My Georgia Tech Excel Story

It all started on August 19, 2017, when I moved into my second home at Woodruff North Dorm at Georgia Tech in my freshman year. I was sad when my parents and boyfriend left, but I was ready to start a new chapter in my life. I had a roommate, and her name was Amanda. I remember the first week was busy because we had a whole week of orientation, which had a lot of fun activities. I was so happy that week because that’s where Rachel, Amanda, and I became best friends. I thought it was so cool that Rachel is from New Jersey, which is a different state from Georgia! I went to my very first T-Night, which was at the Bobby Dodd Stadium; it was a lot of fun. Rachel, Amanda, and I even got a picture with Buzz, which made me so happy because it was the first time of us getting a picture with our mascot. The next day was my birthday. It was a good day because my parents and boyfriend came up and we went out to dinner to celebrate my nineteenth birthday! I went to my very first Georgia Tech football game with my coach Riley. I have joined the Catholic Center to meet new people and try to make some new friends. I met one of my good friends today, and her name is Taylor; she is a Georgia Tech alumnus now. I did go to some of the Bible studies to meet people. I also remembered when Riley and I decided to go to Amelie’s French Bakery in December, and it started to snow so much! Then I had a whole month off for my winter break, which was a fast first semester of college.

The second semester started off fun because I went to a Georgia Tech basketball game with Amanda and Rachel, which was the McCamish Pavilion. While we were at the basketball game, we saw Buzz and asked him if we could have a picture with him, and of course we have a picture with him, which was a fun night. The following week, Amanda and I decided to go to another basketball game, and it was so much fun. I got my very first internship at Paper & Clay at the Student Center on the Georgia Tech campus. At Paper & Clay, I cleaned the paintbrushes and other materials. I also supported workshops with students while answering their questions. I provided arts and crafts materials needed by the students who were visiting the center. I also met our Excel Program mentor coordinator Emilee’s puppy Oatmeal, which was the cutest! There was a fun event that the Student Center Programs Council planned to go to the Georgia Aquarium; that was where Amanda and I went to see all of the fishes and watch the dolphin show, which was really cool. I went to the Georgia State Capitol for the first time to go to the Inclusive Post-Secondary Education Advocacy Day, which was a good day because I did talk to my senator for like fifteen seconds. Toward the end of semester, we went to Warner’s Broadcasting as a trip, and I really liked it because I learned more about the broadcasting career. I also liked seeing the NBA TNT room because that was where they would talk about the sports. That was the end of my freshman year!

My sophomore year started when I moved into the dorm on August 18th, 2018. Amanda was my roommate again. My parents and boyfriend came up again for my birthday, which was nice. One of my good friends and Berri took me to Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams for a late birthday treat, which was so nice of her to do that. I also explored more places off campus with my friends. I went to Ponce City Market, the BeltLine, and Caribou Coffee. Amanda’s coach Selin invited Amanda, Bella, and I to a tea party with her sorority, which is Phi Mu. We had so much fun, and we got to dress up and wear our pretty dresses. Bella was a new freshman in Excel. I also got my second internship at the Women’s Resources Center in the Flag Building at Georgia Tech. At the Women’s Resources Center, I have organized books in alphabetical order, inventoried materials, and helped out with crafts. It was a good internship. I really liked my supervisor and coworkers. I also did an Alpha Xi Delta Autism Speaks 5k with my coach Abby, my mentor Charlotte, and Amanda. It was a fun race. Two weeks later was homecoming, and my best friend Claire from high school stayed over that weekend and went to the game with me! We had a ton of fun, and we went to Marlow’s Tavern together after the game. A few days after that, Rachel, Amanda, and I went to a Fall KATs and Dogs Party at Tau Kappa Epsilon to see all sorts of dogs. Rachel and I were so excited and happy because we both love dogs! I remember seeing a pug there, and it was so cute. Halloween is coming around the corner, and we had trunk or treating. That took place at the Georgia Tech Police Department. That was where we would go around some of the coaches’ and mentors’ cars and get candy from their car trunks. I call it the college version of Halloween. In November, my mentor at the time Emma, Rachel, Amanda, and I decided to take a nature walk around Piedmont Park to see all the fall leaves, and then after we got hot chocolate from (one of my favorite places) Caribou Coffee. The following weekend, my two of my friends from outside of Excel and George did an Autism Speaks 5k at Piedmont Park. It was sunny, and the weather felt great outside. I remember that George got into first or second place for men in our age group! He was so fast. That was a wrap for my first semester as a sophomore.

