Graduation

Graduation by the sea with friends and family who made the trek to Boston
 (Rene', Mom, Pop, Scott, me, Katherine)

Two years ago, I started down the road to becoming a school counselor.  I spent two of the hardest weeks of my life in Dartmouth, MA where my cohort and I took two classes from 8-4 everyday.  They were intense classes that left us cooped up in the evenings doing reading, filming ourselves, reviewing notes, and more reading.  Those two weeks set the bar for the rest of my experience at UMASS Boston.  I gained a lot of beneficial information.  The UMASS curriculum was an emphasis on urban/multicultural counseling.  I really enjoyed this because it taught me that it is necessary to treat every student or teacher that I sit down with as a unique, individual.  Although I was taught this growing up, it was not until grad school that really learned to appreciate the uniqueness of each person, ethnicity, race, and culture. 

Some of my classmates (My, me, Kaytee)

Throughout my teaching and internship at Crabapple Middle School, I found myself going back to this thought a lot.  I could not in my right mind treat every middle school student the same way.  I can truly say that my classes, professors, and classmates in grad school taught me about myself, about the world, and about the amazing gifts I have been given.  Through my experiences, I feel like I have become a better teacher, student, and friend.  So this milestone of graduation has not only allowed me another degree, but has allowed me to graduate into a better me, a me I get to share (Lord-willing) with staff, children, and parents in Bolivia!!