I’ve really enjoyed being in a service learning class. Going to NICE and meeting the people there has been truly a wonderful and eye opening experience. In current events, the issue of refugees is very prominent and controversial. Being able to have such an intimate experience with refugees has helped me to have an understanding and form my own opinion. I’ve always considered myself an empathetic person, but serving NICE has really flexed that muscle. Empathy is difficult for many people because it is compassion in the face of a situation you yourself can’t comprehend.
For Belmont students, we can’t and hopefully never will have to truly understand being a refugee. Fleeing your home, separating from your family and leaving your life to seek safety is unimaginable. In the news we hear and see a lot of discussions revolving around refugees. They are looked at only on the mass scale and everyone detaches themselves from the humanity of refugees. I’ve been guilty of this before. It is easier not to acknowledge the fullness of the situation than to feel helpless. Through this class and working with NICE, I’ve been able to really open up my mind and heart to these people and feel for their individual situations and lives.
Another skill I’ve really worked on during this class is communication. We’ve had a lot of group projects which requires consistent communication. Also the fact that we are doing work for a specific company requires communication with the people of NICE. It’s been key to understand NICE and make sure that our writing in this class is using their voice. Taking the time to listen and read about NICE has allowed us to really get inside their mindset. From there we’ve communicated their mission and values through our writing.
Providing NICE with what they needed from us required certain tools I didn’t initally feel I was equipped with. Coding and grant writing and working on marketing materials have all been skills I never thought I would learn in a service learning class. Although extremely challenging and at times frustrating, these aspects of the class were a pleasant surprise. In today’s professional world, everything is online. Knowing how to code and create marketing materials on programs like Dreamweaver and InDesign, will be insanely helpful in the job market. Grant writing is not something I particularly see myself doing as a career, but the method of writing behind it is applicable to many types of professional writings. Being able to get across information concisely, yet with appropriate detail, can be challenging, but is extremely valuable.
Getting to know NICE as a company, and the people within it, was the best part about this class. It has truly opened my eyes to the the heartbreak of our world’s refugee crisis on an individual level. It has also allowed me to feel that even the smallest thing, such as creating marketing materials, or letting children paint your face, can create a difference.