6AM: As I wake up in the morning, I slide on my Promise Corps t-shirt and watch an episode of New Girl before I leave for work, trying to summon my inner Jessica Day before I leave.
7:30AM: As I walk into William L. Sayre High School, I am greeted by the students, staff and security guards. I walk into the Promise Corps room and greet my teammates with a “Good Morning” and a smile. Students slowly trickle in, stopping by to say hello before they head to their classrooms for first period. After this point, every day is different. I often don’t see students on my caseload until lunch time, so my mornings often focus on finding extra hours opportunities, in-kinding, writing blog posts, and creating modules to offer for our students in topics like college access, military, national service, the local workforce, and jobs and internships. I also typically meet with students that are on my teammates caseloads if I am available, having created relationships with most of the students who walk into our room.
12PM: Lunch rarely comes at the same time each day, as we are always tending to the needs of the students. I’ve also created relationships with the teachers, and observe and assist in classes. The classes I attend usually contain a student who is struggling in that class or has requested that I be there to help with the material they are learning.
1:30: After lunch, more students arrive. I work with tenth graders, focusing on academic support and resume writing. When I first met with the students in the beginning of the year, we discussed their interests after they graduate high school so I can best help them to start building their path for success. I also helped them each complete an individualized student success plan with each student, establishing several goals for them to work on throughout the year. Then, if we’re not meeting to focus on academic work, we are working on accessing opportunities to help build their resumes or focusing on SAT preparation.
3:00: The students run out of the school, we usually have a few stragglers that stick around, looking to spend some time with us, or hoping to finish some school work before they head home.
4:30: At the end of the day, I have been taking 10 minutes to meditate to help relax after an always changing day.
– Haley Snyder, College & Career Ambassador at Sayre High School
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