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T he E ARLY Y earS : A P HOTOgraph E SSAY

T he E ARLY Y earS : A P HOTOgraph E SSAY. LEIGH DUNEWOOD. I HAD TWO KEY IDEAS RUNNING AROUND IN MY HEAD WHEN I WAS THINKING OF HOW PUT TOGETHER THIS PHOTO ESSAY ….

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T he E ARLY Y earS : A P HOTOgraph E SSAY

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  1. TheEARLY YearS:APHOTOgraphESSAY LEIGH DUNEWOOD

  2. I HAD TWO KEY IDEAS RUNNING AROUND IN MY HEAD WHEN I WAS THINKING OF HOW PUT TOGETHER THIS PHOTO ESSAY…

  3. THE FIRST IDEA: I WANTED TO CREATE A VISUAL REFLECTION OF EXPERIENCES THAT HAVE TRULY CHANGED MY LIFE IN THE SMALL SPAN OF TWO YEARS.

  4. THE SECOND IDEA WAS TO SOMEHOW PORTRAY THE IMPACT THOSE FIRST EXPERIENCES HAD ON ME AS A CONTINUING STUDENT, AS WELL AS A DEVELOPING YOUNG ADULT.

  5. BECAUSE MY JOURNEY THUS FAR HAS BEEN SO DIFFERENT FROM HOW I’D ORIGINALLY PLANNED IT, SO DIFFERENT THAN ANYTHING I HAD EVER EXPECTED, I THINK IT STANDS AS THE BEST EARLYEXAMPLE OF ME TRYING TO CREATE MEANING IN MY LIFE.

  6. THE PHOTOS REPRESENT ME TRYING MY BEST TO EXPLORE MYWHY?

  7. I PROMISE I’M NOT THIS MESSY IN REAL LIFE! YES, THIS PHOTO PROBABLY REFLECTS SOME ANXIETY I WAS FEELING ABOUT BEING A NEW STUDENT IN COLLEGE, BUT MORE THAN ANYTHING, I WAS EXCITED ABOUT THIS NEW ADVENTURE! *MY THINKING: WOW, LEIGH! YOU MOVE IN TO COLLEGE IN LESS THAN 48 HOURS, YET, YOU’VE MADE NO ATTEMPT TO PACK A SINGLE THING? YOUR STUFF IS PROBABLY NOT GOING TO PACK ITSELF…YOU GOTTA START SOMEWHERE, GIRL.

  8. SO…IT WAS REALLY HAPPENING#BGSU18 I WAS OFFICIALLY HEADED TO BOWLING GREEN, OHIO. OFFICIALLY, I WAS A COLLEGE KID. THIS WAS MY “A-HA!” LIGHTBULB MOMENT. PEOPLE ARE SAYING THAT YOUR TIME IN COLLEGE IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE BEST TIMES OF YOUR LIFE. NO PRESSURE OF COURSE, BUT I REALLY WANTED TO MAKE MY TIME AT BG COUNT. YOU’RE REALLY DOING THIS, GIRL. DON’T BE NERVOUS, JUST GO IN AN MAKE THEM LIKE YOU! YOU’RE SMART, YOU’VE GOT THIS. I KNOW YOU’RE ANTI-SOCIAL, BUT MAKE FRIENDS! WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT BE THAT WEIRDO THAT NO ONE TALKS TO. DON’T BE A HERMIT!

  9. (NEW) HOME SWEET HOME! SHARING A ROOM WITH A STRANGER FOR THE FIRST TIME WAS GOING TO TAKE SOME ADJUSTING TO, BUT I HAD FINALLY ARRIVED AT MY NEW HOME FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS AND COULDN’T STOP BEING ECSTATIC ABOUT THAT. LET’S REHEARSE WHAT WE’RE GOING TO SAY TO OUR NEW ROOMMATE: “HEY ROOMIE! WANT TO BE BEST FRIENDS FOR LIFE AND BE IN EACH OTHER’S WEDDINGS? BY THE WAY, DO YOU LIKE PIZZA AND ”MEAN GIRLS”?”

