efozzie

I got a pleasant acceptance email while I was away in Thailand (and by the way, I only checked my email three times in two weeks).

I recently applied for a volunteer position at College Summit for the summer workshops, and if you remember, I have been volunteering with CS since the summer of 2003 as a writing coach, and most recently last year as a writing coach coordinator. Both of the positions revolved around helping the students create strong personal statements for their college applications. The position that I recently applied for is kind of like the glue of the CS summer workshops. The rap directors (no affiliation to the musical genre) are the ones who empower the students, but rather than try to paraphrase, here is a sampling from the job description:

Rap Directors are trained youth facilitators who begin as trainees and commit to a three-year intensive professional and personal development training. During the training period, Rap Directors attend trainings and serve at workshops in tandem with another Rap Director. Upon completion of training, certification allows a Rap Director to act as a solo facilitator at College Summit workshops. The Rap Director facilitates group discussions (Rap Sessions) with the students during the four-day workshop. The goal of the sessions is for the students to see possibility in their lives and future through the world of higher education. Rap Directors introduce students to the 4 goals of the workshop and guide them as they work to reach their goals. Rap Directors also serve to remind the students that they are young and entitled to have fun!

I am extremely excited about the opportunity to change more students' lives and about the three-year facilitation training!!!

If you've noticed on the right column, I have new pictures up from Thailand on my flickr page. You can also easily view the entire set by clicking on the picture below:

Here I am at Bangkok's most luxurious and prestigious mall, Siam Paragon, doing some last minute shopping and eating before my early morning departure tomorrow.

I am tired!

Back before I left, I had visions of this vacation being relaxing and rejuvenating. While it has been LOTS of fun and really great to get out of the US, it also has been quite taxing on me physically (I haven't slept in... about 36 hours). Needless to say I am eager to get back to American soil, to talk to American people, to eat American food, and to live my American life.

Key points: I am safe, I'll be home soon, and I love how leaving the country reminds me of how grateful I am for being blessed with residency in America. More on Thailand when I get back... I have soooo many great pictures and stories!