Poverty.” Reviews on Environmental Health, vol. 26, no. 3, 2011, https://doi.org/10.1515/reveh.2011.021.

Downey, Liam. “Assessing Environmental Inequality: How the Conclusions We Draw Vary According to the Definitions We Employ.” Sociological Spectrum, vol. 25, no. 3, 2005, pp. 349–369., https://doi.org/10.1080/027321790518870.

Ganzleben, Catherine, and Aleksandra Kazmierczak. “Leaving No One behind – Understanding Environmental Inequality in Europe.” Environmental Health, vol. 19, no.

1, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-020-00600-2.

Holford, Valerie, and Lane Pickett. “Most U.S. Hazardous Waste Sites in Close Proximity to Federally Funded Housing.” EarthJustice, 30 June 2020, https://earthjustice.org/news/press/2020/most-us-hazardous-waste-sites-in-closeproximity-to-federally-funded-housing.

MCMurrer, Daniel P., et al. “Intergenerational Mobility in the United States.” Urban Institute Elevate the Debate , 1 May 1997, http://webarchive.urban.org/publications/406796.html.

Mohai, Paul, and Robin Saha. “Which Came First, People or Pollution? Assessing the Disparate Siting and Post-Siting Demographic Change Hypotheses of Environmental Injustice.” Environmental Research Letters, vol. 10, no. 11, 2015, p. 115008., https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/10/11/115008.

Patnaik, Aneesh, et al. “Racial Disparities and Climate Change - Psci.” Princeton University, The Trustees of Princeton University, 15 Aug. 2020, https://psci.princeton.edu/tips/2020/8/15/racial-disparities-and-climate-change.

Pell, M.B., and Joshua Schneyer. “The Thousands of U.S. Locales Where Lead Poisoning Is Worse than in Flint.” Reuters Investigates, 19 Dec. 2019, https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-lead-testing/.

- 77 -

Essay: Essay/Reflection: Nhi-Ha Le

Rochaun Meadows-Fernandez, A. “The Double Jeopardy of Environmental Racism.”

Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health , 14 Oct. 2020, https://magazine.jhsph.edu/2020/double-jeopardy-environmental-racism .

Ruth, David. “Natural Disasters Widen Racial Wealth Gap.” EurekAlert, 20 Aug. 2018, https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/460222.

Song, Xi, et al. “Long-Term Decline in Intergenerational Mobility in the United States since the 1850s.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 117, no. 1, 2019, pp. 251–258., https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1905094116.

Turnip Green Creative Reuse. “Green Mission and Core Values .” Turnip Green Creative Reuse, 2022, https://www.turnipgreencreativereuse.org/what-we-do.

REFLECTION: NHI-HA LE SERVICE SCHOLAR REFLECTION Over the summer, I volunteered at Turnip Green Creative Reuse for 35 hours over one month. Initially, I chose to work with Turnip Green as my Senior Service Project because they targeted an issue I am passionate about: sustainability. I have experience with the organization and its leaders from previous service work. Furthermore, I specifically chose an organization that would allow me to contact others and learn more about my community while also working to benefit the environment. At Turnip Green, I helped organize donations, facilitated the donation process, communicated with visitors and customers, and talked with artists who worked in Turnip Green’s outreach program to help Metropolitan Schools’ Art teachers. The donations mentioned above are objects usually thrown into the landfill, but the donors have instead given them to Turnip Green. These jobs not only helped me grasp the severity of the everfilling landfill in the Nashville area but also met others who are passionate about sustainability. I was grateful to serve my community while also learning about the unique viewpoints and jobs surrounding the sustainability of those also working at Turnip Green. For example, the person who oversaw the volunteers, Daniel Green, told me about how he used his talent for building to help improve Turnip Green’s infrastructure and utilized donations of wood and old nails to create new furniture and fixtures so that the organization did not need to buy it.

Throughout this volunteering process, I was able to expand my perspective outside of the bubble of my immediate community, learn about what made Turnip Green more than a reuse organization, and understand and connect the issue of sustainability with topics I am studying today. In terms of self-observations, the most impactful part of my experience was the connections I made with the community and the environment. By working closely with the donations of others, I was able to grasp the massive amount of waste that humans produce. Working in this agency has allowed me to be more environmentally conscious and more conscientious about my decisions regarding waste and consumption. For example, after working with a large volume of fabric donations, I became more aware of the choices I made when I bought clothing.

Furthermore, the organization allowed me to immerse myself in a community that was different from my immediate surroundings; it was an opportunity to involve myself

- 78 -

Reflection: Nhi-Ha Essay: Le

in an unfamiliar facet of the Nashville community. One notable experience I had was with a Metro school teacher; she and her husband were regulars to the organization, and she talked to me about how Turnip Green’s mission to reduce waste in the landfill while collecting unique donations helps inspire her to be more creative and sustainable in her classroom. Furthermore, the agency itself is more than just a place for donations.

Apart from helping advance art education in Metropolitan Public Schools, Turnip Green’s pick your price policy on purchasing donations allows those with compromised disposable income to access various resources. By extending the accessibility of involvement to a range of socioeconomic groups and promoting sustainability, Turnip Green also works to improve community building and environmental education.

Working at Turnip Green has allowed me to understand the scope of environmental stressors in our local Nashville community. Sustainability is a concept that can be applied so closely to our local community, despite being a worldwide effort. By working with donations that would otherwise go into the landfill if Turnip Green did not exist, I fully understood the massive amount of waste that entered the landfill each day.

Knowing that Turnip Green only takes a piece of waste out of the landfill, I can further grasp the immense amounts of waste that would exist outside of what Turnip Green can obtain. By taking AP Environmental this year, I was able to further my knowledge of sustainability and our effect on the environment academically. Also, learning about subsidies and taxation in classes like AP Economics and AP Government and Politics allowed me to better grasp what the government can do to further aid these organizations.

As a student interested in the humanities, I wanted to connect concepts surrounding sustainability to people. As I was contemplating and solidifying my research topic for Service Scholar, I noticed one aspect of my work at Turnip Green that was especially significant to me; by encountering a variety of different customers and workers at the organization, I learned of the different ways that everyone benefits from working with Turnip Green and of their unique stories and standpoints about sustainability. This plethora of opinions interested me because it led me to question what made their perspectives and personal initiatives so different? After long contemplation, I concluded that each person’s unique experiences and situations built his/her approach to contributing to sustainability. Knowing this, I decided that I wanted to research environmental inequality or the unequal ways in which environmental stressors impact marginalized people.

All in all, my experience working in Turnip Green has expanded my knowledge regarding sustainability and contributed to my personal growth as an individual and contributor to society. It allowed me to broaden my perspective by allowing me to integrate the viewpoints of the many others who walked through the organization’s doors and to be more knowledgeable about my community and the situations that each faces. Furthermore, it increased my environmental awareness and allowed me to question my habits and lead a more sustainable life. I hope to contribute my experiences in Turnip Green to the Ensworth Community by researching environmental inequality and speaking about my experiences with the organization.

- 79 -

Essay: Spencer Linn

ESSAY: SPENCER LINN APPALACHIA SERVICE PROJECT For my service scholar project, I worked alongside the Appalachian Service Project in a group to help rebuild the house of homeowners over the course of a summer week in rural Appalachia. This trip was my third time serving alongside this group, and I likewise knew that not all of the negative stereotypes of Appalachia were indeed factual.

Usually, Appalachia’s public image is portrayed as poverty-ridden, lacking infrastructure, rural, racist, and devoid of hope. However, through interactions with local Appalachian homeowners during the Appalachia Service Project over the years, I first hand experienced joy, hope, and tenacity stemming from this region that directly contrasted the negative perception that was commonly placed on the region. Although I was fortunate enough to experience the Appalachian region’s positive aspects and potential for greatness, this does not deny the reality that the region is in desperate need of critical repair. Primarily at a first glance, the region’s poverty rates, education, and general well-being are all in strikingly worse conditions than the rest of the United States. When encountering, first-hand, all of these conditions, I was instantly shocked and led to wonder what events led to this area’s fate. Was the region of Appalachia always in this condition, and if not, how did it become this way? Also what steps could we take to improve the Appalachian region’s overall condition? I believed that by uncovering more of Appalachia’s core issues and addressing them, I could promote positive change towards the region. Throughout this project, I was also able to directly utilize knowledge from both AP Economics and AP Government. In fact, during research, it was easier to tie together knowledge that I found using general economic ideas and principles from AP Economics. As I began my research, I immediately delved into the conflicting history of the region in an attempt to find the ultimate root of the issues that plagued the Appalachian region.

Many people don’t realize that the Appalachian region ranges from Mississippi to New York and consists of nearly 250,000 square miles. Nearly twenty-five million people inhabit this region with 42% of residents living rurally compared to the nationwide average rural population of only 20% (Appalachia Then vs. Now). Yet it was not always like this. In the early 1900s, the Appalachian region was seen as a land of boundless opportunity to businessmen and common people intending to make a simple living for their families. Why was the Appalachian region seen as so profitable though? It primarily boils down to coal. The availability of coal in the Appalachian region was enticing as many mines began to almost instantaneously pop up, all holding hopes of financial gain. With a sudden surplus in demand for labor, many Americans traveled into the region and settled down, greatly boosting the economic progress of the region. By 1940, nearly 140,000 people or one-third of West Virginia’s workforce consisted of miners in these same coal mines (Quartz). However, this honeymoon period buckled under its weight as the coal operation continually expanded. To maximize profits, large coal mining companies went beyond simply buying out mines, but they began buying the land around mines and entire towns. Monopolies began to dominate the region and soon coal mining became one of

- 80 -

Essay: Spencer Essay: Linn

the only viable forms of labor as other occupations lost relevance. Foreign investors even took on this new enticing investment opportunity, buying nearly 93% of WV land in 1910 and 75% of land in eastern Kentucky (Quartz). As towns were slowly monopolized, overall prices greatly increased and many common goods and amenities began facing artificial shortages. Owners also negotiated with police forces establishing mine guards to prevent unions and strikes among the workers. Thus coal mines could get away with giving workers unethically low wages, reducing coal’s overall price, and in turn, artificially increasing coal’s overall quantity demanded. The coal industry was even further boosted by government corruption as coal companies lobbied politicians for subsidies, corporate tax reductions, and reduced safety protocols. Thus, coal became an artificially cheap good which, in reality, generated large deadweight losses. Worse, this resource of coal was finite, so over time as the Appalachian mountains’ coal supply ran out, the industry slowly began to burn and fizzle. Companies would strip-mine land by destroying mountain sides yet would leave this destroyed land unaltered and uninhabitable. Furthermore, the destruction of entire forests left little space for further investments or opportunities for economic growth. Alongside its economic consequences, strip mining also led to increased flooding, infrastructure damage, and an overall increase in the leaking of deadly elements such as arsenic, selenium leading to increased overall mortality and birth defect rates in the Appalachian region. Ultimately all these events catalyzed by the coal industry ravaged the region. Yet if all these phenomena occurred in a period from the earlier 1900s to the 1950s, how are the effects of the coal industry felt in Appalachia today?

With the presence of a monopolistic pyramid scheme on coal, consequences were inevitable and ultimately occurred during the Coal slump of the 1950s and 1960s.

Following both the surge of electricity and oil markets, alongside a decrease in the overall finite supply of coal, the supply and demand of Appalachia’s once elusive produce vastly decreased and revenue tumbled. Many mines were forced to sell themselves to even larger companies and ownership was moved even more so out of the region. Moving to today, there are only 11,600 working miners in West Virginia, or 2% of their overall workforce (US Census Bureau). Most of the jobs once dealing with extracting coal have now been replaced by the services industry with 21.3% of Appalachian citizens holding a bachelor’s degree (Appalachia then vs. now). As the dying coal industry grasps onto its last bit of influence, it annually works to produce more and more coal each year, all the while providing less income and fewer jobs. In fact, politicians will frequently rally the Appalachian people into voting for policies that intend to re-glorify the dying industry and provide many new jobs through mines. Thus more government funding will be directed to a dying industry and tax dollars will be used in an effort that bears little fruit. In 2009, West Virginia residents paid nearly $42.2 million in tax dollars alone to these coal companies (Quartz). Like the abandoned mountainsides of previous mines, many of these coal mining communities were largely abandoned by their companies and stripped of jobs. Likewise, Appalachia has a 5% unemployment rate compared to the US average of 4% (US Census Bureau). There is also a steady outmigration as the population grows nearly twice as slowly as the rest of the United States. Currently, the region does not provide much economic opportunity, and usually, people tend to leave this region rather than stay in Appalachia and attempt to make the region better.

In day-to-day life, the impacts of the coal industry are still directly felt by citizens. The

- 81 -

Essay: Spencer Linn

difference in poverty rates between Appalachia and the United States average immediately sticks out when contrasting data. While 11.8% of US families are impoverished, 16% of Appalachian families face poverty every single day (Appalachia Service Project). Due to little economic activity, large stretches of Appalachia are food deserts, disabling inhabitants to make healthy decisions. While in Appalachia, I noticed that there were not any proper grocery stores within forty minutes of the school where we stayed. I specifically remember how some group leaders were forced to allocate extra time to drive to a standard grocery store. The rest of us volunteers could only buy food from a local Dollar General or surrounding gas stations and fast food joints. One of the direct effects of these Appalachian food deserts is shown in statistical data from 2008 to 2014 which stated that heart disease was the death of 250 out of every 100,000 Appalachian citizens, nearly 42% more than the US average (Quartz).

This allostatic load, caused by negative environmental factors, stress from living, and poor nutrition further increases negative conditions such as diabetes, stress, and obesity. Strip mining plays a direct role in worsening the health of not only miners but also general citizens who are exposed to harmful airborne substances. A lack in overall wellbeing and mental health in the region also holds consequences with issues such as the Opioid Crisis which hit the region particularly hard. While the Appalachian community is recovering from all these crises, it still is not fully back to its former glory before its exploitation from coal industries.

Thus there is a prevalent sense of hopelessness surrounding the Appalachian region in that it will never mirror the rest of America. In particular, I was shocked by the differences in the region’s culture and perspectives. Schools instead of being college preparatory held classes for skills in trade such as welding, carpentry, or other more practical classes. Thus high school graduates are forced to find local jobs within the region and those who manage to “make it out” hardly hold any desire to ever return. These education systems including high schools are especially hurt by decreased funding as less economic growth and disfavor over taxes leads to less overall federal spending on education. The coal industry particularly steals funding from the education sector as large subsidies are given to companies in an attempt to boost the economy.

In the presence of all of this negative information, the Appalachian region may almost seem like a lost cause or “unfixable.” That being said, the region’s overall conditions are improving with time. For instance, wages steadily increased since 1950, and 42% of Appalachian’s population growth in recent years was from underrepresented minorities (NPR). This secondary statistic is particularly surprising as the Appalachian region tends to usually be portrayed as all-white. Yet perhaps with time this region will begin to diversify itself. Housing too has improved, but this being said, 7.5% of homes in Appalachia are still in a bad state (Appalachia then vs. now). One particular piece of legislation, the Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965, intended to further the economic development in the construction of the Appalachian Development Highway System and saw much success as well. Against seemingly insurmountable odds, hope shines through as a strong force of people intend to fortify their home of Appalachia.

The Appalachia Service Project intends to aid the region in the process of reconstruction by providing free home repairs to local homeowners. Every year it brings in nearly 15,000 volunteers to provide full repairs to a total of nearly 350 houses. This effort is spread out in 20 to 30 communities as volunteers stay weeks at a time in local churches, schools, and community centers. Appalachia Service Project’s mission is to ultimately end poor housing

- 82 -

Essay: Spencer Essay: Linn

conditions in central Appalachia and revitalize the spirit of many homeowners. By encouraging connection between volunteers and homeowners, Appalachia Service Project reports that service recipients experience newfound desires to seek new education and improve upon themselves. Although they may not be able to solve all the issues of the Appalachian region, the Appalachia Service Project intends to solve this one major issue by ensuring safer, warmer, and drier homes for the citizens of the Appalachian region.

Looking beyond this organization, however, there is much work that still needs to be done if the Appalachian region wants to stand shoulder to shoulder with other more economically developed parts of the country. There’s infrastructure to be established, systems to be rebuilt, and ideas to be rethought. If we truly want to positively change this region we must all work together and think creatively. Appalachia’s downturn was primarily catalyzed by the desire for immediate albeit short-term profits. If this region truly wants to turn a new foot it must invest in long-term industries and expenditures such as education. One such way is through increased voter awareness and education. By placing value on education, a new generation of youth can be raised not to leave the region, but to stay and build it into a far better overall community. If citizens of both Appalachia and the entire United States work together, we can rebuild this community to greater heights than ever before.

