EmilyArkin

December16,2015
FinalLearningPortfolioReflection
"Brainpowerimprovesbybrainuse,justasourbodilystrengthgrowswithexercise.
Citizens
improvebyimpactfulcommunityservice.
Thebrainisamachinethatisanecessitywhenfunctioningwithothersystemsinthebody.The
brainisneededtosendsensoryandmotorinformationfromourspinalcordsandbackdowntoour
muscles.Essentially,ourentirebodyisacommunitywhichisfunctioningbecauseofthebrain.The
quoteIwantedtouseforthisassignmentwas"Brainpowerimprovesbybrainuse,justasourbodily
strengthgrowswithexercise."But,IwantedtoaddtotheendofitCitizensimprovebyimpactful
communityservice.Thisquotesignifiestheimportanceofexercisingrightsandpracticeinordertobe
effectiveinwhateveritisthatyouaretryingtosucceedin.Inmycase,Iwantedtoutilizethiscourseto
becomeawareofmyrightsasacitizenandhowIcanallowotherstoexercisetheirsthroughtheuseof
communityinvolvement.Thebrainissplitupintofourdifferentlobeswhichcanbeusedtodemonstrate
thefourcontributorswithinthisproject[TheUniversityHonorsProgram,CHARP,HistoricWashington
Heights,andSocialCollectionsintheAtkinsLibrary]orthefourgroupsinourclassroom[Website
group,Interviewgroups,eventgroup,andthecommunicatorwhichinthiscasewasDr.Arnold].It
couldalsobeusedtodemonstratetheeffectswhenonegroupfailedtocompletetheirtasks.Myviewof
citizenshiphasalteredintoamorecomplexideasimilartothatofthebrainincludingmyviewsgrowing
upinamilitaryfamily,philanthropyversuscommunityservice,andhowmyexpectationsdifferedfrom
reality.

BeforethiscourseIdidnotquestionwhatthetermcitizenshipmeant.Ifigureditwasaterm
coinedtocategorizepeoplewithincertaincommunities.IhadanAmericancitizenshipandbecauseof

thisIwasallowedbenefitsthatothercountriesdidnothave.AfterviewingtheUNDeclarationof
HumanRightsandResponsibilities,Ibegantorealizehowtherightsofoneindividualareintertwined
withothersinacommunity.Forexample,Itisourrighttoserveonjurydutyinorderforothersto
receivethesameexperience.Wemustworkasaunitinorderforsocietytofunctionproperly.Wemust
improveourbrainpowerbyusingitmeaningwemustimprovesocietyandthememberswithinitby
usingourresourcestohelpotherssothattheycanonedaypaybacktheoffertosomeoneelse.An
effectivewaytopaybacktothecommunityisthroughtheuseofphysicalcommunityservicerather
thanthedonationofmoney,whichiswhatIbegintothinkofassuitablecommunityservice.

FromaveryyoungageIwasactivewithinmycommunityincludingbabysittingformothers
whocouldnotaffordasitterordonatinggoodstofamiliesaroundtheholidayseason.BecauseIgrewup
inamilitaryhouseholdonamilitarybase,communityhadagreatermeaning.Communitywasasense
offamily,thosetohelpyouwhenyourlovedoneswereaway,thoseyouspentholidayswithbecause
yourbiologicalfamilieswerethousandsofmilesaway,andthosewhoyearsdowntheroadwouldstill
bethereforyouasyoualltraveledbacktotheUnitedStates.Communityservicehadasimilarmeaning
whenlivinginJapan.Myfatherwouldassistinhouseworkforwiveswhosehusbandsweredeployed
andviseversaformyfamily.Assistinginactivitiesthathavedeepermeaningbehindyourworkiswhat
Ioriginallythoughtcommunityservicewasdefinedas.IbegintoshiftfrommyviewsasImovedtothe
UnitedStatesandstartedtobecomemoreactivewithinmycommunity.

WhenImovedbacktotheUnitedStatesinmiddleschool,Iwasinvolvedinextracurricular
activitiessuchasYouthGroupandInteract,whichwasaclubrevolvingaroundcommunalinvolvement
throughtheuseofcommunityservice.Unfortunately,myinitialidealsofcommunityserviceasbeing
meaningfulandpersonalbegintoshift.Iwouldfindmyselfvolunteeringthemajorityofmytime

