Blog 5 Project Reflection and Working EQ.

The Pentagon - Part I:

(1) Positive Statement: What positive thing happened as a result of what you have completed so far?

• I have established awesome contacts. For example, I have met the following:
• A financial stock broker well on his way to success in the corporate ladder.
• A representative of an unnamed nonprofit organization.
• A representative of the California Department of Education.
• A lawyer, who happens to specialize in neuroscience and communications technology. What a strange conversation. 

(2) EQ Content:  Pick a piece of research or your interview.  How has it helped you improve your understanding of your topic?

• Recently, I had read a massive 40 page report, which I am too stubborn to count as multiple entries in my working bibliography, and it has greatly enlightened me to California's educational situation. I have learned a great deal about state funding, the representatives, and a general understanding of how the educational system works. It's not too simple.

(3) What has worked for you so far in the senior project?

• I have a solid basis for understanding, and I feel I am being challenged - in more ways than one. I definitely appreciate the challenge of the whole prospect of research and committing to a certain aspect of the topic. So far, So good. c:

(4) What hasn't worked so far?

• I realize the amount of research to achieve an exemplary senior project is extremely massive, so I am sad. I have read countless research articles, and I feel I need much, much more to be adequately informed. Real issues take real research.

(5) Finding Value: 

•  What is a potential question you would like to study this year?  (working EQ)
• What is the most effective way to educate the socioeconomically disadvantage?
•  What do you plan to do for mentorship?  If you haven't found a mentor yet, then discuss where you are currently looking and who you are talking to to find it.   
•  I have found mentors, but I have not yet found a dependable one. A local stock broker which is likely my most esteemed contact has a busy schedule, so I have to do things way ahead of time. Both the representative of the California Department of Education and California Youth services cannot be contacted for another week, because both have big projects to attend to. As of now, I am also looking into family contacts and representatives of both education and nonprofit organizations. 

Blog 4: Interview Preparation

Content:

1.  Who do you plan to interview?  Why?

 I plan to interview Mr. David Bower - a financial stock broker. The reason I want to do this is because I feel in both the acts of setting up a nonprofit and managing one, managing and establishing funds is going to be a hugely important aspect. I also plan to interview Mr. Bower because he has had several years of Business Management, Administration, and knows a significant amount of business and finance beyond being a stock broker. He is very qualified.

 
2.  You have to ask 5 questions.  What additional questions do you plan to ask? 

•  What is your experience in business and management outside of formal education?
•  What is the primary intent of focus in any given organization?
•  What allows an organization to flourish? What doesn't?
•  In your years of experience in management, what is the best way to organize a team?
•  Is there anything you can tell me that comes only from experience? If so, what is it?

Blog 3: Topic Choice and Semester 1 ESLR Goals

1.  List your topic here:



My topic is The Promotion of Education to the Socioeconomically Disadvantaged.

2.  What do you plan to do this year to show growth in each of the ESLRs?  Be specific and use an example.  Examples can come from senior project, model assembly, core, and/or participation in senior class ASB or other organizations on campus (clubs etc).

• iPoly Citizen
•  To be an effective iPoly citizen, one must assume complete and total responsibility for his or herself, as well as for his or her respective community. The Senior Team runs the framework of the iPoly community, which makes us responsible for maintaining school events - Having fun takes hard work! I will show growth in this, especially this year, because I will be actively engaged in iPoly events, showing my support whenever possible, as well as encouraging others to do the same. Away from simply hosting iPoly events, I plan to not only become well-taught, but I wish to apply those teachings and share what I know with others, thereby making my community even stronger.
• Effective Learner
• Senior Year expresses concern for Automony - That is, assuming responsibility for your own learning and expressing your own brand of personal creativity whilst doing it. I plan to show growth in this specified ESLR, because I have working on developing my own brand of creativity as well as my own methods of learning for the past 3 years I have been here at iPoly. I have realized from the start that it is up to me entirely to decide what my future was going to be like, and to plan accordingly. I plan to grow this year by further working on my skills, on continuing my education outside of school through community service, tutoring, being mentored, and continuing to mentor others.
• Effective User of Technology
•  I will show growth in technology as well, because I have learned a great deal of computers (as well as how to troubleshoot nearly anything) over the course of Junior year, thanks in part to Lionel Arellano and Alfonso Esquivel. I have learned enough to the point to have an enormous amount of aide readily available to me at all times. I can photoshop pictures, complete graphic designs, make fancy looking documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, and will also be able to design and maintain a website by the end of this year. Not to mention, the readily available learning resources that are just waiting to be broken into! I plan to develop all of these skills and develop even more of them as the year progresses.
• Effective Communicator  
• In order to develop in the area of being an effective communicator, especially in demonstrating the importance of interdependence,  I am planning to learn as much as I can, to do as much as I can, and to develop as much as I can in order to make myself the best suited leader. Today, as I examined my lovely South House frolic about in a maze of tape, I realized the need for order as well as the need for consistent leaders. Our ASB representatives naturally took the hold, but were only supportive for so long before they looked like they had half given up. In order to develop into an effective communicator, I plan to practice as much as I can in tutoring, community service, volunteering, Model Assembly, and wherever possible. Being a good leader is not easy.

Summer Mentorship Component

Literal: 

1. (Know) Using google drive, link a log of specific hours and a description of your duties.

Here.

2. What is the contact name & number of where you volunteered?

I worked for Ms. Sammy Urgo. Her main office number is (213)485-2352. You may have to ask for her.

3. (Need to know) What questions were raised because of the 10 hours of experience?  List them. 

- How do different law offices respond to different cases?
- Is a law system based upon the absence of empathy the most effective one?
- How is a business most effectively run without implementation of profit maximization? [I noticed this because the office building was run by a man who barely maintained it.]
- What am I going to do?

Interpretive

4. What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

The most important thing I gained from this experience was the sense of how our legal system works. In my time working, I had read many a criminal file, and I realized that our current law system revolves around the belief that in order to have a system as effective as possible, you have to disregard emotion and make it as bureaucratic as possible. This makes sense in some ways, but not in others.

Applied

5. How did what you did help you choose a topic?  Please explain.

This helped me choose a topic because I was at one point considering doing something in law, because my mother works closely in their department. However, I never knew how much bureaucracy is involved in resolving criminal cases. This helped me choose a topic, because I now know if I ever do a topic relating to law, I will very likely be doing office jobs. I now know this is not for me.


- Adrian Gallegos, proud occupant of south house.