WORKS CITED “About the Appalachia Service Project.” Appalachia Service Project, 17 Mar. 2021, https:// asphome.org/about/. 24 Feb. 2022 “Appalachia Then and Now: Examining Changes to the Appalachian Region since 1965” Appalachian Regional Commission, Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness and West Virginia University for the Appalachian Regional Commission, 23 Feb. 2015, https:// www.arc.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AppalachiaThenAndNowCompiledReports. pdf. 24 Feb. 2022 Baird, Sarah. “Stereotypes of Appalachia Obscure a Diverse Picture.” NPR, National Public Radio, Inc., 6 Apr. 2014, 24 Feb. 2022 https://www.npr.org/sections/ codeswitch/2014/04/03/298892382/stereotypes-of-appalachia-obscure-a-diversepicture. 24 Feb. 2022 Guilford, Gwynn. “The 100-Year Capitalist Experiment That Keeps Appalachia Poor, Sick, and Stuck on Coal.” Quartz, Atlantic Media Co, 11 Dec. 2018, 24 Feb. 2022 https:// qz.com/1167671/the-100-year-capitalist-experiment-that-keeps-appalachia-poor-sickand-stuck-on-coal/. 24 Feb. 2022 “How Healthy Is Magoffin County, Kentucky?” U.S. News & World Report, National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, 24 Feb. 2022, https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiestcommunities/kentucky/magoffin-county. 24 Feb. 2022 Joshi, S., & Gebremedhin, T.(2012). “A spatial analysis of poverty and income inequality in the Appalachian region.” The Journal of Rural and Community Development. Rural Development Institute, Brandon University. https://journals.brandonu.ca/jrcd/article/ view/580/128 24 Feb. 2022 Lewin, Phillip G. “‘Coal Is Not Just a Job, It’s a Way of Life’: The Cultural Politics of Coal Production in Central Appalachia .” Oxford Academic, Oxford University Press, Standard Journals Publication Model, 19 Oct. 2017, https://academic.oup.com/socpro/ article/66/1/51/4558515?login=true.

“QuickFacts Magoffin County, Kentucky.” United States Government, 2021, https://www.census. gov/quickfacts/fact/table/magoffincountykentucky/PST045221. 24 Feb. 2022

- 83 -

REFL

SERV

Reflection: Spencer Linn

REFLECTION: SPENCER LINN APPALACHIA SERVICE PROJECT Once a year, a group of Nashville high schoolers from youth groups, adult volunteers, staff, and families of Appalachia come together to create a temporary albeit beautiful community. Such groups are annually founded through the Appalachia Service Project (ASP), an organization whose communities taught me the importance of varying perspectives and perseverance through adversity.

I’ve always been inspired by the hope and tenacity that’s intertwined among all the communities in my four years at ASP. Upon arriving in Appalachia, a sense of optimism was instantly illuminated. Although our homeowners lived in manufactured homes in a region of extreme poverty, they still maintained an inner sense of positivity and self and always worked to take the next right step forward. This sense of persistent optimism was contagious and also appeared within our groups of volunteers. I specifically remember working for an entire day in establishing a new foundation for flooring only to find it was unlevel an hour before we packed up. Upon learning that it was necessary to restart a day’s progress on flooring, our group, rather than being disappointed, instead excitedly started creating new plans and approaches to solve this new problem. These communities continually show me a shining example of living and never losing hope. Yes, I may go through difficult patches, but if I’m passionate about what I’m working towards, I must keep moving forward.

While working, however, camaraderie alone is insufficient in solving intricate issues, but rather it is the connection among a diverse group of perspectives that enables us to complete the impossible. During ASP, I worked for homeowners who ranged from an elderly woman with twenty-four cats to parents in their thirties with five children, and an ever-changing service group that draws in a new pool of eager volunteers every year. This combination of viewpoints from different ages, socioeconomic statuses, and cultures is enriching socially and directly improves our efficiency in projects.

Specifically, one year we lacked enough ladders to apply siding to the seventy by fourteen foot wall we were replacing. However, utilizing the local knowledge of our homeowner, we were able to borrow the nearby school’s scaffolds, enabling us to start installing siding more efficiently than ever before. The difference in our backgrounds in our group fostered humility and gratitude as all our volunteers grew appreciative for amenities such as our education and homes where we could live both comfortably and safely. Likewise, our interactions between our homeowners cultivated hope that these home improvements were a minor aspect of a larger overall upward trajectory in our homeowner’s lives, even as they faced the harshest conditions.

Ultimately, the week of ASP ends, and thus our community parts. However it is the brevity of these communities that make them truly beautiful. Every time, a new group of youth will be assembled, and a new family will be paired. Thus, every community I’ve been part of, though all serving a common purpose of repairing a home, is able to bring together a diversity of perspectives to work against the odds that ultimately brings about a better future for every one of its participants.

- 84 -

Essay: Ellie Mahlendorf Essay:

ESSAY: ELLIE MAHLENDORF A STUDY OF THE EDUCATION OF REFUGEES: HOW TRAUMA AFFECTS EDUCATIONAL ABILITY AND HOW EDUCATION LEVEL AFFECTS SOCIETY Upon beginning my service journey, I was overwhelmed with the various programs in Nashville in need of volunteers. Having no idea where to start, I decided to reflect on my past service days and determine when I felt my time was most effective to the community I was helping. I arranged to volunteer with the Nations Ministry Center to enhance my passion for being physically present while assisting others.

Nations Ministry Center aids “refugee families in becoming self-sufficient through education opportunities, immigration assistance, and family support.” (Nations Ministry Center). By providing a trauma-aware environment, their goal is to provide a space with a sense of safety and security to permit the educational growth of all children. Specifically, I volunteered at the summer program, which helps refugee children enhance their reading level, regardless of their current academic abilities.

Many of the students at Nations come from diverse cultures and countries, and a large portion of them are refugees. A refugee is someone who has fled from their home country due to war, persecution, or even a natural disaster. Approximately “60 million people have been forced to leave their homes” (TED-Ed) to escape these treacherous disasters.

However, Donald Trump’s presidency created an all-time low number of refugees welcomed into America. A limit of 18,000 refugees dropped to 15,000 the following year.

Joe Biden’s electoral campaign “pledged to set the figure at 125,000 per year if elected” (Miroff). Although some refugees forced out of their homes still manage to live in the same country of origin, countless people have been forcibly displaced outside of their homes, their lands, and across the borders of another country.

According to the United Nations 1951 convention, a refugee is “someone who is outside their country of nationality and is unable to return to their home country because of well-founded fears of being persecuted” (UN 1951). The fear of persecution could be spawned due to their ethnicity, faith, nationality, membership in a social group, or even a political opinion. Unfortunately, over half of the world’s population of refugees are children (UNHCR). “An estimated 35 million (42%) of the 82.4 million forcibly displaced people are children below 18 years of age (end-2020)” (UNHCR). Frequently, these refugee children are separated from their families, and many of them “are at risk of abuse, neglect, violence, exploitation, trafficking or military recruitment” (UNHCR). Some children may have the resources to flee their country by various transportation methods, free of danger and violence. However, many children do not possess this capability and therefore must endure draining journeys across countries while being exposed to assault, deprivation, and lack of personal hygiene. The removal from one’s home can cause extreme amounts of trauma, especially to an undeveloped child. The UNHCR, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, assists refugees in locating their new country. They prioritize women, children, medical conditions, the elderly, and additional vulnerable individuals. This relocation process can sometimes take between one to two years. Regardless of the duration of this process, the entire approach can be highly

- 85 -

Essay: Ellie Mahlendorf

damaging, overwhelming, and traumatizing. Due to this trauma created for children of young ages, their brains have been damaged, inhibiting their ability to learn properly and be prepared for future education. The extremely high rates of refugee children led me to my central question: “How does being a refugee affect the education level and intellectual growth of a child? Which techniques and methods are scientifically proven to increase the education levels amongst children of lower-class refugee populations?”

For children and youth who experience trauma, the brain development may be interrupted, leading to further setbacks. A child’s development is disturbed, but a child’s emotional availability is also affected. The diagram below shows that the activity contrast between a healthy brain and an abused/trauma-induced brain is significant. In the neurological scan below, the right brain (abused) has severe damage to the temporal lobes, the brain area that controls emotions and receives signals from the senses. Severe trauma at such a young age, such as fleeing one’s home country, can leave a child in a constant state of fight-flight or freeze. Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child defines toxic stress as “excessive or prolonged activation of stress response systems in the body and brain.” That sort of activation can lead to dysfunction in the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain linked to cognition and decision-making” (Las Cruces Sun-News). The inability for children to form decisions and express emotions is an extreme disadvantage to their emotional growth. The lack of decision-making and self-expression directly harms childhood education. Not only do the traumatic memories continue to pop into the mind of a child, but on a larger scale, they lead to a decreased IQ and reading ability (TSA). It is evident that the trauma associated with the culture of being a refugee negatively impacts children’s ability to learn.

Although the trauma associated with refugees is a crucial disadvantage in a classroom, the entirety of Tennessee’s education program is behind ideal rates for a typical elementary school student. Spring TCAP assessments indicated that only 22% of third-grade students were on track in their reading skills, and only 10% had mastered reading skills for this grade. Correspondingly, “1 in 7 economically disadvantaged students is meeting grade-level expectations in ELA, English

- 86 -

Essay: Ellie Mahlendorf Essay:

Language Arts proficiency. The most negative impacts were noted for economically disadvantaged students, urban/suburban students, English Learners, and students of color” (Tennessee Department of Education). Although most Tennessee elementary students struggle with literacy, the economically disadvantaged children retain a much smaller array of academics. The question is then posed: “How has Tennessee attempted to improve these continuously decreasing literacy skills, especially for children who are not exposed to countless opportunities?”. In January of 2021, the idea of “Reading 360”, a 100 million dollar project, was announced. On February 3rd, 2021, Governor Bill Lee signed the Tennessee Literacy Success Act due to the critically low literacy levels in the state. “The law requires school districts to develop a Foundational Literacy Skills Plan to articulate locally driven solutions to improve literacy outcomes for students” (Tennessee Department of Education). Governor Lee believes that if the young members of our state can excel in their academics, then the entirety of the state will benefit.

However, a more personal approach to these lacking literacy skills is provided

by Nations Ministry Center. As stated earlier, their mission is to aid refugee families in becoming self-sufficient by increasing their academic qualities. The primary approach to enriching and enhancing each student’s academics is a program called Lexia, which documents each user’s individual development and intellectual evolution.

Upon beginning a Lexia journey, a placement test prompts each student. This test quickly analyzes and interprets a student’s current reading level. Lexia includes multiple activities such as reading a story, rhyming words, sounding out syllables, and more. Students can personalize the order in which they complete each level. After concluding a level of Lexia, students are rewarded with a stamp, and the stamps eventually accumulate to a prize. The instrument of encouragement and persistent rewards for the continuation of excellence constantly motivates children to pursue additional achievements on Lexia. In general, Lexia is a distinguished option for this elementary class because although not all students obtained the same English toolbox, since occasional language barriers occurred, they all could intuitively learn and mature each day of the Summer Program. Additionally, if a student missed a day of class, which frequently happened, they did not fall behind in lessons because each student has an individualized program to strengthen current skills. Through specific assistance towards elementary school students, the Nations Ministry Center enhances and specializes the process of education, especially to children who statistically perform worse on standardized English tests.

The importance of literacy is apparent. However, how are children who are not provided with information on reading, writing, and essential grammar skills affected in later aspects of their lives? Does lower-level literacy have a significant impact on the future of a child? A study performed in Kansas discovered “children who do not learn to read and write by the end of third grade are likely doomed to school and life failure that can often lead to drug use and criminal behavior” (The Wichita Eagle). The key to crime prevention is education. As of 2017, illiterate inmates compile approximately 75% of the U.S. prison population. Clifford “Spud” Johnson, sentenced to 210 months in prison, composed literature to entertain himself. Naturally, his fellow prisoners were intrigued by these fictional stories, yet very few of them acquired adequate

- 87 -

Essay: Essay:Ellie Mahlendorf

literacy to enjoy these stories. Various prisons provide education because of the strong connection between crime rates and illiteracy. An analyzed study by The U.S. Department of Justice “concludes that the expense of providing higher education to inmates is minimal when considering the impact upon rates of recidivism and the future saving that results from preventing rearrest and re-imprisonment.” Higher levels of education assist in preventing an additional crime from being committed.

An increase in education levels directly correlates to the prevention of crimes as enlightened students can more successfully acquire occupational status and infuse their lives with opportunities. Undoubtedly, schooling improves personal growth and futuristic capabilities, but education on a more significant level enhances society as a whole.

After reflecting on the extensive research I compiled and the service I completed this past summer with Nations Ministry Center, I have genuinely been able to see Nashville, and the entirety of the country, through a different lens. Growing up with my lifestyle, I take my daily activities for granted. I am fortunate enough to attend a challenging yet caring school where I am provided with the utmost resources.

However, just thirty minutes down the road from where I go to school, there are children who have been forced to leave their homes, and their levels of education and brain development have been altered due to these traumatic experiences they endured. Nations Ministry Center provides a lively, loving environment to ensure these children have the opportunistic life they deserve. After spending hours with these children, I can confidently say they are bright, and their futures are just as bright as anyone provided with the “correct materials” to succeed. I see the desire in them, and I see their passion. I know that their capabilities to succeed in life extend beyond their past experiences and economic situations. Nations Ministry Center has ignited the childrens’ fires, and I look forward to seeing how bright their light shines over our shared community.

WORKS CITED Berti, Benedetta, and Evelien Borgman. “What Does It Mean to Be a Refugee?” TED-Ed, 16 June 2016, youtu.be/25bwiSikRsI. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

“Children”. The UN Refugee Agency, www.unhcr.org/children.html. Web. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

“Foundational Literacy Skills Plans.” Tennessee Department of Education, TN.gov, www.tn.gov/ education/instruction/foundational-literacy-skills-plan.html. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Hensley, Dana. “Children Who Do Not Learn to Read, Write by 3rd Grade Face Tough Future.” The Wichita Eagle, 5 Jan. 2019, www.kansas.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/ article223945135.html. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

“How Does Trauma Affect Children?” Treatment and Services Adaptation Center. Treatment and Services Adaption Center, traumaawareschools.org/impact#:~:text=Symptoms%20 resulting%20from%20trauma%20can,decreased%20IQ%20and%20reading%20ability.

Linn, Amy. “Science Reveals Severe Childhood Trauma Can Alter Developing Brain, Creates Lifetime Risk.” Las Cruces Sun News, 21 Jan. 2018, www.lcsun-news.com/story/news/ local/new-mexico/2018/01/21/severe-childhood-trauma-alter-developing-brain-createlifetime-risk/1039104001/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Mangrum, Meghan. “Tennessee Education Department to Use $ 100 Million to Target State’s Lagging Literacy Rates.” Tennessean, 2021. Tennessean, www.tennessean.com/story/news/

- 88 -

Essay/Reflection: Ellie Mahlendorf Essay:

education/2021/01/04/tennessee-education-department-use-100-million-covid-relieffunds-target-third-grade-literacy/4125508001/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Miroff, Nick. “Trump Cuts Refugee Cap to Lowest Level Ever, Depicts Them on Campaign Trail as a Threat and Burden.” The Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2020, www.washingtonpost. com/immigration/trump-cuts-refugee-cap/2020/10/01/a5113b62-03ed-11eb-88797663b816bfa5_story.html. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Sainato, Michael. “US Prison System Plagued by High Illiteracy Rates.” Observer, 18 July 2017, observer.com/2017/07/prison-illiteracy-criminal-justice-reform/. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Tennessee State, General Assembly, Assembly. Foundational Literacy Skills Plans. WWC Intervention Report, ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/Docs/InterventionReports/wwc_lexia_063009. pdf. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

---, ---, Assembly. Tennessee Releases 2020-21 Spring TCAP State Level Results. Tennessee Department of Education, 21 Aug. 2021, www.tn.gov/education/news/2021/8/2/tennesseereleases-2020-21-spring-tcap-state-level-results-.html. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

United States, Congress, House. Education as Crime Prevention: Providing Education to Prisoners. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Sept. 1997, www.ojp. gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/education-crime-prevention-providing-educationprisoners. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

REFLECTION: ELLIE MAHLENDORF SERVICE SCHOLAR REFLECTION: LOOKING BACK ON 36 HOURS OF VOLUNTEERING Throughout my nine years at Ensworth, I have been educated on the importance of giving back to others in any method possible. Ensworth has presented me with diverse opportunities to work with programs to give back to my community. These experiences allowed me to see Nashville differently while educating myself on the prevailing issues in my neighborhood: hunger, education, nature, and more. Although all of my service learning occasions have been impactful, I always felt my volunteering was the most meaningful when I could physically be with the individuals I was helping. To fulfill my drive for personal assistance, I chose to volunteer at a summer program for underprivileged children of refugee families.

