Gems After School Reflection Paper

For the past year, I have been a volunteer tutor through the Gems after-school program at the Foundry. The Foundry is a Christian Community Center that serves the impoverished West End of my hometown of Bowling Green, Kentucky. The goal of the program is to provide a supportive environment for the children to flourish educationally, socially, physically, and spiritually. Engaging in Gems has been an overwhelming experience because it has opened my eyes to a sector of my community that I was previously unfamiliar with. I attended a private elementary and middle school; my teachers and parents, along with my mentors and siblings, have continuously encouraged me to prioritize my education by helping me with schoolwork and creating a home atmosphere that promotes intellectual stimulation. I know that an astonishing number of students in my community do not have this privilege, and it saddens me that they have fewer opportunities and academic advantages to no fault of their own. Through this program, I have been able to pour joy and encouragement into children who are at an academic disadvantage, helping them grow socially and academically. …show more content…
I continually look forward to building stronger relationships and spending more time with these children. I love that I can be a person in the lives of these children who is rooting for them and working for their good. My values are congruent with those of the Gannon Center for Women and Leadership because I am contributing to a more just social order by helping children who are minorities or in poverty reach their full potential and have more mobility in their educational endeavors. My hope it that my contribution to the Gems program will, help improve the students’ performance both inside and outside the classroom, enabling them to have the academic opportunities they