Alendi Vidal's Reflections

Since High school I was always committed to community service as well as social justice issue that surrounded my community. I still remembered the day that I learned about CPS I came early for the IRC early orientation and Gretchen came to speak to us about the wonderful opportunities that CPS offers. The next day I was Gretchen office asking her how I could get involved and she was surprised. Applying for a program coordinator position was a wonderful opportunity and now that I am the PC for the LIU Migrant tutoring program I would not have picked anything else. Working with my program has introduced me to new information about the agency and the people community it works with. I now know how the LIU Agency helps the migrant community as well as the children. LIU provide services that other places would not be able to provide like help in translation, ESL classes, immigration information and the after school tutoring program for migrant students. I love the students that come to after-school they are all wonderful and you learn about their struggles.

My agency also has a connection with my learning circle which focuses on migration, the public policies, the people in the community and the politics/structure behind it. I have met so many wonderful people who have shared their stories about struggling to survive in a foreign land in which many are discriminated. My learning circle had made me view things differently it I have learned so much about the process of obtaining residency in the U.S., citizenship and even a simple visa. All the things I am learning at CPS, my agency, my learning circle I plan to pursue a career in I would like to help other by using just the simple resource I have like the language and prior knowledge.

As a program coordinator for the LIU Migrant Education after School Tutoring my responsibilities are many. One major responsibility is to have an open and clear communication with my community partner so we can both work together and be on the same page. Second. I am in charge of looking for tutor s for the after school program, without them we would have no help for the high school students. Third, maintaining an organized list of tutors and recording their hours if they need it for a service learning class. Also, the most important is having a clear communication between the high school students, tutors and staff members.
 

Community partnerships are extremely important in order to run your program because they are the person you are working to coordinate. My community partner has been there for me when I need her and vise versa. When my community partner is busy we communicate through the use of email or we call each other. We tend to have an open communication which works well and allows us to share ideas. Having new ideas allows me to prepare things for the high school students in the after school program. Working with the high school students has allowed me to gain a new insight on their lives. Most of the children have had a rough time growing up and coming to this program has allowed them to find at least someone stable in their lives. This spring semester we had some trouble obtaining money for the program which really affected the high school student. Usually the program is opened also to current and former migrant students but with the lack of money we could allow former migrant students to come. This created a greater community partnership because we had to communicate back and forth due to the financial problems. I value that communication system because it allowed us to work together and I gain a better understanding of local agencies go through. My community partnership has become of great value to me and now I have a better understanding of my program.

This year I have learned a lot about the mission of the agency as well to understand the importance of communication. I have built stronger relationships with the high school students I try to gain their trust. Along with been part of the Migrant Learning Circle has helped me understand why my program exist and what kind of help they provide. Through the learning circle I have a better understanding with the issues that are going on now with migration/immigration. Personally I have learned to take more a leaders position like working with the Intro to Peace and Justice Class has allowed to learn how to coordinate and work with other. It has also taught me how to be in charge and manage a large group.

When we had to choose which learning circle we wanted to attend without hesitation my first choice was the Migrant learning circle. My parents both immigrated to the United States and decide to stay in New York. I wanted to explore migration and I wanted to know the difference. First semester I gain a new insight we were able to talk and hear from the local migrant people. Their stories allowed me to see the struggles that migrants face when immigrating to a foreign country. This spring semester we have been focusing on the policies that affect the migrant/immigrant community. We were also able to meet Angelo Mencuso the director of American Harvest, a film that explores the topic of migration. We also had the chance to attend the migration panel in which a diverse group of people that spoke about migration. I was surprised to see that a lot of people from town came out to see the panel speak. Throughout this year I have learned a lot more about migration and we all have become good friends.

This year I have become more aware about the surrounding issues that affect most of the local town people. In Gettysburg there is a large migrant population and by being part of this learning circle we have learned more about it. Although I did have some prior knowledge of immigration I did not know much what a migrant person faced. Hearing the stories of local migrants gave a first hand experience and a glimpse of what the high school students in the after school program faced. Not only have I learned but I also gain the trust of the speakers because they shared their stories with us.

In the beginning of the year one of my goals was to be more aware of other social justice issues and be a better on campus as well as the community. I have learned a lot about many social justice issues that not only that our country faces but the local town. There are many issues that I would not have thought of before and now I have been able to learn more. Also, planning the Leadership Conference overnight trip for the high school students helped me develop leadership skills. Planning this event helped me interact with more students on campus and most of them learned what LIU Migrant Education offers for the students. I have also learned that in order to show good student leadership we must also be able to recognize when we need help. Throughout this year I have had help from others which is a key to show my abilities as a leader.

There are several things that one has to learn to become a good student leader. I have learned to step out of my comfort zone and learned to voice my opinion more often. By being part of The Center for Public Service I have develop a better understanding of my own opinions. I have been able to trust myself about the issues that I am passionate about. I feel that I have made progress on the goals that I had in the beginning of the year. One of the challenges that I have been faced in order to be a good student leader is keeping tutors engaged in the program. This is the toughest challenge but I am still learning and I believe that engaging one person that’s success

In my past reports some of my goals personal/professional was to be more aware of social justice issues surrounding Adams County, public speaking and build relationship with tutor and tutees. There have been many experiences that have helped me achieve my goals. For instance, working with the after school has been an amazing experience I have had the chance to hear stories as well as share stories about life. The students from the high school are amazing kids and they all have their own stories to tell, creating a special friendship. Also, recently I attend the IMPACT conference, a conference in which students all across the states come and share same interest in social justice. There were several workshops from student and farm workers to how to start lobbying. Attending the conference was an amazing experience I meet new people, talked in front of crowds and even learned new easy to work with policies. The Center for Public service has helped not only professionally but personally because I feel that working a PC had helped me improve in my awareness in social justice and in interacting with new people.

Working at the Center for Public Service has been one of the greatest opportunities I have had. Since my first-year, I knew that if I choose a career in the future it would something involving social justice issues. Now I am defiantly sure that’s what I want. For the past year, I have learned to take a stronger leadership position within the LIU program as well as in the college. There have been wonderful people that I have meet through the year and I have learned to communicate better. For the past year and a half, I have learned about the different issues that affect other and us as well. I have learned to make changes in my life and set my priorities straight. CPS opened a new chapter in my life which will continue to remain there and I will always be thankful for the wonderful opportunities it as giving me.