For four weeks in the summer, accumulating 36 hours of service, I volunteered with the Nations Ministry Center. As a “classroom buddy” for the Nations Summer Program of 2021, I assisted in a classroom of elementary students. I aided with various activities such as reading, social-emotional learning activities, crafts, recreation, etc. As I have always loved being a leader to children, I figured this experience would be perfect for me. Quickly, I noticed the academic struggle amongst these children, as most of them did not possess the ability to read and struggled to pronounce “easy” words. I guided them in strengthening their reading levels, but their primary source of knowledge was Lexia, an individualized literacy program to help educate children about reading. Upon

- 89 -

Reflection: Ellie Mahlendorf Essay:

completing a reading level on Lexia, they were rewarded, motivating them to educate themselves further. I watched their knowledge grow tremendously throughout the four weeks I volunteered, and I was incredibly proud of the personal progress each child made.

I observed growth in academic skills, and additionally intellectual curiosity, and social emotions as well. After my first day, I formed powerful connections with these children. They constantly requested I would sit by them when they did Lexia. Students asked me to read books to them, and they especially loved playing with the tinsel in my hair. I formed a relationship built on trust, joy, and mutual respect with each child. I made sure to give attention to all twelve children, prioritizing equal time with all students. Although my class improved individual education levels, students also participated in recreational activities to pair academics with athletics. Additionally, daily projects required teamwork, creativity, patience, and additional life skills.

While these elementary students were often well-behaved, they were still children and didn’t always like to be told what to do. I learned to handle and approach children who were unwilling to obey rules. Tolerance was the key to this approach. I learned the importance of emotional assistance, even to children of such young ages. For example, children waited in line to wash their hands to receive lunch each day. Children disobeyed this rule by attempting to skip the line. Disobedience resulted in being sent to the back of the line to teach them a lesson about manners.

Overall, I loved working with the Nations Ministry Center. I was able to meet so many new people, help my community personally, and enhance my view of Nashville as a holistic city rather than solely through my personal experiences. As a privileged white female at a private school, I am easily handed life on a silver platter. Seeing life through the eyes of less fortunate people, I understand the difficulties of aspects of life I would view as simple, such as education. By personally connecting with these children for a month, rather than one service day, I no longer felt as though I was completing my service hours; I felt as though I was helping people I loved to better themselves.

Completing my service work was more than completing 35 hours of assistance, but 35 hours of learning about a topic I am passionate about while learning about myself and who I want to be as a person: charitable, patient, trustworthy, and open-minded.

- 90 -

Essay: Vivian Morrow

ESSAY: VIVIAN MORROW THISTLE FARMS + EDEN HOUSE

There is a young girl in the old New Orleans airport, posted on a Blue Campaign poster. She never sleeps, cannot speak, and cannot leave. All she can do is hold eye contact with those who seem to notice her. We meet every Christmas, her image fading as the poster wears down. I met her when I was 13, on the way to visit my grandparents. We shared a physical resemblance; the same eye color, hair texture, age, and skin tone. But still, we looked so different. Alone, her arms hug her chest.

White letters are plastered on the faded paper: “Can You See Her?” I soon noticed that she was posted everywhere, in the restroom, in Starbucks, and on the sliding glass doors. Despite her obvious presence, nobody seemed to pay her any attention. It was too easy to simply walk past her in the rush of the airport. As I continued out onto the street, she stared at me from the side of her Blue Campaign ad, posted on a street lamp, the colors almost completely bleached by sunlight. I finally held eye contact. We were face to face: me, a safe well-cared-for 13-year-old girl, and her, a representation of the grooming and human trafficking of young women. It was then I knew that I had a responsibility to see her; a responsibility to help her. As I read the faded letters on the bottom of the poster, I found a mission. I wanted to discover why an underground slavery system was not receiving more attention and what people were doing to help. Over the last few years, I have focused my efforts on Thistle Farms and Eden House-- organizations with similar missions: to “heal, empower, and employ” women survivors of human trafficking. Working in the Thistle Farms enterprise, I met graduates of their rehabilitation program. The volunteer coordinator, Jennifer Clinger, helped me answer the questions I had about trafficking. After spending time working with program graduates and reading Jennifer’s memoir, Delivered, I further understood what human trafficking is, how non-profits were able to help rehabilitate those who had fallen prey, and how traffickers chose these victims while operating in the shadows.

Defining human trafficking is an important step in understanding how the crime operates in silence. The United States Department of Justice defines human trafficking as “the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery” (Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000). Given the long definition, I was curious as to what common knowledge about trafficking might be. I asked the people around me what they understood about the crisis. The frequent answer danced along the idea that trafficking was horrifying and illegal, but people were unsure of how it worked or who was involved. Wondering what caused the lack of caution about such a predacious industry, I contacted the Eden House staff, asking what they knew about the public view of human trafficking. A reason for the lack of public knowledge is

- 91 -

Essay: Vivian Morrow

that the myths about human trafficking make it a harder concept to grasp. There are many popular misconceptions, such as the idea that trafficking only happens in poor countries, victims are not American, trafficking is the same as human smuggling, and most importantly, the misconception that victims will always come forward to ask for help. The truth that often goes unspoken is that human trafficking is a hidden crime that operates with a cloak of mundane disguise. Existing and operating across the globe, including the United States, human trafficking can take place in a variety of settings, plaguing cities, suburbs, and rural towns alike. Victims can be of any race, nationality, age, or gender. Oftentimes, trafficking operations work under a fake business name, online ads, truck stops, and factories. Individuals may be lured in through a romantic relationship, the promise of a job, or through a family member.

Even though victims may not be physically confined, they may not be able to come forward and ask for help, therefore they are hidden in plain sight (Eden House, Blue Campaign).

As depicted on the New Orleans Airport poster, a disproportionate number of human trafficking victims are female. The UN reports that “the most common form of human trafficking (79%) is sexual exploitation. The victims of sexual exploitation are predominantly women and girls” (United Nations). Organizations like Eden House and Thistle Farms attack this global crisis by working to help this large demographic.

Thistle Farms, founded by Becca Stevens in 1997 with the motto “Love Heals”, houses twenty-eight recovering women at a time. They live in “a therapeutic setting that offers healing and transformation through housing, healthcare, counseling, employment, and community building” (Thistle Farms). My mentor at Thistle Farms, Jennifer Clinger, exclaims how “People just keep showing up. And when they do, we just say, ‘welcome to the circle,’ and let them get to work” (Morris Interview). Thistle Farms also works with the Tennessee Prison for Women, allowing women to begin their recovery with therapy and education, even if they are serving time, to ease the transition into the residential program. Thistle can help the residents with legal issues, working to clear records and launch the women back into society. In her book, Delivered, Jennifer explains how Thistle Farms is a place of healing that helps many women succeed in a way that other programs fail to accomplish. Jennifer had spent her youth in and out of many programs for troubled kids which she described as places where “teachers didn’t teach. Counselors didn’t counsel. They were only there to supervise and make sure we didn’t kill each other or burn the place down” (Clinger 15). She explains how she “always failed at state and federally funded programs. Their design is flawed. How can a person focus on healing when all they can do is worry about paying rent? With no education? No work history? A criminal record? It is a recipe for failure” (Clinger 45-46). Conversely, the Thistle Farms residential program is proven effective, and their waitlist, “capped at 100 women - is consistently full” (Thistle Farms). About 75% of Thistle Farms graduates are rehabilitated and “living healthy, independent lives” (Thistle Farms), so more non-profits, such as Eden House in New Orleans, opened up to continue Becca’s mission. In New Orleans, Eden House was started by former United States Diplomat, Kara Van de Carr. She wrote the Trafficking in Persons Report for Jamaica and with help from Representative Neal Abramson, she drafted legislation

- 92 -

Essay: Vivian Morrow

for Louisiana to work to protect trafficked children. From there, seeing that many women in the city needed help, she started Eden House. Like Thistle Farms, this nonprofit offers a haven to women who had been exploited through trafficking. Working side by side with these survivors, I learned about their journeys. Most of them were girls from the south, only a few years older than me. They explained their stories and how they were targeted by the industry.

Drug addiction and poverty are two main targeting factors that increase the risk of trafficking. Thistle Farms states how “traumatic childhood experiences give way to homelessness, addiction, further abuse, and incarceration, often compounded by poverty” (Thistle Farms). Because of this, “populations frequently targeted by traffickers include runaway and homeless youth, refugees and immigrants, as well as victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, war, and other forms of social discrimination” (Eden House). Jennifer Clinger, who was on her own at age 12, fell prey to sexual predators in Los Angelos when she was young. Predators have an easier time when nobody is looking for their victims. She recalls the drugs and the abuse from those times that furthered her addiction and made her life feel like a neverending cycle that nobody was there to help her break. She has since dedicated her career to helping others break these habits and get back on their feet.

To help trafficking victims, one must know how to spot them. There are key indicators to help see victims of human trafficking. These indicators include a disconnect from friends and family, skipping school, confusion, various bruises, neglect, coached speech, a lack of personal possessions, and the enforcement of unreasonable security measures. However, these indicators can be difficult to catch unless one spends a larger amount of time with the person, and oftentimes, these victims are on their own (Blue Campaign). The cycle only continues when these women are blocked out of the workforce. Often homeless and with a criminal record, it becomes hard for them to find work, leading to further financial desperation. In an interview with Pamela Lamp, Jennifer explains Thistle Farms’ mission helped to employ women and provide a liveable salary so that “they don’t have to return to illegal hustles to make ends meet” (Lamp interview). Extreme poverty can still be a key targeting measure even if one has close friends and family. Jennifer describes how “people sell their daughters because they think they are giving them a better life, when in fact they’re just selling them into sex slavery.” This concept is quite prevalent in places where women have less opportunity for income. To help prevent these transactions, Thistle Farms works with many partners around the globe, such as Starfish Project in Northeast Asia, which works to provide vocational training to trafficked women, hoping to provide income opportunities. They train women to make goods such as jewelry and bags to be shipped to the U.S. and sold across the United States. Jennifer explained to me how people want to help, but they are often unsure how. So, Thistle Farms and Eden House give them easy ways to contribute by opening their enterprise and gift shops, stocked with survivor-made goods. Each good sold represents healing and safety for those who seek sanctuary.

Despite the horrific reality of sex trafficking, more victims are finding their way to safety and rehabilitation every day. Thistle Farms reports that “sister

- 93 -

Essay: Vivian Morrow

organizations grew by more than 150 beds since last year” (Thistle Farms). They also have employed 1,400 survivor artisans, helping keep women financially stable, reducing the risk of trafficking. Every year, Thistle Farms and Eden House hold graduations for the women who are ready to live on their own. Lifetime, Regions, Thistle Farms, and Urban Housing Solution work together to fund apartment rent for these new graduates as they go to school and get jobs. Reba McEntire even presented Terrié, a 2022 graduation candidate, with an apartment that was furnished as well as 2 years of rent paid. Graduates regain parts of life that were taken from them by traffickers. 2017 graduate, Rachel, explains how she wanted to be able to vote again as it had been ten years since she had been able to. Thistle got to work and after a lengthy process, her voting rights were restored (Thistle Farms). Jennifer exclaims that like these survivors, she is “still standing. And those left standing must dance” (Morris Interview).

New Orleans recently built a whole new airport and the girl on the poster disappeared with the old walls. As summer ended and I flew back home from working at Eden House, I went to look for her. The new walls were vacant. I worried she might be gone from the public eye, moving society backward in the fight to eradicate human trafficking with the same awareness that she had gifted me long ago. I was wrong. She was not gone. One July night far away from New Orleans, in the middle of a movie marathon, we locked eyes once again. Black Widow, what I had expected to be an average superhero movie, tore her right off the poster and brought her to life in a way I had never seen before. Within the first minutes, she was visible, but not silent on her faded piece of public safety organization-issued paper. Now, she was screaming and running. Her eyes stared back at me with their usual intensity from each girl in the opening credit scene. They were of different ethnicities, different ages, and unfamiliar, but the look in their eyes was identical to the one I had known so well. I realized that for the first time, I was seeing a movie that portrayed the grooming and human trafficking of young women. I was seeing a digital media representation of the girl in New Orleans. The world is not moving backward, it is entering a new era of hope and representation for those who used to suffer in silence. If more people can see her, more people can help save her.

WORKS CITED Blue Campaign. “What Is Human Trafficking?” Blue Campaign, United States Government, 10 Nov. 2021, www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign/what-human-trafficking. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

“What Is Human Trafficking?” Blue Campaign, United States Government, 10 Nov. 2021, www. dhs.gov/blue-campaign/what-human-trafficking. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

Clinger, Jennifer. “Jennifer Clinger – Human Trafficking Survivor.” Interview by Pamela Lamp.

Who I Met Today, 11 Mar. 2020, whoimettoday.com/people-to-meet/jennifer-clingerhuman-trafficking-survivor/. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

“Welcome to the Circle.” Interview by Jow Morris. Unsung Nashville, 3 July 2014, parthenonpub.com/2014/07/03/welcome-circle/. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

Clinger, Jennifer A. Delivered: The Fragmented Memories of a Former Streetwalker. Place of publication not identified, Jennifer A. Clinger., 2018.

Eden House. “What is Human Trafficking?” Eden House Nola, edenhousenola.org/about/whatis-human-trafficking/. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

- 94 -

Essay/Reflection: Vivian Morrow

Thistle Farms. 2022, thistlefarms.org/. Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

The United States Department of Justice. “Human Trafficking Defined.” Human Trafficking.

The United States Department of Justice, United States, www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.

Accessed 8 Feb. 2022.

“UNODC report on human trafficking exposes modern form of slavery.” Office on Drugs and Crime, United Nations, www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/ global-report-on-trafficking-in-persons.html. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

REFLECTION: VIVIAN MORROW SERVICE SCHOLAR REFLECTION On an excruciatingly hot July afternoon, I found myself trying to haul a refrigerator across the lop-sided sidewalks of New Orleans. Honestly, it was not what I expected to be doing during that summer. I was volunteering at Eden House, a non-profit haven that provides long-term shelter, counseling, and workforce training for sex-trafficked women. My new nemesis, the giant stainless steel fridge, had to be installed so that Eden House could house more women. After getting it in the door, I collapsed on the ground of the residence house. I had been scrubbing floors, moving furniture, and power washing sidewalks for the whole week but somehow felt useless.

Here, there were these female survivors of the unimaginable. It seemed as if all I could do to help was housework. I did not yet understand how this work coincided with their motto “love heals.” I remember faintly noticing the squeaky floorboards of the tired old southern home as one of the recovering women sat down beside me. I threw my hands up, smiling at my new accomplishment sitting in the doorway. She laughed and said that I was turning this place into the Ritz Carlton. She kept smiling, explaining how she had never lived in a place so clean and luxurious. It was then that I finally understood.

“Love Heals” was more than a cute slogan made to make people feel good. It spoke the truth about recovery. The simple act of a refrigerator was enough to help someone heal.

Working with women who were recovering at Eden House, I found that the road to recovery resembles that of the rough New Orleans sidewalks that I had battled that day; cracked, uprooted, and broken. Still, the concrete remains where it has always been, supported by the earth. For many female trafficking victims, this road leads to a powerful place with a mission to heal those who grace its doorstep. Eden House and Thistle Farms work to eradicate the selling of human beings and heal those who have been harmed by the industry. Working with these two organizations, I was able to get a first-hand view of the recovery and life after these women had graduated.

I found that the most essential method of recovery is the emphasis on a person’s value; to reiterate the famous saying, “love heals”. Every time these women greet or say goodbye to each other, they say that powerful two-word phrase. As I cleaned, organized donations, and cooked with the residents, I saw its truth manifest in front of me. These acts, though relatively simple, were acts of consideration that empowered these female

- 95 -

Reflection: Vivian Morrow

survivors. After their two-year period of recovery and rehabilitation, these women were applying to college, getting jobs, and starting businesses. That empowerment came through love.

During my work, I became aware of how trafficking could take place anywhere.

Some of the survivors, barely older than I was, were from a similar background as me.

We talked about SAT scores, the beach, southern weather, and different restaurants we wanted to try; things that seemed incredibly normal to me. I helped some of the girls design and make earrings to sell at Especially Eden, and they even named a pair “Vivian”. While at Thistle Farms, I spent a lot of time working to assemble packaging for the gift shop with older graduates. These women had recovered and were living a new life. They told me stories of how they reconnected with their family after years of being estranged and how they were so proud of their daughters and granddaughters for getting degrees. It was incredible to see the transformation they had gone through and sparked hope for those recovering at Eden House.

On my last day of interning at Thistle Farms, I went out to visit a spot in the garden. There are stones with names on them and flowers that sprout through the hard earth. Each name represents a woman lost. These women represent the silent crimes of trafficking. Jennifer Clinger explained to me how the women in the program are like thistles, growing through concrete and drought. They are survivors.