betweenvariousorganizationswithinmycloseknitcommunityofNewBernsuchasdirectingtrafficfor
theChristmasParadeDowntownorpackinglunchesforchildrenwhomaynotreceivemealsoverthe
weekends.Theseactsofcommunityserviceareessentialandtrulymadeadifferencetothose
individualsaffectedbutaftertheeventwasoverandmyinitialhighfromdoingsomethingamazing
subsided,Iwouldrarelyfindmyselfreflectingontheexperience.Thisisthetypeofcommunityservice
thatthisclassistryingtostrayawayfromwhichissomethingthatIrespect.Ifindthatanactthatcanbe
thenreflectedbackoniseasilyrememberedinthebrainandcanbeusedforfutureuse.Also,building
connectionswithothermemberswithinthecommunityallowsforprojectssuchasthisHistoric
WashingtonHeightsprojecttobesosuccessful.However,beforethisrealization,Iassumedmoney
couldbeusedasameansofreplacingphysicalwork.Alludingbacktothequote,Brainpower
improvesbybrainuse,itdoesnotstatethatmoneycanbeusedtoimprovebrainuse.Sometimes
moneycannotsolveeverything.
WhenIcametocollegeIjoinedanorganizationthatwouldteachmetheimportanceof
communityinvolvementandserviceinrelationtopersonaldevelopment.ThisorganizationisAlphaChi
OmegaFraternity,Inc.Notonlyaretheseidealsbasedaroundphilanthropicdonations,theuseofmoney
ratherthanbodiestomakeadifference,butthatmoneywasthesolutiontoproblemssuchasdomestic
violenceorhomelessnesswhichcouldbecuredbyafewthousanddollarsfroma5Kor500donated
sandwiches.Myviewofcommunityservicechangedonceagainfromanactofvolunteeringyour
time
forthesakeoftheonesyoulovetoaviewthatmoneycansolveallworldproblems.Ofcoursethisisan
exaggerationbutisitreally?Howmanyofusarestuckinthemindsetthat
theproblemtomultiple
issuesisthatthelackofresourceswehaveormoneytobedonatedcanbeusedasacureto
homelessness?Thearticle100,000Homes:HousingtheHomelessCanSaveMoneychangesthe
perspectiveoffixinganissuewiththeuseofmoneytosavemoney.Theideabehindhousingthe

homelessistolimittheneedformedicalattentionwhichwillutilizelesstaxpayersmoneybecausethe
homelessarealmostalwaysuninsured.Thisideaofcommunityservicefocusesmorearoundthe
individualswithinacommunityratherthancommunalmaterialisticbenefitssuchasbuildinga
playgroundorcommunitycenter.Thisreadingassignmentchangedmyviewofcommunityserviceback
tobenefittingindividualsratherthancommunitythroughtheuseofobjects.Thisisalsoanexamplefor
ourprojectwithHistoricWashingtonHeights.Althoughwemayseetheneedfornicerhomesorbetter
roadswithintheneighborhood,MattieMarshallseestheneedformemberswithinacommunitytofeel
prideinwheretheylive.Shewantsthememberswithinthecommunitytoviewtheneighborhoodasa
homeandplacetoraisefuturegenerations.Thiscanberelatedtothethemeofmywebsitewhichisthe
humanbrain.Asexplainedthroughoutthewebsite,eachlobeofthebrainhasaspecificfunction.For
example,theparietalandoccipitallobebothdealwithvision.Wheretheparietallobefocuseson
sensationandperceptionofvision,theoccipitallobemakessenseoftheinformation.Bothlobesare
workingtogetherinordertoformulatethesameoutcomehoweverdifferentcontributorsareneededin
ordertomakethedreamareality.InthetermsofHistoricWashingtonHeights,MattieMarshallis
expressinghervisionandweareformulatingmeaningandaplaninordertotackleherwishes.Weare
workingtogetherinordertoachieveacommongoal.
Myexpectationsbeforethiscoursewereentirelydifferentastotherealityofthecourse.Iwas
undertheimpressionthatwewouldbecompletingfortyhoursofcommunityservicewithinvarious
organizationsaroundtheCharlottearea.However,thecoursewasbrokendownintotwodifferent
sections,thefirstsectionfocusesonassistingustodevelopourownindividualizedideaofcommunity
servicetoactuallycompletingaprojectincoherencewithotherorganizations.Thebeginningofthe
coursewasfocusedontheideasofcitizenshipinupdatedterms,includingmeetingtheneedsofa
communityratherthanassumingtheirwishesforthem.Thelearningjournalsrangingfromcitizenship

tofixingpovertyaroundtheworldhelpedmetoidentifymyviewsofcommunityservicewhichis
somethingthatcanbeusedtobenefitagroupinacommunitythroughimpactfulcommunal
contributions.Myfirstlearningjournalpostfocusedonthemeaningofcitizenship.Idefinedcitizenship
associalbutdidnotexplainanyfurtherwhatthatmeant.HowIessentiallydefinedsocialwasin
termsofbetteringyourselfthroughthebettermentofothers.ThenIcontinuedtoexplainwhatacitizen
wasintermsofthesesocialideals.Agoodcitizenmakescontributionstosocietyandinteractswith
membersinacommunity.ThispointiswhenIbegantoviewcitizenshipasmorethanapieceofpaper
orlittlebluebook.Inolongerbelievedthatcommunityserviceneededtobesomethingwithimmediate
resultsbutratheranactthatpositivelycontributedtothefunctionofacommunityorindividualswithin
thecommunity.

