The Good
Big shout out to John Mak for promoting the fantastic work that Coding for Good is doing! I am so proud to be part of an organization that is passionate about using their skills to benefit local communities!
https://lnkd.in/eQkraev
I am also proud to announce that my Badger Volunteers team won the Badger Volunteers Team Award! As much as I love to code and give back to my community through coding, I think that it is important for me to get out of the university bubble to interact with people of different backgrounds. More importantly, I am happy to be able to win $250 for Madison West High School. When I was tutoring there, I found that they could use more resources to help people who were learning English. My biggest challenge was teaching basic English and very simple math to students who understood very little English. I hope I was able to make a difference there!
Lastly, I believe that if you want to create change in your community, you are probably privileged in some way to give back.
The Bad
It’s no surprise that COVID-19 has infiltrated our everyday lives. All schools and universities in the United States are closed or online at the moment. Non-essential businesses are also closed, but some people want the economy to reopen now. Here’s a picture from the April 24th protest at the Wisconsin Capitol. As shown in the picture below, people are not happy with Governor Ever’s Safer at Home Order.
There are currently 1.21 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. currently and 3.58 million worldwide. I don’t personally know anyone with COVID-19, but it still hits me personally since I know high school seniors and college seniors. In particular, one of my best friends, Jack, is currently a high school senior. He has autism, but he is one of the best and most committed runners I know. When I was in high school two years ago, he inspired me to never stop chasing my dreams. This track season was supposed to be his biggest season. Now, he has no track meets to look forward to or even prom. Most high school seniors have college to look forward to, but for him, this is the end of his educational and track/cross country career. However, he is committed to doing solo races, and I don’t believe that he will stop chasing his dreams just because high school is over.
I know a lot of internships and jobs are getting canceled at the moment. Trust me, I know how difficult it can be to earn an internship. Currently, I am worried that mine will get canceled too, unless they find a way for me to work remotely. If you are in this situation, please reach out to your network and let people know about your situation.
Lastly, my thoughts go out to anyone suffering at the moment.
Helpful Resources
- SilverCloud This is specifically for UW students to manage anxiety and stress.
- Healthy Minds for resilience and mindfulness training.
- LifeMatters for assistance with life, work, family, and well-being.