- 96 -

Essay: Gracie Pulliam Essay:

ESSAY: GRACIE PULLIAM RETRIEVING INDEPENDENCE Over the summer and throughout senior year, I have worked closely with Retrieving Independence. Retrieving Independence is a Nashville non-profit organization that breeds and trains service dogs to be placed with individuals who have physical, mental, or emotional disabilities. Retrieving Independence works with the Tennessee Department of Corrections, as well, to incorporate inmates into their training program. Once the dogs reach a certain age, they are sent into one of two prisons in the greater Nashville area to be trained by a select group of inmates during the week. Their goal is to help these inmates find their purpose and dignity by giving them the opportunity to contribute to society from within their specific environment. My research interests lie within the highly specialized training methods that RI uses when raising their dogs, as well as the mental health effects of volunteering on the inmates who choose to participate in Retrieving Independence’s prison program.

Initially, volunteers at Retrieving Independence are instructed to use very specific language when speaking to the dogs in the program. This is to create a results based, force-free teaching environment. The idea is that when a thinking, feeling, individual (i.e. the service dog in training) has some control over its circumstances, they feel and behave better. Therefore, dogs in Retrieving Independence’s training program are allowed to make their own behavioral choices, and are either rewarded, redirected, or ignored based upon the accuracy of their choice. Volunteers never implement negative reinforcement, and are instructed to ask behaviors of the dog, rather than tell the dog specifically what it should or should not do. Words like “no”, and “bad”, are to be avoided at all costs. An example of this would be simply standing still when a dog pulls on its leash instead of responding by tugging the dog in the desired direction. As mentioned before, the training done at Retrieving Independence is very detailed for very specific psychological reasons.

Up until about 12 years ago, the popular belief was that canines lack the ability to feel and process emotions in the way that humans do. However, in 2012, to prove that they do feel emotion, neuroscientist Gregory Berns trained a dog to go through an MRI scanner in order to map its brain in response to different stimuli. When he figured out how to properly train the dog to successfully go through the machine, he opened up his research to as many as 20 different dogs. In doing so, he noticed that positively correlated stimuli activated the same part of their brains as humans in every single dog: the caudate nucleus. The caudate nucleus is active when an individual is in a state of anticipation.

When anticipating something associated with a positive outcome, the activity of the caudate nucleus increases significantly. “When we see this structure active in dogs, we can interpret that they are experiencing something important to them and something they like. This is completely analogous to what happens in human brains under the same conditions,” (National Geographic; Berns). The biggest discrepancy between humans and canines is language. When humans feel a positive emotion, they can describe it using a large array of vocabulary. Dogs are not granted that luxury. Whether or not they understand words as symbolic placeholders for emotion remains to be seen. Regardless,

- 97 -

Essay: Gracie Pulliam

Bern’s experiment proves that dogs do have the capability to feel emotion in response to the environment around them.

So dogs can feel emotions, but can they pick up on the emotions of the humans around them? According to the American Kennel Club, they can. Previous studies have been done that prove dogs can match facial expressions to emotions in humans, as well as read hand gestures (American Kennel Club). When that was discovered, the next question became: can dogs process audible emotion as well? To test this, the Department of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Bari Aldo Moro in Italy did a study with 30 dogs and a simple set up. Dogs were given a food bowl in the center of a room, and while they ate they were subject to different vocalizations of human emotion coming through speakers placed on the ceiling. For example, fear played as screaming, and happiness played as laughter. Like humans, the right side of a dog’s brain controls its left side, and vice versa. Previous research has shown that dogs process negative emotional sound with the right side of their brain, and positive emotional sound with the left. For this reason, scientist’s took specific interest in which direction the dog turned its head in response to each individual noise. The experiment showed that dogs tended to turn their heads left for vocalizations of fear, sadness, and anger, which means these were processed through the right side of the dogs’ brain, determining that these dogs could, in fact, differentiate between positive and negative emotions simply based on audio (American Kennel Club). Overall, understanding that dogs can feel emotion and understand the emotions of humans around them is crucial when it comes to successful training.

How does this relate back to Retrieving Independence? RI is doing everything in its power to produce service dogs that are concrete and apt for any specific job while fostering an environment of training that is tailored to the emotional and psychological well-being of the dog. It is important that these two components go hand in hand, in order to ensure a morally sound program that truly takes into account how these dogs are feeling throughout the entire process. As seen above, dogs have emotions, very similar to humans. At Retrieving Independence, this puts dogs and humans on the same playing field, with the same level of importance and responsibility on both canine and human shoulders. That is why their training encourages talking to the dogs, rather than talking at the dogs. It is important to understand that this program is a partnership between the two, not forced labor. Mindsets like this would be beneficial in any animal behavioral training environment to ensure a solid ethical high ground is reached.

As I mentioned before, another interesting aspect of Retrieving Independence is their partnership with the Tennessee Department of Corrections. They work specifically with The Turney Industrial Complex in Only, Tennessee, and with the Tennessee Prison for Women in Nashville, Tennessee. In each prison, after the dogs have reached a certain stage in training, they are each placed in a cell with two inmates on weekdays. These dogs are being trained to help those with a wide variety of disabilities. The exact environment they will be going into is unknown until they have completed their training; therefore, it is important that these dogs get as much exposure to different stimuli as possible, so that they are as prepared as they can be by the time they are released for their jobs. The commotion of a prison is a good experience, but the real benefit of the prison program is with the prisoners.

According to the National Institution of Corrections, after being released from

- 98 -

Essay: Gracie Pulliam Essay:

prison, many inmates must start their lives over entirely, meaning they must find a place to live and a way to make an income. Finding a job is a difficult task in itself, but because these individuals may now have crimes listed on their personal record, it is even harder than usual. However, a study done by Northwestern University showed that prison inmates who participate in some type of educational or emotional training program before being discharged are 43% more likely to find a job within 3 months of being released (NU). A blog by Caroline Dreyer discussed the importance of educational programs in the prison system, saying “With public safety a top priority, it is important from a community and societal perspective that those who were formerly incarcerated refrain from reoffending. This means that there needs to be resources or services in jails or prisons that can teach skills related to job, education and prosocial behavior.” She goes on to discuss that in 2016, only 35% of state run prisons offered any sort of program for inmates. At the time, there was not enough government funding to incorporate these programs into prison systems. However, since then, funding has increased, and programs, such as the one Retrieving Independence offers, have been able to flourish. Now, 64% of state run prisons offer inmates the opportunity to practice necessary, real world skills, before being released, in an effort to get them ready to reacclimate to society.

The first animal training prison program began as an accident in Ohio in 1975, when an inmate adopted an injured bird that had somehow gotten into the facility.

The behavior of this inmate drastically improved, which led to the allowance of animal therapy in prison. Studies found that inmates with access to animal therapy needed 50% less medication, had fewer attempted suicides, and were 46% less violent (University of New Haven; Kevin Earl). Today, dog training programs are among the most common types of prison programs, with over 209 facilities across the US (University of New Haven; Kevin Earl). The goal of the majority of these programs is to promote rehabilitation and to combat recidivism. An article was released by ClarksvilleNOW that discusses the impacts of Retrieving Independence’s program on the Tennessee Prison for Women in Nashville, Tennessee. The program is overseen by Corporal Craig Hawn, who notices “these dogs change these ladies’ lives.” The beautiful thing about dogs is that they do not have the ability to hold onto stereotypes and biases.

They love unconditionally. Hawn goes on to talk about how the women of TPFW have gotten to experience a new kind of love from these dogs that has entirely changed their ways of thinking. He believes “every single one of these women in this program have grown from when they started out.” With Retrieving Independence’s program, a therapist and a trainer are assigned to each prison, and they visit once a week to provide counseling services for the inmates. In addition, these inmates have direct access to classrooms, specialized instruction, and equipment needed to work with their assigned dog. There is also access to outdoor activities to give the dog (and inmate) more stimulation. All in all, Retrieving Independence’s partnership with prisons in Middle Tennessee benefit both the dog in training and the rehabilitating inmate.

In the environment of today’s society, it is important that morality and empathy come into play in any type of animal behavioral training. Retrieving Independence has taken a large leap forward in making sure an animals emotional well being is looked after while also ensuring they get the proper training needed to help those

- 99 -

Essay: Gracie Pulliam

with disabilities. Not only are they focused on morality and equality between dogs and humans, but also those in society who are often looked down upon: prisoners.

The original intention of a prison was to serve as a large-scale implementation of a “timeout.” However, over time, its original intention has been lost, and it has become an institution that society often neglects. Programs like the one Retrieving Independence offers gives inmates the opportunity to see that society does still care about them and that there is still hope. Inmates are able to gain the necessary skills they will need to reacclimate to society once their sentence is over, and the inmates are receiving love as they do so. Retrieving Independence looked at research similar to the research found above, and created a model to help as many people as possible. It is now society’s job to do the same and find ways to reach a multitude of communities with acts of service and acts of love.

Work cited

Dreyer, Caralyn. “The Psychological Benefits of Adult Education in Correctional Settings.” Degreechoices.

Com, 25 Jan. 2022, www.degreechoices.com/blog/benefits-adult-education-correctional-settings.

Gibeault, Stephanie MSc. “Research Shows Your Dog Can Hear When You’re Happy or Sad.” American Kennel Club, 4 Apr. 2018, www.akc.org/expert-advice/news/dogs-can-hear-your-emotions.

Northwestern University. “Northwestern Benefits of Prison Education.” Northwestern, sites. northwestern.edu/npep/benefits-of-prison-education. Accessed 9 Feb. 2022.

Nwoko, Sobem. “Prison Dog Training Program Evaluations.” EBPsociety, 2 Nov. 2017, www.ebpsociety. org/blog/education/283-prison-dog-training#:%7E:text=Dog%2Dtraining%20programs%20 (DTPs),recidivism%20and%20behavior%20in%20prison.

Purina. “Dog Training Articles | Purina.” Nestlé Purina Petcare Company, www.purina.com/articles/dog/ training. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

Retrieving Independence. “Home.” Retrieving Independence, 22 Nov. 2021, riservicedogs.org.

Seifuddin, Faith. “TDOC Partners with Retrieving Independence to Train Service Dogs at Women’s Prison.” ClarksvilleNow.Com, 28 May 2020, clarksvillenow.com/local/tdoc-partners-withretrieving-independence-to-train-service-dogs-at-womwns-prison.

Worrall, Simon. “Dogs Have Feelings—Here’s How We Know.” Animals, 3 May 2021, www. nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/dog-brain-feelings-mri-gregory-berns.

- 100 -

Essay: Reflection: Gracie Pulliam

REFLECTION: GRACIE PULLIAM RETRIEVING INDEPENDENCE In reflecting upon my work with Retrieving Independence, I have learned a lot about how important it is to consider the emotional and psychological impact of my behavior on my environment. My job with Retrieving Independence was to help raise puppies from the ages of eight weeks to four months. This included basic house breaking, such as potty training, as well as minor work with commands such as “sit”, “place”, etc.

My very first activity with Retrieving Independence was an instructive training class with two of the directors of the organization, Nikki Ivey and Britteny Watson. This training was for those who wanted to work with puppies in the beginning stages of the program, which Retrieving Independence refers to as “Tier 1.” While the ultimate goal of their program is to train a dog to be a successful service dog, we, as volunteers, were being trained in a whole new light as well. My Tier 1 training experience was my first exposure to the specialized language and behavior that is to be used by volunteers, and I will admit, I was confused. I did not understand why we had to do things in such a specific way. We were talking about training dogs, and it did not make sense to me that there was one way to train them that was better than all the others. I had seen multiple TV shows that depicted training dogs in a multitude of ways, and the outcomes were all similar.

However, my views changed rather quickly. As a minor, I was allowed to aid only those in charge of raising the puppies, which means I got less hands-on opportunities; however, though I did not have a puppy constantly in my home, I was able to tangibly see the emotional benefits of Retrieving Independence play out in the real world just from my brief interactions with one of the dogs. As I watched this specific dog grow up in the program, she seemed much more emotionally well balanced than any other dog I had seen, even at the early stages of training.

The first team I was placed on was six adults and me. We were tasked with raising Harley, an 8 week old labrador. There were team meetings, group phone calls, and discussions about progress throughout the entire process. It felt good to be included in a group of adults, in an adult setting, while being treated with the same level of respect that an adult would receive.

I was able to have Harley for around four days. In that time, we worked on basic behavioral skills, like not barking in the house and sitting at the door to be let outside instead of using the bathroom in the house. The most eye opening experience for me was taking her out in public for the first time. I was prepared to be dealing with a messy, barking puppy because she had only been in the program for about two weeks. However, we went into the Goodwill I chose to take her to, and she immediately fell into place. Not only did she stay close to me on the leash, she would sit right next to me when I would stop, and she would look at me and wait patiently for her next command. I was in total shock at how wonderfully she behaved.

Overall, my time at Retrieving Independence was eye opening. I discovered a lot about the importance of respecting a dog’s mind and feelings, and I feel like I can take this new knowledge into any future experiences I may have.

- 101 -

Essay: Lara Rogers

ESSAY: LARA ROGERS HOW DOES ONE TAKE ON MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS? Multiple Sclerosis is a debilitating disease that has many unknowns. Because of those unknowns, such as the cause or the cure, many people are left suffering in a difficult and uncertain position. Nearly one million people in the United States have been diagnosed with MS, and it is affecting over 2.5 million individuals across the globe (National MS Society). The unfortunate reality is many people with this disease know that their symptoms are only going to get worse because there is currently no cure to terminate the disease completely. With more research, advancement in technology, and a greater understanding of the cause of Multiple Sclerosis, it might be possible to find a cure for the disease.

So, what is Multiple Sclerosis and how does it impact a person? Multiple Sclerosis is an immune response and neurological-related disease that affects the body’s central nervous system. When the T Cells invade, it causes an immune response reaction that impairs the nervous system. There are five main phases of how the T Cell moves across the membrane that causes neurological damage in the central nervous system.

The first phase is Activation, where the T cells develop and become activated. Then in the second phase, Adhesion, the T cell connects to the adhesion molecules. The cell and molecule join together to become a cell complex in phase three (Attraction) where they are then pushed out into other places in the body during stage four, Invasion.

During Invasion the cell complex can invade the central nervous system and disrupt communication by breaking down. In Reactivation, stage five, the immune system attacks the antigens that the cell complexes have created. This causes inflammation in the nervous system and impairs myelin (Brodkey, Ben-Zacharia, and Reardon). The impairing of the myelin is what causes neurological processing to be incorrect, leading to different types of symptoms common in Multiple Sclerosis. In essence, the immune system attacks the body’s central nervous system, causing damage or inflammation to myelin (National MS Society).

There are four main types of MS that patients tend to have: Clinically Isolated Syndrome (CIS), Relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS), Secondary Progressive MS (SPMS), and Primary progressive MS (PPMS). Clinically Isolated Syndrome is the first stage of MS; meaning individuals experience neurological symptoms of MS for at least twenty-four hours. In spite of that, patients who experience CIS might not be officially diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis based on whether or not the patient has lesions on the brain. Lesions can indicate both that another episode is likely, and the person could suffer from Multiple Sclerosis long-term. The most common type of MS is Relapsingremitting MS. An individual with RRMS suffers relapsing attacks creating neurological symptoms. These symptoms may be short-term or long-term depending on the extent of the attack. After a relapse, the patient goes into periods of recovery called remissions.

This cycle is repeated over and over again throughout the patient’s lifetime. Secondary progressive MS (SPMS) is when a patient experiences relapsing initially and then continues to see a decline in the function of the neurological system. It often leads

- 102 -

Essay: Lara Rogers Essay:

to a range of disabilities, including limitations in physical movement (walking and talking) and cognitive issues (memory or thought processes). The initial relapsing stage is usually not present in Primary progressive MS (PPMS). Instead, it is typically a stable decline in one’s neurological ability. PPMS can also result in similar disabilities as SPMS, although they can be more severe depending on the extent of the damage to the central nervous system. About 15% of people with Multiple Sclerosis have PPMS (National MS Society). Each of the four different pathways of MS is challenging for every individual diagnosed with the disease. In addition, each person’s reaction to the disease can be different. Furthering more difficulties in diagnostics, trying to cure the disease itself, or managing the symptoms.

While MS might be different for every person, some of the most common symptoms are a squeezing sensation (typically around the middle of the body and the abdomen), troubles walking, muscle spasms that cause stiffness, and vision problems. All of these symptoms create issues in ones’ day-to-day life. A patient might even experience dizziness or fatigue and numbness. The fatigue can be experienced throughout the whole body or specifically in the muscles (National MS Society). About 50% of patients with MS experience cognitive issues. Hearing, speech, memory, and judgment may be altered as a result of the neurological pathways being disrupted.

This can explain why some might struggle in forming sentences or why one might have memory issues. When these symptoms first arise, it is unknown whether they will be long-lasting or short-term. Or even if the symptoms will continue to decline or stabilize (John Hopkins Medicine). Therefore, it is important to get the right treatment in a timely manner in order to make sure the symptoms do not get worse than what is manageable.

