McNair Color Runners

We choose to take a "holistic approach" with our scholars.  We want our scholars to do research, go to grad school and get their Ph.D.'s--yes.  But really, we want them to be rock stars in LIFE.  In order to do things--like get your Ph.D. (no big, right?)--you've gotta have it together (on lots of levels).  Baseline--you've gotta be solid in how you take care of yourself.  If you aren't, the foundation from which you do any work or strive for any goal won't sustain you.  I like to say that you have to be solid in the EAT--SLEEP--MOVE categories, if you will.  What does this have to do with being a Color Runner?  Read on...

So, last year, we were talking about how yoga was making us feel stronger. We were talking about having a scholar garden during the summer.  And then Julie started talking about running.  Now, I've never classified myself as a runner--a trotter perhaps--but I'm open to new possibilities.  I was also dabbling with this idea of working with a personal trainer--something that scared me but I knew would be good for me.  I was tired of being a wuss.

Before...

Julie started researching 5K's and we thought it might be fun to do it as a group---with the scholars. Not a ton of options locally, she came across the Color Run in Ann Arbor.  Now, if you aren't familiar with the Color Run's (held in most major cities) - check it out HERE.  It's the "happiest 5K on the planet" -- for sure!!

Running partners for life!

We do yoga on Wednesday's together during the summer--the luxury of consistency during the summer is spectacular.  Besides yoga, a couple of the scholars started training for the 5K (Katelyn was our leader!) and started sharing how it's going.  Julie and I took this inspiration and started running more.  Julie did her first 5K in June!  Even though some scholars weren't "especially keen" on the idea, they were willing to come along as "Color Walkers" (there's always a ton of those!) and to cheer the group on.  What was cool is that we had a group goal (of doing the Color Run mid-July) and we had something to look forward to.  I had never done a run despite being surrounded by runners--my husband Ken, his brother, his Dad--all marathon-type runners. Luckily my training sessions really helped strengthen me and build my confidence in this regard.

Turned out that one of dear mentors--Dr. Shelly Hinck--came along too!  What a treat!  We went down the night before and hung out in Ann Arbor.  What a treat!  We had shirts made up that said, "We Are McNair" -- pretty cool.  We felt pretty cool.  People tend to "go all out" at these Color Run's - you start out in white (accompanied by such embellishments as tutu's and tube socks) and then you end up -- in FULL COLOR.  The best part (perhaps?) is the end where everyone gathers and releases all of their remaining color and dances around and is HAPPY.  Did I mention it's the happiest 5K on the planet?  :-)

After...

All in all--what a great activity to add to our repertoire of McNair activities--all meant to feed into our "group growth" and "empowerment."  We posted on Facebook (of course) and a ton of McNair alumni commented on how they wished we would have done that when they were in the program. So we decided to make it an annual event and invite anyone who wants to attend with us to come out and "Be McNair."

I know Shelly's in and I'm working on some of our other mentors.  McNair alumni--come back to Michigan for a visit and be a McNair Color Runner!!  Our 2013 group--I'm expecting you to be in!! Maureen said she's going this year too!  Julie is already working on her speed and Kim just started running with her personal trainer.  Too cool!  Me?  I want to start running more (if the snow ever goes away) and my goal is a 10-minute mile (this is a good pace for me, a bit of a stretch, but achievable).  Later in the summer I'm planning on doing a 10K.  The Color Run will be great prep!

:-)

icouldbe.org

I just wanted to talk for a minute about this great volunteer experience that I'm a part of this year. http://www.icouldbe.org/ is a website where adults can volunteer to mentor inner city high schoolers online. It's a yearlong commitment, and you get assigned three mentees (although you can volunteer for more or you might have less depending on demand). You're only required to spend an hour a week on the website. I started mentoring this year, and I currently have 2 mentees.

The students come from high schools that are participating in the program. That means that these kids have time set aside in school just for them to complete their icouldbe assignments. They go through the list of available mentors and choose which one they want. They go through a self-chosen curriculum- there are different paths they can choose, like college or vocational prep. What my job is as a mentor is to review each assignment they complete and give them comments. They can't move on to the next assignment in many cases until I pass them on the current one. For example, one of my mentees just finished her first unit, and the capstone activity for this was to write a professional email. However, the social aspect is also really important. My mentees chose me mostly because I'm in college, and because I wrote in my profile that I'm low-income like them, so it's my job to help them through applying to college, getting financial aid, etc.

This is a great opportunity for all of us as McNair Scholars because we're exactly what many of these kids aspire to be. I think right now is a great time for us to mentor because not only were we all in their shoes four years ago; we're also going through exactly what they are AGAIN, at the same time as them! This is an awesome experience to put on your CV, but it's also a great way to impact someone's life- in many cases, these kids probably wouldn't go to college if they hadn't had a mentor to help them through it.

If you decide to apply to be a mentor, just go sign up at the website. You have to answer some questions, and then it took me about 3 weeks to get confirmed because I think they ran a background check on me or something. Then you just wait until you get chosen as a mentor, but since school has been in session for a while now, you would probably get picked pretty soon! I hope at least a few of you decide to take advantage of this program!