My fellow Brownies, look how far we've made it! After all the time-consuming paperwork filled out by ourselves as well as our parents, after the seemingly endless amounts of meetings with the whole ILC group or with our chaperones, and after the close bonds formed amongst ourselves thanks to this program, our final "official" meeting has come.
The Ivy League Orientation was held at El Cerrito High School's library on June 2, at 6:30 in the evening. I, being notorious among family and friends for my tardiness at everything, was constantly reminded by my mother and my peers to leave at 5:50 exactly, which proved to be one of my smarter choices. Not only was I there early, but I also had the honor of driving and parking right behind the car of my fellow Brownie, Frank She. In his car was another member of the ILC as well as a new friend of mine, Dyana So. My mother and I followed them and their families up to the ECHS library, where we were 15 minutes early. After waiting and socializing with my Brown cohorts for about 15 minutes, the clock struck 6:30 and the meeting started promptly.
Mr. Ramsey, Ms. Kronenberg, and Mr. Ellis took the stage from 6:30 to 7:00. After re-introducing the Chaperones as well as the individual programs that students were in, Mr. Ellis told us of a new opportunity in which high school students could apply to get a book written by them published. Mr. Ramsey and Ms. Kronenberg stressed punctuality and the importance of blogging and taking our positions as representatives of our school district seriously. At 7:00, Don Gosney gave a 10-minute overview of our travels. This presentation included many useful things that we would definitely need, such as a laptop security cable, a working alarm clock, and various computer supplies. He also offered to loan out some of his equipment, a huge opportunity that I will not overlook.
After Don's presentation, the groups split up to their specific travel groups. My Brown-II group met with our chaperone, Ms. Williams, in room 206, where we received a packet full of flight ticket and rent-a-car information. We also met with Kiana Ward, a former ECHS student and a current sophomore at Brown University. She took the Women and Leadership program too, and she informed us of valuable rooming information as well as great food joints to check out when we get the chance to.
During the final comments by Mr. Ramsey, something hit me: The Brown-I group will be leaving in a matter of days, and soon after, my group will be on the plane to the East Coast. I only have about a month until then! Not only do I need to buy a laptop and other needed items, but I also feel like I need to emotionally prepare myself for so much time away from my family and friends at home. However, I can't deny that I'm extremely excited for this trip. This summer will truly be an unforgettable one.
Josephine,
ReplyDeleteIf we succeed with nothing else this year I can sleep comfortably knowing that most of you have learned something about how to be on time.