At this time, research is still being conducted in order to determine the root cause of Multiple Sclerosis. Because there is not an evident main origin, it is believed that it is caused by a multitude of factors. These factors can include genetics, environment, or even viruses. These influence how one might develop MS and how the body responds to the neurological attacks during relapse (John Hopkins Medicine).

Because the cause of Multiple Sclerosis is still under speculation, it is hard to say who will get this condition versus who will not. However, gender, geology, and genetics seem to play a factor in where MS is common. Women have been 3 times as likely compared to men to be diagnosed with one of the four types of MS. This could be due to different hormones in women and men, therefore making it more likely in female genetics to develop Multiple Sclerosis. The geographic location could also play a factor in if one develops severe symptoms of MS. Multiple Sclerosis is more common in areas that are located further away from the equator. For example, in the United States, the area most impacted by Multiple Sclerosis is the Northeast (National MS Society).

Race also plays a role based on your ancestry; Caucasians, specifically from Northern Europe, have been more susceptible to MS. In addition, individuals with a greater risk of MS are those with a family history of the disease (Cedars Sinai). Obesity, low Vitamin D levels, and smoking also have shown evidence to be linked to increasing the likelihood of MS and increasing the potential for a relapsing attack. Despite the contributors to MS, most patients who are diagnosed will first experience symptoms between the ages of 20 and 50 (National MS Society).

- 103 -

Essay: Lara Rogers

Before MS is diagnosed, other possible diseases first have to be ruled out. Because there is not an easy way to test for MS, individuals who might have it, have to undergo several tests. These tests include MRIs, blood tests, and spinal fluid analyses to determine any other stemming diseases that might have caused similar symptoms to MS. Other than ruling out all other diseases, there must be damage seen in the MRI to at least two different parts of the central nervous system and that damage must have been done at two different points in time. Therefore the patient must have gone through multiple attacks or there is evidence of a significant decline in the central nervous system. This can include more damage to nerves around the spinal cord or more lesions on the brain (National MS Society). Once the damage is evident, then an individual is diagnosed with MS. Despite the fact that there is no cure for MS, there are several ways that the symptoms can be treated to decrease the effects on the body. The treatments can also help mediate the issues in relapse and prevent relapse from happening. Possible treatments range from comprehensive treatments to medications to different types of therapies. Comprehensive treatments include multiple doctors attempting to take on different symptoms of the disease. Therefore, numerous doctors can work together to find the best path for the patient to avoid an extreme takeover of the body. Avonex, Betaseron, Gilenya, and Lemtrada are different types of medicine (oral, injectable, and intravenous infusion treatments) specifically designed to manage relapsing forms of MS. Other than medication, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy are other ways to slow the rate of disability. Physical therapy helps with balance, fatigue, and bladder issues. Whereas occupational therapy aids cognitive issues. And speech therapy assists both muscle strength in swallowing and talking, in addition to cognitive thinking while speaking. Therapy treatments have proven to be successful in slowing the rate of declining symptoms. Furthermore, diets, exercise, stress management, and Vitamin D, are extremely helpful in maintaining the body’s correct balance. By sustaining the body’s health and balance, an individual can avoid developing worse symptoms. Maintaining stability over the body’s health can prevent infections or other minor diseases that could spark a relapse or cause symptoms to worsen. It is key to be diagnosed early on in life, that way treatments can start early and prevent worse, long-term symptoms (National MS Society).

Following and keeping up with treatments, whether medical or CAM (Complementary and Alternative Medicine), can decrease the likelihood of rapidly developing declining symptoms. Maintaining good health helps the patient to persevere physically from relapses. It can decrease the rate of relapses, as well as the extent of symptoms during relapse. Another way to minimize the chances of a relapse is to have good mental well-being. Minimizing stress, having a positive attitude, and staying centered are ways to balance the emotions. Hormones cause very fast changes in the way one might react. And because there is already hormonal imbalance, it is all the more important to try to stay calm and avoid a relapse. In addition, having a positive attitude will help during remission periods in bouncing back from the relapse (National MS Society).

Ruth Ann Marie led other researchers in a study that compared mortality rates among different cohorts, including individuals both with and without Multiple Sclerosis.

- 104 -

Essay: Lara Rogers Essay:

Marie and her team found that the average life expectancy of individuals with MS has increased over the last 25 years to only seven years shorter than an average lifespan.

As far as deaths by each cohort, Marie states “​​considering all years of data, in the MS population, age-specific mortality did not change for persons aged 39 years and younger (0.0097; 95% CI: −0.083, 0.10), but decreased by 0.23 (95% CI: −0.065, −0.39) per 1,000 population per year for those aged 40 to 59 years and by 0.52 (95% CI: −0.25, −0.80) for those aged 60 to 69 years” (Marie). This means the death rate of MS patients between 40 and 69, decreased overall compared to studies conducted in the past. This improvement in life expectancy could be a result of new information and technological improvements in recent years; hopefully, this trend can continue. Additionally, it was determined that the rate of death because of MS-related complications had decreased, as well. Therefore, there were not as many people dying from urinary tract infections, pressure ulcers, and pneumonia; all of which are commonly associated with Multiple Sclerosis (Marie).

There is much potential for medical professionals and researchers to find a cure, new treatments, and new prevention methods to manage Multiple Sclerosis. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS), along with many researchers, have taken the initiative to make these improvements to better our understanding of how MS can be controlled. In addition, the internet and numerous research studies have provided countless individuals access to learn more about Multiple Sclerosis. Whether it is through gaining connections with doctors, support groups, or just reading more about the disease itself, it is much easier to find the information that is needed for patients.

Supplying many with comfort. Increasing the number of supporters of MS and the number of people aware of this cause enables additional research and opportunity to help more people. With the combination of new advancements in learning about Multiple Sclerosis, there is a way to find a cure.

WORKS CITED Krodkey, Marion Brandis, et al. “Living Well with Multiple Sclerosis.” The American Journal of Nursing, vol. 111, no. 7, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011, pp. 40–50, http://www.jstor. org/stable/43821428.

“Clinically Isolated Syndrome.” Cedars Sinai, StayWell Company, www.cedars-sinai.org/healthlibrary/diseases-and-conditions/c/clinically-isolated-syndrome.html. Accessed 9 Feb. 2022.

“Multiple Sclerosis (MS).” John Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, www. hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/multiple-sclerosis-ms. Accessed 9 Feb. 2022.

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society. National Multiple Sclerosis Society, www. nationalmssociety.org/. Accessed 9 Feb. 2022.

Ruth Ann Marrie, Lawrence Elliott, James Marriott, Michael Cossoy, James Blanchard, Stella Leung, Nancy YuNeurology Jul 2015, 85 (3) 240-247; DOI: 10.1212/ WNL.0000000000001718 “Who Gets Multiple Sclerosis.” Multiple Sclerosis Association of America, mymsaa.org/msinformation/overview/who-gets-ms/. Accessed 9 Feb. 2022.

- 105 -

Reflection: Lara Rogers

REFLECTION: LARA ROGERS THE NATIONAL MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS SOCIETY I completed my service scholar hours at The National MS Society (NMSS) while working remotely and at a couple of in-person events. Due to concerns for patients’ health, the NMSS decided to not allow volunteering in person at their local office. Rather, I got the opportunity to work remotely. I made spreadsheets and worked on existing ones that were given to me. These spreadsheets were contact information for cold outreach.

In order to find volunteers for the Bike MS races and the upcoming Walk MS events, I researched schools, companies, youth groups, religious organizations, etc. in local areas for each of the events. The races and walks that I did research for were all over the South, including Mississippi, Kentucky, and Tennessee. After researching the areas, I called or emailed the companies who further talked with people within their organizations regarding the ability to volunteer. Although most of the races were able to be conducted, a couple got canceled due to Covid outbreaks. Luckily, I was able to go to two bike races in person, Bike MS: Bluegrass Bourbon Ride and Bike MS: Bike to Jack and Back. The Bluegrass Bourbon Ride was a shorter ride that included biking around Bardstown, KY. The Bike to Jack and Back ride was biking from Franklin, TN to Lynchburg, TN on Saturday and then biking back from Lynchburg to Franklin on Sunday. During these bike races, I helped at registration sites, as well as at rest stops. I prepped the riders with all their riding information prior to the race and helped them get snacks and water at the rest stops.

The Bluegrass Bourbon Ride was the first race that I attended and while there were still many bikers, the Bike to Jack and Back race had many more riders than I could imagine. It was a majority of the riders’ first ride back after the pandemic; it was incredible to the excitement on the riders’ faces to finally be able to bike again. There were people of all ages participating in these events. I met people who were 70 years old who were ready to hop on a bike and ride 80 miles; it was so encouraging. Through talking to people at the in-person races, I was able to grow connections with individuals who had MS or individuals who had experienced seeing a loved one go through MS. It was amazing to see and hear other people’s stories. Everyone there shared a common interest: supporting people with MS. It was remarkable to see some people’s dedication to the cause going out of their way to show support. In addition, at these races, I met several donors to the NMSS. It was breathtaking to see the amount of money raised through these events because I know how important the donations truly are to The National MS Society. At the Bike MS: Bike to Jack and Back event, over $600,000 was raised during the two-day ride. All the money donated goes into research to learn more about Multiple Sclerosis and to find a cure. I am glad that I was able to experience volunteering for The National MS Society because it enabled me to feel a part of something larger.

- 106 -

Essay: Genevieve Schaefer Essay:

ESSAY: GENEVIEVE SCHAEFER NATIVE AMERICAN POVERTY Native Americans have faced hardship in many forms since they first came into contact with Europeans in the 15th century. Despite treaties signed between the US and Native leaders in the 19th century, Natives were forcefully relocated from their homeland to western land. This land was of poor quality, and the government rationed out resources to Natives, which thrust them into a deep poverty that lasts to this day. In 1831, Chief Justice John Marshall established the federal trust doctrine, which proclaimed that the federal government would become the trustee of Indian affairs while owning and managing their lands. Essentially, as Marshall put it, the relationship between Native Americans and the U.S. government would be that of a “ward to his guardian” (Regan). This doctrine still holds true; today, the government still manages Indian land for “the benefit of all Indians.” By owning the land in trust, the federal government controls all economic development on reservations.

Although tribes have had their own personal governments and legal systems, they are often inefficient and don’t have much real power. Natives cannot sell their shares of land or mortgage their assets for loans, and all development projects must be approved through a long and complex process. Because of this, starting businesses or developing is nearly impossible, leading to a disproportionately high poverty rate among Natives; 26.2%, and their low median annual income of $23,000 (Redbird). Many reservations are “comparable to the Third World.” There is mass unemployment, a low education rate, under housing and overcrowding, high disease rates and poor utilities, services, and poor infrastructure. All of these problems stem from their lack of personal rights and the federal government’s involvement in tribal affairs.

There are 5.2 million Native Americans living in the United States, 22% of which live on a reservation. These reservations have some of the most valuable land and resources in the country; their value is estimated around $1.5 trillion, with 15 million acres of untapped energy reserves and mineral resources. Only 2.1 million acres of land are currently being developed, but 30% of the western US’s coal reserves, 50% of its uranium deposits, and 20% of its oil and gas reserves lie on a reservation (Yeagley). The government has imposed a long and complicated permitting process to be able to develop land. To approve an energy development permit on Indian land, private companies, whether Native-owned or not, must go through at least 4 different agencies and 49 steps. This authorization can take years, and the government agency can require more information or halt the project at any time they choose. In contrast, off-reservation it only takes 4 steps and a few months to get an energy permit (Regan). A title search on a reservation can take years, whereas off-reservation it takes a few days. Because of the burdens on companies attempting to develop, most investors completely avoid Indian land. The government agencies collect royalties throughout the development process, which are supposed to be distributed back out to Natives, but oftentimes they mismanage or lose the money. In fact, the government

- 107 -

Essay: Genevieve Schaefer

is notorious for undervaluing Native resources. The leases negotiated in 1977 with Natives were considered to be “among the poorest agreements ever made” in US history according to a federal commission. In a recent class action suit, Cobell v Salazar, they discovered that the government has mismanaged billions of dollars in Indian assets. The Department of Interior had not been properly negotiating for the tribes, and they had not been enforcing their own contracts. $3.4 billion was awarded to Natives in this 13 year lawsuit, but that money is tiny compared to the potential money that could have been made from reservation resources. It’s estimated that even just a 5% return on the available energy could make $75 billion per year for the tribes (Yeagley). Natural resources have great potential, but regulations are suffocating any development.

Another issue concerning Indian land is land fractionation and the lack of property rights. The Dawes Act of 1887 originally allowed land to be given out to individual Natives. But in 1934, Congress decided too much land was being privatized, so they switched back to the system of communal tribal land managed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. After 1934, reservations were considered communal land held in trust by the US government, and every individual Native was given a piece of land that they could not sell and which they were required to pass on to their heirs equally divided (Koppisch). After several generations, the land was so divided that there could be hundreds of people who have a claim to one piece of land. In 1992, 704,562 Natives had interest in a single tract of land, and 18 years later, that number had shot up to 1,312,391 people. Currently, only 5% of the total 50 million acres of Native land is owned privately. 20% of it is held in trust by the tribes, and 75% is held in trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Yeagley). Natives struggle to develop the trust land compared to off-reservation, because not only are they restricted from buying or selling it, but they must get permission from every single owner on the land before they can develop. Getting this approval takes a long time and can be very expensive, so to many Natives it isn’t worth the trouble. Natives also cannot mortgage their assets for loans, and it’s nearly impossible to get clear titles to land or establish credit or borrow money. Reservation land and resources are useless “dead capital”, and essentially, there is a “tragedy of the commons,” where everyone owns the land, so therefore no one does (“Poverty on Native American Reservations). Because of these burdens on development, there are very few Native entrepreneurs, in fact, those who try to create business or use their assets to make money are seen as sell-outs. Natives are usually not as in favor of capitalism and free markets as other demographics because it goes against their traditions and ideas of community government. The overbearing federal control stems from the outdated idea that Natives cannot manage themselves and that their culture is incompatible with markets. The government’s complex and troublesome bureaucratic processes are not only barriers to growth, but they also undermine tribal autonomy. According to many experts, the only way to create opportunity and development for Natives is to cut the red tape and release lands from federal trusts. Natives must be able to use their assets as collateral to make money and start business. Manny Jules, a former tribal chief in Canada, described the situation best, “Markets haven’t been allowed to

- 108 -

Essay: Genevieve Schaefer Essay:

operate in reserve lands. We’ve been legislated out of the economy. When you don’t have individual property rights, you can’t build, you can’t be bonded, you can’t pass on wealth… businesses never get started because people can’t leverage property… We have to become part of the national and global economies.” (Yeagley) Tribal sovereignty is the concept of tribes being able to self-govern, however, tribal authority is not always efficient or fair, and the federal government often overshadows the indigenous government system. Federally recognized governments were created in 1934, and since then, tribal councils have had their own jurisdiction and made their own laws. Many have reworked their constitutions to align more with indigenous, community governance (Struggle and Survival: Native Ways of Life Today). Because reservations are technically separate nations, every issue on tribal land is considered an international affair. This means that Natives cannot go to an American court to get a judgment. Investors are discouraged from coming in to start businesses on Native land because commercial codes on tribal lands are usually not explicit, and there is not a good precedent already set. Contracts are often not enforced on reservations because of obscure rules and the difficulty of holding people accountable on the vast expanse of territory. Additionally, Indians have a huge advantage in court, and the tribe will almost always side with a Native over an outside company. This appears to be a positive; however, the end result is that it heavily deters any wealthy outside investors coming in to try and develop for fear of losing in court and losing their money. (Koppisch).

The sketchiness of the legal system, in addition to lacking property rights, is another reason why reservations’ rich natural resources aren’t being utilized.

Any investment or project involved with natural resources can be manipulated or completely changed by the tribe, who has complete control. Many Natives or investors are so confused and unsure about the development and licensing process and its restraints that they do not even bother to attempt. There is minimal transparency when making business agreements, so there is no reliability in the negotiations, and entrepreneurs cannot be sure about their costs and rewards(Yeagley). Another issue is the common checkerboard pattern of private and trust land on reservations. It is difficult for tribes to know who is under jurisdiction of tribal authority, so the tribes rarely initiate development on their lands. A possible solution is for tribal governments to adapt their commercial codes to make the laws uniform. A study done over 30 years showed that reservations which adopted the judicial system of the states that they were located in had a 30% faster per capita growth than other reservations. Natives are also 50% more likely to get a loan application approved when lenders are allowed to use state courts (Koppisch). These facts may point towards going under state legal jurisdiction as a good solution for tribes. Tribes will also have to break the habit of dependency on the federal and tribal governments. Canada has already passed an act which states tribes can decline government ownership of their land and put it under tribal control. This a huge first step towards reservations being able to gain the power of municipalities or provinces so they can build services and create zoning laws (Koppisch). The movement towards self-sufficiency and away from malaise will be beneficial to Natives and the development of their lands.

