Scholars Heading Into the Future Together!

Summer all of a sudden became busy! 2008 is shaping up to be a hectic, but amazing year --

My most recent adventure was with the 2008 class of Daniels Scholars. As an '05 Scholar myself, I was very excited to meet the new students and help them prepare for college like my mentors helped me three years ago. Granted, the SHIFT (Scholars Heading Into the Future Together) program is not going to answer everyone's questions, but it's a unique event that the vast majority of upcoming freshman won't have had.

The Daniels Fund is a foundation created by Bill Daniels, a cable pioneer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He wanted to give back to the communities he said gave him so much: those in Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Utah. When he died, he imparted much of his estate to the foundation and directed it to be given in the form of four-year, unmet need scholarships to students in those four states. 8 years later, hundreds of students, including myself and the students who joined me this past week, have benefitted from Daniels' generosity. What's more is that we are all charged with staying true to his legacy of integrity, giving, ethics, and civic engagement.

You could say that's why we have SHIFT.

SHIFT also serves as a first big stepping stone into the college world -- students come from all corners of the four states, with all kinds of backgrounds and experiences, and they're all headed off to colleges across the country. Most large scholarship foundations just give the students and let them run with the money -- and while that may be easier, I think the Daniels Fund has the right idea: we all need to remember the responsibilities that come with our great priviledge, and we have to remember to honor Bill Daniels and his legacy.

I was selected as a Peer Mentor, and although I interacted with many of the 250+ students who spent the week at DU to participate in SHIFT, I had the honor of spending much of the week with a core group of students. In other words, I got to hang out with 16 amazing scholars from Colorado and New Mexico, and we lived up to our name of "Family Group 11."

I love them! They are all going amazing places, and I can't wait to hear about their adventures. Just one week with them was enough to know that they all were deserving of the scholarship, and that they don't take that responsibility lightly. By the end oft he week, when we celebrated at a DF Gala for the community, I cried like a pride mom on graduation day -- MY KIDS ARE GREAT!

I'm so glad to have done SHIFT and hope that someday I will be doing it again. Most of all, I hope to stay in touch with my fellow scholars!

SHIFT was an exhausting but rewarding week. Now, I'm back to life in the hectic '08 summer...I'm interning at 9News again 3 days a week, and doing work study at the International House on campus 3 other days of the week. That leaves my Saturdays free, but I still end up doing something. It's all good experience and great times with friends, so I can't complain!

But oh crap...July is almost over!

;-)

~MJ

The pictures are of my group; the top one is us with Daniels Fund CEO, Linda Childears; the second is us before the DF Gala; the third is with Bill Daniels' likeness:-D
More can be found on Picasa.