Relatingbacktothetruedefinitionofcommunityservice,ourmainprojectthissemesterwasto
helpHistoricWashingtonHeightsachievehistoricaldesignationthroughtheuseofresearchand
interviews.WewerepresentedwiththisprojectbyhavingthedirectorofCHARP,CharlotteAction
ResearchProject,
Dr.JanniSorensen
discusstherelativityofthisprojecttoourclassoncitizenship.We
werereassuredthattheworkthatCHARPisdoingfortheneighborhoodofHistoricWashingtonHeights
wouldberewardingbecauseofthearticlewereadaboutCHARPspreviousworkwithReidPark.Alot
oftheinspirationbehindthepartnershipbetweenCHARP,theUniversityHonorsProgram,andHistoric
WashingtonHeightswasfromthisexperiencewithReidPark.AtfirstIdidnotunderstandhowwe
wouldbenefitacommunitythatwehadnotvisitedorseen,metanyoftheresidents,orunderstoodthe
typeofworkthatneededtobedonetomaketheneighborhoodabetter,moresustainableplace.Itwould
latercometomyattentionthatsustainabilityreliesonthethe
type
ofresidentswithintheneighborhood
notsomuchthe
assets
intheneighborhood.Thisiswherewelearnedthatcommunityserviceismore

abouthowtoimprovetheindividualswithinthecommunityratherthantheactualphysical
representationoftheneighborhood.Inpreviousyears,HistoricWashingtonHeightswasbettered
throughtheuseoffixinguptheneighborhoodthroughcleanupssothatyoungergenerationswouldhave
aplacetoplay.Thisisanexampleofhowoutsidersare
assuming
whatthecommunitywantsratherthan
properlyasking.MattieMarshall,theneighborhoodrepresentativewishedforHistoricalDesignation
uponherneighborhoodtogivethemembersofthecommunityasenseofpride.Beforeweattemptedour
portionoftheproject,wehadamemberfromspecialcollectionstoshowustheimportanceoforal
historiesandhowinterviewscanimpactthequalityofourinformationwhenapplyingforhistorical
designationinthefuture.AlthoughIdidnotutilizetheinformationIlearnedfromherbecauseIwas
contributingtothewebsite,IcouldeducatemyselfforthefutureifIchosetohelpthecommunity
throughtheuseoforalhistories.

Theparagraphabovedemonstrateshowthedifferentgroupsstatedabovemustworktogetherin
ordertoachieveresults.Oneexampleofhowifonelobewithinthebraindoesnotcontributetothe
projectthenwestarttoseeerrorswithintheprojectiswhentherewasmiscommunicationwithMattie
Marshallandtheinterviewers.Iwasonthewebsiteteambutfoundmyselfsteppingintocompletean
interviewwhenanothermemberwasunabletoo.AsIwenttotheBeattiesFordLibraryIdidnotknow
wheretheinterviewwouldbeconductedorwhatthewomenwewouldbeinterviewinglookedlike.
MattieMarshallendedupmeetingustheretotellusthattheintervieweewassickandwouldnotbeable
tomakeit.Thistypeofmiscommunicationiswhatcausesstrainwithinthegroup.Notonlydidmyself
andanotherclassmatedriveanhourtotaltothelibrarybutweplannedourentiredayanotherthis
interviewthatessentiallydidnothingfortheproject.Communicationbetweenthelobesofthebrainis
whatmakesitcomplexyetsoimportantforourfunctionashumans.Similarly,thecommunication

withinthisprojectcouldbeimprovedbyallowingtheclassmatestopersonallycontacttheinterviewees
tolimittheerrorofmiscommunicationfromoccurring.

MyexperiencesinthisclassandthroughthecollaboratewithHistoricWashingtonHeightshas
allowedmydefinitionofcitizenshipandcommunityservicetocomefullcircle.MattieMarshall,who
worksasthepresidentandrepresentativefortheneighborhoodofHistoricWashingtonHeightshas
madestridesandshownherdevotiontothisneighborhoodevenafterseeinglittleeffortfromthe
memberswithinthiscommunity.Similartothosewithinthemilitarycommunity,Mattiebelievesinthe
importanceofcommunityonafamilylevel.Sheishopingthatthroughhistoricaldesignation,the
memberswithinthecommunitywillhavesomethingtobelieveinandbeproudof.Backtomyoriginal
beliefsthatcitizenshipispersonalandmeaningful,Ibelievethatthisprojecthasresolidifiedthese
beliefs.Itisservingyourextendedfamilyorfeelingprideinthosewhoyouliveinclosecontactwith.
ThemembersoftheHistoricWashingtonHeightsneighborhood,membersoftheUniversityHonors
Program,SpecialCollections,andCHARPallworkedtogetherlikethelobesofthebraininorderto
makethisprojectassuccessfulasitis.Hopefullyinthefuturewecanthisneighborhoodresolidifytheir
pridewithintheneighborhoodwhilebuildingstrongerconnectionsbetweenresidentsandmembersof
theUniversityHonorsProgram.Thisclasshasallowedmetousemybraintoimprovemybrainpower
andIamforevergrateful.IintendtousethesestrategiesofcommunityservicethenexttimeIam
intendedtocompleteasimilartaskastotheHistoricWashingtonHeightsneighborhoodproject.