- 109 -

Essay: Genevieve Schaefer

The lack of property rights, the obscure legal system, and the harsh regulations from the federal government which prevent economic growth all lead to devastating poverty for Native Americans. This poverty creates unemployment, lack of education, poor housing, and poor health conditions, which in turn cause more poverty: an insidious, never-ending cycle. There is a shortage of jobs across reservations, with 40-80% of adults unemployed on all reservations. Oftentimes houses are overcrowded and earn income from only social security, disability, or veteran checks (“Native American Living Conditions”). A research project which predicted the results of Natives having the same employment rate, types of jobs, education levels, geographic location, and housing level as white people found that employment is the largest cause of poverty. Tribes often only have 2 common jobs providedgaming and energy; however, these areas bring in few jobs annually. Large projects usually only cause debt for reservations; the key seems to be gradually bringing in diverse, varied jobs that pay decently well (Redbird). Sadly, the education rate is also disproportionately low in Native communities. The high school dropout rate is 11% overall, and only 17% of Natives have a bachelor’s degree or higher (Pew Research).

Because of the limited economic and job opportunities, many kids and families don’t feel like school is worthwhile (Borgen). Native areas are also experiencing a housing crisis. The US Commission on Civil Rights found that 40% of Native housing is inadequate, and Native communities are lacking in services and utilities such as plumbing, natural gas, AC, and heat. A staggering 543,000 Native houses have “severe housing needs’ ‘ and “living conditions that are overcrowded, substandard, or cost-burdensome” according to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (Yeagley). It’s estimated that 85,000 or more new houses are needed immediately, but only 2200 are being built a year (Koppisch). The Indian Housing Authority is in charge of financing home development, but they are inefficient; there is a waiting list to get their approval that can be over 3 years. To make matters worse, private companies are worried about building houses on reservations because they usually do not make much profit and banks are hesitant to give loans (Yeagley).

Sadly, the housing issue in Native society also causes a variety of health issues.

Native Americans’ life expectancy is 5 years below that of other Americans. The life expectancy at Pine Ridge Reservation is only 48 for men and 52 for women.

This is due to the high levels of alcohol and drug abuse, violent crimes, and suicide (Borgen). 55% of Indians use the Indian Health Service for their healthcare, but IHS only meets 60% of their healthcare needs because of how underfunded it is (Indian Health Facts). Many reservations don’t have a pharmacy or doctors office; only a hospital. And shifting from traditional ways to a more modern Western lifestyle over the past decades has had negative effects on Indian health. Heart disease is the #1 cause of death amongst indigenous people, and 38% of those with heart disease will die before age 65, compared with only 15% of white people (Native American Living Conditions).

Poverty, unemployment, poor housing, infrastructure, services, education, and healthcare are all issues in the Native communities, but they are all a result of or closely related to the limits on property rights and economic development on

- 110 -

Essay/Reflection: Genevieve Schaefer Essay:

reservations. Because the federal government holds Indian land in trust and keeps it tightly regulated under a complex set of laws, Indian land is often fractionated; investors avoid Indian land; Natives themselves cannot invest or break through the obscure legal system, and the rich natural resources cannot be utilized.US policies throughout history have tried to subdue, convert, or destroy Indians. But even today, Native cultures and traditions are still maintained and thrive in communities across the country. This resilient group of people has the potential to do even greater things, but they must first continue to fight to regain ownership of their land, rights, and lives.

WORKS CITED Koppisch, John. “Why Are Indians Reservations so Poor? A Look at the Bottom 1%.” Forbes, 13 Dec. 2011, www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoppisch/2011/12/13/why-are-indian-reservationsso-poor-a-look-at-the-bottom-1/?sh=3039600a3c07.

Krogstad, Jens Manuel. “One-in-Four Native Americans and Alaska Natives Are Living in Poverty.” Pew Research Center, 14 June 2013, www.pewresearch.org/facttank/2014/06/13/1-in-4-native-americans-and-alaska-natives-are-living-in-poverty/.

“Living Conditions.” Native American Aid, www.nativepartnership.org/site/ PageServer?pagename=naa_livingconditions.

McGonigle, Curtis. “Poverty on Native American Reservations.” Borgen Magazine, 15 Nov. 2021, www.borgenmagazine.com/native-american-reservations/.

Redbird, Beth. “What Drives Native American Poverty?” Northwestern Institute for Policy Research, 24 Feb. 2020, www.ipr.northwestern.edu/news/2020/redbird-what-drivesnative-american-poverty.html.

Regan, Shawn. “5 Ways the Government Keeps Native Americans in Poverty.” Indigenous Peoples Major Group for Sustainable Development, www.indigenouspeoples-sdg.org/index. php/english/ttt/536-5-ways-the-government-keeps-native-americans-in-poverty.

“Struggle and Survival: Native Ways of Life Today.” The Pluralism Project at Harvard University, pluralism.org/struggle-and-survival-native-ways-of-life-today.

Yeagley, Rebekah May. “Why Native American Reservations Are the Most Poverty-Stricken Lands in America.” Fee Stories, 9 Nov. 2020, fee.org/articles/why-native-americanreservations-are-the-most-poverty-stricken-lands-in-america/.

REFLECTION: GENEVIEVE SCHAEFER SERVICE SCHOLAR REFLECTION After learning about Native Americans and the issues they struggle with in reservations across the country, I knew I wanted to help, and the best way to do that was to visit a reservation, spend time with Natives, and see first-hand how they live. I discovered Global Volunteers, a nonprofit organization which, among other service trips, mobilizes people to Native American reservations. In early August of 2021, 10 others and I spent one week on the Blackfeet Reservation in northwestern Montana, a 1.5 million acre reservation home to over 17,000 Blackfeet Natives.

During the week, we did various service activities including working at a local ranch, the food bank, and a children’s camp. Most of my time was spent with the kids, who ranged in age from 5 up to 16. What struck me first was how adventurous and appreciative of nature the kids were. They never hesitated to explore and play, and they were easy to

- 111 -

Reflection: Genevieve Schaefer

befriend. I learned that many of them were born and raised on the reservation and had no intentions of leaving in the future. Many had no idea what life was like outside of the reservation; being able to travel around and get out of town is a privilege that we often overlook. I realized how lucky I am to be able to go off to college in a different part of the country and have hopes of traveling around and seeing new places.

I also was surprised by how little of a role education played in some kids’ lives. From speaking with them, many were disinterested in school, and some had already dropped out to pursue other activities, simply because it was not worth the time. I realized that for many of them, they had to help provide for their families, and school was somewhat of an afterthought.

I heard stories from a few of them about the troubles they were facing at home, including neglect and alcohol and drug abuse. Some of their parents were not in their lives, and they lived with other family members. Despite their hardship though, the kids were kind, playful, and fun to be around. They found happiness in the little things, which was inspiring to see. In our daily lives, we often complain rather than finding something to be thankful for. These kids showed me that there can always be joy even in the darkest places. They motivated me to be grateful for what I have, and also to help those who don’t have much.

Finally, what has stuck with me is the beauty of Native culture and their pride in their traditions. They were kind enough to share their culture with us and teach us; we observed a traditional Sundance festival, sat in a sweat lodge, helped build a teepee, and witnessed a willow ceremony. We learned Blackfeet language and built traditional arts and crafts projects like the hoop-and-stick game and painted leather medicine bags. The adults and kids alike were generous and invested in their culture, and I was astounded at how strong their traditions still are and will continue to be generation after generation.

I encourage everyone to research Native history, culture and struggles in order to gain a better understanding of how the current situation came to be. Donating to Native causes and supporting Native businesses are great ways to help as well. I am so thankful to have been able to interact with Native kids and learn more about their culture and ways of life on the reservation. It has given me a clear understanding of the multitude of struggles Natives face as well as a sense of the pride and beauty of their culture and their resilience.

- 112 -

Essay: Douglas Weinstein Essay:

ESSAY: DOUGLAS WEINSTEIN WALK BIKE NASHVILLE

My Service Scholar project was inspired by my combination of passion for biking and enjoyment of working with younger kids as a mentor. I partnered with Walk Bike Nashville (WBN), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to make Nashville a more “walk-able, bike-able, and live-able community,” with plans to run some of their biker safety clinics and camps for elementary school kids. These events are targeted at Metro Nashville students who otherwise would not learn to ride bikes as they may not have the resources to afford a bike. In this case, WBN also provides the bikes for the kids to ride during the clinics. However, this plan was thwarted when schools closed due to the pandemic. Pivoting, I found I could still accomplish my goal of helping teach kids how to bike, even if it weren’t the way I originally planned. Instead, my project involved expanding the infrastructure for bikers to support them when they were riding. Specifically, I installed bicycle FixIt stations and parking racks at local elementary schools and churches to support elementary school ridership and the entire cycling community.

Part of my inspiration for getting involved with biking was my interest in addressing an alternative and healthier transportation method than driving cars: riding bikes!

Over the past decade, Nashville has been one of the fastest growing cities in Tennessee and America. According to the 2020 Census, Davidson County’s population increased about 15%, Williamson County by 35%, and Rutherford County by 30% (Census).

With its newfound growth, Nashville also started to experience some of the effects of expansion as it stretches the existing public transportation and highway systems.

Citizens of Nashville experience heavy amounts of car traffic daily, causing congestion in our fast-growing city on a regular basis. With an underfunded and under-resourced public transportation system, the strains of Nashville’s meteoric growth were evident as early as 2015. By 2017, a $5.2 billion transit system bill was proposed to the people of Nashville, which would have expanded the public transportation system, including adding a light rail system connecting Nashville and adding tunnels for public transit.

However, the bill did not pass.

Additionally, Nashville’s aggressive real estate development strategy has added to the heavy congestion problem as well. Where one house stood, real estate developers tear it down and put up as many as six houses on the same lot (I lived in one of these houses when I first moved to Nashville!). These are frequently known as “tall and skinnies,” and with the density of neighborhoods increasing exponentially with newcomers moving to the city, it causes a marked increase in the numbers of cars in neighborhoods, saturating and overwhelming the traffic patterns.

According to the Transit Center, the rapid growth and booming downtown tourism had ascended “traffic” to the top of Nashville residents’ list of concerns in 2017, surpassing even affordable housing and education (transitcenter).

With Nashville’s transportation problem at an all-time high, citizens need to

- 113 -

Essay: Douglas Weinstein

find alternative forms of transportation… and can turn to biking! One of the many positive aspects of cycling is that it provides a relatively quick and direct means of transportation. Whereas walking or public transportation commutes can be lengthy, biking is a direct and relatively inexpensive way to commute. The average bicycle costs around $400 (Bicycle Universe) whereas a car would be significantly more expensive, not to mention the cost for fuel as well. Biking is also a much more economical solution to transportation for citizens of Nashville in lower socioeconomic brackets, as opposed to bussing or buying a car.

Cycling has other benefits as well. To start, cycling is a great form of physical exercise and has been linked to improved mental health. According to Raglin of Sports Medicine, “Research on acute exercise indicates that 20 to 40 minutes of aerobic activity per day results in improvements in anxiety and mood that persist for several hours. These transitory changes in mood occur in both individuals with normal or elevated levels of anxiety, but appear to be limited to aerobic forms of exercise” (Raglin). Exercise, such as cycling, has been found to increase the promotion of the release of endorphins in the human body, which lowers stress levels.

Especially with increased anxiety about the COVID-19 Pandemic, cycling is a great de-stressor activity.

In addition, cycling has been linked to physical wellness, including increased muscle strength and flexibility, improved joint mobility, decreased body fat levels, and improved posture and coordination (BetterHealth). Cycling is a viable option for exercise because it is low impact. While running can be hard on a person’s body, especially knees and lower body joints, cycling is much easier on the legs, and still provides intense aerobic exercise. Another physical benefit of cycling is that it can lower your risk of a heart attack or stroke by lowering cholesterol levels (Healthline).

Finally, cycling is environmentally friendly. Cycling is powered by energy provided by the legs of a person, not by gas or electricity like other forms of transportation. In this sense, cycling provides an eco-friendly alternative to driving or bussing and is still faster than walking and running. Cycling promotes environmental awareness, and cuts down on greenhouse gasses and global climate change. It also reduces the need for new parking lots and roadways, and reduces air pollutants (C02 emissions), noise pollutants (engine of a car), and congestion from cars (WalkandRollPeel).

My Senior Service scholar project not only helped satisfy my interest in helping kids and making biking more accessible, but it also helped mitigate some of the transportation and environmental problems in Nashville and can help improve physical and mental health for all individuals who are involved.

With these ideas in mind, I needed to think about how I wanted to design, evaluate, and implement projects that could help my hometown of Nashville.

Identifying the impediments to biking, for example, insufficient FixIt station availability and broken stations due to vandalization of the stations around town was a critical factor that I needed to consider. Another factor I explored was the rationale for the relatively low rate of elementary school kids riding their bikes to school. I found that part of this was due to the lack of exposure to safe cycling programs as well as an enormous scarcity of safe parking structures at the elementary schools. The

- 114 -

Essay: Douglas Weinstein Essay:

public school system in Nashville does not have the resources to provide this type of training, and while many schools have parking racks, most are outdated, rusted, and dangerous.

Working closely with my WBN mentor, Mr. Robert Johnson, we decided to develop a plan to strengthen the infrastructure for the biking community in Nashville.

The good news was that our city already has several beautiful greenways, large open tracks for bikers, walkers, runners, and outdoor people to use. However, the cycling infrastructure was limited. For example, if someone got a flat tire on the greenway and did not have the tools to fix the bike, they would be stranded.

Leveraging WBN’s strong relationship as an advocate dealer with DERO, one of the preeminent bike rack and bike parking product companies in the US, we were able to have a bicycle FixIt station donated to Walk Bike Nashville. However, the full-time staff working for WBN were not able to dedicate attention or time to the installation of the station, they needed a volunteer to install the station because they didn’t have the resources to pay anyone.

On my first project, I agreed to take the Project Management role for the installation of the FixIt station. A FixIt Station is a collection of tools available to the public so that people can fix their own bicycles on the road. The FixIt Station includes tools (i.e., Allen wrenches, screwdrivers, tire levers, air pump, etc.) necessary to perform basic repairs, from changing a flat to adjusting brakes and derailleurs. The tools and air pump are securely attached to the stand with stainless steel cables and tamper-proof fasteners. Hanging the bike from the hanger arms allows the pedals and wheels to spin freely while making adjustments. If the cyclist has a smartphone, there is a Quick Read (QR) code on the Fixit station to view detailed help instructions. I was tasked with identifying an underserved area where it might be of most use. I started by analyzing population density and bike traffic around the city and identified East Park as a potential site. This area was ideally situated because it was on two different bike routes, and was in close proximity to the WBN headquarters, not to mention that it is a beautiful public park in East Nashville which is adjacent to the East Nashville Recreation center, a grocery store called “Turnip Truck,” and in a residential neighborhood.

However, because this park is on public land, I had to negotiate with Metro Parks to ensure that engaging in construction activities was sanctioned. In addition, I needed to create a maintenance agreement to ensure that the FixIt Stations would be accessible for future upgrades and repairs by us, should these be needed.

Working through the hierarchy at Metro Parks, and after writing several drafts of contracts, agreements, and emails, I was finally successful in gaining approval for the installation late in the spring of 2020.

In addition to learning how to navigate administrative paperwork and local politics, a major part of my service project was honing my technical construction skills. I learned from my mentor how to mix and lay concrete, properly dig a hole, drill a hole into concrete, set a wedge bolt, and assemble the FixIt Stations. Along with the technical construction skills that I learned, I also honed my organizational and managerial skills. I learned how to organize all of my tools and materials, how to scope expenses and create/manage a working budget, and how to draft and update a

- 115 -

Essay: Douglas Weinstein

production workflow for this type of installation project.

With my newly acquired FixIt Station expertise, I offered to expand my role with WBN by managing and maintaining the 6 other FixIt stations across Nashville, improving durability, purchasing and replacing vandalized or stolen tools, and thinking of innovative anti-theft solutions. Over the course of the next year (and importantly in conjunction with the 2021 Tour De Nash event), I became the ‘go to’ guy for ensuring that the stations were in tip top shape to assist bikers on the roads.

I engaged the community as the FixIt station manager for all of the FixIt stations scattered across the city. I replaced over 20 vandalized tools on 4 different trips.

When I check in on the stations, I find old (flat) tire tubes and scrap metal bike parts in the trash, verifying their use!

But bike FixIt Stations were not the only infrastructure improvements that were needed in Nashville in order to encourage bike riding. The youngest bikers at elementary school were still in need of support. And while I was not able to work directly with the students, I was able to contribute positively to bike safety by installing new bike racks at St. Ann’s Church (North Nashville), JE Moss Elementary School (Antioch) and Rosebank Elementary School (East Nashville). This part was also a learning experience for me as I negotiated pricing with DERO and finalized cost quotes and shipping logistics.