The second semester of my sophomore year started with me being really active. Amanda and I signed up to join a Zumba class at Georgia Tech Campus Recreation Center. It was so funny and embarrassing at the same time because it was the day where most of the fraternities were at their intramural basketball game. Just a week later, I did yoga for the first time with my friends at the Student Center. It was kind of hard, but I did it. During that week, I started my very first internship off campus. My internship was at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Scottish Rite in Sandy Springs, Georgia. The tasks that I had from working there were delivering gifts to patients’ rooms, supervising the hospital gift shop and assisting visitors who came in, putting medical equipment on poles and delivering it to the Emergency Department, playing with patients to give them a positive experience, and assisting children who required robotic rehabilitation. That was a good and cool experience. I liked delivering the gifts to the patients’ rooms to make them have a smile on their faces and make them happy and comfortable. My coach Natalia and I wanted to do a little shopping one weekend, and we went to Little Five Points in Atlanta, Georgia. It was such a cool area. We went into this thrift shop, and I bought a cute hat. We had so much fun! A few weeks went by, and Amanda and I decided to go to a fun event called Rock the CASA, where we listened to a lot of types of music and had dinner there. We had so much fun! They played the song “Let It Go” from Frozen and there were guys that were singing along to that song! I thought it was funny. A few days after that, Amanda and I went to a Georgia Tech baseball game, which was at the Russ Chandler Stadium. We both enjoy going to the baseball games because we both like watching baseball. The next big thing that happened was I got my first certificate in the Excel Program. I got my certificate for academic enrichment, social fluency, and career exploration. I was so happy about getting that. That was a wrap for my sophomore year!

My junior year started when I moved into the dorm on August 17th, 2019. The first week was fun because I got in touch with my good friend Laney, and we decided to get our nails done together on the first weekend back. That was her first time getting her nails done. My parents and older sister came up to celebrate my twenty-first birthday! I was always happy to see them coming up to have a birthday dinner with me. A few days after that, I started my second internship at the Frazer Center. I would have to say the Frazer Center has to be my second-favorite internship because it is getting close to the career that I want. The tasks that I did at the Frazer Center were helping preschool students to prepare for nap time, making sure students wash their hands, wiping down tables after breakfast, and playing with the students during recess. I have joined a service sorority on campus, and it is called Omega Phi Alpha. I am so happy that I joined Omega Phi Alpha; all of the girls are so nice. My good friend Grace and I did a service project together, and it was called Capturing the Spirit Oakland at Historic Oakland Cemetery. We went on a spirit tour toward the end of the night of this project, and we had so much fun! A few days after was big/little reveal for Omega Phi Alpha. Our big/little is about we get a big sister in the sorority to help us if we need help and reach our hours goal. I was so excited to meet my big and family that I was in. It turns out that Rachel became my big sister! I was also a part of the Delta family. That was such a happy day! Then a few days after that was homecoming. Rachel and I went to the homecoming game. Georgia Tech was playing against the University of Pittsburgh. Then, the following week, Omega Phi Alpha had their semiformal, which was at the Bill Moore Student Success Center on campus. I invited my boyfriend to our semiformal, and we had a great time. I also had a great time seeing my beautiful sorority sisters in their pretty dresses. It was one of the best nights I ever had in a while. Just a week after was rose night, which was when I was officially in Omega Phi Alpha for sure! Then, a few days later, my boyfriend, another friend, Rachel, and I decided to take some fall pictures because it was such a great day and the leaves were so beautiful. They were red, orange, and yellow leaves. That was a wrap of the first semester of junior year.

