Reflection Blog #3

This will be the last blog entry for the Discover Chicago course "Bridges of Chicago." This will mostly contain feedback about Common Hour.The lessons that I found helpful were that show University resources that are available to the students. I found this helpful because it shows students where to go if they run into academic or personal problems. For example the Writing Center helps students who are having trouble with writing a paper or just to check their rough draft paper for a class. That is the lesson that I found most helpful is to show DePaul's resources for students.

The lesson that I found most interesting is the one on diversity. I found this to be interesting because I never really saw what the other students' personal beliefs are or their economic statuses. It shows who the people are around you are. The lesson that I think could be improved is the one on financial fitness. I found it not as helpful because of the speaker was presenting it. Not to be mean or anything, but the speaker was dull and uninteresting. It didn't really captivated me and was overall boring.

Overall, I enjoyed the Common Hour experience because it helped me get acquainted with DePaul's resources. It helped my transition for high school to college. You get know more about your fellow classmates around you. And the most important thing,  helping build a foundation on which you can stand on in the beginning of your college career.

Diversity and Culture Reflection

I thought that the Diversity and Culture lesson during class was pretty interesting. Both the people that were there are cool people. They told us who they were and what did they do. The lessons that they taught, that I think, are very informative. The other students workshops that they offered seemed pretty interesting also. Overall I thought that their lesson was pretty interesting and informative.

When they told us to go to a category that we think that we most associated with, I find it very intriguing of the other views that people have in this class. I was very astonished as to that the majority of the class supports gay marriage. This shows that our generation is more tolerant to people who are homosexual than our parents' generation. I feel that we should talk more about the issues that they showed us in class again. It would seem that there could be very interesting conversations about it. This experience has also broaden my view about people. That they seem to be very different from the way look for example. These are some of the thoughts about the lesson that they taught us.

I see a lot of diversity in DePaul in the Lincoln Park, Loop, and even the people around me where I am writing this blog entry. I also see a lot of diverse people in downtown Chicago. In my neigbothood where I lived, there are a lot of Latinos and even some Asian people. In other words, there is an extreme amound of diversity in everywhere we go especially in urbanized areas. Those are some of my thoughts on diversity. 

Involvement Fair Reflection

The three student organizations that I would like to join are DeFrag (DePaul's Fundamental Research in Academic Gaming), DAFT (DePaul Alliance for Free Thought), and ACE (Asian Cultural Exchange).

The purpose of DeFrag is "to provide events and resources in gaming for entertainment and education to the students and friends of DePaul University." I would like to join this group because I am an avid video gamer. I play video games as a hobby to pass time. Also my major is in Computer Game Development. I though this would be a great chance to get associated with other students who are other gamers. I plan to be involved with this group by attending all of their events and helping out in the gaming labs later on in the year.

The purpose of DAFT is that it is a group for atheists, agnostics, and freethinkers at DePaul University. They help present a positive view of atheism to the community. They help promote inter-faith tolerance. They would also like to keep an open mind about other people's beliefs or standpoints. I would like to join this group because I consider myself to be an atheist. This might seem out of place in a Catholic university, but there is also a homo/transexual group here at DePaul. I also feel that this group provides tolerance of other people's beliefs. I plan to be involved in this group by going to meetings and events.

The purpose of ACE is "to encourage the exchange of talents, knowledge, and experiences between its members and the DePaul community by preserving the richness and sanctity of the individual cultures and traditions that are part of the Asian American heritage." I would like to join this group because I am a first-generation Filipino American. I also have a fondness of other Asian cultures because they seem to be interconnected with each other in some way. I plan to be involved with this group by attending meetings and events that they have to offer.

These are some of the groups that I plan on joining and getting involved with. They seem to fit my personal preferences. It also shows that DePaul has a lot to offer to fit your own likes and preferences.

What is a Socially Responsible Leader?

A socially responsible leader is someone who is aware of other people's needs and wants and acts upon them. They are socially aware of their surroundings. They help others when they are told to do so without question. They always strive for excellence. They give back to the community.

I consider myself to be a somewhat socially responsible leader. I am always kept up to date about world events. I mostly watch world news or educational channels, not the shows that are on mainstream media. I also give back to community. I am well connected with my high school community. During the summertime, I work in the IT department maintaining the school's network. It always makes me happy to be doing something that I love and that is working in technology. I also strive for excellence. I consider myself to be a hard working and dependable person. I always strive to aim high. And when there is an opportunity, I go beyond.

These are some of the qualities of a socially responsible leader. These kinds of qualities help us to become a better person. They also benefit ourselves and others. If the entire human race is a socially responsible leader, the world will be at peace. We just have to work up a little at a time.