  10. GREAT, INTERACTIVE CLASSES WHO KNEW YOU COULD HAVE SO MUCH FUN IN A LECTURE? SOC 2310 WAS A MEMORABLE CLASS BECAUSE WE WOULD LEARN ABOUT CONCEPTS IN ANTHROPOLOGY, AND THEN BE PRESENTED WITH OPPORTUNITIES TO SEE AND INTERACT WITH MANY DIFFERENT CULTURES. NOT ONLY WAS IT FASCINATING TO WATCH MONKS METICULOUSLY CONSTRUCT A MANDALA, BUT THE SYMBOLISM EMBEDDED WITHIN THEIR PROJECT RESONATED WITH ME PERSONALLY, AND GOT ME MORE INTERESTED IN LEARNING ABOUT PEOPLE, CULTURES, AND INTERDEPEDNECE ACROSS VARIOUS CULTURES OF PEOPLE.

  11. TRYING SOMETHING NEW WON’T HURT, RIGHT? I DON’T HAVE ENOUGH FINGERS AND TOES TO COUNT HOW MANY TIMES SOMEONE TOLD ME TO APPLY FOR THE STUDENT LEADERSHIP ACADEMY. I FIGURED I WASN’T DOING ANYTHING BETTER WITH MY TIME, SO I ENDED UP GOING TO CHECK IT OUT. SELF-REFLECTION? LEADING BY EXAMPLE? SERVANT LEADERSHIP? THESE CONCEPTS ARE A REAL THING? I DON’T REALLY KNOW WHY, BUT I WANT TO LEARN SO MUCH MORE!

  12. MIGHT AS WELL GET INVOLVED SOME MORE… GETTING TO KNOW THE OTHER RESIDENTS LIVING ON MY FLOOR DIDN’T SEEM IMPORTANT TO ME AT FIRST, BUT AFTER INTERACTING WITH THEM THROUGH FLOOR MEETINGS AND FACULTY MENTOR PROGRAMS, I WAS GRATEFUL FOR THE CHANCE TO GET TO KNOW THEM. OKAY, I’LL “LEAVE MY COOL HAT AT THE DOOR” IF I CAN GET FREE INSOMNIA COOKIES. NO, BUT SERIOUSLY, BEING INVOLVED WITH STUFF GOING ON IN THE HALL IS NOT BAD AT ALL! THERE ARE SOME PRETTY COOL PEOPLE LIVING HERE. I CAN DIG THIS.

  13. …AND SOME MORE… MY RA WAS BEEN GREAT, AND I WANTED TO BE A GREAT RA FOR SOMEONE ELSE. IT WAS AN EXTENSIVE APPLICATION AND HAD A LENGTHY INTERVIEWING SCHEDULE, BUT I KNEW APPLYING FOR THE POSITION WAS THE RIGHT MOVE FOR ME. I WANTED TO GROW AS A STUDENT AND AS A LEADER AND I SAW THE RA ROLE AS OFFERING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO JUST THAT. I WOULD’VE NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD TRY APPLYING TO BE A RESIDENT ADVISOR. LIKE, NO ONE LIKES THE RA’S (JUST KIDDING). BUT, I’VE BEEN HAVING SUCH A GREAT TIME INTERACTING WITH THE PEOPLE IN MY HALL, AND I THINK IT’D BE GREAT TO FOSTER THIS SAME KIND OF ENVIRONMENT FOR SOMEONE ELSE.

  14. MIGHT AS WELL EXPLORE SOME CAREER OPTIONS WHILE I’M AT IT THERE’S A LAUNDRY LIST OF REASONS WHY COLLEGE IS SO AMAZING, BUT I HAD NO IDEA OF ALL THE AWESOME OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE TO STUDENTS UNTIL I GOT HERE AND STARTED TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THEM. FOR A WHILE, I THOUGHT I WANTED TO BE A HOT-SHOT LAWYER-TURNED U.S. SENATOR, AND WORK IN D.C. I WAS ABLE TO GO TO WASHINGTON, D.C. WITH THE CAREER CENTER OVER SPRING BREAK TO NETWORK WITH AND PICK THE BRAINS OF BGSU ALUMNI WHO HAD CAREERS AND LIVED IN THE CITY.

