Reflection, Thoughts 9/20/14

With my CAS project, I hope to accomplish having an impact on the community. I want to help and teach kids about the effects of drugs on their brain and how they negatively influence ones future. I hope to impact at least one life, in that I can change the way they view drugs and alcohol and show them that there are so many exhilarating and awesome experiences in life that can imitate a high naturally. I will know when I reach my goal when I start to see a shift in the culture not only in my high school, but also amongst the younger kids and teens in general. How, you might ask, will I know when this happens? I'm not sure it can be something that we can clearly see, but I believe I will know when I am doing a presentation to the middle schools, and can see kids' faces embracing the knowledge I give them and truly understand and want to hold onto it for their future. This will be the most rewarding thing I do. But I also think that fundraising and putting on events for teens to participate in will be a step towards reaching my goals as well, because they will be spending their time experiencing natural highs. The best thing that could happen as the result of my CAS project is making an impact on the community and the culture amongst teens about drugs. I want the program to be recognized within the community and I think that the more teens hear about it, the better this will be because ultimately, my goal is to have a positive impact on even just one life. To be the best prepared for this, I will need to be an active leader in the Palisade Neural Activity club, as well as an overall leader. I need to be open to new ideas and I will need to communicate to get my ideas across and recognize the ideas of others. I believe I will have the most control over organization, planning, and setting the goals and successes for the club and any expansions of my CAS project and goals. I predict that implementing the club in the high schools will be very successful, especially with the increased drug use among teens. It will need to grow and spread with the help of support from classmates as well as parents throughout the community. I believe that with the active support of parents and the community overall, the club will spread rapidly, which means we will be helping and influencing even more lives. Through this journey, I would like to perfect my public speaking abilities and overall sociability. I want to be able to be completely relaxed and unphased when I speak in front of large crowds, and by presenting to middle schoolers, I know it will be a challenge but great practice! Overall, I am excited to be starting this CAS project because I know this is needed and is a program that will work amongst teens. I am ready to start making a difference.