The second semester started off with Rachel’s birthday! She is finally twenty-one! I had so much fun celebrating with her, and we went to a restaurant called Barcelona Wine Bar in Atlanta, Georgia, for her birthday dinner! My spring internship took place at the Howard School. My tasks at the Howard School were signing in students as soon as they entered the classroom, assisting students with opening their juice boxes, putting up and stacking down chairs, and using walkie-talkies to verify and record students’ departure times. A few weeks after that, Omega Phi Alpha had recruitment week. Our theme was NU Bids on the Block. At the end of January, there was a little farm on campus, and I was so happy because I saw a goat! I love goats because they are so cute! Amanda got a bid in Omega Phi Alpha. I was so happy for her to join Omega Phi Alpha. A few weeks later, Amanda and I went to a Georgia Tech basketball game! We ended up getting a free shirt from that game! I actually liked my shirt because it said “Tech Basketball” on it! A few weeks after that game, my teacher Ashley and I went to my high school, the Cottage School, which is in Roswell, Georgia. We went there for a college fair to talk about the Excel Program. I was so happy to go back to the Cottage School to talk about the Excel Program. The following week, we went to the Georgia State Capitol for Inclusive Post-Secondary Education’s Advocacy Day. It was a long day, and I was sad because I didn’t get to talk to my senator that day, but I saw some of my friends that were in the Kennesaw State University Inclusive Program. A few days after that, I did a service project with Omega Phi Alpha and it was at the Reece Center in Palmetto, Georgia. The Reece Center was where we helped students with learning disabilities on their therapy riding horses for the Mental Health Project. A few weeks later we had a big/little reveal again. I actually signed up to become a big in Omega Phi Alpha because I wanted to be good friends with my little. When it was time, I got my little, and her name was Madeleine. She is a regular sophomore at Georgia Tech. As soon as she joined our Delta family, we were getting bigger because last semester we didn’t have that many people. I was receiving a little sister in our sorority. I love my Delta family. The following week was spring break, and then we all got an email about all of our classes being pushed onto online due to a virus called Coronavirus. Everyone had to stay home after spring break and could not go back to college for the rest of the semester. We had to do our classes virtually for the rest of the semester. Then, one weekend my dad and I had to go back on campus to get all of my things. That was a wrap of my junior year.

My senior year hits off differently this year. I started class on August 17th, 2020, virtual edition. It was an interesting first day of school because I was at home this year instead of being on campus. At least I got to start my internship during the first week. This semester I am interning at the Cottage School in Roswell, Georgia. I am honestly so happy to have this amazing opportunity to intern at the best school. The Cottage School is one of the internships that I always wanted to try to get to intern at and happily I get to. At the Cottage School my tasks are assisting students with various activities based on classroom and student needs, monitoring and correcting classroom behavior, distributing classroom materials and handouts, using administrative equipment to prepare classroom materials, and registering all homeroom classrooms for sports or afterschool participation. I would say interning at the Cottage School has to be my favorite internship so far because it is relating to the career path that I want, which is to become a teacher assistant. The following week was when we had a virtual Omega Phi Alpha Coffee Chat for our fall recruitment. I am so happy to be still involved with Omega Phi Alpha, even though I am doing it from home this semester. Then I was happy to finally celebrate my birthday at home with my family and boyfriend this year. Recently, I got to meet my coach Emily for the first time instead of the computer screen. We went to get coffee from a place close to my internship site, which is called Crazy Love Coffee House in Roswell, Georgia. Then we went to Target. I had so much fun with her. Hopefully, we will do that again over winter break and have my other mentor, Mia, to join us as well. I am so excited to see what other things will happen to me this and next semester.