  15. TURNS OUT I LIKE WORKING WITH COLLEGE STUDENTS MORE THAN I LIKE WORKING WITH THE LAW IN THE FALL OF MY FIRST SEMESTER, AND WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE AMAZING CAREER CENTER STAFF, I CREATED AND HOSTED A PROGRAM CALLED “COFFEE & CAREERS” FOR MY RESIDENCE HALL (CENTENNIAL). I WANTED FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS (LIKE MYSELF) TO BE MORE KNOWLEDGABLE ABOUT THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO THEM TO HELP THEM MAKE STEPS IN CAREER PLANNING, AND MY HALL COUNCIL WAS AWESOME AND HELPED MY GOAL COME TO FRUITION.

  16. EVEN MORECAMPUS INVOLVEMENT! SINCE MEETING THEM AT CAMPUS FEST, THE LADIES OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF NEGRO WOMEN, INC. (NCNW) HAVE HELD A VERY SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEART. GETTING MY PEERS EXCITED ABOUT CAMPUS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT GETS ME EXCITED! I CAN’T BELIEVE I HOLD AN EXECUTIVE BOARD POSITION (COMMUNITY SERVICE CHAIR) IN AN AMAZING STUDENT ORGANIZATION AND I’M ONLY THREE MONTHS INTO MY FIRST SEMESTER IN COLLEGE.

  17. STARTING TO SEE A TREND HERE? (HINT: RHYMES WITH “CAMPUS INVOLVMENT”) I HAD SUCH POSITIVE INTERACTIONS WITH THE FOLKS IN THE CAREER CENTER, AND THEY COULD NEVER SEEM TO KEEP ME OUT OF THEIR OFFICE LONGER THAN A FEW DAYS AT A TIME. I ENDED UP APPLYING FOR A STUDENT AMBASSADOR ROLE THEY WERE OFFERING, AND I’VE BEEN EDUCATING MY FELLOW STUDENTS ON CAREER PLANNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES EVER SINCE.

  18. WE CALL OURSELVES RESIDENT ADVISORS, OTHERS MAY CALL US “THE QUIET HOURS POLICE” THIS ROLE HAS BEEN LIFE-CHANGING. I’VE NOT ONLY LEARNED A LOT ABOUT MYSELF, HOW TO WORK EFFICIENTLY ON A TEAM, CRISIS MANAGEMENT, AND ABOUT BEING A RESOURCE FOR STUDENTS, BUT IN THIS ROLE IS WHERE I’VE LEARNED ABOUT MY PASSION FOR WORKING WITH COLLEGE STUDENTS, AND PROVIDING THEM WITH THE TOOLS THEY NEED TO MEET THEIR GOALS.

  19. I THINK IT’S SO INTERESTING HOW EXPERIENCE AFTER EXPERIENCE, I GAINED MORE OF A SENSE OF WHAT I REALLY ENJOY AND WHAT REALLY GIVES MY LIFE ITS MEANING.

  20. AFTER LEARNING THAT MY PASSIONS REVOLVE AROUND:HELPING OTHERSSTUDENT ENGAGEMENTACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTCAREER READINESS AND EXPLORATIONIS WHEN I STARTED SEEING THE VALUE IN BEING MORE INTENTIONAL ABOUT THE WAYS I GOT INVOLVED ON CAMPUS.

  21. BEING IN A POSITION WHERE I CAN HELP AND SUPPORT OTHERS IN BECOMING THEIR BEST SELVES IS MEANINGFUL TO ME. I AM SO GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITIES I HAD AS A FIRST-YEAR STUDENT THAT HELPED ME TO BETTER REALIZE AND UNDERSTAND THIS.

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