While each of the installations were distinct, the one that stands out for me was at JE Moss. The racks at JE Moss were outdated, not effective, rusty (dangerous especially around children), and large and clunky. They only allowed for the front wheel to be secured, making it possible for people to steal the rest of the bike by removing the front wheel to steal the body, or thieves could cut through the wheel to steal the whole bike. Additionally, vandals have been known to bend bikes attached to racks like these, completely disfiguring the front wheel and rendering the bike useless. On the other hand, new U-shaped racks would allow for the entire frame of the bike to be secured onto the rack, minimizing theft and vandalism.

Meeting with the JE Moss Principal, Mr. Carl Febles, and Community Outreach member, Ms. Jennifer Hurst, to discuss the renovations was an opportunity for me to engage in designing the new, safer bike parking area at the school. After deliberation about the quantity, color, and style of bike racks as well as placement, I ordered 5 blue U-shaped racks.

On the day of installation, I recruited Mr. Robert’s assistance and he and I, with the help of Walk Bike Nashville’s “Big Red Drill,’’ got to work. We removed the old racks, chiseled off the old anchors from the ground, disposed of the dilapidated racks with 1-800-GOTJUNK, drilled holes into the ground, installed new wedge anchors, placed the racks and secured them safely with anti-theft penta-nuts. The JE Moss bike parking installation was complete and Mr. Carl Febles reported within the first month of the rack installation that cycling to JE Moss had increased by 300%!

Since JE Moss’s district lines are all within a two-mile vicinity, cycling is a viable option for all children. The racks will encourage more kids to bike to school, increasing physical exercise, helping with mental health, and relieving some environmental stress from cars.

Expanding cities such as Nashville should pay more attention to transportation

- 116 -

Essay: Douglas Weinstein Essay:

infrastructure to support the traffic that comes with increasing population. With major roadways and local ones jammed with vehicles, in some cases, public transportation is an option, i.e., London has the “tube” and New York City has the metro subway. But Nashville has failed to curb car traffic and has neglected to invest in its transportation system. Bicycle riding not only helps relieve some of the stress on public transportation and traffic problems, but it is also great for physical and mental health. Cycling is also a great way of reducing some of the pollutants in the environment, cutting down on carbon dioxide emissions and gas usage.

My senior Service Scholar project targeted increasing bike ridership across Nashville by encouraging more people to ride bikes by building infrastructure that supported this community. I also aimed to encourage elementary school kids to bike to school as an option, and to begin to build an appreciation and sense of enjoyment for biking overall. I feel satisfied that I have accomplished both goals and hope that Nashville has many years of successful, safe usage of these biking infrastructure improvements.

WORKS CITED Accuardi, Zak. “Derailed - How Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan Crashed at the Polls.”

Transit Center, 1 Dec. 2019, transitcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ nashville_report_8x10_RGB_interactive.pdf. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

“Benefits of Cycling.” Walk and Roll Peel, Peel Region, www.walkandrollpeel.ca/cycling/ benefits.htm#:~:text=Environmental%20benefits&text=Cuts%20down%20on%20 greenhouse%20gas,new%20parking%20lots%20and%20roadways. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

Bicycle Universe. bicycleuniverse.com/how-much-does-a-bike cost/#:~:text=However%2C%20the%20following%20are%20average, Single%2 Dspeed%20bike%20%24400. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

“Cycling - Health Benefits.” BetterHealth, Department of Health, State Government of VIctoria, Australia, www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/cycling-health- benefits. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

Raglin, J.S. “Exercise and Mental Health.” Sports Medicine.

“12 Benefits of Cycling, plus Safety Tips.” HealthLine, 26 Feb. 2019, www. healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/cycling-benefits#benefits. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

Yu, Yue Stella. “2020 Census Results.” Tennessean, www.tennessean.com, 13 Aug. 2021, www. tennessean.com/story/news/2021/08/12/census-2020-population-middle- tennessee-drives-state-growth-diversity/5559415001/. Web. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.

- 117 -

Essay: Reflection: Douglas Weinstein

REFLECTION: DOUGLAS WEINSTEIN WALK BIKE NASHVILLE When searching for an organization to partner with for my senior service project, I knew that I wanted to volunteer for something I cared deeply about, and I am lucky to have found Walk Bike Nashville (WBN).

Walk Bike Nashville’s mission to make Nashville a more “walk-able, bike-able, and live-able” community is one that I value highly, and my experience with this organization has educated me in numerous ways. My original goal with WBN was to teach elementary school kids to bike, but after COVID shut this program down temporarily, I transitioned to helping cyclists from afar by building infrastructure on the roads, routes, and at schools and churches to support them.

When I first started my work with WBN, I was the project manager for the task of installing a FixIt station that had been donated to them. With help from my WBN supervisor and mentor, Mr. Robert Johnson, I learned how to analyze population density, read maps for bike routes, and interview cyclists effectively for the ideal placement of this FixIt station. After deliberating the perfect spot, I learned how to contact government officials at the Metro Parks office, asking them for permission to build on public land. Then, when the day finally came to build and install, I learned a vast array of technical skills. Having never worked a construction job before, I learned how to mix and lay concrete, how to properly dig a hole in the ground, how to drill a hole in dried concrete, and how to secure a station with bolts to the ground. This experience sparked an interest in me about construction engineering and STEM. Seeing how all of the parts fit together and how the station came out versus what we envisioned excited me.

In addition to this FixIt station in East Park, I also became the manager of all six of the public FixIt stations around Nashville, restoring and replacing vandalized and stolen tools (usually stolen to be sold as scrap metal for a few dollars). I helped install 6 bike racks at St. Ann’s church, and led a project to install 5 bike racks at JE Moss Elementary school and 2 bike racks at Rosebank Elementary school During the construction of these projects, even after countless hours of planning and discussing all of the possible things that could go wrong, like always, some things were uncontrollable. However, through these struggles, such as figuring out how to haul 30 gallons of water across the street to aid in mixing the concrete or not accounting for large tree roots underground which we were digging into, I learned a valuable lesson: things don’t always go as planned, and it was my response that decided how it would turn out.

After mixing all of the concrete, then realizing that we needed 15 more 50 lb. pound bags, we rushed to Home Depot while the concrete was already setting and drying. Here, I learned the importance of keeping myself calm, clear headed, and collected in situations of stress. Things worked out, and we bonded the concrete together but I learned an important lesson to stay calm and think clearly in situations of stress.

I have experienced personal satisfaction with my Senior Service scholar project. I knew that if I found an organization with a cause that I loved, I would enjoy my time volunteering, and I can say with 100% certainty that I did that. So lastly, I reflect that I know that it is important to find things that you are passionate about because it makes doing “work” more enjoyable. I did not feel as if what I was doing with Walk Bike Nashville was work, it felt like fun. I am grateful to Ensworth and WBN for giving me the opportunity to help support the Nashville cycling community.

- 118 -

Essay: Nora Wheliss Essay:

ESSAY: NORA WHELISS WHAT ARE LEARNING STYLE DIFFERENCES IN CHILDREN WITH A FOCUS ON CHILDREN IN GRADES 4TH- 6TH? For the service scholar project, I chose to use my love for children to inspire my service work. I worked with three different organizations that focus on different parts of early childhood development and education. They were Nashville Dolphins, WPC Children, and Preston Taylor Ministries. Within each organization, I was placed in a leadership role for some type of teaching opportunity for the kids with whom I was working, whether it was reading, swimming, or outdoor activities. Within these experiences, I was able to observe the different learning and teaching styles that each individual favored, and I wanted to see if their background or activity helped to determine the learning style that most benefited them. There are four main types of learning that kids use. Those are Visual, Auditory, Tactile, and Kinesthetic. Each of these learning styles was represented in different ways in the experiences with the kids. (Gardner) The first is visual learning. (Gardner) Children who use visual learning learn through seeing, they learn through the ideas of observation of parents or teacher’s body language and facial expressions. (Edwards) They are more likely to understand concepts through demonstrations and descriptions. They often are the ones with the brightest imaginations. In learning situations, too much action or movements tend to distract them. (Pennington) The second is auditory learning. Auditory learners learn through listening.

Children who are auditory learners tend to learn the best when they are able to talk through different concepts. (Gardner) Verbal instruction is typically more informative than written instruction for auditory learners. (Edwards) Often the biggest problems for auditory learners occur when they are in loud circumstances, quiet learning spaces tend to work best for auditory learners. (Pennington) The third type of learning is tactile. Tactile learners learn through touch. Kids who are tactile learners tend to learn best when they have a project they can do with their hands. Tactile learners tend to prefer drawing to aid their memory and learning.

Their primary learning struggles occur when listening to a class lecture, when writing extensive essays, or when reading for long periods of time. (Pennington) The fourth type of learner is the Kinesthetic learner. Kinesthetic learners learn through moving and doing. (Edwards) Kinesthetic learners typically learn best when they are able to move around and experience hands-on approaches to learning. Their main struggles occur when they are told to sit down for long periods of time without experience in the actual process of the topic they’re trying to comprehend.(Gardner) With the Nashville Dolphins, the kids fall under multiple sections. Many are visual learners, meaning it is most beneficial to them when the volunteers demonstrate the proper swimming techniques to them, allowing them to visualize what they are trying to learn how to do. (Pennington) Very few of them were tactile learners, it wasn’t very helpful to draw a picture of someone swimming in order to help, but it would

- 119 -

Essay: Nora Wheliss

still be fun! Also with a majority of the kids being non-verbal in their communication techniques, talking through concepts wasn’t typically helpful either. Almost none were auditory learners. We could repeat the proper way to execute a swimming stroke as many times as we wanted, but they typically would not be able to comprehend what we were trying to teach them. A majority were kinesthetic learners, when they had the opportunity to try out a swim stroke and have adjustments during the process, they were much more likely to understand what they were supposed to be doing.

Overall through working with the Dolphins I learned that the kids responded best to kinesthetic learning techniques. Getting the kids in the water, and just getting them to start swimming with corrections almost always was the best way to teach them the proper skills needed to be safe in the water.

The Nashville Dolphins organization works to teach children with disabilities how to swim, to inspire physical activity, and to further brain development. As a part of this organization, I worked as a volunteer in the learn to swim program, where I was in the water with the kids for 4 thirty-minute sessions every Wednesday night. In the sessions, we would work one on one with the children who had disabilities often associated with down syndrome, or autism verbal and non-verbal. It was a great chance to be able to learn about the kids specifically and the different techniques it took to teach them. It was a lot of repetition and multiple different explanations of each task.

The process of just getting into the water was sometimes the hardest part of the lesson for some kids because the thought of the cold substance sitting in front of them was nerve-wracking, and it was understandable if they needed to take it slow and just get their toes wet before fully getting into the water. The main reason for the fear of water is some of the kids aren’t used to the concept of being fully submerged and due to this fact one of the main focuses for many of the lessons is trying to get the kids to put their chins then, mouth, then the nose, and eventually full face and head into the water. The overall benefits of the lesson are well represented particularly as it connects to children with down syndrome. On average they experience a slightly delayed development rate to the typical child, and the active activity mixed with the educational standpoint and social interaction work to improve their mental capabilities making it very beneficial.

One of my favorite parts about working with them is the celebration, making it down the length of the pool is a major achievement and usually results in high fives and large smiles, from children who are working so hard and putting all their focus into the task at hand, causing the sense of relief and celebration to be so great once they finally figure it out. I have mostly noticed through this experience that the main educational devices for children with disabilities are repetition, slower pace, and different types of explanations for each specific action.

Preston Taylor ministries is another organization that I have had the privilege to work with. This organization works with underprivileged kids in the Nashville area.

Their main focus is to bring kids into a community with faith and fellowship in an effort to get more kids off the streets and into better communities. It also works to teach them how to read to improve their education and life chances. When working with them, I got to work on their reading skills, whether it was reading to them, listening to them read, or switching off pages. The overall experience is beneficial to them and allows the opportunity to get to know more people in the community. On top of reading with them,

- 120 -

Essay: Essay: Nora Wheliss

we also have the opportunity to play games and share a snack with them, furthering the community aspect of the experience and allowing us and them to have an experience of getting to know some more people that we might not know without these opportunities.

In this case, the learning opportunity comes in the setting of being able to work through an important life skill, as well as building community and just having fun with the group as a whole.

At Preston Taylor Ministries I was able to observe that there are also different learning styles that are more beneficial depending on the kid, especially as it pertains to reading. The first technique that we typically use with the kids when we are reading with them is visual. If the volunteer is the one reading to them then pointing at the syllables as they are reading is more beneficial to the kid, allowing them to see the process taken to sound out the syllables; it is a better way to visually observe the process to help read a book. (Edwards) Kinesthetic learning is the primary tactic used to help them learn how to read. Simply sitting with the kids and letting them work through the pages of different books, with them getting a couple of words, and needing some help with some of the others. The process works because the best way to know what they can do is to see them try to do it and see how much skill they actually have in the topic _ reading. We also use kinesthetic learning in order to learn how to play the different of games in the afternoon; we typically will demonstrate how to execute the activity, but sometimes we just get right into playing something such as capture the flag. We also practice some visual learning, with the idea of being able to demonstrate behavior while sharing a snack with each other. Overall if you were to analyze one day with the kids at Preston Taylor, we use all the different types of learning to further their experience and to work on furthering their reading, community, and social skills, while getting to know the greater Nashville community.

The last group I worked with was, as a volunteer counselor for a camp with 4th and 5th graders from Westminster Presbyterian Church. The camp worked to expand the boundaries of outdoor activities for the kids, to learn about outdoor skills, and grow together as a community. One of the main purposes of this camp was to work on learning how to establish boundaries but also to learn how to comfortably stretch your boundaries for something that could end up being fun for them. But most importantly, it was an opportunity for them to learn about themselves and to learn techniques for future endeavors.

The final opportunity to observe the learning techniques in children was on the Westminster Presbyterian Church’s Outdoor challenge trip over the summer. As a volunteer camp counselor for this experience, I had the opportunity to join the kids in some of the activities, teach them how to participate, and work together with new people in new activities throughout the week. The majority of the week demonstrated kinesthetic learning. Most of the activities were learned through doing different activities such as the high ropes course which only had so much that you could explain.

The main verbal teaching happened when we were filling the kids in on the safety precautions for the activities, but once they were in the moment, they had to figure things out for themselves. On another day, the main activity was rappelling. With rappelling, it was crucial to be able to utilize auditory learning skills because when the

- 121 -

Essay: Nora Wheliss

kids were on the side of the cliff, they had to be able to comprehend the instructions being given to them in order to complete the task at hand. Throughout the week as a whole, I mostly was able to see that there were many different learning techniques that were needed in order to be successful in the different activities throughout the week.

When comparing the Nashville Dolphins, Preston Taylor Ministries, and Westminster Presbyterian Church’s Outdoor Challenge,, it is impossible to generalize about the overall learning circumstances and recommendations for each general organization.

Overall the organizations were well divided based on the kids present in the organizations, most showed that kinesthetic learning tended to provide the best learning opportunities, due to the benefit of hands-on approaches to learning. With the Westminster Presbyterian Church’s Outdoor Challenge the use of auditory learning was necessary for the success within the learning environment for the different tasks provided. Within Preston Taylor, Visual and Kinesthetic were crucial to the process of learning how to read. But when it came to the games auditory learning was also very important for the success of the overall activity as well as visual learning with acting based on example. The Nashville Dolphins learning experience was the most complex when it came to learning styles, mostly due to the need to cater each lesson to the particular child whom you were working with. Some benefited most when they could see a demonstration first then they could attempt to execute it themselves. Others benefitted most with the kinesthetic approach allowing them to just get in the water and attempt the different movements first, then to later be corrected towards the correct movements for the swimming strokes. Mostly they were just eager to learn no matter what the technique was that the volunteers were using. Overall the experiences were able to demonstrate the idea that the background and state of the location of learning do not affect the way that the child is able to confer different information, it is more about the individual person, their experience, and ideas, and the manner in which the information is being presented.

Work cited

Collin, C., Benson, N., Ginsburg, J., Grand, V., Lazyan, M., & Weeks, M. (2012). The Psychology Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained (First Edition ed.). DK Publishing.

Edwards, L. (2002). The Creative Arts: A Process Approach for Teachers and Children. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

Gardner, H. (1993). Multiple Intelligences: The Theory in Practice. New York, NY: BasicBooks.

