‘THE IMPACT OF OUR COLLECTIVE EFFORT FELT SO REAL…’

This week marks the beginning of our final days at Shortridge. After a short hiatus, we are eager to get back in the classroom with the kids. The other tutors and I were on break the second week of March and the IPS students are just coming back from their two-week intersession. Spring Break did come as a refreshing break after the dreadfully cold and snowy end to winter. I’m sure our students felt the same way, especially thanks to the beautiful weather they had over the last two weeks. Spring Break was exactly the rejuvenation we all needed to finish the semester strong. With the end of another year in sight, and lots of changes coming our way, I’m excited to get back to Shortridge and reconnect with the students.

During the intersession, we Butler Writers got together to review all of the poems we gathered from students over the course of the year to put into our annual lit mag. We broke into groups and dove into the work written by the students we’ve become so close with. Smiles came to our faces as we remembered poems written earlier in the year and heard poems that were never read aloud in class. Though we have a time for open mic readings, not all of our students choose to read their work. Some poems elicited laughs, others touched our hearts. My favorite part about reviewing the poems was seeing the pride in the tutors’ eyes when a poem was shared that they had helped a student with. I was amazed as I realized how many of the poems I’d played a part in. The impact of our collective effort felt so real as we looked over the entire collection of poems

As touching as our private celebration was, I can’t wait to see the looks on the students’ faces when they find their own poems published in the annual Exclusive Ink lit mag. This semester has been a hard one with the future of Shortridge looming ahead. Nonetheless, we have a devoted group of students who still come weekly to meet with us, eat with us, and speak with us. One day, as I waited to hear who I would be paired with for the day, I realized I’d worked with nearly every student. I know their names. I know who is in whose squad. I’ve talked with them about where they are headed next year. And I even tell my friends stories about them. I am really going to miss spending my afternoons with these students. So, as we move into these last three weeks, I am going to make sure I make the most of each day. Whether it’s a conversation about college over a PB&J sandwich or another goofy day quoting SpongeBob, I am eager to get back in the classroom with these students.

Rachel Brown is a senior English and French major.