Service Day

Today was service day and all of the Discover classes are required to do some form of community service on this day. We all met up in the Church and listened to the school president and other people about why service is such a big thing at DePaul and that you must goals for yourself. Afterwards, we went to our classroom and had lunch.

Then we took the L and the bus to the Chicago River Walk. We were handed trash bags and were told to pick up trash up and down the river walk. We gathered up a lot of strange things of the river walk. There was a pillow, a switch blade, a dull knife, etc. After we made our rounds, we went to the Picasso statue by the Daley Center to have our reflection.

When we had our reflection, it was very insightful but kind of mean in a way. Ed explained to us about why he quit his 6 figure job just to go into teaching. He did this because he made a promise to give back to the community. I completely agree because in the end we all have to give a little something back. However, I do not agree with Amanda's viewpoint that we are all self-centered.

I am a first-generation Filipino-American. Both of my parents grew up in very poor areas of the Philippines. Some of them had to walk 5-8 miles just to get to school on foot with just slippers! They both had a desire to get an education and come to America. Their dreams came true and here I am. I consider myself to be EXTREMELY lucky to not go through the hardships that they had to go through. Ten years ago, my family went to the Philippines. I myself saw poverty first-hand by living in my mom's family home. They do not have the luxuries that we in the America take for granted. It was a big wake-up call for me that there are people out there less fortunate than me. Also a difference is that they did not get an education or just barely. This made me value education as the most important thing to possess. That is why I chose DePaul. This experience has made me be grateful that I was born in America and not there.
 
During my last three years of high school, my school had laptops. I worked on the student tech team and helped provide tech support for the students and help maintain the laptops and the entire school's network. This helped me be more attached to a community and that I always help others with their tech problems while not just focusing on myself.  I am sure there are other stories like mine in our class and that the other people are not "self-centered."

Discover Chicago-DAY FIVE

Mario's Italian Ice in Little Italy

This is the final day of our Immersion Week. I began my trek by taking the Green Line and getting off at Ashland. I walked south to Madison and took the 20 bus east to Aberdeen. I walked to Carpenter Street and toward Harpo Studios. Harpo Studios is where the Oprah Winfrey show is hosted. When I arrived and looked into the employee parking garage, all the cars that I saw were either Audi, BMW, or Mercedes. It was a pretty awesome sight. I then just chilled in the area until everyone else arrived.

Pegasus Restaurant in Greek Town

We then began our walk towards Greek Town. Ed explained to us about some of the buildings that we passed on our journey to Greek Town. When we arrived at Greek Town, we walked around a bit, and then we ate a famous Greek restaurant We had their famous burning cheese and some baklava. After our time eating there, we began our walk towards Little Italy.

When we arrived at Little Italy, there was this awesome place that had epic Italian ice. There is also this fast-food place that had awesome Italian beef and some good Chicago-style hotdogs. We then walked to Maxwell Street to have some good Polish sausage. Then after that we were free to go.

In the end, today was mostly about food. We covered only one bridge that overlooks the Kennedy Exp. Today contained some pretty awesome food.  

Discover Chicago-DAY FOUR

Lake Shore Drive Bridge

Day four of our Discover Chicago adventure was pretty decent. However, it was pretty wet when arriving at the Loop this morning until noon. The rain was on and off but later in the day it tapered off. We saw bridges around the Chicago River, visited a museum, and rode in a water taxi. In the end, today was decent.

Lake Street Bridge

We began our trek by walking toward the Chicago River under a heavy rain storm. All the rain gear that I had is just a poncho and a hat. I still got soaking wet. We walked along the Chicago River Walk until we reached Lake Michigan to meet our tour guide Jim. Jim told us some stories and facts about the bridges that we walked under/above the Chicago River. I especially fascinated about the story that he told us about a homeless person living in the support beams of the Lake Shore Drive bridge for three years! We walked along until we reached the area around Madison/Lake were we saw a couple of Metra trains entering Union Station. We later took a water taxi to Michigan Ave and got off to have lunch.

Wabash Ave. Bridge

We ate the famous "Billy-Goats Tavern." This place has some pretty good burgers. After lunch we made our way toward the bridge museum. This museum had a lot of information about how the bridges on the Chicago River built and how they impacted the surrounding areas. We went inside a bridge house and we also saw the massive gears that make the bridges go up and down. After that, we walked back to the CDM building and had Common Hour. Brenna and Amanda helped us answer all of our questions that we had about DePaul in general. Overall, today was a pretty decent but wet day. Also, I would say that this day is the pinnacle of this classes' purpose.