Pennington, Molly. “How to Identify Your Child’s Learning Style.” Noodle, 6 Jan. 2015, www.noodle.com/ articles/how-to-identify-your-childs-learning-style. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

- 122 -

Essay: Marshall Essay: Wilt

ESSAY: MARSHALL WILT MCDOWELL COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA: THE HISTORY, FLUCTUATING ECONOMY, AND HEALTH CRISIS Issue Overview Historically, McDowell County has fluctuated between being a beacon of light, wealth, and opportunity and being a dark blemish on the face of West Virginia. This region is rare and unique as its metamorphosis over the past 70 years is likely the most dramatic of any area of the United States. Once a prospering land of coal that led America in production, McDowell now leads the country in all the wrong ways, consistently finding itself near the top of the list of national rates of drug abuse, drug-related deaths, obesity, and suicide.

History of McDowell County The southernmost county in West Virginia, McDowell County was created in 1858.

Named after Virginia Governor James McDowell, McDowell County officially became a part of West Virginia in 1863, as several counties succeeded from Virginia during the Civil War. The seat of McDowell County is Welch, a quaint region commonly referred to as a ‘city built on coal.’ McDowell County is located “deep in the heart of the Pocahontas Coalfields” and is “often referred to as the ‘Free State’ because of the independent nature of [its] citizens” (“McDowell County Commission History”). Today, the population of McDowell is 18,661, a figure which continues to fall steadily year after year. There are many factors at play in the disappearance of McDowell’s population such as its declining economy, poor living conditions, and lack of health care availability.

The Economy’s Rise Word of rich coalfields in Welch spread quickly throughout the surrounding area during the 1800s, leading many hopefully members of the coal industry to flock to the Pocahontas Coalfields. The boom of the coal industry brought wealth and prosperity to the region and made McDowell the most prosperous county in West Virginia. For several decades, McDowell County was “the world’s largest coal producer” and almost single-handedly “fueled the steel industry, which made the weapons of war and the ships that helped win both world wars” (“McDowell County Commission History”). To this day, McDowell’s coal “continues to fuel the power plants that produce the electric energy that [the United States] demands” (“McDowell County Commission History”). In the 1950s, the coal industry was continuing to give life to McDowell County, making Welch a bustling town flooded with eager workers. Today, the pride of coal miners in this area is apparent and can easily be seen in conversations with locals. Robert Coleman, the owner of a small home in Panther, West Virginia, whose walls were being repaired by our group, recounted with great pride the glory days of his hometown. During Coleman’s youth in the 1950s, Welch was a popular destination to visit the movie theater or dine at an exciting new restaurant. McDowell was a place to raise a family, start a new career in the mines, and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the surrounding Appalachian Mountains. It is because of the mass production of coal during this time that McDowell County has become “synonymous with the coal that helped build both

- 123 -

Essay: Marshall Wilt

[West Virginia] and our nation” (“McDowell County Commission History”). However, the same coal industry that brought immense wealth reduced the county into severe poverty.

The 1960s brought a sharp end to McDowell’s wealth and popularity as the coal industry became more competitive. A recent article by the McDowell County Commission insists that “the economic woes associated with the boom and bust cycle of king coal are, for the most part, over” (“McDowell County Commission History”). However, today, the buildings that remain structurally sound from Welch’s glory days are “abandoned or now house the extensive network of social services agencies that are meant to address and alleviate McDowell’s many communal dysfunctions” (Bailey).

The Economy’s Fall After my visit to McDowell, it is clear that the scars left by the coal industry are anything but healed. The entrance of more coal mines into the industry in the late 1950s posed a threat to the local mines of Welch. Decreased demand for coal in the 1960s, along with new technology which decreased the demand for labor, caused severe job shortages in Welch, beginning the cycle of extreme poverty that is prevalent in the area today. In McDowell County as a whole, out of a “population of nearly 100,000 in 1950, 15,812 worked as miners,” a figure which crashed to 7,118 by 1960 (Bailey). This economic crash was recognized at a national level in the 1960s, as then-Senator John F. Kennedy visited McDowell four times to witness the poverty first hand. During his speech on May 3, 1960, in Welch, Kennedy stated had President Eisenhower ``come to McDowell County, he would have seen a once prosperous people--the people of the largest and most important coal-mining county in the world--who were now the victims of poverty, want, and hunger” (Kennedy). As the exports of U.S. coal fell, the residents of McDowell County paid the price.

The coal companies abandoned the area after exploiting its resources and labor, leaving behind a helpless population that is continuously declining. In fact, as a result of the coal industry’s influence on McDowell and sparse job opportunities, the Welch population has seen an overall reduction rate of 38.90% since 2010 (“Welch, West Virginia Population 2020”). Adding to the harm done by the failing coal industry, stores and large employers in this area are closing or relocating, further limiting the county’s economic opportunities.

Due to a lack of grocery stores, McDowell County is officially classified as a “food desert” by the United States Department of Agriculture (Coyne). According to the USDA, food deserts are defined as “low-income census tracts with a substantial number or share of residents with low levels of access to retail outlets selling healthy and affordable foods” (Ploeg). In 2017, only two full-sized grocery stores were available to serve the county’s 535 square miles (Coyne). Additionally, the county’s largest employer, a Walmart Supercenter, shut down in 2016, taking 140 jobs with it (Bailey). Recently, the only form of business to have opened in this area is a federal prison, which opened to house inmates beginning in 2010. However, there is hope for future economic growth in this area with the planned creation of a four-lane highway that would connect McDowell directly to the Interstate highway system. By allowing drivers to bypass winding mountain roads, the highway would generate business development opportunities for the area, but this project is continually delayed (Bailey). The best job options for McDowell residents currently are in government or nonprofit organizations, and the “public sector accounts for 33 percent of employment in McDowell County” (Bailey). Other possible employment options available to residents of McDowell include becoming teachers or entry-level federal correctional

- 124 -

Essay: Marshall Essay: Wilt

officers, which earn on average $40,000 and $39,000 annually, respectively (Bailey).

Although these few opportunities exist for residents, the median household income in McDowell is only $37,841, and 31.8% of its population lives in poverty, a shocking statistic compared to 13.4% nationally (“Welch, West Virginia Population 2020”). Nearly 47 percent of all personal income in McDowell County comes from disability insurance, food stamps, and Social Security (Bailey).

Health As a consequence of Panther’s dilapidated economy and the abuse of the coal industry, the health of McDowell County’s residents is grim. Decades ago, Kennedy discussed “the destroyed health of [McDowell’s] children” in his 1960 address (Kennedy). Today, the health President Kennedy observed in the 1960s has yet to improve. According to a FACES report from 2014, McDowell County ranks “55th in West Virginia for child and family well-being, out of 55 counties” (Bailey). McDowell County has the “worst level of overall health in West Virginia, and the shortest male life expectancy in the nation” (Bailey). This state of poor health directly correlates to McDowell’s position “very near the top of lists of counties with the most drug overdoses, obesity, and suicides” (Bailey).

Specifically, McDowell has the highest suicide rate in West Virginia at 22 per 100,000 residents, compared to a national rate of 13 per 100,000. Liver disease is prevalent in the area and affects 21 per 100,000 residents of McDowell, more than twice the national rate of 10 per 100,000. The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reports McDowell County as having the second-highest prevalence of obesity, with “44.8 percent of adults reporting a body mass index of 30 or above” (Bailey). McDowell again tops the list of West Virginia in murders per capita, with a rate of three times the national average (Bailey). The worst aspect of McDowell’s health issues, however, is its drug-related abuse.

Chronic pain caused by a career in the mines as well as a generally poor standard of living may both contribute to this widespread issue for McDowell County. In 2015, McDowell had the highest rate of drug-induced deaths of any county in the United States as it reported 79 drug poisoning deaths, constituting a rate of 141 deaths per 100,000 people, nearly ten times the national rate of 14.7 per 100,000 for that year (Rudd). The neighboring Wyoming County had the second-highest national rate. As a result of the commonality of injection drug use in the area, McDowell has the highest number of HIV infections in the state. Adding to the complex and difficult health problems of McDowell, many residents suffer from Black Lung, a disease commonly affecting residents of mining regions or those who have previously worked in mines.

The Son Servants Based in a long-abandoned high school in Panther, an unincorporated community in McDowell, the Son Servants work to conduct service outreach programs in the surrounding area. Their base, called the Panther Community Center, housed our groups from First Presbyterian Church during our week of service and contained a small area for basketball that was frequented by locals. As an organization, Son Servants conducts outreach programs across the globe and defines itself as “a storm-term mission ministry dedicated to serving God’s people in need while sharing the love of Christ with them” (“Son Servants”). Following their slogan “to love is to serve,” Son Servants works with “various kinds of groups including youth groups, accompanied by adult leaders, school groups

- 125 -

Essay: Essay:Marshall Wilt

accompanied by adult leaders, family, father-son, mother-daughter, college, and adult groups” to serve communities (“Son Servants”). During our engagement in Panther, the Son Servants worked behind the scenes to prepare the facilities we stayed in as well as organize our travel. Additionally, the Son Servants connected and communicated with residents of the surrounding community to select homes in need of urgent attention for our group to visit.

So, Why Does Panther Matter?

Throughout my experience in Panther, I was puzzled by the refusal of many residents to leave their homes and relocate to areas with better economic opportunities, health care, and quality of life. There is no evidence in statistics or studies to provide an answer to this question. Instead, the answer lies in the words and feelings of McDowell County resident Robert Coleman. Mr. Coleman has lived in Panther his entire life and now, in his late 70s, still loves and has immense pride in his town. My conversation with Mr. Coleman shed light on why so many people stay in Panther, as he explained that many residents value their rich history, their family roots, the safety of the mountains, and the safety of their small community. United by a shared experience, residents of Panther have each other’s backs with a fierce sense of loyalty. Even as his entire family moved out of Panther, Robert stayed, stubbornly loyal to his town and the Panther way of life. This lifestyle, as he described, focuses on the fundamentals of what life is about: human connection, love, and memories. I asked Mr. Coleman where he would go in the world if he could go anywhere.

Pointing down to the river in front of his house, he said he would like to go fishing. Panther, West Virginia, is filled with people like Robert Coleman, who are friendly, good-natured, and in need of help and support. McDowell County and its people are deserving of national recognition, attention, and aid, as they are worth saving and their struggles must be noticed, not swept under the rug.

WORKS CITED Bailey, Ronald. “Why Don’t People Who Are Stuck in Depressed Appalachian Towns Just Leave?” Reason, Reason Foundation, Jan. 2017, reason.com/2016/12/10/why-dont-peoplewho-are-stuck-in-depressed-appalachian-towns-just-leave/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Coyne, Caity. “In McDowell County ‘Food Desert,’ Concerns about Future.” Charleston Gazette-Mail, 7 Apr. 2018, www.wvgazettemail.com/news/in-mcdowell-county-fooddesert-concerns-about-the-future/article_df3ac520-9c30-53c8-9027-bd73f8b9b4f1.html.

Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Kennedy, John F. Speech. 3 May 1960. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, www. jfklibrary.org/archives/other-resources/john-f-kennedy-speeches/welch-wv-19600503.

Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

“McDowell County Commission History.” McDowell County Commission, mcdowellcountycommission.com/history/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Ploeg, Michele Ver, et al. “Mapping Food Deserts in the United States.” USDA Economic Research Service, 1 Dec. 2011, www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2011/december/datafeature-mapping-food-deserts-in-the-us/#:~:text=Low%2Dincome%20census%20 tracts%20with,are%20defined%20as%20food%20deserts. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

Rudd, Rose A., et al. “Increases in Drug and Opioid Overdose Deaths - United States, 2000-2014.”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 Jan. 2016, www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/ mmwrhtml/mm6450a3.htm. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

Son Servants. 2021, www.sonservants.com/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2022.

“Welch, West Virginia Population 2022.” World Population Review, 2022, worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/welch-wv-population. Accessed 23 Feb. 2022.

- 126 -

Reflection: Marshall Essay: Wilt

REFLECTION: MARSHALL WILT MCDOWELL COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA: REFLECTION As the interstate gave way to the highway, and the highway to a winding mountain pass, I became increasingly aware of the declining state of the houses and buildings surrounding our 55-passenger bus. Entering McDowell County changed my worldview and the way I saw myself, my community, and humanity as a whole. This experience stripped bare and laid out for me the fundamentals of what is necessary to live and the realities of poverty in America. Things I had taken for granted like a solid foundation for my home, indoor bathrooms, and clean water were considered luxuries by many residents of McDowell. As I took in my surroundings on that first drive into Panther, the heart of McDowell County, I felt an instant surge of gratitude mixed with confusion.

How, I thought, could people in the United States, being as modernized and advanced as it is, be living in such conditions? Had they always lived like this? After cleaning up yards, building walls and roofs, and restoring the floors of multiple homes, the largest question I was left with was: How can we do more for this community and these people?

The most impactful moment of this experience for me was my conversation with Panther resident Robert Coleman. Coleman’s story resonated with me, and I was blown away by his kindness and cheerful nature.

Robert Coleman began his first day of Freshman year at Panther High School in 1958, the school’s opening year. A self-identified troublemaker and local hard-head, Robert came into multiple conflicts with the principal in his first days of classes. By the second week, Coleman’s principal told him he would never be able to get a real job and would never be successful. Characteristic of his stubborn nature, Robert left Panther High School, trading his books for a job at the local coal mine, to prove his principal wrong. Robert would stay in the mines for the next five decades of his life, working back-breaking hours and going days on end without seeing sunlight. He recounted days of waking before the sun, working deep below ground in the dark, and returning home with just enough time to sleep for six hours before repeating the cycle. With all of his work, year after year, Robert should have been able to save enough money to counteract his physical and mental sufferings. However, the mining company paid Robert in what he called credits, which could be redeemed at the local county store for food, goods, and services. This store was owned and operated by the same coal company.

After hearing Robert’s story and talking with him about his life for a few hours, I was filled with a sense of gratitude for my community and the opportunities I have been given in my life. Robert, despite his financial state, has found great happiness and fulfillment in his life, the kind which I hope to emulate in my own. Robert and I discussed fly fishing, as he said this brought him joy, and he pointed proudly down to the still, brown river across the road from his house, declaring he had caught 8 trout in 40 minutes the weekend before. His smile, joy, and kind heart reminded me of the futility of societal standards of wealth. Kindness and joy can be found in any climate, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have spent a few moments of kindness with Robert and the residents of Panther, West Virginia, over the past few years.

- 127 -

Essay:

NON-PUBLISHED SERVICE SCHOLARS AND RESEARCH TOPICS The following students chose not to publish their work but are recognized for their work as Service Scholars:

EMMA ARMISTEAD SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK

BELLA CHADWICK THISTLE FARMS

LILI DELLINGER MY FIRST BOOKS

LANIE DYKE CHILDREN’S MIRACLE NETWORK HOSPITALS

IZZE GILL SPREADING SUNSHINE

BRADY GOGUEN THE STORE

SCOUT HALLIGAN SAFE HAVEN FAMILY SHELTER

AMELIA LAFFER NASHVILLE HUMANE ASSOCIATION

SOPHIA MCFERRIN SAINT MATTHEW’S SCHOOL

EMMA OEHLRICH SMS VOLLEYBALL COACH/ SMS SCHOOL

M.H. WALL ELEMENTARY DAYCARE; RELAY FOR LIFE FOR THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY: DANCE MARATHON FOR MONROE CARRELL JR. CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

- 128 -

Essay:

EDITOR’S NOTE Students submitted these essays before spring break March 2022. While the pandemic has improved with vaccines and treatments, it continues to challenge how we serve and live in 2022. Increasing inflation, weather events, the invasion of the Ukraine as a threat to world peace, unprecedented growth in Nashville and various other factors combine to make the need for service to others even more compelling in multiple facets of our lives and community. I am proud to work in a school that continues to focus on our mission that includes service to the community. Individuals and non-profit institutions face challenges that will continue into the future. The work of the Ensworth Service Scholars illustrates resourcefulness, determination, and commitment in the effort to turn challenges into opportunities. The student projects fulfill the promise of the Ensworth mission that encourages students to use their talents to the fullest, be contributors to society, and exercise their intellectual vitality. These essays have inspired me, again this year. I expect that will be a shared experience for all who read them. Enjoy the read.

- 129 -

In Search of Truth

MISSION STATEMENT Ensworth is a kindergarten through twelfth grade, coeducational independent school. The School promotes academic excellence and inspires students to be intellectually curious, to use their talents to the fullest, to be people of integrity, and to be contributors to society.

VISION STATEMENT We envision a school community dedicated to following the highest principles with the greatest love, as characterized by moral integrity, intellectual vitality, discipline, compassion, humor, and joy.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION STATEMENT In order to realize the goals of our Mission and Vision, Ensworth must actively strive to be a diverse and inclusive community of learners that engages collectively In Search of Truth. The presence of different perspectives and life experiences plays a vital role in the development of our students, enhancing classroom and extracurricular experiences in meaningful ways. As a school, we are committed to cultivating an environment in which all members of the Ensworth community experience a true sense of belonging and are empowered to be active participants in the life of the school. These efforts are essential if we are to foster the growth of all students in line with their potential, and to equip them for lives of purpose that extend far beyond their time at Ensworth.