University of Puerto Rico in Humacao

Department of Education

Melanie Y. Velázquez Claudio

442-08-8605

EDPE 4006-001

Dr. Nilsa Lugo

Special Project: Student Center

At the last reunion we had with Dr. Lugo, we got told that we needed to distribute our

jobs so that each one would be responsible for a certain task. So, what we did is that we

established our goals and gave each one of us a task to complete by the end of April. Teressa

Bernard was in charge of the security of the center. Carmen Rivera was in charge of promoting

the student center, telling every student what the student center was and what was it for.. I, on the

other hand, was in charge of making sure that the student center had someone who would stay in

charge and look after it while the students are using it. I had a meeting with the school director,

Efrain Vázquez, and Mrs. Flores, the person who is in charge of the school’s group of leaders.

They had agreed to give the responsibility of taking care of the center to the school’s group of

leaders. The hours that they complete there will be part of their community work hours. I was

also in charge of establishing a date for the student center inauguration and passing the memo

throughout the school. This was done on Friday, before the inauguration on Monday, April 30,

2012. On Monday we decided to go to all of the classrooms to make sure that the students came

to the inauguration, like a half an hour before. Dr. Lugo had told us she was attending the

inauguration, so we really wanted the students to be there. To our surprise, there were much

more students in the inauguration than we expected. The student center was a total success and

we were very proud of ourselves.

The student center was a success alright, but we had a really hard time finding the chairs

that were going to be on the center. We had had a meeting with the school director and he told us

that he was going to help us. We had asked him if we could plan an activity in which the

majority of the money that was raised would go to the graduating class, but that at least twenty

percent of it was for buying the chairs for the student center. That never happened and we never

received anything from him. The truth is he never helped us. We had to do everything on our

own because he just wasn’t interested on helping us. In fact, he never came to the inauguration

and five days after it opened, we still have not seen his face around there. so, I don’t feel very

happy with his cooperation as a “cooperating” director. We had to find more donations in order

to buy at least 1 plastic chairs, because he didn’t want to do anything.

In terms of designing the “Student Center”, we had acquired the idea from a school police

officer. He told us that the students needed place to hang out because they had nothing to do at

lunch hour. This is when I thought of a student center and gave the idea to Teressa and Carmen.

They really liked the idea and we decided to go with it. We had to look for donations outside of

the school and buy all of the games and materials for the center. We also received help from the

mayor’s office in Yabucoa. They gave us chairs, benches, and some paint for the center. Thanks

to the help and support from our donors we could open our center.

We went to the school to decorate and organize the center three days. During these days

we did many things. We painted the center and made the drawings. We also brought all of the

things that were going to be on the center like the chairs, the decorations, and the games. I

collected $120.00 and with this a bought a few games and the material to make the pool table.

My parents helped out on building the pool table and they also brought it to the school. They also

helped me do the last details of the room like helping me paint the theme of the center which is

“Sharing means to transform, create, learn, to make use of our sociable qualities, and become

one union, one people, one strength.” I wrote this theme myself, thinking of the four core values,

which are diversity, creativity, leadership, and social transformation. With this project, we

wanted to make a positive change in the lives of these students. We figured that these young

boys and girls needed a place where they could get together without discriminating against others

and being able to share with those who were not so accepted by them before. I have been so

happy to see the diversity of students in the center. This student center has served as that missing

link between the students. This is what they needed to put aside their differences and learn from

each other. I feel so proud of everything that we have accomplished and of the student’s behavior

inside the center. They really seem to be thankful and they tell us every day that they love it and

that they thank us for it.

I believe my relationship with the student is one that is stronger and trustful. They have

gained my total trust, because I have seen in them how much they care for their center and how

much they love it. I would tell other future teacher candidates that the most important thing to do

when thinking of a school project is to this of the student first and not of just completing a

project for a grade. They must remember that they will leave a mark in each and every one of

those students and that they have to power to make a change in their lives also. The impact that

the project must have has to be one that will remain in the student’s memories and hearts forever.

We want the students to see us one day and say “Hey! There’s the teacher who gave us that

awesome present one day. Thank you!” We want the students to be happy with the project, to be

proud of their school, and to be able to learn from the experience and become whole new people.

And hopefully we have accomplished us with our student center.

I don’t think I would have done any changes to our student center. I believe we all did

our jobs extremely well. We all met our responsibilities and finished up with a very successful

student center for the school. We received the help we needed from our family members and

thanks to them the center was completed also. We have received great feedback from the

students and the teachers. They are all really happy with the results. And, even though the school

director has not even bothered to visit the center, I believe he will be very pleased also.

Although, I really would have liked to have had more meetings and more time with the director

so that the student center would have turned out to be a little bit better. I hope to go to the school

one day after finishing my practice and see that the student center is still up and running. That

would be the most exciting thing ever if that would happen. But, for now I can only hope that the

director makes every effort to keep his word and work for maintaining the center open.